Christmas Present Ideas: Picture Books for All Ages

We believe that picture books are for everyone: children, young people, and adults alike. In this selection, we present three books that celebrate both storytelling and illustration. Their artwork is mesmerizing, and their content is heartwarming and entertaining at the same time.

1. Heena Baek: The Water Fairy

2. Sydney Smith: Small in the City

3. Mike Unwin: Around the World in 80 Birds

1. Heena Baek: The Water Fairy

The award-winning Korean author and artist Heena Baek comes from the world of film-making, and it shows in her work. The illustrations are real 3D constructions: designed, built, lit, photographed, and retouched. This technique creates a unique atmosphere, even in the most basic spaces like a bathroom or a kitchen.

And her figures! The characters are funny, chubby, colourful, emotional, and expressive.

This is the story of a little child who meets the Water Fairy, a tale of a unique friendship filled with laughter and humour.

2. Sydney Smith: Small in the City

The perfect choice if you’re looking for a winter tale. This story follows a little boy wandering through the city in search of someone. Snowy parks, blurred bus windows, reflections in shop windows…

Details and feelings are captured masterfully by the award-winning illustrator and author Sydney Smith, who himself studied the city by travelling through urban landscapes, sketching, observing, and sometimes feeling lost and invisible.

His perspective could easily be ours as we discover a new neighbourhood, hoping to see again, to find that dear friend we miss so much.

3. Mike Unwin, Ryuto Miyake: Around the World in 80 Birds

Do you know how far migrating birds fly? When do they depart and there do they go? And in general, what stories birds carry from mythology? Or how they are seen across different continents and cultures today?

This wonderful book, written by Mike Unwin and illustrated by Ryuto Miyake, tells 80 fascinating stories about birds and their journeys. You don’t need to be deeply into science or ornithology, you will enjoy the well-written, exciting, and brief chapters regardless.

Highly recommended for both children and adults!

Enjoy reading and admiring the illustrations,

Lilla