Bramble and the Slow Morning

About the book

Bramble and the Slow Morning is a picture book about a small tortoise who has nowhere in particular to be. The morning stretches out, unhurried, and Bramble moves through it at exactly the right pace, which is slow. There is dew on the grass, light coming in at a low angle, and small details worth pausing over. Nothing needs to be done quickly. Nothing needs to be done at all, really, except to be here and notice it.

This is a gentle picture book about slowing down, written for children who are so often asked to hurry up. Its pages do not rush. Short sentences sit with a little space around them, and the warm, painterly scenes give the eye somewhere calm to rest. A grown-up reading it aloud will find the pace does its own quiet work, and that a held breath somewhere in the middle is exactly right.

Bramble and the Slow Morning is for ages 3 to 6, and it suits any quiet corner of the day, morning or otherwise. It is the kind of book that works best when neither the child nor the adult is in a rush, when the window is bright and there is no particular next thing waiting. Read slowly, it gives a little one quiet permission to do the same.

Slow is not the same as empty. Bramble's morning is full, just full of small things: a snail on a leaf, the warmth of a sunny stone, the way the garden looks before anyone else is up. The book gently suggests that these moments are worth as much as the busy ones, and that a child who learns to notice them carries something good.

Bramble and the Slow Morning is Book 1 in the Bramble's Slow Days series from Lantern Path Books, our independent Australian picture-book imprint. Like all our stories it is calm, kind and unhurried, with human-curated, human-approved illustrations.

Paperback, 24 pages, and best read without checking the time.

For grown-ups and educators

This title is part of Lantern Path’s calm, human-curated picture-book library. For reading guides and bundle pricing (5+ copies) for schools, libraries or youth services, please get in touch or see the educators page.

If this unhurried pace suits your little one, our guide to picture books about slowing down gathers more stories like this one.

More in Bramble's Slow Days

• Book 2 · Bramble and the Stepping Stones
• Book 3 · Bramble and the Little Garden
• Book 4 · Bramble and the Long Path
• Book 5 · Bramble and the Good Small Day

Browse the whole library →