“Would I be happier if I were a little thinner?”
A lovely coming-of-age story from Bologna Ragazzi Award-winning author David Cali.

How I see myself vs. How others see me

It's not easy to describe who I am.
Sometimes the things I like are what define me.
Odette is a child with many preferences.
I love Leo David's work, especially his 'Super Grasshopper' character.
Odette also likes to eat.
I love candies, chocolates, crunchy pastries, croissants, madeleines and canelés.
Above all, I love spaghetti bolognese topped with lots of cheese.


Readers who enjoy these foods will especially understand Odette's feelings.
Odette is concerned about “not being thin.”
Odette's parents think she is a very thin girl, but her friends think she is fat.
To readers, Odette would be a child who envies thin children.

As such, Odette has different sides depending on how you look at it.
These aspects are part of Odette, but it is difficult to see them as Odette herself.

In I Dance My Dance, Bologna Ragazzi Award-winning author David Cali humorously presents ways to affirm oneself in the face of various perspectives.
The painter Clotilde Delacroix fluidly expressed the states and emotional changes of her characters using limited lines and colors.


What kind of adult do you want to be?

Odette has a lot of favorite foods, but she decides not to eat them anymore.
Because they think that if they become slim, everyone will like them.
But Odette's parents think differently.
Odette's mother constantly offers her snacks while she goes shopping, and Odette falls for her mother's 'sweet temptations'.


Unlike Odette's parents, in reality, it's often the case that parents want their children to be slim.
Sometimes it's a suggestion for health, but there are also many who want to look good 'in the eyes of others'.
On the other hand, no matter how much parents try to dissuade them, children sometimes go on excessive diets on their own.
What should I do in this case?

We should all be able to choose what kind of body we want to have.
Since this is a choice that has a significant impact on my life, I need to determine what I want among various options.
In "I Dance My Own Dance," Odette begins to dance her own dance because she has the conviction that "this is how I want to live!"
That's why we need more concrete and diverse adults who show children that they don't have to be confined by stereotypes.


Selected for the publication translation support program hosted by the French Cultural Center

Since 2010, the French Cultural Center in Korea has been supporting Korean publishers who wish to translate and publish excellent French works into Korean.
《I Dance My Own Dance》 was selected for PAP Sejong and its value was recognized.
The original title is 《odette fait des claquettes Odette, Tap Dance》, but the Korean title was set to 《I Dance My Own Dance》 to emphasize the meaning of affirming one's own existence.
This is a picture book that can be enjoyed by both children and adults who are concerned about their appearance.