The Typhlo & Tactus international jury is made up of 7 members from 7 different countries (Belgium, France, Great Britain, Italy, Netherlands, Poland and Czech Republic). They are all specialists in the field of visual impairment; librarians, early intervention advisors, parents of blind children or publishers of materials.
They analyzed 69 designs over 3 days and collectively awarded 8 special mentions to 8 designs:
Didactic mention x 2
Artistic mention x 2
Book games mention x 2
Sensitive or current subject mention x 2
Tactile boldness mention x 2
Since 2024, these mentions have replaced the “Favorites” awards given by each member of the jury to a model in previous editions of the competition.
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Didactic mention
L'apparato digerente (The digestive system)
- Andrea Sanchchez Elias
- Italy
Strong points:
Subject about the body, more like a documentary.
There’s some nice manipulation.
It introduces a new theme with a new idea.
This book is educational.
This model works.
It is effective from an educational point of view,
while being fun at the same time.
The materials are well chosen.
The materials are new (little known).
There is real tactile research, it is original.
The format is well proportioned.
It’s interesting to focus on a particular part of the body.
A proposal: The parts could have been detached for you so that the child could rebuild the digestive system.
Points to improve:
Beware of proportions.
Some textures are unpleasant to touch.
The jury’s opinion
Didactic mention
Your Help Is Needed
- Margaret Sharp
- United Kingdom
Strong points:
It’s a well-made model.
An interesting subject.
We like the objects and surfaces.
Manipulations remove interesting
hand over.
The objects are concrete and give
a concrete action.
The binding is interesting.
The subject is relevant
to the environment.
Points to improve:
The book is a little soft.
The measuring cup is not tactile.
The contrasts on the first page need
to be improved.
The illustration is a little far from reality.
The jury’s opinion
Artistic mention
Jeux de trames (Frame sets)
- Catherine Brison
- Belgium
Strong points:
It’s a beautiful design.
The discovery of interesting
sounds is fun and surprising.
It’s hard-wearing.
It requires several modes of touch
for tactile exploration.
It’s ambitious, excellent
and exploration is infinite.
Despite the highly visual plot, you
can explore by touch and by feel.
Points à améliorer:
Complicated to discover the different boards.
Difficult to understand.
A little fragile.
For some this is not a children’s book but
an artist’s book.
The jury’s opinion
Artistic mention
Flow
- Kristýna Adámková
- Czech Republic
Strong points:
Great fun to explore
Practically the whole body can be touched (the forearm)
Experience a range of sensations through the different materials on each page
Very different from the competition books, this is an artist’s book.
It teaches us about beauty; it’s abstract, sublime and magnificent.
It’s a beautiful poetic proposition.
It encourages coordination between the 2 hands.
It doesn’t propose a reading solution, everything is possible.
The advantage of laying the book flat is that both hands and arms can discover
it at the same time.
Propositions:
The book can be read upside down, giving a different way of reading.
Use it in a different way, explore it with other papers.
Discover the form and then the material.
It’s a first educational discovery of beauty.
This model raised questions about the emotions that these artists’ books could evoke
artists’ books must exist for the visually impaired the change of empty spaces
between the visual and the tactile gives relevance and the right-left image, another way
of reading and discovering.
Point to improve: The format is a bit large.
The jury’s opinion
Book games
Le Pays des Z'Outils (The land of Z'Tools)
- Camille Morandeau, Celia Macon & Ninon Gondal
- France
Strong points:
Interesting legend, presentation of each tool..
This is a subject that is not often covered, so it’s relevant.
The text also provides sound effects, giving children the pleasure of discovery.
The technique used to open the box is clever.
The format of the book is very good and ties in with the house being built.
The story is fun, instructive and even educational.
The onomatopoeia is dynamic.
Learning about different planes: verticality and horizontality.
Moving from 2D to 3D.
The binding has a spine, which is very attractive and practical.
