Why have we come to this world, we all wonder.
Why so many suffer, grope and blunder
In the fog and not finding clear skies?
The answer in the following lines lies …
This collection of poems invites the reader to ponder life-long questions about good and evil, and about the meaning of life. Beautifully illustrated, the poems take the reader into a mysterious world above the fog.
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- illustrations:
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- Saraja Cesarini
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- Saraja’s Drawer
On 30. apr. 2021, at 21:21, Discovery Newsletter
Issue #111: Beautifully illustrated books for children and adults
Many of us have bravely attempted to cut our own hair, or a family member’s, during lockdown. Suffice to say, the results have been… mixed. Luckily, author Linda Steinbock feels our pain: her hilarious new picture book shows off some of the botched operations — from bowl cuts to home-dye kits — that have horrified hairdressers over the past year.
Alexandra Rusu, the illustrator of the book, isn’t the only talented artist being featured this week. Eszter Miklós and Saraja Cesarini have also lent their talents to some of the recommended books. Read on to find out more!
Lockdown Hair by Linda Steinbock is a stunning picture book that teaches children about the global pandemic in a lighthearted yet sensitive way. The young Siona is worried about her mother returning to work as a hairdresser after lockdown, and comes up with a series of instructions to help her stay safe. Alexandra Rusu’s wonderful watercolor illustrations truly bring Siona’s thoughtful, and at times very silly, suggestions to life! A charming and timely story to read at home or in an educational setting.
🦢 World Above the Fog by A.S. Hribar is a gorgeous illustrated poetry book that addresses familiar questions we humans have pondered for centuries. The full-page illustrations possess a dreamlike quality, perfectly complementing Hribar’s elegant writing and immersing the reader in her words. Through the collection’s eleven poems, readers are invited to reflect on what life means to them, and may even come away with a whole new worldview.
Deborah Martin’s contemporary fiction novel A Distant Summer follows 64-year-old Elizabeth who, in the wake of her father’s death, begins to question the path she has taken in life. Returning to one fateful summer in 1968, Elizabeth gradually unravels decades of unanswered questions and long-forgotten memories. Set against the backdrop of social unrest and the Vietnam War, A Distant Summer is a riveting narrative about the choices we make and the people we leave behind.
For more beautiful stories, don’t miss Victor Santos’s picture book The Boy Who Illustrated Happiness, about a young boy who starts a “happiness club” to bring joy to others.
Happy reading!
Felicia – Editorial Manager
Worth reading
Each poem creates life and exudes the very essence of why the poet delivers the message she has through the breathing force of poetry.
Synopsis
This collection of poems invites the reader to ponder life-long questions about good and evil, and about the meaning of life.
Beautifully illustrated, the poems take the reader into a mysterious “world above the fog”.
Is there a meaning to life? Can good exist without evil? These are questions asked by many from time to time, yet, the answers to these questions are diverse, varied and practical in different stages. For centuries, many people have given their versions of the answers to these questions and the poet of this collection adds up to it. However, she takes a different approach that is supposed to get readers thinking, she provides a sort of room for the pondering over of these questions as the reader arrives at their own answers to these questions.
The first aspect of this book that got me reeled in at the first sight is the illustrations! They are beautifully designed to capture the thoughts and emotions of heor corresponding poems. I like the illustration type and how they cover one page through to the page of the poems, adding life to the creation of the artistic being this book is.
World above the Foghas eleven poems, each poem creates life and exudes the very essence of why the poet, A.S. Hribar, chose to deliver the message she has through the breathing force of poetry. The poems are free verses but have a particular rhythm to them
“Third Child”, the opening poem, begins the book just right, setting the tone and putting the reader’s mind in the right frame for the journey that is to come.
“A higher force commands her
To keep on writing day and night
A higher force commands her
To write and write, while losing her eyesight…”
“The Battle Between Good and Evil” adds to the beautifully crafted verses in the book with its unique way of presenting the life-long question of good verses evil.
“When you look at it in a mythical way,
The evil and the good have always fought to win:
Another take-off point that I believe is the selling point of this book is how each poem, though different and separate in its right, seem to have a story to tell. They each come together to weave a string of tales you would love to be a part of.
I would recommend this book to lovers of poetry and art, people who admire great art and its fusion with art where there is a connection to be a part of. If you are too conservative about poetry forms, still wanting your poems rhyming with most of the classical age laid-down structures, then this book is not for you. Yet, I would admonish you to give it a try and it would be worth your while.
Reviewed by Boakye D. Alpha / Reedsy Discovery
Reviewed in Slovenia on April 30, 2021
Reviewed in Slovenia on April 27, 2021
Sabina Sirk Ayuli
Reviewed in the United States on January 12, 2021
Order a special hardcover edition of World above the Fog