Red cannot sleep

Little Bear has a special surprise for his friends Titta and Meo: a red fish! The two friends are delighted and name their new guest “Red.” But soon, they notice something very strange… Red never closes his eyes! Worried that their fishy friend is exhausted, Titta and Meo try everything to help him drift off to sleep, but nothing works. So they seek the wisdom of Old Owl. “Perhaps he doesn’t like to sleep alone,” Owl suggests. Titta and Leo realize that the best thing to do is to take Red to the lake and set him free to live with the other fish.

Author & Illustrator

Attilio Cassinelli is an internationally acclaimed painter, designer, and illustrator whose work has shaped the landscape of Italian children’s literature for decades. His extraordinary career was crowned by a Special Jury Award at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair, a testament to his global influence. Other prestigious honours include the Andersen Special Jury Award (2017) and the Nati per Leggere Award (2017 with Little Red Riding Hood and 2020 with Primo).

In 2021, the National Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art in Rome dedicated a monographic exhibition to him: Evergreen. The Story of Attilio.

This marked a historic milestone, as it was the first time this prestigious institution opened its doors to the language of illustration, showcasing over eighty original works, studies, and models. His international impact was further recognised in 2022, when El País, Spain’s leading newspaper, dedicated a major feature to him for his 99th birthday.

Attilio passed away in June 2024 at the age of one hundred, leaving behind a limitless legacy. His work continues to be celebrated today: in 2026, the exhibition Attilio – Il castello dei bambini honours the genius of an artist who made simplicity an immortal art form.

His books are not just stories, but masterful exercises in visual synthesis, created to foster a child’s first encounter with art and narrative. His work is an enduring dialogue between geometry and emotion, designed to speak directly to the youngest readers.