Too hard

BOOK REVIEW

TOO HARD

Author: Raúl Guridi From the reader report by: Miho Ihara

The cover features an unsmiling boy and many silhouette-like lines. Despite the disquieting air, this rouses interest in the contents of the book.

The book is entirely narrated by the boy and the pictureless white text on black seems to reflect his feelings. The unnerving illustrations convey the protagonist’s worldview in an easy-to-understand manner. As with the text, they reveal the world as viewed through the boy’s uneasy eyes.

Though never explicitly stated, it appears the boy is not just timid and fearful but actually has ‘selective mutism’, a common social disorder among many children whereby they are unable to speak in certain social situations. It is said 1 in 500 children in Japan suffer from this. There is a growing interest in this condition, as evidenced by the publication of several picture books and autobiographical manga on this theme in Japan too. The rights to this book have also been taken up in South Korea and the US, so it seems many children across the world are suffering in this way.

The story and the illustrations are written from the perspective of a boy who is worried he won’t be able to communicate with others. I think this book should be published in Japan to raise awareness of this condition among people of all ages.

PUBLISHED IN NEW SPANISH BOOKS DE | JP

TTT PUBLICACIONES ILUSTRADAS

Title TOO HARD LO DIFÍCIL

Author Raúl Guridi Genre Children and Young Adults Pages 36

ISBN 978-84-94988-43-1 Year of publication 2020 Number of editions 1 Language Spanish Spanish retail price 14.90 €

Author’s biography: Raúl Guridi was born in Seville in 1970 and he has spent ten years balancing his career as an art teacher with his work as an illustrator. His work, El día en que me convertí en pájaro (The day I became a bird) with text written by Ingrid Chabbert and published by Tres Tigres Tristes, has been translated into thirteen languages and in 2016 it was a finalist for the Andersen prize. His search for a style and voice of his own have enabled him to become a fully rounded author. He wrote and illustrated Pasen y vean (Walking and seeing); Cuaderno de imaginar (Imagination Scrapbook); Érase (Once upon a time) which was translated by the Tate Modern in London; Shadow and El Faro (The Lighthouse). He has a weakness for gouache and pencil sketching, is a lover of cinema and has the ability to multi-task on several creative processes at once. Guridi’s professional dream is to create a picture book that inspires joy and teaches us to be better people. http://guridi.blogspot.com/

Synopsis: “When I leave the house, everything seems too hard for me. I have butterflies in my tummy that don’t stop fluttering and every step I take is a triumph.” Communicating with others isn’t as easy as it seems, it takes patience, effort, and courage. That’s what the main character of this book tells us: he would love to say “hi” to the baker, to his neighbour, Anna, or to Miss Antonia… but however hard he tries, his heart races, his palms get sweaty, and all he can do is smile.

Publisher: Publicaciones Ilustradas TTT In 2013, TRES TIGRES TRISTES was born. We specialise in children’s picture books that can be enjoyed by readers of any age. Following from this mission, we launched our second imprint in 2018, AVENAUTA, with the intention of publishing work directed at teenagers and adult readers.

Publishing rights available from: Publicaciones Ilustradas TTT S.L. - CIF X www.verokagency.com Contact: Véronique Kirchhoff [vero@verokagency.com]

Countries where the rights have been sold: Korea: Editorial Media Changbi