I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to attend the London Book Fair on Monday 15th April, in order to gain experience of the range of publishers in not just this country but worldwide, and conduct research on the current trends in book design. While there, I was set the task of looking for innovations in children's book design.
I felt that this was an interesting idea when designing such a book for a young age group, to make the book the shape of the subject matter, in this case a toolbox. I feel this is particularly effective as a toddler wouldn't necessarily understand the notion of a toolbox without seeing the shape, and this allows the child to act as if they are an adult with a real one, and copy whoever they have seen using one. As well as the toolbox shape, the middle pages pop up as a birdhouse.
My Dinosaurs Sticker Activity Book - Picthall & Gunzi
This book reminds me of books that I enjoyed when I was younger, that use stickers to reinforce the message and allow you to finish the illustrations yourself. However, once the book has been read once, it is never as fun and creative again as the main activity has been completed.
Hello, I'm... - AZ Books
This book series by publishing house AZ Books features cuddly toy animals that peer through the hole in the cover of the book. I think this is an interesting idea and would appeal especially to young girls who enjoy collecting stuffed toys, as well as babies as it provides something touchable in the book with an interesting texture.
Cedic
I found some interesting examples of innovation at the stand for Cedic, a French language publisher, for example books that feature a watercolour paint palette on the side and a paintbrush, allowing the reader to finish illustrating the story themselves. This is the sort of book that I would have really enjoyed growing up, one that actually let you paint on it! I feel that this is definitely the sort of twist that I will be looking to include in my work for Naturesbase.
Frog and Me - Angela Muss - Child's Play
Look at Me, I'm a Clown! - Sebastien Brown - Child's Play
Child's Play is a publisher that I am aware of due to my Independent Study, and I decided to look them up at the fair as I know that they publish books with hand-drawn type which is a modern innovation in itself. I found a few fantastic examples of book design, including the two above. The first is called 'Frog and Me', and features a sock puppet that the parent can use to tell the story to the young reader in a fun and interesting way. The second book opens out into a mask, with different face designs on every page. I feel that this book would be most enjoyed in a group scenario as the child holding the book up to their face does not get the same experience as those watching, and vice versa. I therefore think this would be a great book for sharing, or reading in a nursery or school setting.
Colours - North Parade Publishing
However, the innovation that most caught my eye at the book fair was this series from NPP, which features waterproof books that can be read at the beach or in the bath without damage. I think that this is a fantastic idea, as one of the main limitations of traditional books is their vulnerability to the elements, and also allows the child to continue to learn while in the bath and make having a bath enjoyable. As well as being waterproof, the inflatable base allows the book to float, making it the perfect bath-time accompaniment.
In terms of the Naturesbase brief, this was a fantastic experience to see how publishers are thinking outside of the box and some of the answers that they have come up with. I love the inflatable book but I do not feel that it's a relevant approach to take in my project, but I will definitely take on board some of the elements of the books where the reader is able to finish them, whether that is with paints or stickers. Due to Naturesbase being all about encouraging children into nature and promoting sustainability I think that finishing the illustrations with materials from the garden would be a good direction to take, as well as making their own paints from leaves, mud and berries.
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