About Us
The word Kurumuru comes from the German ‘kuddelmuddel’, which means a joyful, colourful, swirling mix of everything. We’ve changed it to be pronounced the Japanese way to reflect the cultures of our two founders: German-Thai Ella, and Japanese-American Leah.
Mission
Our mission (and yours, should you choose to accept it!) is to bring more diversity to children’s, middle-grade, and young adult literature. We specialise in translated, bilingual, and global books because we believe that reading about other cultures is key to building empathy and understanding. Plus, nobody should ever feel left out, so we want our books to help make everyone feel included and represented in literature.
Books
As our name suggests, we don’t focus on any one genre or language. We accept submissions from authors, agents, and translators from any language, in any genre, for ages up to 18 (although we prefer to think that even 18+ people who are young at heart can enjoy our books, too!) We think reading should be fun, so while we do think representation and diversity are important, we prefer books that integrate those themes seamlessly. Other topics we’re especially interested in are science and technology, folk tales and mythology, and family relationships.
People
We work with an amazing group of freelancers, translators, and artists to help bring each book to life. But we’re all about embracing diversity, and that means we’re always looking for new voices, aesthetics, and talent! If you’re interested in getting involved with publishing, get in touch!
You are never alone when lost in the magic of a book.
Marie Lu
Leah Tanaka
Director/Editor
Leah is a professional translator and editor from Colorado, USA. She enjoys baking, hiking, and reading in her spare time. Her favourite book is The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner.
Ella Micheler
Director/Editor
Ella is an editor, translator, social media marketing extraordinaire. She grew up in Germany and Thailand and loves travelling the world. Her favourite book is Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson.
Jack Wolpertinger
International Representative
Jack is part rabbit, part deer (or maybe antelope), and part bird. He comes from all over and loves to travel. (Sometimes he even visits the moon!) He’s always on the lookout for his next favourite book.