News
The book Kominiarz/Piekarz (“Chimney Sweep, Baker”) by Dominika Czerniak-Chojnacka has received honourable mention in the category of books for the youngest (TODDLER) in the BolognaRagazzi Awards 2019!
Chimney Sweep, Baker is a charmingly simple and humorous double-sided little board book about two hardworking brothers. One dresses in black and the other one in white. One works during the day, and the other one works at night. These are two brothers: a chimney sweeper and a baker. How else do they differ from each other and in what ways are they similar? Funny black-white-and-red illustrations will tell you about it together with a concise rhymed text that skilfully uses the onomatopoeic words adored by little ones.
Dominika Czerniak-Chojnacka (born in 1990) is a graphic designer and a graduate of graphic design at the University of Arts in Poznań. Currently, she is a PhD student at the Faculty of Fine Arts of the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń and studies ethnology. She received the Award of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage 2013.
We can read in the jury's verdict:
Using the graphic stratagem of contrasting opposites, the book illustrates two parallel stories that meet in the middle. The everyday gestures of grownups are explained through the lives of two brothers with very different jobs. The illustration has a refined simplicity. The use of black and white underlines the differences in the two occupations, while the addition of red creates a highly effective visual impact. Dynamic and implicitly musical, the sequence of images is particularly effective, stimulating the young child’s aesthetic and emotional senses
The list of all winners of the BolognaRagazzi 2019 award can be found here:
The BolognaRagazzi Award is the most prestigious international award for children's and youth books, comparable to the Oscars. It is awarded to publishers by the international Bolognia Children's Book Fair for the most interesting book for children and young people in terms of their graphic and editorial qualities,.
Every year, the award is presented in three permanent categories (Fiction, Non Fiction, and Opera Prima - for debuting authors) and one or two special categories. This year's special category was TODDLER - books for children up to 3 years old. Publishers from all over the world could have submitted titles published within the last 5 years.
As announced by the organisers, among about 300 applications, it was France and, immediately after it, Poland that stood out in terms of quality and quantity.