Sotir Gelev

This unusual book gives us accurate notice from its very title – the book is for fearless children and parents. In fact, what is needed most of all are brave parents who, before bedtime, will happily read poems about goblins, water spirits, werewolves, stone eaters, vampires, and many other creatures that are rarely given roles as lullaby heroes. To challenge his readers – both big and little – even more, the author has included a song about the sock eaters who live under the bed and never sleep. The poems are long and swirl masterfully in elegant rhymes. There is no pampering in the texts – the “fears” are laid bare one by one, without looking for a strategy to go easy on the children. But as if to compensate, Sotir Gelev draws the creatures not quite so scary as they are in the poems. There is something carnivalesque, something make-believe in them. These are creatures playing the role of scarecrows, as if especially for the children. To a large extent, this unscary effect is due to the neutral background on which he depicts the characters – who, among other things, are also static. The special axonometric way in which they are drawn creates the feeling that these are almost very beautiful designs for monster costumes. The muzzles, fur, hats, clothing, and shoes are depicted with a fabulous decorative beauty. The special charm of this book lies in this duality of scary and make-believe.