Little Passenger

Little Passenger. I have made space for you inside my heart.’ This line from Deirdre Sullivan’s début picturebook perfectly captures the essence of what might be the most wonderful, heartwarming, sweet and beautifully written book this reviewer has ever read. The words speak for themselves, making this book an ode to love, motherhood and the magic of waiting during pregnancy.The soft, whimsical watercolour illustrations bring the reader into the wonderful world of warmth and wonder that is waiting for a baby. Jessica Love manages to complement the text perfectly with illustrations that capture the love and care that surround every little passenger during each stage of waiting and growing.I dare say many pregnant readers might find themselves tearing up after reading the first few pages – speaking from experience! The love that emerges from the pages is truly palpable. A true work of art from both writer and illustrator.

Deirdre Sullivan is a writer and teacher from Galway. She has written seven acclaimed books for young adults, including Savage Her Reply, Perfectly Preventable Deaths and Tangleweed and Brine. She was the recipient of the CBI Book of the Year Award in 2018 and the An Post Irish Book Award for YA in 2020. Her short fiction has appeared in Banshee and The Dublin Review. She lives in Dublin.

Jessica Love is an actor and the author-illustrator of Julian Is a Mermaid, her debut picture book that won the Bologna Ragazzi Award and Klaus Flugge Prize, and was shortlisted for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2019. She is also the author-illustrator of Julian at the Wedding and A Bed of Stars. She has a BA in studio art from the University of California, Santa Cruz, as well as a graduate degree from Juilliard. She has appeared in plays both on and off Broadway. Jessica Love lives in Brooklyn, USA.