All around you, everyday (extra)ordinary folk are going about their daily business and it's often interesting to watch them as they tootle along through life.
In the brilliant "My Town's (Extra) ordinary people" by Mikel Casal, we meet young Nico who lives in a small coastal town, a place like any other, with ordinary neighbors and friends.
But are they really ordinary?
As Nico meanders through his town he introduces readers to his friends.
There's Josean, who works on the docks and who could be an Olympic rower.
Peru recites all different kinds of poetry to his son.
Nico's best friend, Telmo, is a skateboarder with a wild imagination.
Eva plays a mean jazz guitar and gives lessons so she can pay her rent and go to school.
There's Keiko, a potter; Dave, who is really tall; Sara, who owns a bookstore; Claud, a waiter whose real passion is astronomy.
Each of these people, twenty-one in all, is depicted in charming, colorful drawings that celebrate quirkiness and individuality. This book encourages young readers to get to know the people around them and discover how everyone is different in their own wonderful way.
With colourful spreads and interesting people-focused stories, this is a brilliant way for kids to learn about diversity and the simple act of you doing you, being your most bright, amazing and best.
Sum this book up in a sentence: A really interesting and immersive book about people and all their nuances, differences and amazing (extra) ordinary skills.
"My Town's (Extra) Ordinary People" by Mikel Casal is out now, published by Prestel (kindly supplied for review).