Books without words by Iela and Enzo Mari

November 17th, 2009

The books by Iela and Enzo Mari are so perfect for our little international audience of readers — I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to write about them! Not only are the iconic illustrations so beautiful and the stories so sweet, but they are completely wordless so there’s no language barrier for non-English speaking kids.

The books, including La Mela e la Farfalla (’Apple and the Butterfly’, pictured left) all depict natural cycles and playful transformations.  Iela Mari beautifully conveys the cycle of caterpillar to butterfly, or, in another book, a chicken laying an egg.

What is also so nice about a story without words is that it allows the reader to interpret the story on a personal level and really soak up the details of the images. Your kids will love them too because they can ‘read’ them on their own!

-Courtney

(Images from Animalarium.)

Entry Filed under: Books & Paper, Entertain your Kids!, For Kids, Reading