Leap and Hop is a series of travel books for children written by Isabelle Demenge and illustrated by Emilie Sarnel. A wonderful way for kids to be conscious travellers, to absorb facts and history about the countries they visit, in an interactive, playful way.
Facing the difficulties of traveling with small children in Cambodia, Isabelle decided to write for her kids the book that she was looking for. With the idea of creating a book series that would turn a “grown-up” trip into a fun adventure for children, she created not just an interactive book but she gave children the curiosity to discover new places and learn about other cultures through interesting information as well as games and activities.
Her guides ask young readers to take selfies in front of famous landmarks, to draw the country’s currency and list their favourite and worst national dishes. Other sections supply historical information. Demenge spends months doing research before getting her children to test out the games and quizzes on holidays.
For the parents, the books provide an ideal way to stick to a grown-up itinerary with a focus on cultural sites, and create an unforgettable travel experience for their kids. As they play along by drawing, writing, and collecting items of interest throughout the journey, they’ll find themselves creating a very personal souvenir as the book is transformed into a travel scrapbook for them to keep.
All destinations currently included in the series are located in Asia :
Cambodia engages the kids in an “I-Spy” game in Angkor Wat, a treasure hunt in the Bayon, and teaches how to distinguish apsaras from devatas in the Khmer temples.
Sri Lanka focuses on the Cultural Triangle in the center of Sri Lanka where children can spot the differences between buddhas in Dambulla’s cave temples, learn about the tea production, and identify different dagobas in Anuradhapura.
India revolves around Agra and Rajasthan. Kids learn to distinguish between the history and the myths surrounding the Taj Mahal, and read about the intrigues at the Mughal court, among others.
Hong Kong takes the kids to various neighbourhoods scattered around Hong Kong. They will learn about the Hong Kong skyline, practice their observation skills by spotting the differences on a nine-dragon wall, draw the Big Buddha, and go on a scavenger hunt in one of Hong Kong’s many shopping malls.
I have been told that Bali and Paris are next on the list…stay tuned!
Follow Leap and hop on Facebook here.
Order books from Amazon here.
About the author :
Isabelle Demenge is a native of Paris who moved to New York City to start a family. She has lived many lives: corporate finance lawyer, mother of three boys, amateur photographer, world traveler and writer. Her books help families move from kid friendly destinations to places that are culturally richer in a way that all will enjoy with information hand-picked for children and interactive games.
Finally, check out the video, self explanatory!
Florence Rolando
Launched in London in early 2009 by Florence Rolando (journalist, co-founder of Bubble Trade Shows) Pirouette Blog has been a reference in the industry since 2009 with its combined business and consumer view of the children’s market. A fantastic resource for children’s fashion, design, trends and culture, it aims to support creativity and talent but it also does this by talking about life, family, culture and health.
Florence is an international leader in the industry (8 years as a Milk Collaborator, contributor to Naif Magazine in Spain, co-founder of Bubble Trade Shows in New York and London).
Now Florence runs Energy Therapy Porto @enrgy_therapy_porto
Subscribe to Pirouette's monthly Newsletter.
You might also like
February 24, 2021
Interview: Liz Sheppard, Creative Director
Katie talks to Liz Sheppard about her work as a freelance creative director. Liz has worked for more than 10 years, across women’s, men’s and children’s brands – including…
February 6, 2021
Interview: Ana Strumpf
Interview with creator and artist Ana Strumpf Katie talks with artist and illustrator Ana Strumpf about animated gifs, doodling, how her re.cover project impacted her career. Ana discusses…
October 2, 2020
A teaser trailer for Billie Eilish’s upcoming documentary!
‘The World’s a Little Blurry’ releases February 2021. Directed by filmmaker R.J. Cutler, Billie’s long-awaited Apple TV+ documentary finally has a name and a sneak peek. Well, sort off! The World’s…
March 17, 2020
St. Patrick’s – Covid 19 Issue
It's St. Patricks Day - a day when people normally get together to celebrate the luck of the Irish and enjoy themselves... Our new reality is that this is the time to keep our distance from one…
March 11, 2020
Disney Pixar’s Onward ‘banned’ by 4 countries.
Disney Pixar's Onward 'banned by 4 Middle East countries' over gay reference According to reports Pixar's latest animation Onward has been banned by several Middle Eastern countries because of a…
February 10, 2020
Calendar KIDs Covers by Molly Magnuson for Pirouette
Cover story photography of significant calendar dates... posted during the year with an accompanying article. Keep watching..... St.Patrick's -Covid 19 Issue
December 20, 2019
SCREEN CAPTURE: Polysensorial space at Playtime Paris #27
Polysensorial space Pirouette x The Society of Scent Playtime Paris #27 Sat, 25 Jan – Mon, 27Jan 2020 The Power of Scent... be happy! For this edition of the Screen Capture exhibition Pirouette has…
October 14, 2019
Have you ever visited Porto?
Portugal is a very special country, kind of stuck in the past in some places, with great sun&light, excellent food, really nice people. Located in the North of the country, Porto is a great city…
October 9, 2019
Formidable Family Ekstrand – Leo Leo Copenhagen. Part 2 of 2
Can you tell us a little bit about Leo Leo and how you started ? I’ve worked in the fashion industry and always known that the path for me was something along designing. For many years I just didn't…