Maranke Rinck & Martijn van der Linden
Kiss the Girls (Meisjes om te zoenen)
Meisjes om te zoenen (Kiss the Girls) is a wonderful variation on the Grimms’ fairytale of the frog prince. The little frog, looking for a sweetheart, welcomes a bunch of beautifully dolled-up girl animals to his castle.
In her light-hearted tone, Maranke Rinck tells a cleverly devised relay story, portraying every girl, each in a different room, with all her ambitions and her nerves: what will the frog prince turn into if he kisses the girl of his choice?
Meisjes om te zoenen is the sequel to Van der Linden’s and Rinck’s successful title Het prinsenkind (Lemniscaat, 2004). In this picture book, which also has stunningly beautiful illustrations, the animals journey with presents to celebrate the arrival of a prince.
In both books, it is mainly Van der Linden’s illustrations that draw the attention. And they were indeed already there before the story came along. He has spared neither expense nor effort to make these animals look their best.
Ivory hairpins, amulets inlaid with azure, shiningly polished golden leg rings, extravagant necklaces with shells and tusks, hats made of sewn-together precious stones: it looks as though he’s plundered the British Museum. This makes the picture book more of an exhibition than a story, but without a doubt it’s the most stunning one that young readers will ever have seen.
Pjotr van Lenteren
Publisher
Lemniscaat
Vijverlaan 48
NL - 3062 HL Rotterdam
TEL. +31 10 206 29 29
FAX +31 10 414 15 60
Website: www.lemniscaat.nl
Publishing details
Meisjes om te zoenen (2006, 28 pp)
Age: 4+
Biographies
Maranke Rinck (b. 1976) studied a number of different subjects before graduating in social studies and going on to educate primary-school teachers. She also writes stories. Meisjes om te zoenen and Het prinsenkind, written for the illustrations of Martijn van der Linden, are her first published works.
In 2001, Martijn van der Linden (b. 1979) graduated from the Willem de Kooning Academie in Rotterdam with only one dream: to become an illustrator. He’s certainly succeeded. Within five years, he has built up an extensive collection of work and demonstrated his mastery of totally different genres. The fine linocut-style drawings that he makes for one book can hardly be compared with the colourful and endlessly detailed paintings that he makes for another title, including for the Dutch version of Kevin Crossley-Holland’s Arthur books. Except for the fact that they are nearly always equally fine in colour and in detail.
Dossier
Quotes
Het prinsenkind was a stunningly beautiful book (…) [Its sequel] Meisjes om te zoenen once again catches the eye with its enchanting illustrations and surprising story.
VPRO gids
A very special book that shouldn’t be missing in any collection of picture books.
NBD Biblion