The Children of the Sun: An Inca Legend

⭐ "Utterly spellbinding...An origin epic brilliantly retold." 
―Kirkus Reviews (STARRED REVIEW)

⭐ "A wondrous adaptation of a Peruvian creation story." 
―Horn Book (STARRED REVIEW)

The birth of human civilization is recounted in this celebrated Incan legend, retold by Peruvian poet Micaela Chirif and award-winning illustrator Juan Palomino.

How was the world’s first city formed? How did people learn to plant crops, cook food, and weave fabric? 

One day, back when the world was new and no one built houses, the Sun saw himself reflected in the waters of Lake Titicaca. He came closer to his own shining face, and a flame fell into the lake, giving birth to a young man and young woman. The Sun gave his son and daughter an important task: to found the very first city, a place where they could teach humans better ways of living. The children of the Sun set out to find the perfect spot, and the people of the earth followed them.

With rich language and striking art, poet Micaela Chirif (Peru) and New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Children’s Book winner Juan Palomino (Mexico) retell a story from the Incan empire that once ruled western South America. The Children of the Sun invites today’s children to hear an explanatory myth from a pre-Colombian culture―and ponder how it relates to other stories about cities and communities. 

The Children of the Sun is translated from Spanish by award-winning translator Lawrence Schimel and is part of Eerdmans’ Stories from Latin America series. An engaging way to explore fables, myths, and legends as well as South American culture during Indigenous People’s Day and Hispanic Heritage Month.

Micaela Chirif is a Peruvian poet and author whose books have been translated into Korean, Japanese, English, Portuguese, and French. Sheep Count Flowers (Levine Querido) was called “utterly beguiling” in a starred Kirkus review, and A Sleepless Night was named a USBBY Outstanding International Book and a Mildred D. Batchelder Honor Book. Visit Micaela’s website at micaelachirif.pe or follow her on Instagram @micaelachirif.

Juan Palomino is a prolific Mexican illustrator who started his own illustration teaching program at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. Letters in Charcoal (Lantana) was nominated for the Carnegie Medal for illustration, and The Young Teacher and the Great Serpent (Eerdmans) was named a USBBY Outstanding International Book and New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Children’s Book. Follow Juan on Instagram @juanpalomino.ilustrator.

Lawrence Schimel has written or translated over 300 books, including The Adventures of Odysseus, 9 Kilometers, and the Batchelder Honor Book Different. He is also the translator of Nicolás Schuff and Ana Sender’s How to Reach the Moon and of Mariana Ruiz Johnson’s The Book that Kibo Wrote. Lawrence’s works have received many awards, including three PEN Translates Awards, two SCBWI Crystal Kite Awards, and two Américas Award Honors. Lawrence lives in Madrid, Spain. Follow him on Bluesky @lawrenceschimel.bksy.social.