©2025, 2020 Cooperative Children’s Book Center

Compiled by Megan Schliesman, Merri Lindgren, and Tessa Michaelson Schmidt

This bibliography was designed with U.S. readers in mind, so “other countries” refers to countries other than the United States.

Books on the list are arranged by geographic region of the world as follows:

• Africa
• Americas and the Caribbean
• Asia and Pacific Islands
• Europe and Australia
• Middle East

The regional categories are further subdivided by picture books, novels, and non-fiction.

It should be noted that one of the difficulties regarding the availability of books set in other countries, especially across Mexico, Central and South America, Africa, some parts of Asia and the Middle East, is that they are often narratives illuminating hardship. While it is important for U.S. readers to understand these challenges, it is also important they understand narratives about struggle don’t tell the whole story of any place. Literature can be an important avenue to empathy and understanding, but it is important that children not develop a one-sided impression of other countries. So while we have tried to offer a variety here, books alone do not necessarily provide a balanced understanding of life in other places.

Emphasis has been placed on books published in 2010 or later; a few older books were chosen if they were translated or provide unique content and are still in print. The list includes history as well as contemporary life. See our Recommended Book Search for additional books set in other countries recommended by the CCBC.