The First Boat

International award winner! A beautifully illustrated story book for kids 4-8 about the importance of nature and community, from Nobel Prize winner José Saramago.

The sea is the universe close to us.

Here is the story of a man who lives at the water's edge watching the rise and fall of the shoreline. It is the sea itself that gives him everything he needs to survive, and yet it will take courage to enter the sometimes roaring waters. The man knows that this sea that gives him everything, can also take it away, but with the help of friends and with patience, he knows the sea can be a balm and a source of life. A poetic story that will resonate with anyone who has spent time near the sea, listening to the sound of the waves.

With bright and beautiful water color art by Amanda Mijangos, this simple story from the Notebooks of Nobelist Saramago, will excite and intrigue the youngest readers--and all of those who read along with them.

Author: José Saramago
Publisher: Triangle Square
Published: 10/14/2025
Pages: 24
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.80lbs
Size: 11.20h x 8.40w x 0.50d
ISBN: 9781644214725
Audience: Ages 4-8


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 09/15/2025

About the Author
José de Sousa Saramago, (November 1922-June 2010), was a Portuguese writer and recipient of the 1998 Nobel Prize in Literature. His works, some of which can be seen as allegories, commonly present subversive perspectives on historic events, emphasizing the theopoetic human factor. More than two million copies of Saramago's books have been sold in Portugal alone and his work has been translated into 25 languages. He was a founding member of the National Front for the Defense of Culture in Lisbon in 1992, and co-founder with Orhan Pamuk, of the European Writers' Parliament (EWP).

Margaret Jull Costa is a translator of Portuguese and Spanish fiction and poetry, including the works of José Saramago, Eça de Queiroz, Fernando Pessoa, Paulo Coelho, Bernardo Atxaga, Carmen Martín Gaite, Javier Marías, Angela Vallvey, and Luisa Valenzuela.. Her translations have been awarded the International Dublin Literary Award, the Oxford-Weidenfeld Translation Prize (four times), and the TLS Translation Prize, among many others. She lives in England

Amanda Mijangos was born in Mexico City in 1986 and studied architecture and illustration at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). She has illustrated books for publishers in several countries and has had her work recognized by the IBBY Honor List, the White Ravens Catalogue and national and international exhibitions.