The Creation

A narrator – naked, save for a bowler hat – shares with us the beginning of everything: God, himself and a chair to sit on, that’s all there is. The narrator feels rather astonished and bewildered, sitting next to the God of Creation. He is all eyes and makes the occasional pointed remark about the overwhelming beauty of it all – out of powerlessness, really.

His grumpiness is a symptom of his size, of feeling minuscule before God. He feels insignificant compared to the great creator and thinks he has no place in the story of creation – he is just a mistake. Until he ends up in a bed of sheep, flanked by a woman with whom he will explore life and the rest of creation. 

‘The Creation’ is a poetic book about a little man who is not afraid to fire existential questions at God and who gradually finds his own place in the world. Author and illustrator combine simplicity and scintillating philosophy.

Erlbruch conjures with tissue and squared paper, pencil and water colour to create gorgeous images which, like Moeyaert’s language, are as funny and strong as they are stark. The success of ‘The Creation’ was followed by Paradise and Heaven, the second and third instalments in the trilogy.