#119 of 1001 · November 27, 2020

What is the nature of humanity? Are we bellicose in our hearts, or can we tame our savage impulses? Do we tend towards love or hate? These are the philosophical questions tackled by Irmela Wendt and Antoni Boratynski’s The End of War, which explores and expands upon Biblical lore to create a thought-provoking parable. Cain, after murdering his brother Abel, transforms into War, the avatar of hatred and violence. Over thousands of years of bloody battles, War’s memory fades. “Who am I?” he begins to wonder. The quest for his lost identity sends him back to the beginning of time and forces him to confront and set right his long-forgotten sin. Wendt’s spare narrative, translated from German, offers an arresting allegory, while Boratynski’s paintings foreground the emotional dimension of the tale. #endofwar #war #cain #abel #cainandabel #book #books #childrensbooks #beautifulbook #beautifulbooks #beautifulbookcover #beautifulbookcovers #picturebook #picturebooks #picturebookillustration #picturebookart #childrensbookillustration #childrensliterature #illustration #kidlit #kidsbooks #bookworm #booklover #booklovers #bibliophile #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookstagrammers #instabook #instabooks