Latvian / Latvia
Sveiks, Vali!
(Hello, whale!)
Gundars, Lauris
(text)
Melece, Anete
(illus.)
[Rīga]: Liels un mazs, [2017]. – 91 p.
ISBN 978-9934-533-85-3
Granddaughter | Grandfather | Communication | Interaction | Greeting
Reading age: 5+
White Ravens issue: 2018
Little girl Buzzfly is very lucky: She has an awesome grandpa, whom she calls Whale and who is her best friend. Only: Grandpa is not that great at greeting people, even though he meets people daily. Buzzfly wastes no time and practices greeting with Whale, to the point that he starts to say “Hello” to cars, and even ends up in a police check. After a big fight and a dangerous run-away attempt in the park, Buzzfly and Whale make up. The marker-based pictures of Anete Melece (b. 1983) in an inimitable way show how happy this makes the protagonists. They portray the special and somewhat cranky relationship between grandpa and granddaughter with just the right amount of comedy and warmth. Lauris Gundars’s (b. 1958) little story with Melece’s illustrations about being young and old, about life experience, and mental flexibility is a splendid discovery.