What is a book?

Picture book

To fall in love with books. To discover the joy of reading. To nurture curiosity and imagination.

Is a book just a book? Maybe you’ve never thought about it, but a book can also be a house, an airplane, a mirror… and so much more. Above all, a book is a door that opens onto the world — and if you wish to explore it, it’s waiting just for you.

  • A picture book that celebrates the endless potential of books… and of imagination.
  • Winner of the 2025 Sossi Prize!
Publisher: Il Castoro
Target: 0 - 5
Year: 2025
Author
Lucia Stipari

Lucia Stipari was born in Milan and has been working in the publishing field for many years. She’s a partner at Studio Pym, a creative agency that deals with books, graphics and communication, but since she lost herself among the branches of Book on a Tree, she has understood that the thing she likes most is writing.

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Author
Elisa Codutti

Elisa Codutti is a children’s book illustrator from Udine, Italy.
Growing up between two cultures — with a Dutch mother and an Italian father — she brings a deep sensitivity and a love for genuine simplicity into her work. In her drawings, she seeks to capture the essence of emotion with just a few lines, allowing the spontaneity of her strokes and the naturalness of her characters to shine through — often keeping them just as they first appeared on the page. She loves stories that say a lot with very little, where irony becomes a way to approach profound themes with lightness and warmth. In 2023, she published a children’s book with Il Frangente and collaborated with ARLeF on a YouTube project. Her work has been exhibited at the Palazzo del Fumetto in Pordenone, and she has taken part in initiatives focused on disability and inclusion. She has also participated in several illustration contests, such as Notte di Fiaba and Lucca Junior, earning awards and recognition.

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