Before diving headfirst into the news that will begin to arrive (surely) for Sant Jordi’s Day, we want to review what has come to us in the editorial office since we started this 2024. They highlight interesting proposals on gender, sex and identity that we save for another entry of these Tales that tell,
A fun repetition book for the little ones in the house with an ideal bedtime story. Like the ten protagonists of this story do, they go to bed together, but when they turn around, there is always one who falls. The lion, the cow, the cat, the sheep, the dog… All of them, one by one, fall with each turn of the page until only the rooster is left in the bed, which, seeing itself alone, invites everyone to sleep together again. . We count to ten and keep each other company, what more do we want! Also in Catalan.
There are not many stories in plain writing in bookstores, since this is a very short stage in children’s reading lives. So finding one that is also interesting, fun and original, is difficult to say the least. But here we have The Elephant, by the Korean author Jungyeon Kang, the first that we have knowledge of that comes to us from him. We will only say from the book that this elephant has such a long trunk that, without knowing it, it is very useful to all the animals in the forest, until some flowers cause the inevitable.
Another elephant stars in this story by French creator Éric Battut, very given to funny entanglements. On this occasion it is no wonder, because the elephant has decided that the spider lady’s web looks very good to become a swing, and the spider lady, for her part, cannot accommodate herself because of the piece so good and great that has fallen into its net. She is also hungry, so she begins to prepare Mr. Elephant to serve him at her table: cleaning him, seasoning him, cooking him… Do you think that the elephant has realized that he has been hunted? In fact he is only interested in playing. So he jumps from the plate to the swing and starts again. Also in Catalan.
Is there a perfect hug? Alexander von Biscuit thinks so. He dreamed about it one night and now he has summoned all his friends, neighbors and acquaintances to find that ideal partner with whom to give himself that perfect hug. But for Alexander the toad, nothing is going as it should and there is no way to find perfection. So he feels very depressed while around him it seems like everyone around him has caught the hug. A warm story that places egocentrism and perfection at the center of the narrative, with illustrations that remind us of the best classics. And best of all: after reading it, you have to run and give it a big hug. Also in Catalan.
This sheep is tired of always being on the verge of entering the scene. Mrs. Ofelia, who always takes forever to fall asleep and counts sheep to call sleep, what a coincidence that she always falls asleep when she reaches 18. She, Sheep 19, is always ready to take the leap, but never has the chance, until he decides to take matters into his own hands. Because where is it written that they should jump only one at a time? If they do it two by two, or three by three, many more will have the opportunity to act. Or should they change the starting order so that the last ones are the first? A nice story about equal opportunities. Also in Catalan, Basque, Galician and English.
The revisiting of a personal and memorable journey from Hans Christian Andersen Award winner Jutta Bauer, which begins with a royal order. Tiago, a very fast mouse, has been summoned to deliver an urgent message to the king of the neighboring country. But no matter how fast he goes, there are things he can’t avoid, like helping a fallen classmate, or a child who has lost his ball, or an overwhelmed mother. It is a vital journey, Tiago’s, that will change his life. And along the way it will provide him with enough stories so that his king, delighted with his stories, does not retaliate for not having completed the mission. The first version of this journey was published in 2013 with the title The King’s Messenger. The version now released by Bindi Books incorporates a strip of vignettes as a skirt in which Bauer incorporates the dramatic wait for the king in black and white drawings. A true metaphor for life. Also in Catalan.
Faithful to its initiatory objective of highlighting humor, aesthetics and current events, the children’s label Petaletras de Anaya offers us a fun revisitation of the story of Sleeping Beauty, starting from the moment in which the princess wakes up, Copn very bad breath, by the way, and even the “they lived happily and ate partridges.” During the 100 years that the beautiful princess has been sleeping, many modern things happen, so when she wakes up, nothing is what she was. But the prince is there to teach him what it’s like to eat pizza or ride a scooter. And up to that point we can read.
A new tribe bursts into the panorama of literature for early readers at the hands of two renowned creators who have seen prehistory as their playground. The clan is made up of six characters who are very different from each other but who share their fascination and love for Kai, a caveman heroine capable of keeping the group united and safe. The narrative voice, however, is that of Lía, a girl curious and amazed by everything that surrounds her, which she transmits to the reader with hints and signs and not a few doses of humor. So far, two installments of the series have been published: The Dance of Counting on Me and The New World, the first more of an introduction to the clan and the second already with a tremendous adventure inside a cave. A series that initially evokes The Croods, by Chris Sanders, but that takes its own path as the characters take shape. Ideal for lovers of dinosaurs and past times. Also in Catalan.
We really wanted to see how Ana Merino from Madrid (The Map of Affections, Amigo) resolved the scientific-galactic-philosophical mess she had gotten herself into writing Planeta Lasvi, and the truth is that we have to take a break to face the second half of the story. It is already known that science fiction is one of the most open and imaginative genres and Merino has not fallen short when it comes to adding spice to the matter and many lessons of humanity and allegations of sustainability. But let’s go in parts. Lasvi is a small planet at the galactic antipodes where a 10-year-old girl, Nela, lives with her grandparents. Her parents are on a mission in search of immortality (more or less) and they are alone on that planet that years ago had been a great production center for energy vegetables. But the fall of a meteorite on the planet disrupts everything.
One day an old ship arrives in Lasvi with direct descendants of the last inhabitants of planet Earth, now converted into a toxic garbage dump. Some have deformities, especially children, due to radiation, but this does not prevent them from becoming friends with Nela, to whom they explain the disasters that have occurred on Earth. On the ship they carry many cultural treasures rescued from the Prado Museum, among them Hieronymus Bosch’s Garden of Delights, with which Nela finds many similarities with her peculiar planet, including the meteorite. To finish things off, Nela’s parents have been the subject of a wild Frankenstein-style experiment and they manage to escape from her and return to Lasvi. But they are no longer the parents that Nela knows. Her mother’s brain is connected to a robot while her father’s remains in a state of permanent drowsiness locked inside a box. Until the final symbiosis occurs, it is better not to say anything about it. If this is the end that awaits planet Earth, let’s get stuck in.
E.T, The Bicycle Thief, Jumanji, The Invention of Hugo, The Secret Garden, Life is Beautiful… These are just some of the titles that appear in this interesting compilation with which the Italian film director and screenwriter Giuseppe Tornatore brings the world of cinema to the youngest. An author selection that ranges from the great classics that have marked an era to the most recent cinematic hits. “If a 12-year-old me still existed and someone gave me a list of 50 must-see movies, I would consider it the most beautiful gift in the world,” Tornatore acknowledges in the prologue. We also agree. In addition to the synopsis of each proposed film, the author adds in 50 films to grow up with some notes about the director, some curiosities and its impact after the premiere, so that in just two pages we can get a complete idea of ??the film after viewing. Something much simpler today, since we have multiple platforms to see them. A highly recommended book.
