At The Drop Of A Cat

A picture book written by Élise Fontenaille about a boy and his larger-than-life immigrant grandfather, who shares with him the kind of learning that’s not taught in classrooms.

At six years old, the child-narrator of this picture book loves nothing more than spending time with his grandpa, Luis—especially in his marvellous garden, where green beans reach as high as the sky. Luis’s garden is where the little boy practices reading and writing. But just as importantly, it’s also where he learns wonderful things from Luis, like the names of all the birds in the trees and new expressions that are so much fun to say. Luis’s playful vocabulary is as vibrant and full of life as his garden, and phrases that are particular to his way of talking, like “at the drop of a cat” (which means right away), are soon adapted into the little boy’s lexicon, too.

A talented cook, artist, and gardener, Luis has much wisdom to impart and many experiences to share with his grandson—even though, as a war refugee, he never went to school himself and never learned to read and write. A loving testament to the intergenerational transmission of knowledge and the breathtaking beauty of the natural world, illustrated with evocative, multilayered art by Violeta Lópiz.

Lópiz is an award-winning Berlin-based illustrator from Ibiza. She has participated in exhibitions in Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Israel, Turkey, USA, Japan, Korea and more. El Cultural, the supplement of El Mundo, considers her one of the top ten names of contemporary Spanish illustration.  Her work can be found in bookstores, streets, fairs, newspapers, and the thousands of notebooks that she leaves scattered around.