The Book of Whys
Gianni Rodari
Factual as well as whimsical, and humorously illustrated, this is the first English-language publication of the answers given by one of Italy's greatest and most beloved children's authors to children's questions about animals, nature, technology, and culture.
Winner of the 2023 Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs's English Translation Prize! Selected for the 2025 White Ravens catalog of notable international children's literature!
Gianni Rodari is widely regarded as the father of modern Italian children's literature. A firm believer in the great intelligence of children, he worked both as a teacher and a journalist. For a number of years, children across Italy sent their questions to his weekly newspaper column—questions Rodari answered, most inventively, with rhymes and little poems. Why didn't he reply with facts alone? Because he wanted to provoke children into thinking about questions, norms, and language itself. The Book of Whys collects a selection of these questions—from "Why does an elephant have a trunk?" to "Why does a car need fuel?" to "Why are we born?"—along with Rodari's answers, which beautifully serve to highlight the complexities, simplicities, and absurdities of our world.
With a fresh translation from Antony Shugaar, who also translated Rodari's Telephone Tales (the 2021 Batchelder Award winner), and playful illustrations in colored pencils from artist JooHee Yoon (Beastly Verse; The Tiger Who Would Be King, a New York Times Best Illustrated Book of 2015; Inside Out and Upside Down), The Book of Whys is a playful, surprising, and poetically informative book for all those who are curious about the world and ready to play with the ways things are.
Italian author Gianni Rodari wrote many beloved children’s books and was awarded the prestigious Andersen Prize. He was also an educator who understood the liberating power of the imagination. He is one of the 20th century’s greatest authors for children, and Italy’s greatest. Decades after his death in 1980, Rodari’s writing remains as powerful and innovative as ever. Roman Muradov is an artist, illustrator, and graphic novelist living in Brooklyn. His surreal illustrations—with moody, spontaneous brushwork—have appeared in a variety of esteemed publications, including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Vogue. As a comic artist, he has created experimental and philosophically themed stories for small press publications, international anthologies, and a series of indie graphic novels. He has received numerous awards from institutions like the Art Directors Club and the Society of Illustrators. Antony Shugaar is a writer and translator. His translation of Rodari’s Telephone Tales received the 2021 Batchelder Award for most outstanding children’s translation and was awarded the 2020 Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs English Translation Prize.
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