Selva
By: Marina Gibert
Publisher: Kalandraka, Spain, 2021
Format: Hardback
A colorful trip through jungles and imagination
Selva is Spanish for "Jungle". In this book, we follow a boy's journey on a narrow, white path...that turns out to be a snake. Selva is a book of transformations, made by a child´s vivid imagination. Nothing is what it appears to be in these pictures, but our small hero is never baffled, he/she wanders fearlessly through tigers and crocodiles, gorillas and butterflies.
Reading a silent book can be a daunting experience, a little like navigating a new and strange world without a map or a compass to guide you. That might be one of the reasons why there are so many silent books written about journeys to new places and unexpected experiences, where imagination takes you on exciting adventures. Selva offers a new and fresh take on this theme due to its bold colors and the playful perspectives of the illustrations. The ending is both suprising and absolutely gorgeous. The suprise at the end might serve as an important reminder of how much we need our colorful imaginations in our everyday life - because there is so much also in real life that is not what it appears to be at first glance.
"Selva" won the Compostela prize for illustrated albums. It is Gilberts first wordless book, made with acrylics on paper. The color choices are as imaginative as the motives, here are blue tigers and pink palms, and it suits the story really well. All pages are double spreads, which allows the reader to really get lost in the illustrations. A book for all the days that feel a little dull and grey!
