An interview with student translators from Singapore

"The biggest problem we encountered was that we often had different ideas about how to translate a sentence or a word. Therefore, we found ourselves in heated discussions over which to choose," Wang said. "As we are typically very busy anyway, we learned to make full use of our spare time, listen carefully to each other's views and avoid wasting precious time. Finally, we achieved the end result through effective discussion and overcoming difficulties.

"Before this, I didn't expect it would take so much effort to translate a children's book. We had to be very sensitive with our choice of words and, more importantly, have an interest in language so as to be able to properly translate the meaning of the story."

He Xuening: Books offer us another kind of life experience

The three girls are different in character but share the same hobby - reading. Wu Qixuan likes detective fiction, Wang Yuning prefers prose and He Xuening enjoys novels. Speaking on her hobbies, He Xuening said, "When I am immersed in the world of a story's characters, it's like experiencing another kind of life!"

"I like the ending best, because the two characters in the story work together to do their parts for the environment and make a resolution that rainbows should appear in the sky again. The ending is very beautiful and touches me very much," He said. "It also reminds me all of us have the capability to create a better future for the earth, but we first need to know how to cherish it. Though there are just one or two short sentences to end the book, they've left me with a deep impression.

"I've learned a lot from this experience and will savor all of it. Translation is not an easy job, and it is a process of continuous learning."