Here in Alaska, winter is fast approaching. Leaves have completely dropped off trees, hard frosts have set in, and the mountains are beginning to be covered in that white topping we shall not mention. What better time to start reading glorious winter picture books?

Cristina Sitja Rubio is a multilingual illustrator and author who has created over fifteen picture books. Her work has been exhibited in South Korea, Mexico, Venezuela, and Germany, and her books have been published in over ten countries. Born in Caracas, Venezuela, Cristina currently splits her time between Barcelona, Spain, and Berlin, Germany. The Most Beautiful Winter is her English-language debut. You can learn more about her at her website.

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL WINTER is a picture book all about Badger who doesn’t want to waste winter sleeping.  He has big plans!  BUT all of his friends seem to be asleep (i.e., hibernating).  What is he to do?  This is a clever premise to introduce hibernation and which animals hibernate.  Yet it’s also a wonderful story for anyone who has ever felt thwarted in their plans or lonely when friends aren’t available.  The solution is creative and the ending is satisfying.  The art work is by turns beautiful and funny.  This is Cristina Sitja Rubio’s first English translation (translated by Vineet Lal), but not her first picture book as author-illustrator.  I’m glad English readers will get a chance to enjoy her work as well now.

Please note: I received a copy of this book from the publisher to review, but the opinions, as always, are my own.

Welcome Cristina!

Me: You have studied printmaking, photography, and book binding. How did that bring you to illustrating children’s books? Can you tell us a little bit about your writing and illustrating journey? How has that brought you to creating this picture book?

Cristina: When I moved to Barcelona in 2004, I was not able to find a color darkroom in order to continue making my color pinholes. I also realized that color developing chemicals were very toxic. I wanted to continue making art but wanted to use materials that did not generate too much garbage. I had seen some work by the Canadian illustrator Isabelle Arsenault, and it inspired me to try my hand in picture book illustration. So I changed the camera for a pencil and paper. I wrote and illustrated a couple of books, and I never showed them to anyone.  But I kept making illustrations.

During one of my trips to Venezuela, a friend introduced me to a children book publisher, María Angélica Barreto from Camelia Ediciones (which sadly no longer exists), who was looking for someone to illustrate a text. She saw my work and liked it, asked me if I was interested, and of course I said yes. I learned a lot from this job, and it gave me the push to continue illustrating books.

I illustrated another book for Camelia, and in 2010, I began illustrating a story I had in my head, which was published in 2011 by Editions Notari in Switzerland. This book, Etranges Creatures, attracted other publishers, and I received more requests to illustrate texts and also make my own books. I had a very close relationship with the Swiss editors, and they were always happy to see my latest works. The last project I made for them was Le Plus Bel Hiver (The Most Beautiful Winter). How I came to creating this picture book will be answered in the following questions.

Me: I love Badger with his thwarted winter plans. What a great vehicle to discuss different animals’ winter routines. What gave you the idea for this story?

Cristina: I come up with stories when I am concerned about what is going on in the world, most specifically our impact in nature. Some animals have changed their routines due to climate change. Even though this is not the theme of the book, it is part of a back story. I also was curious to know how many animals hibernated, so after reading some books about hibernation, I decided to write this story and give it a twist.

Me: I love that a badger is your main character. You have several books with woodland creatures. Why did you specifically choose a badger to tell this story, as opposed to any other critter?

Cristina: The badger hibernates, but not continually, so it was a perfect main character. I thought what would happen if Badger only had friends that hibernated when winter came? I wanted to mention some hibernating animals, but not turn it into a didactic book. I preferred to make it funny and entice kids to go on and later investigate these animals.

I also found a badger lovely to draw. Most books about hibernation had a bear as a main character, so I veered away from that. Actually the first storyboard I made, the main character was a kind of bear, but I discarded that idea after thinking that there were already too many books with bears.

Me: In an interview about some of your previous books, you mentioned struggling with the writing side of stories. Did you have that problem with this one? What is one thing that surprised you in writing this story?

Cristina: The text in my stories is always written after I have made the illustrations. After I have finished all the illustrations, I sit down and write the text, or I tell the story to a friend and take notes. I also send the text to friends as well as my editors, and they help me improve it.

For the original edition of The Most Beautiful Winter, it was my friend Cristóbal León who helped me rewrite the text. We wrote it in Spanish, since my Swiss editors could read and speak Spanish very well.

And what surprised me while writing the story was finding out more information about some animals that I had no idea hibernated.

Me: I understand that you are multilingual yourself with books already translated in many different languages in several different countries. Yet this is your first picture book translated into English. Did you have any say in that? What does it take to have your book translated into another language for another country’s children?

Cristina: I wish I had a say! My publishers have agents, and they send books to many publishers. I was lucky that Eerdmans picked my book. I wish I had more books in English since I normally write the stories both in English and Spanish.

Me: Your illustrations are absolutely delightful. I love the characters and textures all throughout. Where do you start with creating them? Do you work traditionally or digitally? Can you talk about your art process?

Cristina: Thank you! I usually make small drawings using ink and make a storyboard. Then, I pick a type of paper that suits the materials I am going to use and just sit down and start adding color to the paper. After I have put some color to the white paper, I begin to paint the landscape and then the characters and other details. If I am not happy with something I have painted, I usually paint on top or erase a bit using water, since I usually use watercolors, gouache, or color pencils to make my illustrations.

My work is always analog. I only use the computer to scan the images and make a pdf to understand better the layout of the book.

Me: Any advice for other aspiring picture book writers and/or illustrators?

Cristina: If you can use paper and paint or pencils to illustrate a book, do so. Try not to rely too much on digital tools. Do not be afraid of “imperfect” drawings.

Stay true to your style or styles, and do not force yourself to change them in order to satisfy a trend. This, I feel, will result in a stiff and lifeless illustration.

And to writers… not sure, I am still working on my picture book writing skills. I pay a lot of attention to my dreams, since some books have come out from ideas or feelings in past dreams.

That is good advice.  Thank you for stopping by my blog today Cristina.

Dear readers, this book was released last week.  If you haven’t read this book yet, I highly recommend it.  It’s full of humor and winter shenanigans you won’t want to miss.