Ulrich Hub’s ‘One Wise Sheep’ is a humorous retelling of the nativity story from the perspective of sheep, blending comedy with thought-provoking themes for children.
Welcome to a combobulation of articles from our favourite thinkers, stories from behind the scenes, lists of good books, Gecko Press news and things that amuse us from time to time.
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Exploring Whānau and Words: An Author Interview with Gavin Bishop
Gavin Bishop has created four board books for the very young that introduce first words and concepts through a lens of whānau and our place in the world. The direct gaze of child and adult faces draws the reader into each illustration, while single words spark conversation about objects, emotions, relationships and more. The series… Read more »
Giraffe Island — Q&A with Sofia Chanfreau & Amanda Chanfreau
Sofia Chanfreau’s ‘Giraffe Island’ is a magical adventure about Vega and her unseen animal friends. Discover the mystery and magic. Available August 2024.
A Rainy Dragon Day — Author Interview
Julie Völk’s ‘A Rainy Dragon Day’ is a tale of friendship and fantasy. Join Fred the dragon on a cozy, rainy day turned magical journey. Available August 2024.
Earning the turn
By Rachel Lawson The page turn is at the heart of the picture book. Unobtrusive or dramatic, satisfying or surprising, it makes a picture book sink or sing. The turn of a page speeds or slows the pace, sets us up and rewards us, reveals a joke or surprise, draws us carefully through a story… Read more »
Happy birthday at Bologna Book Fair
At Bologna Book Fair in April 2024, Lerner Books held a special reception to celebrate the acquisition of Gecko Press and its 65th birthday. Below is the hello goodbye birthday speech from Julia Marshall. Thank you to Rob Sharp for the photographs, taken serendipitously as he was walking in the porticos and thought this looked… Read more »
Humour, heart and human nature for early readers — Gecko Press junior fiction
At Gecko Press we have a fondness for books for six- to nine-year-olds, especially ones that appeal to children with a dry sense of humour. In the same way that trees suddenly appear grown, we now have a wonderful collection of illustrated junior fiction. Our first published book was a chapter book—Can You Whistle, Johanna?… Read more »
A Better Best Friend: Q&A with Olivier Tallec
Olivier Tallec was born in Brittany, France. After graduating from the École Supérieure d’Arts Appliqués Duperré in Paris, he travelled extensively and now lives and works in Paris. He has illustrated over 60 books for children, along with his work as both author and illustrator. His new book, A… Read more »
The Pinchers: Q&A with Anders Sparring and Per Gustavsson
Anders Sparring writes children’s books and is a screenwriter for many popular television shows. He is also a stand-up comedian. Per Gustavsson is an illustrator and author living in Stockholm, Sweden. His bestselling books are translated into several languages. Who are The Pinchers books for? Anders They are for everyone who likes to have fun…. Read more »
My Baby Sister Is a Diplodocus: Q&A with Aurore Petit
Aurore Petit was born in 1981, one of a generation of French illustrators to emerge from the influential School of Decorative Arts in Strasbourg. She lives in Nantes, where she publishes children’s books, illustrates for children and adults and works on theatre sets. Her books with Gecko Press are A Mother Is a House and… Read more »
