Child of Glass

(Hardback)

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Description

A story about difference, exclusion, experience, and ultimately the embrace of one's core self, Child of Glass explores the interplay between inner and outer and the journey we have to go on to be at home within ourselves.

"To turn the pages of this book is to witness transformation in real time." -The 2019 New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Children's Books List

A story about difference, exclusion, and ultimately self-acceptance, Child of Glass explores the interplay between inner and outer and the journey we have to go on to become ourselves.

Child of Glass is about Gisele, a fragile, strong, transparent girl who denounces the meanness that can mark life in the world. In sparse, poetic language that all of us, however young or old, can understand, Child of Glass reminds us of our birthright to become ourselves. Freedom isn't about accepting what is; it's about asking the questions and taking the actions that allow us to be at home in the world.

Beautifully illustrated in a painterly, drawn, and collaged style, this is a story of layers, textures, and transparencies in every sense. It is also a book that explores the possibilities of form to render idea, thereby providing connective tissue between the world of the book and life in the world.

"To draw is to tell. Everyone who feels emotion has something to tell. Emotions keep on changing, growing, as children do. My drawings and stories change with them." So says Beatrice Alemagna, who was born in Bologna, Italy, in 1973. Alemagna has written and illustrated dozens of children's books, which have received numerous awards all over the world and have been translated into fourteen languages. She has also had solo exhibitions in France, Italy, Portugal, Germany, Sweden, and Japan. Alemagna's The Wonderful Fluffy Little Squishy is also published by Enchanted Lion.

Reviews

"Gisele's pain, articulated by double-page spreads of her wide, pale blue face shedding a multifaceted crystal tear through powerful vellum page turns, will feel acute and familiar to adolescents. Will reach both small and older readers struggling to conceal, manage, and express complicated inner worlds." Kirkus Reviews
"Concept and form are mirrored in Beatrice Alemagnas Child of Glass, as she uses both transparencies and traditional pages to tell the story of a fragile yet resilient girl. Alemagnas layered and highly textured drawings create a powerful sense of fluidity between the interior and exterior worlds. To turn the pages of this book is to witness transformation in real time." The 2019 New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Childrens Books List
"A soulful meditation on how to live with our human fragility, [created] with great allegorical deftness and tenderness. Here, the genius of the physical book steps in to magnify the sensitivity of the story with a syncopation of translucent and solid pages. Transparencies of Giseles face layer different mood-states. The story resolves in a soulful reminder that there is no cure for our fragility there is only the courage of not merely living with it but embracing it as a wellspring of the tenderness that makes life worth living." Brain Pickings
Alemagnas story grapples with the dilemma of living a sensitive, authentic public life amid scrutiny and expectation, and her artwork fuses textured collage elements and dreamy, surrealist touches: birds reach to embrace Gisele with human hands, and she cries a tear like a cut diamond. Most inventive are representations of Giseles transparent head in leaves of translucent vellum, each page turn penetrating deeper into her mind. Though Gisele survives intact, without breaking, the ordeals she undergoes are sobering and universal. Publishers Weekly
Life is hard for any child who is differentbut for a child who is not only different but also transparent, enduring ridicule from others can be suffocating. ... Using an interesting mix of opaque and translucent pages, Giseles story is told both in words and images. Interestingly, Gisele is naked throughout the story while others around her are clothed, echoing the nakedness of her thoughts. The illustrations are created in a style of collage-abstraction, their varying colors and textures representing the world in a visually intriguing way. Though there is a moderate amount of text and some pages are devoid of words completely, the message the story sends will resonate deeply with readers of all ages. This book is a gentle introduction to the complexity of the internal human conflict of fitting in while also being true to oneself. STARRED REVIEW, School Library Journal

Author Bio

Beatrice Alemagnahas written and illustrated dozens of childrens books, which have received numerous awards all over the world and have been translated into 14 languages. The author-illustrator of twoNew York TimesBest Illustrated books, she has also been nominated for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award seven times and shortlisted for the Hans Christian Andersen Award twice. Enchanted Lion has published four of her picture books:The Wonderful Fluffy Little Squishy; Child of Glass;Telling Stories Wrong; and the forthcomingYou Can't Kill Snow White, a picture book for teens and adults, published under Enchanted Lion's Unruly imprint. Born in Bologna, Italy, Alemagna lives and works in Paris, France.