Σκεπτικό βράβευσης White Ravens 2024 (αγγλικά) / Το κοτσύφι

The value of the singular interaction between a child and an animal – through communication that needs no words – is depicted by the renowned artist Photini Stephanidi in this wordless picture book in the form of an intimate friendship between a boy and a blackbird. It begins in February when birdsong awakens the child. Day and night, from the building of the nest until migration, from days at school until the holidays, in a tree, at a window, their lives are bound up with one another. Unlike the almost impassive adults in the book, the reader is moved by the empathy that the protagonist feels through keen observation and interactions with the animal. Calendar pages representing the way humans measure time accompany the sensually appealing illustrations. Parallel to that, the life of the wild bird over the course of the year symbolises a natural rhythm, nature’s time. The blackbird’s song throughout the year is cleverly visualised as dotted rows of snowflakes, blossoms, stars, or autumn leaves.
(Age: 3+) [TA]