A big thank you to our publishing team at Livros Horizonte, for all their support and hard work, making sure we got to put our very best work out there. ❤️

“Miss Whistle” is available for pre-order for 5 more days, until it hits the bookstores on October 7th!

I’m so grateful to Isabel Zambujal for trusting me to bring this character’s story to life, and for always championing my work so enthusiastically! I’m really proud of the work we did together, and can’t wait for you all to see it! ❤️

Working on this book was a ton of fun! It had been a while since I worked on fully grayscale illustrations, but I’m pretty excited with how they turned out! It ended up allowing me to focus on a really loose approach to line and shading, which I feel serves the narrative’s tone really well. ✨

At seven years old - before she became Miss Whistle - Irene made a wish: to become the best soccer referee in the world. Forever! With some sprinkles of magic, her wish came true. Aaaaand she ended up getting an amazing side-kick in the process – Paul II, an octopus toy magically come to life! ✨⚽️✨

Cause that’s the power of books, isn t it? Empower new generations to move us forward!

The Young Readers Festival takes place on September 20th, from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm, at the Portuguese National Library and the full program of activities will be released tomorrow, so stay tuned! (4/4)

Also, I squeezed in a small homage to one of my favourite stories ever, Maurice Sendak’s “Where the wild things are”.
The creatures godspeeding our pack of three young adventurers are a subtle nod to Sendak’s Wild Things, hinting that this journey might be one of growth and self-discovery. (3/4)

so I aimed to create a visual narrative that tackled both the sense of adventure of a literal journey of discovery, and the symbolism of inner voyages we embark on through reading. It’s an ode to the joy of sharing stories and to kids’ wild imagination and curiosity. (2/4)

The book was written by Chris Vanderkooy and is published in Canada by Reasons to Live and in Portugal by The Poets and Dragons Society!

👉 www.instagram.com/littleblacks...

Muito obrigada, @eleonorpiteira.bsky.social! 🤗❤️

Thanks mom. Love you always. Miss you. You are my forever star! This is also yours. ❤️

Huge congratulations to all whom have been awarded and recognised and also to all of us who read and make books! 📚

On a personal note, yesterday would be my late mother’s 78th birthday. She passed before seeing this book made. But is because of her this book exists. Because of her example and her strength.

Thanks to my beautiful friend Susana Cardoso Ferreira (also awarded as translator in several titles) for her support and wise counsel when I was struggling with making this book. It really takes a village! ❤️

Last, but not the least, big thanks to my editor Ana Lúcia Maduro and the whole editorial team at Oficina do Livro / LEYA, for believing in my book and supporting me throughout a very arduous creative process.

Grateful also to the Reading Observatory of Pombal for their excepcional work promoting and children’s literature, and contributing to raising the standards for children’s books publishing.

This seal marks the selection of the 10 best children’s books published in Portugal in 2024.

I was humbled as I took the stage, filled with both a sense of pride and immense gratitude to all the members of the jury for their recognition of my work.

I had the pleasure of developing the visual identity for this event, which I’m now sharing with you. My thanks to the whole team at the Department of Culture of Braga Municipality, for the kind invitation, and to all partners in the event’s organisation for the vote of confidence in my work.

There will be 12 consecutive hours of a diverse cultural program, combining different artistic expressions and educational activities, taking place in various spaces throughout the city and open to the entire community. You're all invited!