Jenny Bornholdt & Sarah Wilkins
A Book is a Book
Told from a child’s view, this book captures the magic of books felt by voracious readers, and is a perfect gift for book-lovers of all ages.
This small-format jacketed hardback has whimsical yet humorous illustrations and words that perfectly define everything that is good about a book.
This book asks ‘what is a book?’ It celebrates books and reading. Although ‘told’ from a child’s view, it captures the value and magic of books felt by all voracious readers, and is a perfect gift for book-lovers of all ages.
A book is to read.
A book belongs in a library, on a bookshelf, in a bookshop, in your house.
A story belongs wherever a story belongs.
If it’s Sunday and raining, a book is the perfect thing. Even a small book, because boredom can be very big.
You can read a book while you walk, but you have to be careful not to bump into things.
Jenny Bornholdt is an acclaimed poet. In 2005–06 she was the NZ Poet Laureate and she received the 2003 Arts Foundation of New Zealand Laureate Award. She lives in Wellington, New Zealand.
Sarah Wilkins has worked as an illustrator in Australia, USA, New Zealand and France. She won the LIANZA Russell Clark Award for Illustration in 2003.
Gecko Press
Picture Book | Gift Book
Age 4+
40 pp
hc | 180 x 120 mm
Publication: 2013
Author: Jenny Bornholdt
Illustrator: Sarah Wilkins
Rights sold: Chinese (simpl.), German, Korean, Spanish, Turkish
- The perfect gift for book lovers
- Great starting point for discussions about what books and stories ‘are’
Awards
- Awards
By the same author and illustrator
“A quirky collection of musings about books and their capacity to entertain, intrigue, captivate, educate or simply stave off boredom… ‘Some books are small because some writers are very tired’ obviously does not apply in this instance.” –The NZ Listener 50 Best Children’s Books of 2013, November 2013
“Jenny Bornholdt indulges in a delightful rumination on the power and attraction of books and reading in her first book for children. She uses straightforward, childlike statements spiced up with flights of fancy to good effect – and it’s the right sort of mix to draw kids into the wonderful world of books, and maybe get them thinking about reading a little more.” –The New Zealand Herald `Best Books to give and receive’, November 2013
“This book exists to do very wonderful things: promote reading, libraries, the sharing of stories – the sharing of a love of reading and books. It’s a beautifully told tale… A wonderful gift to give to yourself (let alone anyone else) – [it] does its best to convey the magic of getting lost inside a good book.” – Simon Sweetman, Off the Tracks, November 2013
“A small and perfectly formed hardback…with writer and acclaimed poet Jenny Bornhodt’s humorous meandering charm … Award-winning illustrator Sarah Wilkins’ beautiful, delicate and whimsical illustrations printed on lovely cream paper enhance the overall experience.” – Whanganui Chronicle, December 2013
“A riotously colourful piece of imagination for children.” – North and South, January 2014
“Beyond the words, the illustrations are great … if you doubt that you can read images, try these. … the creators [show] how expertly books can animate our lives. They animate these pages too, with simple writing, warm touches and more.” – The Bookbag (UK), February 2014
“This deceptively simple book is a springboard… Jenny Bornholdt, a major New Zealand poet, knows the magic quality of words and reading, so each of her sayings is an invitation to the imagination… Walt Whitman would have loved it.” – The Source (Aus), February 2014
“the illustrations are delicate little things full of colour and detail. They hold a poetic charm that gives this book a quiet, magical quality … For both adult and child alike, ‘A Book is a Book’ serves as a little reminder as to why books mean so much to so many.” – The Illustrated Forest (UK), June 2014
“Perfect for a child on a lap or as a stocking stuffer for older bibliophiles.” – Kirkus (US), May 2014
“The perfect book definition in miniature for young readers, with spare, evocative prose that appeals to a youthful sense of humor … It perfectly portrays the ability of books to open worlds to readers, no matter how young.” – Children’s Bookwatch, Midwest Book Review (US), November 2014