First Second Books (which celebrated its 10th anniversary this month) announced an upcoming title for Winter 2018: Little Sid.
Little Sid, written by Ian Lendler and illustrated by Xanthe Bouma, tells the story of Siddhartha before he became the Buddha. He’s a prince, given pretty much everything he wants, and yet he’s dissatisfied. The story mixes famous Buddhist fables with an adventure story to teach kids some of the concepts of Buddhism.
Before he became The Buddha, Siddhartha was a regular man. And before Siddhartha was a man, he was Little Sid- a regular kid. Well, as regular as you can be if you’re a prince who gets everything his heart desires. But this opulent lifestyle leaves Little Sid feeling dissatisfied, so he ventures out of his castle in search of a more meaningful life. Blending the adventures of a little boy on the road with some of Buddhism’s most famous fables, Little Sid aims to show children not just the most important ideas of Buddhism, but of being a good person.
Ian Lendler is the author of the Stratford Zoo Presents series (I mentioned Romeo and Juliet in this Stack Overflow) and has also written other picture books and graphic novels. Xanthe Bouma is a freelance illustrator and recent graduate from the Maryland Institute College of Art.
We’ve still got a ways yet before the book is available, but I wanted to share these few early peeks at some of the artwork!
