What you need to be warm by Neil Gaiman

“You have the right to be here”. Surely these are the most warming, most comforting words of all. Neil Gaiman’s poem What you need to be warm, brings together many heart-felt descriptions of warmth, of being protected from cold, curled up snug under bedcovers or with pets, enjoying a warm cup of tea with a friend, warm breath on a frosty window, of being with family, safe together in a beloved home. But for many people, right now, home is a memory far away, with family members displaced, people changing states, stumbling across deserts or braving the seas. All of these ideas are gathered together in Gaiman’s deceptively simple but stunningly beautiful picture book dedicated to UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency.

The book is a poem created from the responses of thousands of people invited on social media to contribute their memories of being warm, both memories of warmth away from cold, and memories of the warmth of being safe with family and friends. The warmth of kindness and safety is the most powerful of all, offering love, healing and protection; to be welcomed and told “You have the right to be here”.

The words on each double-page spread are illustrated by different artists, with notes at the end about how each was inspired to put an image to the phrases that resonated for them. The styles vary but they are united by the common colour scheme of white, grey and black, ignited by a flame of orange bringing warmth, simple but powerful in the feelings it evokes.

This is a treasure of a book. It could be read with young children, prompting their own ideas about warmth and safety, and fostering the concept of caring for others. It could equally make a special gift for an adult at Christmas time. Funds raised from the book go to supporting UNHCR’s work in providing life-saving support to displaced people across the world.

Themes: Refugees, Safety, Welcome, Empathy.

Helen Eddy