When Mino Took the Bus
Age 3+
Picture Storybooks
From the bestselling creator of Hug Me, comes a beautiful and heart-warming picture book about making new friends and appreciating the small moments in life.
Turning eight weeks old is no ordinary feat, when you are a chipmunk. It’s time to say goodbye to mama and set out alone towards what lies ahead.
When the day comes for little Mino to leave, he gives his mama a kiss and excitedly gets on a bus. The bus will take him to his future home, where he will plant his seeds and watch them grow. Mino is impatient for his new life to begin and his bus journey to be over. As the bus stops and a new passenger boards, Mino begins to meet new friend after new friend, each who show him something he never knew before. As his trip draws to an end, Mino might just discover that the journey counts just as much as the destination.
Creators
Simona Ciraolo is a Sardinian-born author and illustrator whose witty and endearing tales recently won her the Sebastian Walker Award. Ciraolo studied animation at the National Film School in Turin, Italy, before moving to the UK where she undertook an MA in Children's Book Illustration at the Cambridge School of Art. She has also worked as a freelance 2D animator for children's TV shows and illustrated five picture books for an independent Italian publisher..
Reviews
Gorgeous, muted illustrations show an entrancing variety of sea life, and the personalities of each creature carry the story […] A feast for the eyes.
Kirkus Reviews
Ciraolo’s palette is bright and her line is supple; she makes shyness seem downright fashionable.
Publishers Weekly
Chipmunk leaves his mother and boards a bus to his future. On the bus he makes a variety of new friends in this celebration of the small moments.
The Bookseller's Children's Previews
Ciraolo’s pastel-hued story finds Mino sharing the journey to the last bus stop with an array of fun animal characters and features fabulous woodland drawings.
The Observer
Such a good concept for a story and delivered with style, humour, and charm.