PICTURE BOOK / 104 pages / 19,5 x 19,5 cm / 4+
Tanslation rights represented: WORLD RIGHTS
Published in: English (Enchanted Lion, 2019), Italian (Gallucci).
First published in Italy as a wordless book, Crescendo is a book that celebrates motherhood as the ultimate creative act, an ode to our very beginning.
Woven now of words and images, the English-language edition of Crescendo speaks of two simultaneous journeys–– towards birth and into what it is to bear life, be literally one with another, and become a mother.
Crescendo is an ideal book for sharing with children, who are always curious about where they come from and where their anticipated sibling, cousin, or friend’s sibling might be at different points in a pregnancy.
In Crescendo’s final spread, a mother appears holding her newborn. Her long, inward journey has reached one end and she’s arrived at another beginning.
Paola Quintavalle was born in Rome, Italy. She has worked with kids and in the world of books in a variety of contexts for over two decades. In 2003, she joined Orecchio Acerbo Editore, and in 2010, she moved with her husband and their two children to New York, where she opened an agency representing illustrators and children’s book authors. Crescendo is her first book.
Alessandro Sanna is considered one of Italy’s leading contemporary illustrators. He has created or contributed to upwards of 50 books, including illustrating works by David Grossman, Italo Calvino, and Gianni Rodari. His work has also been widely exhibited and he is the recipient of many awards.
