He is good at doing all sorts of paranormal things, like walking through walls, making objects fly and glowing in the dark. As I slowly learned, I realised that you can do wonders with a limited palette because it gives coherence to the illustrations, creates atmospheres, catches the eye, and also, colour conveys meaning, so it’s one of the most valuable tools to master. I was crushed, and haven’t thrown another party since (except my son’s 1st birthday, which no one came to except one friend 😭). She has an MA in Children's Book Illustration from Cambridge School of Art and was shortlisted for the Sebastian Walker Award. I can tell you that making drawings with lots of details has been something that I love doing because those details help me to build a more convincing and unique world.

When I started making the book, I didn’t notice how much I had in common with Gustavo, but the more I got to understand him, I realised that telling this story was important for me because I wanted to show that being shy doesn’t mean that you don’t enjoy the company of people – or in this case, monsters! Very nice story and illustrations, keeps my little one engaged and creates opportunity for further discussions while looking at the illustrations. Yesterday a parent came over to tell me how impressed she was by the book fair and that you did a fabulous job of selling the books to the children first. It's a cute story about a ghost who is too shy to speak to anyone but by being himself makes friends anyway. There was just the right amount of choice to suit everyone without being overwhelming and I received comments from parents and staff about the quality of books offered compared to previous sales which have always been based around current crazes and well known celebrity authors.I know that this is not how the story ends – at some point I even considered that Gustavo could be a real boy disguised as a ghost – but as the plot evolved the sheet joke became irrelevant as Gustavo was already showing his true self.

By the way, Candlewick Press (English) edition features Gustavo hiding in the shape of a book under the dust jacket. Mat: Are there are any contemporary artists/illustrators whose work you admire so much that you think everyone should encounter them?Mat: I got the feeling, when reading through the book, that the whole cast of Gustavo had a special place in both the story and in your heart.