Shaun Tan's 'Piccole storie dal centro' Blends Text and Image in Animal Tales

Shaun Tan, the 46-year-old Australian artist of Malaysian origin, has released 'Piccole storie dal centro' (Tunué, Latina 2020), a collection of 25 stories and illustrations exploring the relationship between humans and animals. The book's epigraph, borrowed from Alice Walker, states: 'Gli animali del mondo esistono per ragioni tutte loro.' Tan, known for 'L'approdo' and the Oscar-winning short film 'Oggetti smarriti' (2011), combines text and image in equal measure, though in this volume the written part predominates quantitatively while the illustrations carry qualitative density. The stories feature surreal scenarios: crocodiles splashing on the 87th floor of a skyscraper, a yak serving as a silent city bus, an eagle hunting in airport lounges, a killer whale living in the sky, giant snails mating at city intersections, a technicolor invasion of millions of butterflies, and a pig slowly disappearing into the floor. Tan's illustrations, created with mixed media, function as standalone paintings. Notable narratives include a board of directors mysteriously transformed into frogs, with Tan writing: 'L'universo non li aveva maledetti, li aveva perdonati,' and a class action lawsuit by bears against humanity ('Ursidae contra Homo Sapiens'). The book costs €22 and is published by Tunué.