Martine Arpin always keeps a notebook close at hand to jot down words, sentence fragments, ideas, and images that suddenly appear in her mind, at any hour of the day or night. Studying with experts how writing is taught has helped her to grow as an educator. It has also enabled her to better understand the work of authors and has nourished her imagination. To date, she has published five albums and one poetry collection for young readers. She has received the Étincelle Award, recognizing her contribution to teaching and promoting literacy, and she is a member of the Ordre de l'Excellence en éducation. As an author, she was a finalist for the Espiègle Award and she won the Cécile-Gagnon Award in 2021 for her book Thomas, published by Éditions D'eux.
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When I was pregnant with my first daughter, I was already telling her stories. In her room, she had floating bath books, fabric rattle-books to chew on, sturdy board books she could be rough with, and lots of picture books. From the moment she was born, reading became part of her life, of our life together.
One day, a children's magazine was looking for photos to illustrate the program Une naissance, un livre (A Birth, A Book). I had several photos of my daughter literally "devouring" books! So, she ended up representing the program in June 2009.
Fifteen years later, what a joy it is to have been selected to take part in this extraordinary program as an author. A Birth, A Book represents everything I believe about literature. It highlights what many studies have shown: the importance of reading aloud by a caring adult as a moment of language awakening and as a developmental catalyst for building vocabulary and reading comprehension.
Reading is an act that stimulates all the senses: the odour of books, the voice of someone who loves us, the texture of the pages, the beauty of the illustrations. In short, books are works of art within the reach of one's eyes and hands.
But, above all, reading is observing our everyday life and opening ourselves up to the world around us. We read to escape, to live adventures, to learn, to meet characters, to connect with our humanity, to understand the world.
In a world where screens are taking up more and more space and whose long-term harmful effects have been documented, taking your child on your lap and sharing the pleasure of reading together seems even more important to me.
Reading with your child means gently taking the time to slow down and be together. It means laughing, crying, marvelling, being moved and escaping. It is a shared pleasure that, every day, is anticipated and hoped for by both the child and the person reading to them. And that is what I have tried to put into words in my story.
Nathalie Dion studied design arts at Concordia University in Montreal. Since the early 2000s, she has worked as an illustrator, creating images both for editorial publications and for children's books. Her style, often described as retro-modern, combines traditional gouache with digital techniques, allowing her to blend pictorial spontaneity with finely executed technique.
Over the course of her career, she has illustrated more than twenty books for Canadian, Quebec, and American publishing houses. Among her most acclaimed titles are Le grand méchant loup dans ma maison (text by Valérie Fontaine) — winner of the Espiègle Award and a finalist for the Governor General's Award — and Kuma, la petite nuée timide, which earned her the SBWI Golden Kite Award.
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When I was offered the opportunity to illustrate Encore! By Martine Arpin as part of the A Birth, A Book program, I felt genuinely enthusiastic. I was first and foremost deeply touched to have been considered to participate in this exceptional project.
For an illustrator, the idea that a picture book could enter the homes of 15,000 newborns is an immense privilege. It's difficult to conceive of a more beautiful destiny for a creation than to imagine this book accompanying a child's very first moments of life.
Illustrating a board book presents a particular challenge. Its small format must capture the attention from the very first reading. I had a lot of fun creating clean, pared-down images, designed to hold the gaze via their composition and the contrast of their colours.
Martin Arpin's story, whose bedtime rituals can be recognized by everyone, immediately captivated me. I instantly wanted to enter this tender, familiar world and invite little ones and their parents to do the same.
