{"title":"Illustrated by Joanna Concejo","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"9781644212844","title":"Prince in a Pastry Shop","description":"\u003cb\u003eIn a beautifully illustrated story for adults that is playful, philosophical, and with a wink of naughtiness, two characters—the Not-So-Little-Prince and Prickly Pear—consider the nature of happiness.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMuch more than a tale of sweet indulgence, \u003ci\u003ePrince in a Pastry Shop\u003c\/i\u003e touches on a fundamental question important to us all, from preschooler to pensioner: what does it mean to be happy? Is happiness to be found in the smallest, most visceral of experiences like eating a sugar-dusted donut? Can we truly experience happiness while there is suffering in the world? Is there a great cosmic balance that demands for every happy moment there also be a moment of sorrow? Can we be happy knowing that it’s a fleeting condition? Can we really know and understand happiness while we’re experiencing it? \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Happiness is nothing but trouble,” says the Prince. For Prickly Pear, happiness simply tastes like a cupcake or profiterole.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWriter Marek Bieńczyk, the winner of the Nike prize, the most important literature award in Poland, joins with the brilliant Polish illustrator Joanna Concejo whose detailed pencil drawings create a wonderland, where sitting at a café table morphs into a dreamscape with animals, a borderland between waking and dreaming.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWith a very light touch \u003ci\u003ePrince in a Pastry Shop\u003c\/i\u003e asks one of the most profound questions of our existence: is it enough to appreciate each moment of sweetness—and at what cost—or must we be active in an unforgiving world to find contentment.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43128612978866,"sku":"9781644212844","price":17.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781644212844.jpg?v=1786024280"},{"product_id":"9781644214473","title":"Mr. Distinctive","description":"\u003cb\u003eA gorgeously illustrated picture book for adults—with two gatefold pages inside—by Nobelist Olga Tokarczuk and illustrator Joanna Concejo, creators of \u003ci\u003eThe Lost Soul\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA devastating putdown of our self-obsessed, superficial social media culture.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMr. Distinctive has a memorable, attractive face. He only has to walk down the street, and everyone turns to smile at him. Once he starred in a TV commercial and was praised and congratulated for having a face that sold the product well. Mr. Distinctive is very pleased with himself and loves to take selfies with his cellphone. He posts countless images of himself that are shared all over the internet.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOne day Mr. Distinctive looks in the mirror and sees that his features have begun to fade, his face has changed into a blur. With every new photo he posts, his distinctiveness dwindles. Determined to regain his flawlessly beautiful face and the adoration it brought him, Mr. Distinctive seeks out an extreme solution. But are the lengths he goes in order to restore his sense of being unique and exceptional worth it?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn their new story, the creators of \u003ci\u003eThe Lost Soul\u003c\/i\u003e—Nobel prize in literature winner Olga Tokarczuk and illustrator Joanna Concejo—show us a world of obsession with personal appearance and self-promotion, where happiness is an imperative, and the cult of youth rules.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":55205936890229,"sku":"9781644214473","price":18.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781644214473.jpg?v=1786024319"}],"url":"https:\/\/backstory.london\/collections\/illustrator-joanna-concejo.oembed","provider":"Backstory","version":"1.0","type":"link"}