'Toy Stories' shows kids with their favorite toys

Italian photographer Gabriele Galimberti traveled to more than 50 countries for his new book "ToyStories: Photos of Children from Around the World and Their Favorite Things." The book will be outon March 25, and is published by Abrams Image. Here are some of the children featured:

Maudy, 3 -- Kalulushi, Zambia

'Toy Stories': Children's favorite things

'Toy Stories': Children's favorite things

'Toy Stories': Children's favorite things

'Toy Stories': Children's favorite things

'Toy Stories': Children's favorite things

'Toy Stories': Children's favorite things

'Toy Stories': Children's favorite things

'Toy Stories': Children's favorite things

'Toy Stories': Children's favorite things

'Toy Stories': Children's favorite things

'Toy Stories': Children's favorite things

'Toy Stories': Children's favorite things

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

"Toy Stories" features kids from around the world with their favorite toys

Photographer Gabriele Galimberti visited more than 50 countries for the project

The book will be released on March 25 by publisher Abrams Image

(CNN) -- Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens are swell and all, but boys and girls fromaround the world have vastly different interpretations of their "favorite things," according to a newbook by Italian photographer Gabriele Galimberti.

Galimberti visited more than 50 countries to document children with their most prized playthings for"Toy Stories: Photos of Children from Around the World and Their Favorite Things," which will bereleased on March 25.

The photos prompt readers to reflect on the abundance of possessions that some children enjoywhile others live a comparatively pared down existence because of poverty or their cultural values.

"The fewer toys a child had, the less possessive he or she was about them," notes London-basedwriter Ben Machell in the book's introduction. "Galimberti describes having to spend several hourswinning the trust of Western children before they would consent to let him touch their planes, cars,or dolls. 'In poorer countries, they don't care as much. They play in a different way, running around,sharing one ball between them all.' "

Not only are the toys reflective of the children's socioeconomic class but also their parents'aspirations.

"Hopes and ambitions are passed down through the toys parents choose for their children. Childrenfrom families boasting musicians invariably receive toy instruments," Machell writes, also notingthat a cab driver's son had a fleet of toy cars.

Galimberti recently chatted with CNN via e-mail about "Toy Stories." The interview has been editedfor clarity and brevity.

CNN: Where did you get the idea for the project?

Gabriele Galimberti: I started this project almost by chance. The first photo I took of this series wasin Tuscany (Alessia, the girl with the cows in the background). She's the daughter of one of my bestfriends; that friend asked me to photograph her child.

[When] I went to their house, and she was playing with the cows, I thought that situation was reallynice and I decided to take the photo of her there with the cows and her toys. I really loved the resultof that photo, and some months later when I was starting my trip around the world, I decided to takethe same kind of photo in every country that I was going to visit.

Don't miss out on the conversation we're having at CNN Living. Follow us on Twitter and Facebookfor the latest stories and tell us what's influencing your life.

I had the opportunity to travel around the world for more than two years because, at that time, I wasworking for one of the major Italian magazines "D-La Repubblica." I was doing a project aboutCouchSurfing.org, so I traveled to 58 countries by only using the network.

All the children that I have photographed are somehow connected to the couch surfers that hostedme along my long trip. They are their children, their nieces and nephews or simply their neighbors.

Picture this: 'Much Loved' teddy bears

CNN: These toys are obviously prized possessions to the boys and girls -- how did you earn thechildren's trust?

Galimberti: I played with them! And, of course, with the help of their parents. Most of the time, itwas really easy to get their trust. I always had the photos of the children I photographed before, sosometimes it was just enough to show them the other photos to convince them to pose for me. I wasreally surprised to see how easy it was for children to understand my project.

CNN Photos: Clown 'revolution' lifts refugee kids

CNN: What did you want the project's takeaway to be?

Galimberti: I don't want to give any particular message. I just wanted to show how different we arein the world, and how different people live all around the globe.

CNN: Did any particular photo shoots stick out?

Galimberti: Every child and photo has their own funny anecdote, but one of the most particular is theone I photographed in Zambia: Maudy, the girl with the sunglasses.

I was in this little village in the north part of the country, a place where there is almost nothing -- noelectricity, no running water and, of course, no toy stores. It is almost impossible to find a child witha toy. Almost all of the children play outside with each other, and they are used to playing withanything they find outside.

I was lucky enough to arrive in that village a couple of days after Maudy found a box of sunglasseson the ground along the main road. Her mother told me she thought they had fallen off a truck, butall the children in the village were playing with these glasses.

CNN: Did you have a favorite toy growing up that you would have been photographed with if theshoe was on the other foot?

Galimberti: Yes, from ages 3 to 6, I had a little [plush] monkey that I called Bongo Bongo. That wasfor sure my favorite one!