- Edited by Ana Baliza, Alice Dusapin
- with the support of the Direção-Geral do Livro, dos Arquivos e das Bibliotecas (DGLAB) /Portugal
- Designed by Ana Baliza
- January 2025, English, Artist book
- 52 pp., 23,5 × 16,25 cm, softcover
- Edition of 250
- ISBN 978-2-9576611-7-6
- Text by Amanda Booth (originally written in 2013), illustrated by Artur Varela (1937-2017).
The Donkey Who Wanted to Know Things is a story written by Amanda Booth and illustrated by artist, Artur Varela. The authors began working on the book in 2013, but it was only completed in 2016, the year before Varela’s death. Thanks to the work of Ana Baliza and friends of Artur, a society initiated in Lisbon in 2021 for the preservation of rare species of artists, Daisy is thrilled to finally publish its first children’s book.
Michael isn’t just any donkey, he’s a donkey who wants to know things. He lives on a farm and spends his time learning about everything in his world. Yet he yearns for more knowledge, so when someone leaves the gate open, he escapes in search of a school. But donkeys aren’t allowed in school, and he’s sent away. The children decide to help him and come up with a brilliant plan to change the teacher’s mind.
A beautiful story that shows us that thinking and learning are an adventure that broadens our world, that imagination is a tool for solving problems and that we get better results when we work together.
Artur Varela (1937 – 2017) was born in Almodovar, Portugal. He studied sculpture at the Faculdade de Belas Artes de Lisboa and lived in Holland for around 20 years before returning to Lisbon in the 70s. His work finds diverse expression in sculpture, painting, drawing, video and illustration. In 2023, it was presented at Ampersand as part of a group show that included Richard Hawkins and Pati Hill, and in 2024, in a two-part anthological exhibition at ZDB curated by Friends of Artur.
Amanda Booth has lived in Lisbon for over thirty years. She is a voice actor and translator, working mainly on scripts for children’s film and animated series. She has written and directed a play for Portuguese school children and has a one-woman show for visitors to Lisbon, both related to the life and work of Fernando Pessoa .