TODDLER 2024

WINNER

Dia de Lua (Moon Day)

Jujuba Editora
Brazil
Text and Illustrations by Renato Moriconi

What the jury said:
Paying close attention to every graphic detail, from the untitled cover and rounded corners to choice of paper and elegant three-colour palette, this editorially excellent book celebrates the moon – a timeless favourite in literature and childhood. Renato Moriconi’s consistently divergent, surprising, and brilliant narrative perspective is that the moon is free to appear at any time of day. Indeed, by day it takes on alternative roles to lighting up the sky. A playful shape-shifter, the moon transforms into a hammock, a sail, an umbrella (sheltering a diver from rain), a parachute, a rhinoceros horn for a zebra, even the tail of a train. A little envious of the sun, one night the moon decides to cover the sun’s disc in an eclipse to triumphantly don its rays. With an impish mix of elements and the visionary creativity of sparse and essential pages, the purity of the book’s graphic design enthrals readers on this masterfully executed daytime/lunar journey.

Desenha tudo o que quiseres

SPECIAL MENTION

Desenha tudo o que quiseres (Draw whatever you want)

Planeta Tangerina
Portugal
Text and Illustrations by Madalena Matoso

What the jury said:
Madalena Matoso's distinctive style graces this large-format, paper-page book. An invitation to explore graphic creativity through drawing and painting in a format unusual for this category, it is never didactic. The author’s elegant (and rare) use of monochrome creates a magical encounter with figures, signs, painterly gestures, unexpected inventions, and free association, in a captivating visual game that catalogues and explores shapes. Rich and varied in word and nuance, the text invites readers to engage on multiple levels, greatly surpassing the book’s initial encouragement to readers to experiment and draw anything they want. In making this award, the jury was keen to highlight the importance of providing readers with high editorial quality opportunities to encourage artistic expression, creativity, and lateral thinking.

Joséphine

SPECIAL MENTION

Joséphine

Éditions du Seuil
France
Text and Illustrations by Chloé Alméras

What the jury said:
Josephine, a delightful giraffe with a luminous coat, marvels as she looks up and down, dives into the blue and immerses herself in green, taking advantage of seeing and observing the world from different perspectives. Around her, waves draw arches and swirls reminiscent of meadow patterns; rocks appear immense and tiny; and snowflakes resemble water bubbles. Alméras achieves surprising visual and poetic kinship in her meticulously studied and detailed graphic, geometric, chromatic, and compositional illustrations, in which every shape refers to other shapes. This wondrous board book is imbued with the special, grace-filled philosophical quality of the childlike gaze, that unique capacity to feel wonder, question the world and its forms, and the wisdom to poetically live in such a world. For readers, Josephine becomes an inspiring protagonist on a journey to discover their own gaze and the world around them.

Złapię cię! Tutu i pojazdy

SPECIAL MENTION

Złapię cię! Tutu i pojazdy (Can You Catch Me? Tutu and Vehicles)

Wydawnictwo Dwie Siostry
Poland
Text and Illustrations by Piotr Karski

What the jury said:
This adorable, small/medium format book showcases magnificent graphic, chromatic, and figurative craftsmanship. Piotr Karski’s board book takes very young children on a fast-paced, action-packed adventure in which Tutu excitedly travels on over twenty modes of transport, from a scooter to a rocket, including a beloved helicopter, excavator, train, and of course, a tractor. Flat colours, bold lines, and narrative dynamism convey a character who is always ready to leap, roll, fall, or fly, along with small animals and objects that accompany him on these unpredictable and fun pages packed with huge narrative energy. The book is an example of editorial excellence and successful design for children. Beautifully bound, meticulous and brilliant in every sense, as an object it is built to last a thousand re-reads.