The Most Wonderful Thing in the World

A funny and heart-warming fairy tale about our values by Vivian French, exquisitely illustrated by Angela Barrett.

From the author of the Tiara Club series comes a gently satirical fairy story for our times, illustrated by one of today's finest artists, Angela Barrett. When a king and a queen promise to marry their daughter Lucia to the man who can show them the most wonderful thing in the world, suitors descend on the palace bearing gifts. Roses, jewels and exotic birds; dancing girls, wind machines and mythical beasts – but nothing feels quite right. As the last suitor leaves, his weapons of mass destruction rejected, the king and queen are exhausted. But when a shy, young man, who isn't a suitor at all, steps forward, they finally understand what the most wonderful thing in the world really is. Vivian French's masterful retelling of a forgotten story is both funny and heart-warming, and Angela Barrett's breathtaking illustrations give life to an enchanting and romantic fairytale city.

Barrett's paintings are exquisitely dreamy and delicate. -- Amanda Craig The Times
Vivian French is a sublime story-teller. The Sunday Telegraph
Exquisitely heartfelt The Independent
Angela Barrett’s breathtaking and nostalgic illustrations give life to an enchanting fairytale city full of subtle surprises while French’s masterful retelling of the magical story makes this a perfect wedding gift for true romantics. Lancashire Evening Post
Barrett’s illustrations complement the story perfectly. They are rendered in watercolour. The detail is painstaking and gorgeous, from the braided mane of the snow white horse to the shimmering scales of the mermaid. In all of the illustrations, Barrett employs a palette of gentle colours, like colours from the edge of the rainbow. There are washed-out pinks, greens, blues, and beige. The overall effect is that of a world viewed the fuzzy lens of memory. The Most Wonderful Thing in the World is a joy. It is a lovely story and it is beautifully illustrated. Citizen Times
...an enchanting tale set in a city full of subtle surprises. It is a touching fairytale that will delight young and old. The Guernsey Press and Star

Vivian French is a professional story-teller as well as an acclaimed children’s author who has written over 200 books for children and young adults, including Oliver's Vegetables and the Tiara Club series. A tutor in the Illustration Department at Edinburgh College of Art, Vivian is co-founder of Picture Hooks, a mentoring scheme for young illustrators, and in 2012 she was guest selector for the children's programme at the Edinburgh Book Festival. She is amongst the most popular authors in UK libraries – her books are borrowed over half a million times a year. Vivian lives in Edinburgh.

Angela Barrett studied at the Royal College of Art with Quentin Blake and is one of Britain's most highly acclaimed illustrators. She has won the Smarties Prize and the WH Smith Illustration Award and has illustrated more than twenty-four books for children, including classic tales, fairy tales, biographies, story collections and picture books. She has also illustrated stamps for Royal Mail. Angela lives in London.

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