Outside in World | Browse Books
Use our Book Finder to search for books by Title (or part of the title), Author, ISBN, Age Range, Keyword, or Continent/Country. Then simply click the magnifying glass to start your search.
If a title starts with 'The', leave this out as this is added to the end of the title in brackets. funny pictures funny images funny photos really funny pictures
‘We need the literature of other countries to expand our
horizons and stimulate our ideas. Without it, we are not only
diminished, we are starved’
(The Times, Magnus Linklater 29/06/05)
Please email us to sign up to our Newsletter
Step into My Shoes
by Alkisti Halikia
Age Range: Under_5
Matou lives just outside Paris and every day she walks past a mosque on her way home from school. One day when she is let out early, she notices all the different types of shoes lined up outside, including a pair of pristine white and orange trainers with orange laces. As they look almost her size, Matou can’t resist trying them on. Just then, the mosque door opens and Matou has to quickly take the shoes off and scurry away. Stopping to tie up her shoelaces, she sees the wearer of the sports shoes go past, a smartly dressed boy who gets into a shiny blue car. “Hmm, maybe that’s why they don’t have a single scratch. He probably doesn’t do much walking …” thinks Matou. From that day on, Matou stops each day to try on more shoes and she becomes curious about their owners imagining the lives they might lead.
Matou’s mother has promised to take her shopping on Friday after she comes home from work but when she has to stay late and the trip is cancelled Matou is angry and refuses to talk to her mum. Her mum tells her: “step into my shoes for a moment” and Matou takes it literally. Can doing so, help Matou build a stronger understanding between them?
Greek author Alkisti Halikia has written a thought-provoking and clever story, translated by Kostantine Matsoukas, around the expression “to step into someone’s shoes”. As Matou tries to understand the owners of the different shoes she tries on, and more importantly, to understand things from her mother’s perspective, she learns the importance of empathy. Fotim Tikkou’s illustrations combine a mix of coloured pencils, collage and digital techniques. With their contrasting brown tones and dashes of vibrant colour, they are both playful and expressive.
The original Greek edition was named an IBBY Honour Book in 2022.