Inspiring children for more than 50 years is Miroslav Sasek’s wonderful collection of This Is children’s books.Born in Prague in 1916, M.Sasek worked as a painter and illustrator for most of his life.Beginning with This is Paris (published in 1958) the stories he wrote painted a delightful and evocative picture of some of the world’s great cities and countries.
The books stick to the same format throughout the series, most are oversize hardbacks with illustrated dust-jackets. There is usually an illustration of (presumably) Sasek himself going to wherever the book is set on the bottom left inside cover and a similar illustration on the bottom right inside cover which shows him leaving with some kind of local souvenir.
The highlights of each destination are presented in vivid colour through the rest of the book with an emphasis on tourist attractions, local transport and national dress.
Written between 1959 and 1974 , the style is reminiscent of the period, while remaining still noteworthy today.
The books today are being lovingly reprinted and are delighting another generation of children. The This Is range is available from children’s boutiques.
