The Castle Library reminds that sometimes you find the best treasures in books
The Castle Library is a story about Princess Lily who loves to travel. From travel, she learned many new things. She has seen Pyramids of Giza, walked along Great Walls of China and practically travel from one end of the world to the other.
One day, Princess Lily ran out of places to visit because she visited all. Her father, the Sultan, summoned all wise people in his kingdom for ideas on where to travel next. The engineer suggested a rocket and off to the moon she went. And then the pilot suggested hot air balloon and off she went to touch the fluffy clouds.
Then there’s no more places to go. Out of boredom, Princess Lily went to the old library that her great, great, great grandfather had built. After reading many books, she realised that she could actually travel to places she never been. She travelled down the rabbit holes as well as sat on a wishing chair that took her to surprising places.
“Father, I have found the best treasures in books. They are so inspiring,” the princess told her father.
After hearing the delightful news, the Sultan threw a party and opened the library to public.
Princess Lily still travels to places she had been but this time she will bring back new books and toys for the library.
Credit images: Evi Shelvia
Personally, I can resonate well with this story. I love to travel but there are still a lot of places that I have yet to visit. I sometimes wander to all the places in my bucket list by reading books, travel magazines as well as visit websites about the countries. Like the princess, I like to buy books from places that Ivisited and keep it in my own library. But oh how I wish to have a tree library like the one that the princess has.
The writer, Hayati Hanif wrote this story to show how reading enriches the imagination and one does not have to be confined to one place. She has written a number of books for children. This is her first picture book in English.
Evi Shelvia, the illustrator, also a friend of mine, really nailed it. Her imaginations were so wild and out-of-this-world that I myself could not ever think of illustrating. Kudos!
Evi was born in Jakarta. She studied industrial design. In 2009 her family moved to Kuala Lumpur following her husband’s new appointment. The first picture book she illustrated, The Gift of the Ladybug, was an Amazon bestseller on the first day of its launch. This encouraged her to illustrate children’s picture books professionally. She has illustrated for a number of picture books both locally and internationally.
This is a book to help your child discover the magic of reading and the adventures that can be found in the imagination. You can buy online at Oyez Book Store.
Title: The Castle Library
Publisher :Oyez!Books
ISBN :9789670908014
Author :Hayati Hanif
Illustrator :Evi Shelvia
23 Comments
Chech
Thank you for introducing such an enchanting book. Most of all, thanks for introducing talented author and illustrator to your blog readers. I look forward to reading and enjoying the book with my son.
Hazural
I like the Illustration!
imaisha
Yes, I totally love it! <3 hebatnya illustrasi.. kagum tengok so many details in this picture book 😀
imaisha
Ingatkan nak cari buku ni time FSK, tapi tiba2 demam masa tu. Jadi, tak pergi ke mana. Poskad kak Em pun tak terbeli. Huhu, sedih pulak bila ingat 🙁
Glory jane
I keep thinking to buy this book but feels it too heavy for my 3 yrs old boy.
But i love Evi illustration.
Glory jane
Should probably buy it for myself lah….
imaisha
saya nak beli buat diri sendiri je sbb mcm cantik sgt. hihi. rasa nak borong semua buku Evi sbb illustrasi dia mmg blh buat org fall in love gitu ^_^
imaisha
haha.. betul betul.. sokong! 😀 who says picture book is only for children? 😉
Glory jane
Betul tu. Minat juga lukisan evi, tp rasa lukisan dia untuk kanak-kanak besar sikit (yang dah bersekolah).
Macam lukisan kak em lebih sesuai untuk anak kecil sbb ‘bersih’.
Anak saya yang 3 tahun ambil buku (hasil dr lukisan kak em), dan dia boleh cerita semula pada saya buku ni tentang apa.
Glory jane
Hihi. Melepas la saya nk minta poskad free dr imaisha….
Glory jane
Haha. Over pula nanti asyik beli ikut kehendak sendiri sahaja
Glory jane
Susah nak cari buku kanak-kanak dalam bahasa melayu.
Ada buku cerita dalam bahasa melayu, tapi tak banyak gambar/ ilustrasi pula, jadi kurang menarik.
Kebanyakkan di oyez dalam bahasa inggeris.
imaisha
huhu.. saya pun nak kena merayu simpati org lain kot baru blh dpt poskad kak Em yg dah terlepas ni >.<
imaisha
oh, mcm tu ye. hanya yg dah jadi mak yg lebih memahami keperluan anak2. hihi. hebat la Rizq blh cerita balik apa yg dia baca 😀 clever boy!~
imaisha
hehe.. sekali-sekala apa salahnya bagi hadiah untuk diri sendiri kan.. ^_^
imaisha
yela.. jarang jumpa buku illustrasi dalam bahasa melayu yg cantik dan berkualiti. kurang permintaan ke kurang pasaran ke atau kenapa ye? kena minta kak Em buat byk2 buku versi bahasa melayu la ni 🙂
Hazural
sama lah macam saya…. illustration nya sangat menarik… dengan warna2 yang agak terang..
Hazural
saya ada 1 buku kak em, tapi sampai sekarang masih belum berani bagi anak belek2… sebab saying, takut rosak… hahahaaa…
Hazural
mak pula yang lebih2 kan… kikikii
Joanneezah
Saya dpt buku ni free sempena promotion oyez bln mac. Mmg bagus buku ni.
Hazural
wah… bertuahnya… 😀
Joanneezah
Tp kena purchase Rm100 above baru dpt 1 buku free 😉
imaisha
saya pun ingat nak dapatkan buku ni sempena promosi Oyez. Dah lama berhajat nak beli. Harap2 kesampaian~