Courage is a Good Thing

“Rautenberg and Erlbruch – two masters in text and image, to be enjoyed by all!” – Verena Buchmaier / ekz

“Strengthening words that start where the power is” – Jan Drees / lesenmitlinks

“The cover image alone is unbeatable.” – Susanna Wengeler / Buchmarkt

“…a marvellous little book where pigs wantonly dive into water or elegantly swing on gymnastic rings, rabbits race around merrily, or a goose gives a turn at acrobatics, because »oh you know I sometimes get such a thrill / when I start to drill.« In the poem »gansseiltanz« (»goosewalkstheropeֿ«) Rautenberg responds directly to Erlbruch’s picture in which a goose is balancing on a tightrope high above the town. In other poems Rautenberg distances himself from the visible to express in free verse things that can be perceived as the essence of the pictures. The results are sometimes witty, sometimes rather pensive, sometimes laconic. »well, how can I say this«: Courage is simply a good thing!” – White Ravens 2023

“Poems that encourage and strengthen. Arne Rautenberg sets the scene magnificently with Wolf Erlbruch’s drawings and each double-page spread is a delight. One encounters courageous rabbits, geese dancing on ropes or one gazes at raindrops. Rautenberg’s poems open up perspectives, let us discover the world anew and give us the courage to accept change. The world needs such poems and such images right now!” – German Academy for Children’s Literature

“Rhymes that make little people big, help them decipher this mad world in a tender melange of melancholy and liberating humour. And how beautifully they match Wof Erlbruch’s pictures!” – Michael Augustin / Lesart