John Kilaka

John Kilaka (born 4 November 1966 in Sumbawanga, southwest Tanzania) is a Tanzanian writer and illustrator, best known as a creator of children's picture books.[1]

Kilaka is an artist, storyteller and enthusiast when it comes to the collecting of old traditions and stories. When Kilaka was young he always painted and soon realized that he needed to make his way to Dar es Salaam for an education. There he got familiar with Tingatinga painting and today he is a front figure. He debuted as a book illustrator with Fresh Fish. It was a big international success as well as True Friends which received the New Horizon award at the 2004 Bologna Children's Book Fair.

In 2004 Kilaka was awarded the Peter Pan Silver Star (Peter Pans silverstjärna) for his work with Fresh Fish.[2] His latest book is The Amazing Tree (2009), which was translated to many languages, e.g. Swedish by Britt Isaksson under the title Förtrollad frukt. This book was also awarded the Silver Star, in 2011.[2] All three books are fables that praise friendship.

References
  1. Walter Sawyer, Growing Up With Literature, 6th ed., Cengage Learning, 2011, p. 101, ISBN 978-1111342654. "Respect for the gifts of all is the message of The Amazing Tree by John Kilaka. This story from the Fipa tribe in Tanzania is about cooperation and respect for others. It is illustrated in the author/ illustrator's original Kilaka style."
  2. "Tidigare mottagare av Silverstjärnorna" (in Swedish). International Board on Books for Young People–Sweden (ibby.se). Retrieved 26 April 2013.
  • "John Kilaka". In Anita Theorell, Afrika har ordet, Uppsala: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, 2010, ISBN 978-91-7106-673-2. (in Swedish)


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