BIKU & CO MEMBER: RTF

WHO WE ARE
Rachel Ferguson, author
Rachel is a Scottish writer who has lived in Tokyo since 2005. Other activities include the development of community spaces including shared apartments, offices and an English preschool. She is currently in the joyful throes of raising two preschoolers.

POMPETTE, illustration and design Pompette is a Japanese illustrator-designer duo bringing ideas and brands to life through illustration, design, storytelling, and content creation. Hiroko, born and raised in Hiroshima, studied design in Kyoto. She was a web director in Kyoto before she became a freelance illustrator. Yuko, born in Japan and raised in San Francisco, studied architecture in Kyoto then worked in graphic design and marketing in New York. She lived in a small village in France before she came back to Japan and teamed up with Hiroko to start Pompette.

A goodnight book for a good night.
My two-year-old daughter did not like going to bed. I tried everything I could think of to lure/lull/bribe her to sleep. Nothing worked. I was tired. It was past my bedtime by the time she slept. So, I tested many of the top-rated bedtime books. Most were fun or cute - or both - but they didn't help Grace fall asleep. Then I found a couple that, read multiple times in a soothing tone, relaxed her so much that eventually her little eyelids drooped and she nodded off peacefully. Hallelujah! I was so inspired by the power of these sacred texts that I decided to take the best elements of each and create my own story. The magic ingredient is an audio file: after you read to your little one, the story can be played on repeat while they drift off to sleep- leaving you with a little magic time to yourself

MORE INFORMATION

"Gugu and Penfin Sleep” is a beautiful bedtime experience, the result of my search for the perfect goodnight book:
Soft, soothing sounds
Repetition
Rhyme
Comforting imagery
Charming illustrations with subtle humour
White space to calm the mind and allow little imaginations to blossom
A spoken-word lullaby to play while your little one drifts off to sleep

Gugu and Penfin is for:
Children who want a simple, delightful bedtime story
Parents & caregivers who love reading their kids a story ONE time (and are happy to let a soothing audio track do the rest)
People who would like to introduce English to their kids in a natural, easy, and enjoyable way.

 Snuggled up in bed, Gugu and her plush toy, Penfin, explore outer space, ocean depths, treetops, and giant flowers before imagining their loved ones gathered together to wish them off to a peaceful sleep. Lovable characters, the theme of connection and a soothing audio accompaniment make the book universally comforting.
This article in The Weekender nicely summaries the journey to our creating the book
https://www.tokyoweekender.com/2021/08/gugu-and-penfin-sleep/

WEBSITE: guguandpenfin.com
INSTAGRAM: @guguandpenfin

Rachel’s beautiful picture book will be popping up at the Biku & Co. pop-up 5-10th October 2022.

Find out more about our pop-up members here.