Friday 13 December 2019

Julian at the Wedding! Upcoming sequel to Julian is a Mermaid



We are very excited to share the news that next October, we will be publishing the much-anticipated sequel to Jessica Love's Julian is a Mermaid

Julian at the Wedding is set at a wedding celebration where Julian and a fellow free-spirited child are taking part in the ceremony. The two form a magical friendship while surrounded by a community that embodies love and acceptance.


Here is a sneak peek at the gorgeous interior artwork:




On the success of her debut book, Jessica Love remarked, “My greatest hope was that the first book about Julian would find not only the kids who immediately identify with Julian, but that it would find the kids who don’t immediately understand. I wanted those kids to go on the journey with him, feel empathy when he is downcast, and elation when he finds his people. Because everyone knows what hope, shame, and joy feel like – I hoped that if I made a sort of crumb-trail of emotional identification that would bring everyone who reads the book, regardless of their background or identity, safely through the forest and out into the sunshine. My hope for the next book is that Julian’s journey into the sunshine continues, with continued emphasis on love and acceptance, and a new journey of friendship.”






In case, you haven't heard about Julian is a Mermaid, it's an award-winning picture book written by New-York-based author-illustrator, Jessica Love, which follows young Julian, who wants nothing more than to dress up as a mermaid, but when his Nana catches him in the act, he's unsure how she'll react. It was awarded the Klaus Flugge Prize for Illustration 2019, the Stonewall Book Award 2019, shortlisted for the Kate Greenaway Medal and for the Waterstones Children's Book Prize 2019.





Praise for Julian is a Mermaid:


“celebratory and ground-breaking” - The Sunday Times

“The stand-out title this month is a picture book, Julian Is a Mermaid by Jessica Love. […] In the bravura feat of understated storytelling, the richness of Julian’s free-floating imagination is caught in images layered with colour, movement, muscle and life, celebrating black and Latino experience. Julian invents a tail and flowing hair, and Nana’s acceptance, as she accompanies him on a wild parade of mermaids, will leave the reader filler with joy.” - The Guardian


"Beautiful [...] Magnificent [...] Lovely [...] Magical [...] Gorgeous" - RuPaul


“This utterly gorgeous picture book is great for questioning our gender stereotypes but without being at all preachy." - The Sun




Julian is a Mermaid is available in paperback where all good books are sold!