Santillana Presents the Children’s Book Cuentos sin ningún porqué By Yuan Fuei Liao

Santillana Presents the Children’s Book Cuentos sin ningún porqué By Yuan Fuei Liao
Santo Domingo, November 2 2015

Editorial Santillana and newcomer children book author Yuan Fuei Liao, launched his first book “Cuentos sin ningún porqué,” aimed at children aged eight years and above, in the Pedro Mir Forum of the Cuesta book store.

Journalist José Rafael Sosa presented the biography of the author, with whom he shares a passion for origami; and the director of the Togogán magazine, Leibi Ng, introduced the book. Ruth Herrera, Santillana’s representative, presented the dedication and hosted the evening.

Yuan, who refers to his work as a Catholic preacher as that of a “diversionero,” a mix of entertainer and missionary, explained that “Cuentos sin ningún porqué” is part of his rediscovery of the sense of wonder, “of the contemplative gaze of the little ones, with the child within me and with the one that is outside of me, with and without their whys.”

Leibi Ng was impressed by the renewed approach of the book, “which reminds us that the mission of the authors of children’s literature is to create with the needs of the child in mind, not thinking about the needs of the textbook, nor about correcting behaviors, or about training the adult of the future…”.

What comes to life in the book is the incredible, everyday things that are found in extraordinary situations. That becomes evident, for example, in the stories of the dead tree that turns into a giraffe, the boy who wins the race with a light foot and a heavy foot, the monkey that speaks using monosyllables, the little thief of other people’s shadows, the window open on the floor instead of on the wall…

The event closed with a show of magic performed by Yuan, a collective origami under Sosa’s direction, and a song composed and performed by Laura Sánchez, the author’s wife, with the attending public made of children and adults providing the chorus.

Photos

Carmen Acevedo, José Rafael Sosa, Leibi Ng, Yuan Fuei Liao y Ruth Herrera

Maribel Fernández, Axel Wehbe Reyes y Brigitte Reyes

Aida Mencía, Tiziana González y Guarocuya González

Hernando Taveras, Hortensia Álvarez, Laura Sánchez y María Eugenia Nader

Juan Pablo Padilla, Soirre Fernández y Juan Diego Padilla

Tesalia Ferreiras, José Ventura y Laura de la Rosa

Lia Martínez y Eva Baquero

María Paola Hernández, Eduardo Álvarez, Isis García y Sofía García

Sheyla Madera, José Rosado y Angela Santana

Marcel Lantigua, Laura de la Rosa y Melissa Báez

Ramón Del Villar, Lia Camila Del Villar, Diego Del Villar y Helen Vargas