The Unwinding : An Illustrated Meditation on Life, Death, and Art

This is a book for dreamers. Its purpose? To ease the soul.

Longlisted for the 2021 Kate Greenaway Medal

"A quiet masterpiece . . . a love story, a hope story, a story out of time, out of stricture, out of the narrow artificial bounds by which we try to contain the wild wonderland of reality because we are too frightened to live wonder-stricken.”—Maria Popova, Brain Pickings

From award-winning writer & illustrator Jackie Morris, a book that enters the realm of dreaming. With its combination of lush illustration and creative storytelling, this book is destined to become a classic.

The paintings between these covers were worked in the between times—between waking and dreaming, during the unwinding of the soul, when the pressures of work were too much.

Half-story, half-fairytale, Jackie Morris has created an enchanting tome, to keep on the bedside table, to give as a gift to young and old alike.

Threaded through the curious world of The Unwinding are words, there to set the reader’s mind adrift from their own troubles and the into peaceful harbors where imagination can stretch, and where quiet reflection can bring peace.

The Unwinding is designed to be a companion, a talisman to be turned to again and again and a place of respite from an increasingly frenetic and complex world.

Dreams and wishes are the inspiration at times like this.