A recurring motif in Andersen’s stories is the temporal nature of all things. This is especially pronounced in his fairytales giving voice to nature itself. Therefore, we decided to make an almanac with one of Andersen’s fairytales per month – each fitting the season. All these tales tell stories of the cyclical way of nature. Of passing and renewal. And in many of them, the fairytales themselves act as remembrances of the plants and flowers that are no longer here except in stories.

The book is such a repository of remembrance in itself since it was made by the old artisan book makers working the old machinery at the Danish Media Museum utilizing a printing technique now obsolete. This way the book was bringing their craft and story into the centre of history, just like Andersen in his fairytales do the same when he tells the stories of all the overlooked plants and flowers, like the mayweed, thistle or dandelion.

It was awarded the award for outstanding book design by “Dansk Boghåndværk”.

 

dav