The boundless power of a child’s imagination inspires this beautiful picture book. A boy and his mother are getting ready to go to the carnival, each dressed in their special carnival outfits. As they hunt for Charlie’s red balloon, he lets his imagination run free, conjuring up wonderful images – a town where elephants take the place of cars, a place where everyone lives in tree houses. When they get to the carnival, it’s everything Charlie dreamed of, and more. Generously sized pages show off the artwork to stunning effect, gatefolds allowing the story to spill out even further, a riot of colour, composition and narrative. The illustrations are very special indeed and this is a book to treasure. ~Andrea Reece
Charlie can't wait to go the carnival, but first his mum must find his party hat and red balloon. While she's searching, Charlie imagines all the wonderful things they might see: lemonade rivers and lollipop trees, elephant taxis and a cake as big as a town square. When they finally arrive at the carnival, it's even more amazing and magical than Charlie had hoped. This beautiful book, from award-winning children's author and illustrator Marit Tornqvist, celebrates the intensity of children's imaginations and their ability to see their make-believe worlds as reality. Children will love following Charlie on his adventure revealing the secrets of the many fold-out pages and exploring illustrations that are a riot of colour. Marit's vibrant artwork is accompanied by a lyrical story of awe, adventure and the loving relationship between a parent and child.
Marit Törnqvist was born in 1964 in Uppsala, Sweden and divides her time between the Netherlands and Sweden. She studied illustration at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam. In 2011 she was awarded a Golden Plaque from the Biennial of Illustration Bratislava, one of the most prestigious children's illustration awards.
She has illustrated several of Astrid Lindgren's picture books, including A Calf for Christmas and Goran's Great Escape (Floris Books) and is also the author of many other books for children.
