I've chosen Tangram Cat by Maranke Rinck and Martijn van der Linden for my first ever blog post! This is the book that inspired me to create a picture book blog. It has been a beloved bedtime story in our house for a couple of years.
We received this as a gift when our youngest was one and our eldest was three. It was an enormous hit. Two years later, they still love it and also play with the tangram that comes free with it.
I didn't know what a tangram was before receiving this. In case you're also wondering, it's a Chinese geometrical puzzle made from a square cut into seven pieces. The pieces are rearranged to make a variety of other shapes.
The story begins as a little boy is given a tangram puzzle to play with. He makes several animals, which come to life, starting with a cat. It’s exciting to guess which new creature is being formed and great fun to see how they all engage with one another.
Although this is a simple concept, it creates an incredibly complex and amusing tale. The text is sparse and clear so that a one-year-old can easily follow it. At the same time, the story is sophisticated enough to entertain a five-year-old.
The author and illustrator, Maranke Rinck and Martijn van der Linden, are a married couple. They won the prestigious Gouden Griffel Award in The Netherlands for Tangram Cat in 2017. The same year, images from the book were part of an exhibition in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.
The illustrations are stunning and give the impression that the animals might leap off the page. This incredibly inventive picture book would make a fantastic gift and is a wonderful addition to any bookshelf. I can't wait to see what the author and illustrator do next.
Title: Tangram Cat
Author: Maranke Rinck
Illustrator: Martin van der Linden
Publisher: Lemniscaat
Publication Date: October 2017
ISBN: 9781788070096