In this intimate picture book, Nicolas Mathieu poignantly, emotionally, and with sensitivity recounts his experience of becoming a father—a joy inextricably linked to fear and pain. Benjamin Chaud brings this father-son duo to life with humor and tenderness through his painted illustrations.
BENJAMIN CHAUD is an author and illustrator of children’s literature. He studied drawing at the École des Arts Appliqués in Paris before naturally moving on to the École des Arts Décoratifs in Strasbourg. Creator of the famous character Pomelo (Albin Michel Jeunesse), the illustrator has published nearly a hundred books, many of which have been translated abroad. Having become a leading figure in children’s illustration, he has been nominated several times for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award and won the Gold Medal from the Society of Illustrators in New York in 2015. He now lives in a small village in the Drôme region.
NICOLAS MATHIEU was born in 1978 in the Vosges region. In 2014, he published his first novel, Aux animaux la guerre, which was adapted for television with Alain Tasma. In 2018, his second book, Leurs enfants après eux, won the Prix Goncourt and was adapted into a film in 2024. Connemara, his latest novel, was published in 2022 and was also adapted into a film in 2025. He lives between Épinal and Paris.