Children's book narrates Greek teddy bear's journey to China

By Target Language Translation Services | Updated: 2021-12-17 11:00

A yellow teddy bear, found in a dumpster half a century ago, has become a star exhibit of the Benaki Toy Museum in Athens since it opened in 2017. The adventurous bear, a vital collection item, has also reached China through a children's book written by Greek educator and author Eleni Geroulanou.

In a recent interview at the museum, Geroulanou said that literature has a wonderful role to play in building bridges. Books remind us of how much we all have in common, as the emotions and meanings that underlie great stories are universal, crossing cultures and language barriers.

In her fairy tale, Once Upon a Time, a Bear, which has been translated into Chinese and published by China's Hebei Children's Publishing House, the teddy bear wanders around the city in search of his home.

The bear finally finds a new home and family in the embrace of Maria Argyriadis, a Greek researcher of toys who picked up the bear from the dumpster. Since then, some 20,000 such items have been collected from all over the world and donated to the Benaki Toy Museum, a 19th-century mansion resembling a castle, by the seaside.

Once Upon a Time, a Bear is based on the true story of Argyriadis and the teddy bear.

Argyriadis passed away in 2018, but was lucky to see the museum open its doors in 2017, and the book printed in Greek.

"For Maria, this bear was unique. For the bear, Maria was his family. I was touched by this story and I wanted to make it public," the author says.

Geroulanou says her passion for toys, and her family's friendship with Argyriadis, inspired her to write the book.

Geroulanou says that she had wanted to work with children since she was a teenager. She studied early childhood education in Athens, continued her studies in Boston, the United States, specializing in children's museum education and returned home to combine museum education with teaching.

As the headmistress of a kindergarten in a renowned Athens private school, she is constantly close to children.

In 2019 at the Bologna Children's Book Fair in Italy, her Greek publisher showed the book to a Chinese counterpart, who loved the story and decided to publish it in China.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Geroulanou has not been able to visit China yet, but she says she is looking forward to meeting with Chinese readers of her book, when things get better.

Cultural exchanges are essential for deeper understanding between people from different countries, Geroulanou says. "Through the exchange of ideas and stories, we create stronger bonds with each other, and become more inspired and creative as we broaden our horizons," she adds.

She says that both Greece and China have rich cultures and traditions dating back to ancient times, and that there is so much to learn from each other.

"I hope the young Chinese readers enjoy my book, my story and travel with our bear on his journey to find his home," Geroulanou says.

This article is reprinted from China Daily.

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