Stories drawn from Japanese myth, told in rhyme.
Lapis Tree Books publishes illustrated picture books for ages 5 to 8 by Nikolas Hanson, an artist and primary teacher who spent years living and teaching in Japan.
Rhythmic, rhyming text
Written to be read aloud, with a beat children pick up quickly and want to repeat.
Vivid illustration
Every page is painted by the author, with more than twenty-five years of artwork behind it.
Made by a teacher
Shaped by a career in classrooms around the world and training in primary education.
Every picture painted by hand. Every line written to be read aloud. Every story begins with a journey.
Will Ai find her family?
Ai pronounced "eye" sets out to be reunited with her family. With a bear and, of course, a dragon at her side, she crosses lands unknown and sees strange and amazing things.
A book for the grown-up who reads it, too
Picture books get read again and again. These are written so the tenth bedtime reading is as much fun as the first.
Parents at bedtime
A steady rhyme that settles into a rhythm, and pictures full of small details to find together before lights out.
Teachers in the classroom
Written by a trained primary teacher. The rhyme invites joining in, and the journey gives plenty to talk, write and draw about afterwards.
Gift-givers
Looking for a present that isn't another plastic toy? A beautifully illustrated story with a dragon in it is hard to beat.
What children will find on the pages
A brave heroine
Ai is small, determined and far from home. Young readers cheer her on as she sets out to find her family.
Friends along the way
A bear, a dragon and a cast of helpful characters who point the way. It's a gentle story about accepting help when you need it.
Lands unknown
Strange sights and amazing things, painted in the colours and shapes of old Japanese art and myth.
Words with a beat
Rhythmic, rhyming verse that children learn by heart and start finishing for you by the third reading.
Three ways to get more from story time
A few ideas from the classroom that work just as well at home.
Leave a gap for the rhyme
Pause before the last word of a line and let your child fill it in. It builds confidence and early reading skills.
Ask what happens next
Before you turn the page, ask where Ai might go or who she'll meet. There are no wrong answers.
Draw your own dragon
When the book is closed, grab some paper. What would your dragon look like, and where would it take you?
Will Ai find her family? Find out tonight.
Order The Dragon Walker today, or tell us you'd like to hear when Rossi the Road Racing Rhino is ready.