The Invisible Story

By Author / Illustrator

Jaime Gamboa, Wen Hsu Chen, Daniel Hahn

Genre

Representation & Inclusion

Age range(s)

Publisher

Lantana Publishing

ISBN

9781915244765

Format

Hardback

Published

25-04-2024

Synopsis

The world is full of stories. Some are as long as lizards, others so short that they never even make it to The End. But the invisible story is unlike any other story because no one has ever read it! It lives hidden in the darkest corner of the library, far from where the famous tales, written in gold letters, shine.

One day, a blind reader approaches the story's trembling pages. This reader is unlike any reader the invisible story has ever encountered. And when she runs her fingertips over the book's white pages, it is astonished by what she finds.

A beautifully inclusive tale about sight-loss in which we learn that not all stories are meant to be read with the eyes.

View Extract

Reviews

Sue

In a library filled with famous tales and beautiful pictures, a little story watches quietly as they argue over who is the most read, the most popular and best loved. Overlooked by readers visiting the library, it feels invisible and ghostly. However, one day, a young girl finds the book, a reader who is different and explores the story with her fingers, revealing the pages are covered in tiny raised bumps - this is a wonderful story that must be read with the fingertips, not the eyes.

The Invisible Story is a stunning book, celebrating the importance of braille and that all stories, however told, are valuable; no one story is better than another. The author's note at the end of the book explains how braille was developed and how it is used to convey stories in over 130 languages all over the world, developing the reader's understanding of both its history and its importance and making it an excellent book for both home and school.

The illustrations are incredible. Beautiful white papercuts are used to show the library and its readers whilst torn, coloured paper is used to show the imaginative content of the books escaping their boundaries. The simplicity of the white emphasises the little story's feeling that it is a ghost and invisible to readers. They are sure to inspire children to create their own papercut pictures, perhaps to illustrate stories of their own.

Perfect for using as a starting point for developing empathy and understanding as well as learning more about braille and its importance, The Invisible Story is a real gem.

Picture book / Reviewed by Sue Wilsher, teacher