This truly splendid series of graphic motifs and calligraphic craftsmanship inevitably brings to mind the great avant-garde movements that trod the same path. In a sense, this book has taken up the eternal challenge faced by so many creative endeavours and from which the Egyptians and Gutenberg emerged victorious. A well rounded, meticulously presented book, some of its pages are reminiscent of the Futurists, while also reaching beyond these confines. Vibrantly new in its approach, the publication holds a timeless fascination, posing age-old questions about writing, vision, printing, the structure of the written text, and what our yardstick for appreciation should be. Despite this, it is eminently a children’s book, since it obliges us to start from the beginning and go back to that dawn when the beauty of a written text lay also in the print type. It helps us appreciate the indissoluble bond between word and typographical composition that merge into one single text.

In the visual art world, it is very rare to come across something truly new. The remake is the order of the day in practically all creative spheres. But this book literally triumphs for its innovative ability to surprise all kinds of readers at every turn. The pages explode, shatter into pieces, quite literally resound with graphic and pictorial emphasis. A vibrant energy brings them to life. Each refined composition seems to exceed the bounds of the ancient art of printing. Small frames, clean-cut calligraphy, recognisable figures, botanical examples and volutes are all produced with a singular elegance. The story told unfolds its moral, ethic message as the narration proceeds. The book could even be described as a new Aesop, a story with a message about self-confidence and rejoicing in one’s differences. It claims our attention, however, not so much for the power of the stories as for its typographical acumen. The reader, the Puer of ancient tradition, will be amazed by these examples of bravura that seek his attention.

A hilarious, carnivalesque return to the very essence of the fairy tale, this book also sets out to update time-honoured characters, make them relevant to today and link them with what is best known, most consolidated and recognised. The periodical re-visitation of the wolf character of fairytale obliges us to reread Aesop with an eye on Pop Art. Nor should it be forgotten that only stories susceptible of a carnivalesque twist are destined to survive. Such is the case for this wolf, the quintessential wolf that roams the mountains: flamboyant and a bit pop-art, playful yet sly, cunning but hilarious. Totally unreliable and boisterously sinister, he has lost none of his prerogative as the Wolf of yore. He is the perfect choice for a character in a children’s story seeking new voices by returning to ancient tales. The embodiment of the oxymoron, he will be much loved by all children.

The weave of illustrations that form the graphic backdrop to this book is the work of a master craftsman. When, as is the case here, the “solids” and “voids” on the page join in true dialogue, they evoke the very essence of artistic debate over the 20^th century. The elegance that transpires refers us to a sweeping stylistic evolution. Nonetheless the book remains true to its original aim of simply telling a fairy story, in other words, presenting Otherness as an everyday phenomenon. Aesop’s compendium of animals is here revisited. Although certainly more elegant than the original bestiary, they still bear the evident indelible stamp of the ancient fairytale. The window-cum-easel seen at the end of the book is a playful yet clear manifesto: a gentle prompt to all child readers that they should explain things to the grown ups.