The Song of Starlight
from €37.90 incl. VAT + €6.90 shipping · free from 2 books
30 pages, 20 x 20 cm, your child drawn from your photo on every illustrated page.
Hardcover €47.90 · Softcover €37.90
Your child is the first hero, and up to 3 more: brother or sister, mum or dad, grandparent, another grown-up. €8.00 per extra hero
Personalise this book1 day: we create and check your book · 2–5 days: printing · 3–6 days: delivery
Every book is checked page by page before it's printed.
The night of the big concert, the city goes quiet: a story about stage fright and one brave first note.
What's inside
- 30 pages, 4 of them colouring pages to fill in
- 20 × 20 cm hardcover (softcover too)
- Thick silk paper (170 g)
- A page for grown-ups: tips and questions to talk about
- Your child drawn from your photo on every illustrated page
What makes it different
- Drawn from your photo on every illustrated page, not a cartoon with a name pasted in
- In a Greek book, the name takes its right form in every sentence (του Γιώργου, τον Γιώργο)
- Every book is checked page by page before it's printed
Watch the title change here and on every book on the site. It stays in this browser tab only.
Helps with
Courage
Stage fright and nerves before something big: finding courage, one first note at a time.
The tool your child practises in the story
Breathe, look at each other, sing the first note together
Sit face to face with your child (or let brothers and sisters face each other). Breathe in slowly through the nose for three, and out through the mouth. Look into each other's eyes and smile. Then start together on one first note or word, "Laaa", and let the rest follow. Before a real performance, agree where your child can find your eyes in the room. Practise it on easy things, then use it before anything that feels big.
For grown-ups
What this story is about
Before a show, a match or a first day, many children get butterflies: a fluttery tummy, wobbly knees, a voice that wants to hide. In this story your child feels exactly that before a big concert. A kind stage manager teaches a small trick. When the stage goes dark, your child notices that the shy Hushlings are frightened too, chooses to start the song softly, and later teaches them the trick. The nerves do not vanish, but your child finds they can be brave with them, and that it is easier with someone beside them.
Three ways to talk about it
- Name the feeling: "Your tummy feels fluttery because this matters to you. Lots of people feel that before something big."
- Practise the trick at home on small things first: the first line of a song, a knock on a neighbour's door, a hello to a new friend.
- Praise the trying, not the result: "You were nervous and you sang anyway. That's brave."
Three questions to ask
- How did the child in the story feel before the concert? Where in the body did they feel it?
- Why did the child put the microphone down and start the song softly?
- The Hushlings were frightened too. What helped them join in?
Practise the tool together: Breathe, look at each other, sing the first note together
Sit face to face with your child (or let brothers and sisters face each other). Breathe in slowly through the nose for three, and out through the mouth. Look into each other's eyes and smile. Then start together on one first note or word, "Laaa", and let the rest follow. Before a real performance, agree where your child can find your eyes in the room. Practise it on easy things, then use it before anything that feels big.
If nerves stay very strong for a long time, or your child starts to avoid many everyday things because of fear, tummy aches or poor sleep, it is worth talking to your paediatrician or a child psychologist.
Look inside
Twelve illustrated spreads: the picture on the left, the story on the right. These sample pages show an invented child called Iris.
At rehearsal, the stage looked very, very big. Wobbly knees. A tummy full of butterflies: flutter-flutter. "What if my voice hides?" Mr Bongo, the stage manager, twirled his curly moustache. "Then we find it together. Breathe." They breathed in. "Look at each other." They looked. "And sing the first note together." "Laaa!" A small sparkle popped out. Then the big drum went BOOM! Somewhere under the stage, something squeaked.
Tiptoe, tiptoe, all the way to Starlight Square. Under the big stage sat a giant heap of every loud sound in Glimmerton, wrapped up tight in shadow. "Please," came a whisper, "we need those for the concert tonight." The Hushlings clutched the heap and shook. "Concerts are LOUD," said the smallest. "Loud makes our tummies go flutter-flutter." Flutter-flutter. That was a feeling Iris knew very well.
Little sounds slip through, Iris remembered. So this song would have to start very small. There, at the side of the stage, was Mr Bongo. Their eyes met in the dark. A little nod. One breath: in, two, three... and out. One look. Then the first note began, and Mr Bongo joined in: "Laaaa..." The note came out small. Then it came out shiny. A ribbon of light curled up into the dark. The butterflies were still there. But now they were dancing.
It was the sparkliest finale Glimmerton had ever seen. Iris sang at the front, and five Hushlings sang along, glowing like little lanterns. At the end, nobody clapped. Everyone waved their fingers in the air instead: a silent sparkle-clap, so nobody would jump. Then the smallest Hushling hiccuped one tiny honk, and everyone laughed, the Hushling most of all. Mr Bongo wiped a happy tear from his moustache.
Spread 1 of 4
Inside the book
Twelve illustrated spreads: the picture on the left, the story on the right. This sample uses an invented family to show the illustration style.
In the bright city of Glimmerton, Mia sang everywhere. In the bath. On the bus. Even with a toothbrush in hand: "Hmm-hmm-hmm!" And every song sent tiny sparkles into the air, like bubbles made of light. Tomorrow night was the big Starlight Concert. "I'm going to sing so LOUD that the stars will hear me!" Far away, under the stage in Starlight Square, something small and fluffy shivered.
Who can be a hero
Your child, and more heroes if you like
Your child is the first hero, and up to 3 more: brother or sister, mum or dad, grandparent, another grown-up.
Your child sings on the big stage, with a small trick for the butterflies.
- Hardcover: €47.90
- Softcover: €37.90
+ €6.90 shipping · free from 2 books
Personalise this book
Styles
Soft 3D
AvailableRounded, softly lit 3D characters with big expressive eyes. Faces stay recognisable: hair, glasses, smile.
Storybook gouache
AvailableMatte, hand-painted colours with visible brush texture and soft edges, like a classic picture book.
Watercolour
AvailableLoose, soft washes of colour with fine ink lines and the texture of real paper.
Pencil and watercolour
AvailableColoured pencil over light watercolour washes, warm and drawn by hand.
Paper collage
AvailableLayers of cut and torn coloured paper, with grain and edges you can almost touch.
Clay
AvailableSculpted from soft modelling clay, like a handmade stop-motion film.
Vintage storybook
AvailableThe look of mid-century picture books: flat shapes, muted colours, a soft printed grain.
Fantasy painting
AvailableRich, painterly fantasy scenes full of glowing light.
Anime-inspired
AvailableClean line art, cel shading and large, expressive eyes.
Pop anime 3D
AvailableCel-shaded 3D with big sparkling eyes and bright, glowing colours.
Bold comic
AvailableThick ink lines, flat bright colours, halftone dots and dynamic angles.
Cute chibi
AvailableTiny bodies, big heads and soft pastel colours.
Formats and prices
Prices include VAT.
+ €6.90 shipping · free from 2 books