In an interview with Lusa concerning the release of the illustrated book “As Sementes do Céu,” Mia Couto emphasized the significance of storytelling and reading to children as a means of building connections and making sense of their surroundings.
“The great threat everyone talks about today—the invasion of machines, screens, and mobile phones—stems from a certain abandonment of the moment when bonds with children are formed. These are imaginary bonds, but they create a world of sense and are built during childhood,” he said.
According to Mia Couto, an acclaimed novelist and poet, “either this world is built in childhood or it never will be. We remain dependent on what is sold to us pre-packaged.”
The book “As Sementes do Céu,” illustrated by Susa Monteiro and set for release on Tuesday in Portugal, is narrated by a boy. It tells the story of his grandfather, a carpenter, who believed “all wood is alive, no board ceased to be a tree.”
In the tale, the boy reveals that one day his grandfather, with hands full of seeds, decided to climb a mountain where all the trees had been cut down. It was the grandfather who, invoking his ancestors, caused all wooden chairs, tables, doors, and windows in the world to fly back to the forests where the trees were cut.
“I wanted to recover something that’s being lost today—the generational relationship between a grandfather and a boy who inhabit the same space,” said the writer, who never knew his grandparents yet felt their presence in his childhood through stories told by his mother.
“My mother, with very subtle intelligence, solved the perception that absence would not be painful,” he explained.
In “As Sementes do Céu,” Mia Couto makes no distinction in writing poetic prose for adults or children. However, he acknowledges that writing for the young is much more challenging due to their “much more acute perception of poetic language than it seems.”
“Meetings at schools with children are much more difficult and challenging. There is a spontaneity, a desire for truth that is tough for a writer to confront because we forget our childish side. We have forgotten how to talk to children, and we are afraid to look at ourselves in all age ranges,” he said.
“As Sementes do Céu” also conveys an ecological and environmental message.
“This story conveys that the forest, nature itself, saves itself and does not need us for salvation. There’s this idea of a return journey of trees to their original place,” he explained.
Having studied Biology, Mia Couto recalls the years he taught Ecology at the Faculty of Architecture in Mozambique—the country where he was born, lives, and works—bringing “seeds, flowers, and fruits to show students the greatness of nature.”
The aim was to help students develop “another relationship with nature and natural constructions,” making them “ready to have a lifelong learning relationship with trees.”
Mia Couto, the most famous author in Mozambican literature, who turned 70 this past July, is primarily dedicated to writing and the associated dissemination work. “I want to spread myself over various things. Writing has moments of solitude that I don’t appreciate as much,” he said.
“As Sementes do Céu,” published by Caminho, will also be released in Mozambique. It will be presented by Mia Couto and illustrator Susa Monteiro on the 25th, at the Palácio Galveias in Lisbon, in a discussion with economist António Bagão Félix, a scholar of botany and agronomy.
In Mia Couto’s literary career, “As Sementes do Céu” joins other books targeted at younger audiences, such as “O Gato e o Escuro,” “O Beijo da Palavrinha,” and “A Águia e a Água,” all illustrated by Danuta Wojciechowska.
