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Bloomsbury is to bring out an illustrated hardback of a poem by author and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Neil Gaiman, published to support the work of the UN Refugee Agency.
In 2019, Gaiman asked his Twitter followers, "What reminds you of warmth?" From the thousands of replies he received, he composed a poem in aid of UNHCR’s 2019 winter appeal. This poem will now be available in a hardback edition, with every copy sold supporting the work of UNHCR. It will feature new, original illustrations from Chris Riddell, Benji Davies, Yuliya Gwilym, Nadine Kaadan and Daniel Egnéus, among others, as well as a cover from acclaimed illustrator Oliver Jeffers.
Gaiman gifted the text to UNHCR, from whom Lara Hancock, head of illustrated publishing at Bloomsbury children’s books, acquired world rights. Hancock also acquired the illustrations directly from the illustrators.
What You Need to Be Warm publishes in hardback in October 2023 in the UK. The publication will be backed by a "major" global marketing and publicity campaign, supporting UNHCR’s 2023 winter appeal. It will also be published in the US by HarperCollins, with three other territories confirmed so far.
The book is described by the publisher as an "exploration of displacement and flight from conflict through the objects and memories that represent warmth in cold times". The synopsis reads: "It is about our right to feel safe, whoever we are and wherever we are from, and about welcoming those who find themselves far from home."
Gaiman said: “I am happy that the words originating from a single tweet back in 2019 will now become pages in a book, imagined through the eyes of 13 wonderful artists. Publication of What You Need to Be Warm will support the crucial work carried out by UNHCR, for whom I am proud to have been a Goodwill Ambassador since 2017.
"I hope that the ideas and memories collected and woven into this poem and the beautiful images they’ve inspired will be shared far and wide, as the humanitarian message is even more urgent today than it was when I typed that original tweet in 2019. There are more refugees, and conditions are worse. And every year there’s a winter.”
Kelly T Clements, UNHCR’s deputy high commissioner, commented: “There are now over 110 million people displaced worldwide; that’s a staggering 1% of the world’s population. But numbers don’t generate empathy; stories and shared interests are what help us connect. We all know what it feels like to be cold or to feel excluded; we have also all felt the benefits of warmth and welcome.
"That is why we are so grateful to our Goodwill Ambassador Neil Gaiman, for engaging his huge audience and curating a conversation about warmth that resulted in his authoring this beautiful poem. Beyond conversations, the book will also generate much needed funds for UNHCR’s work for forcibly displaced people across the world.”
Hancock added: “For many, warmth is something simple – a cup of hot cocoa, or a pair of mittens to slip your cold hands into. For others, it’s a quest into darkness, across icy seas and inhospitable landscapes. Neil’s evocative poem captures all this and more, and we are proud to have brought together an extraordinary group of illustrators from around the world to bring his words to life."