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The idea came about like all ideas: suddenly and without warning. I wanted to tell a story that would leave a lot of interpretive space for the readers, and for a long time, I had been fixated on writing a story involving dinosaurs, which are beloved by children and overused by publishers. However, I didn’t want to fall into the usual clichés, and I was groping in the dark, until PUF! the title appeared: Mia mamma è un dinosauro / My Mom is a Dinosaur. From this fantastic pairing (mom and dinosaur), the story came to life on its own. It’s a surprising and mysterious story, even for me, one that managed to make me smile and, at the same time, moved me while I was writing it. Then, I drew the first sketches and passed everything to Margherita, sneaking a peek at her reaction (she’s my toughest critic). When I saw her, flipping through the manuscript, changing expressions, smiling and becoming sentimental, I thought: this is it, this is the perfect story for the Silent Book Contest!
A child is found by a T-Rex among the leaves of a prehistoric past. The T-Rex adopts him, protecting him from dangers, teaching him to hunt and roar like a real dinosaur. But one evening, while gazing at the sky, the dinosaur notices a strange light: a meteorite that seems to be heading toward Earth. Mama Dinosaur senses the danger and waits for the child to fall asleep so she can lock him in a cave, in an extreme attempt to save his life.
The child wakes up in the arms of a woman who wants to take care of him: she teaches him to eat like a human, to walk like a human, to speak like a human, but he refuses, behaving like a dinosaur.
The poor woman, tired and heartbroken, takes the child to the museum. The prehistoric atmosphere makes him feel at ease, until he sees the skeleton of a dinosaur. The child recognizes his mama dinosaur in those bones; he is sad and seeks comfort from the human mama, who understands his pain and embraces him with all the love in her heart.
Thus, a true love between mother and child is born, a relationship based on acceptance and mutual exchange.
Now, even the new mama knows how to be a dinosaur.
This story, silently, speaks to me of the unconditional love of mothers. Mothers who can be strong and fun like dinosaurs. Mothers who know how to welcome a child into their life, whether the child was born to them or another mother. But I also feel it speaks, above all, of those children who live in a world of their own, a world of childhood or certain illnesses, where mothers sometimes struggle to enter. A world made of incomprehensible words, indecipherable and awkward gestures, like those of a dinosaur. Gestures that only a mother strong like a T-Rex can decode and embrace.
We are very familiar with this award. Gianni De Conno told us about it many years ago. He thought it was a great idea, but we, who love telling stories, were a bit unsure. After looking at the works selected in the first edition of the award, we realized the huge narrative potential of these silent books. We liked the idea that every child (whether they could read or not) would be able to create their own story, feeling proudly like an author.
We participated and were selected in the 2017 edition with Il principe Azzurro e la principessa Fuxia. Over the years, the award has grown more and more, and the works competing for it have become more and more beautiful. Knowing that we were selected this year was very exciting. The Silent Book Contest, which bears the name of our dear friend Gianni De Conno, is one of the most prestigious awards in the field of illustrated literature. Let’s cross our fingers!
Riccardo and Margherita have many things in common: a volcano, two daughters, a house, and all the stories that Riccardo has invented and illustrated, and Margherita has painted. Their books are very loved by children, who, between readings, enjoy watching their figure theatre performances where, along with puppets and marionettes, they portray characters from ancient, often absurd, stories found in some dusty, forgotten bookstore.
Their picture books have been published by Carthusia, Coccole Books, White Star, Bohem Press, Splen, Libri Volanti, and many other Italian and international publishers. Many of their books have been translated and published worldwide.
Riccardo Francaviglia and Margherita Sgarlata live and work in Catania. They won the “On the Wings of Butterflies” award with Il gigante piscione, were nominated for the Andersen Prize with Colapesce, and their silent book Il principe Azzurro e la principessa Fuxia placed second at the prestigious Malerba Prize.
Riccardo teaches “Illustration” at the Academy of Fine Arts in Catanzaro.