There's Room for Everyone

by Anahita Teymorian, Delaram Ghanimifard (Translator)

Overview

A child grows and discovers the world. As he lies awake at night, he sees there’s enough room in the sky for all the stars and the moon. When he visits the ocean, he sees there is enough room for all the fish, even for the whales. As he grows up, he doesn’t understand why people fight for space. Surely, if we are kinder to one another, there will always be room for everyone?

This beautiful and profound picture book by Iranian picture book author and artist, Anahita Teymorian, is a call for empathy and social action as well as a profound message of peace and tolerance.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781910328538
Publisher:	Tiny Owl Publishing
Publication date:	10/01/2019
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	9.40(w) x 9.40(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Author and illustrator Anahita Teymorian also works with animation in her native Iran. Her books are known all over the world, and her work has been featured in major international exhibitions. She has won awards at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair and the Noma Concours.

Read an Excerpt

Before I was born, there was only a little space in my mommy’s tummy... But there was enough room for me.

When I got bigger, our house seemed smaller... But there was enough room for all of us.

There was even enough room for all my toys!
At night, when I looked up to the sky, there was enough room for all the stars... even the moon!

In the morning, I saw there was room for all the birds in the garden.

And when I went to the library, there was room for all the books I wanted to read.

When I grew up, I became a sailor and went to explore the world. I saw there was room in the sea for all the fish. Even the whales!

Wherever I went, there was enough room for all the animals. Even the giraffes and elephants!

But as I travelled the world, I saw people everywhere fighting for space.

Small spaces. Big spaces. Strange spaces.

Now that I’m older and have learnt more about the world, I have a secret I want to share with you...

If we are kinder, and if we love each other then, in this beautiful world, there’s room for everyone.

Editorial Reviews

07/01/2019

A pensive child examines his physical relationship to the world, beginning with his family unit: “Before I was born, there was only a little space in my mummy’s tummy.... But there was enough room for me.” He continues observing the physical space around him, and from the night sky with room for stars and a giant moon, to a sea full of fish and whales, there is space enough for everyone. Why, then, do people everywhere fight so hard for it? Teymorian explores the relationship between a scarcity mindset and conflict as spreads show people inelegantly sharing “small spaces” (an office) and “big spaces” (a field). Ghanimifard’s chalky, color-rich artwork expands this idea with figures that stretch and bend themselves to fill space. Concluding insight from the now-grown narrator suggests that individual generosity is what makes room for all. Ages 4–7. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

Not yet published in the UK

From the Publisher

11/15/2019

K-Gr 2—This purposeful picture book centers around themes of inclusion. Narrated by a sailor who has traveled the world, he begins by explaining that he started off living in a tiny space in his "mommy's tummy" but there was "enough room for me." Then he goes through the various stages of his life and how he noticed that everywhere he went, there was enough room. There was enough room in his house for all his toys, enough room in the library for all the books he wanted to read, and even enough room for all the fish in the sea. However, during his travels he noticed that people were always fighting for space—whether it be on a bus, waiting for the bathroom, or warring with one another over land. In the end, he shares a secret with readers: "If we are kinder and if we love one another, then, there is indeed room for all of us."VERDICT The illustrations are distinctive as Teymorian makes ample use of colors and shapes to convey large and small spaces. There is a note from the author at the end explaining how this book came to be as she watched the news in her home in Tehran. An attractive but optional purchase.—Amy Nolan, St. Joseph Public Library, MI

School Library Journal

2019-06-23
An intimate musing on the nature of space.

A child marvels that at each stage of life, while growing, there always seems to be enough room: in the womb, for many stuffed animals squeezed into bed, for all the books in the library, and even for all the stars in the sky. Life may be crowded at times (the tot's parents playfully curl around the perimeter of the frame with hopelessly long limbs), but there is always intentional space kept around the child. However, when the child grows up, space becomes a commodity. People begin to fight, whether that be for personal space on a bus, vocational space (to find one's place in a company), over bathroom use, or in the geopolitical sphere—two tanks face off. The narrator poses a solution: "If we are kinder, and if we love each other then, in this beautiful world, there's room for everyone." Here, Iranian author/illustrator Teymorian's characters are no longer stooped and curled but instead stand upright and happy. With so many people forcibly displaced from their homes throughout the world, one can only hope this message of kindness is heard. Such a strong global wish is in stark contrast to the lack of racial diversity in the illustrations. A few shades of skin are offered, but the majority present white.

Gentle political commentary reminds everyone about the power of kindness but is itself incomplete. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews

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