What Are Words, Really?

A renowned photographer and a Pura Belpré Honor–winning illustrator join forces for a playful and stylish picture book that’s destined to make the world a better place, one word at a time.

Perfectly pitched to the youngest child, Alexi Lubomirski’s whimsical text is a gentle reminder that words have power—the power to hurt or to heal, to make someone feel small or feel tall. Carlos Aponte’s buoyant illustrations, in dazzling primary colors and bold black line, pair with a dynamic text design to create a visual symphony. An eye-catching appeal to our better natures, this inspired meditation on the purpose and power of words encourages children to choose them well—and use them wisely—to spread kindness, joy, and love.

Alexi Lubomirski is the author of the parenting book Princely Advice for a Happy Life and the picture book Thank You for My Dreams. He is a world-renowned fashion and celebrity photographer who has worked for Vogue, Elle, and Harper’s Bazaar, among other major magazines, and who shot the official engagement and wedding portraits for Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex. He lives in New York.

Carlos Aponte is the author-illustrator of the Pura Belpré Illustrator Award Honor Book Across the Bay. His artwork has appeared in numerous publications, including the New Yorker, the Washington Post, the New York Times, Elle, and Esquire. He is a faculty member at the Fashion Institute of Technology and lives in New Jersey.