A Happy Place

Britta Teckentrup was born in Hamburg, Germany, and grew up in a town called Wuppertal. She moved to London in 1988 to study illustration and fine art at St. Martin's College and the Royal College of Art. Britta is the author and illustrator of many well-loved books for children. Britta has written and illustrated 60 children's books, which have been published in more than 20 different countries. After 17 years in the UK, Britta now lives and works in Berlin with her husband, young son, and their cat.

Britta Teckentrup was born in Hamburg, Germany, and grew up in a town called Wuppertal. She moved to London in 1988 to study illustration and fine art at St. Martin's College and the Royal College of Art. Britta is the author and illustrator of many well-loved books for children. Britta has written and illustrated 60 children's books, which have been published in more than 20 different countries. Her fine art work has been frequently exhibited at her London gallery and at art fairs all over the world.

STARRED REVIEW

"But night or day, A Happy Place transports its audience through the joyous magic of the natural world."
 
A bright little star peeks through a sleepless child's bedroom window and whispers, "Follow me... and I will help you find a happy place." So begins a nocturnal romp through nature in author/illustrator Britta Teckentrup's dazzling children's picture book. A Happy Place, with its accessible language, stunning illustrations, and playfully cut-out pages, is a delightful reading adventure for young audiences.
The glow of the star shines a guiding light in "the deep blue night" as child and star travel past a river full of herons, up rolling hills speckled with insects, and into the inviting moonlit woods. Here the nighttime explorers find a trove of friends to sing and dance with, including "a tippy-toed squirrel," "a bushy-tailed fox," and "a long-eared hare." The child celebrates this deliciously happy place with the animals until it is time to go back home to bed.
 
Teckentrup (Under the Same Sky) pairs her endearing prose with enchanting illustrations that light up the story's dark setting. Shadowing and fine detail add depth, texture, and intrigue making that which seems ordinary in daylight extraordinary within Teckentrup's nighttime pages. The die-cuts add extra charm to the tale, especially at the middle of the book, where they unveil the forest friends one by one, then hide them as each departs.

The star promises to watch over the child as they sleep at the book's conclusion, making it a perfect bedtime read. But night or day, A Happy Place transports its audience through the joyous magic of the natural world. --Jen Forbus, freelancer, Shelf Awareness




A youngster follows a star on an illuminated nighttime journey.

Restless, a teddy bear cast aside, a brown-skinned child reaches out to a bright star shining through a die-cut bedroom window. Follow me, whispers the star, / and I will help you