Portfolio – Tata & Squack

The Tata&Squack books were written by Elisabeth Visser and illustrated by Tanja Dekker as a creative team. We both have fond memories of that time and lots of stories to tell about traveling to Africa for research, work sessions with lots of coffee on our kitchen table in Hamburg and visiting the Children’s Book Fair in Bologna to market the books…

For the illustrations I used a mix of materials. The landscapes and backgrounds are based on photography and combined with patterns made on paper and drawings. Tata was drawn in colored pencil. For the animals I mostly used ink. Squack is a felted puppet on a flexible frame, which was photographed in different positions. All the elements were merged in Photoshop, where the real illustrations came to life. One page in the book has about 100 layers in photoshop. More information about the making of the books on stories…

Tata & Squack – Mission Elephant

Elisabeth Visser, Tanja Dekker
  • Hardcover: 44 pages
  • Languages: English, German, Dutch
  • Dimensions: 30,5 x 24 x 0,9 cm
  • Weight: 530 gram
  • Age group: 6-99 years
  • List Price: Euro 14,95
  • ISBN: Depends on language edition
  • Published: 2014

The second adventure of Tata & Squack is a story about wild elephants, the largest mammals that walk the surface of the earth. With this book we want to create awareness of the threats elephants are facing in a child friendly way and help these magnificent animals. Tata’s joins her parents on their new research project, a study of the life of elephants. Together with her magic friend Squack she meets Harry, a young elephant bull who teaches them a lot about these gentle giants.

Have a look in the book  < >

Tata & Squack – The Big Journey

Elisabeth Visser, Tanja Dekker
  • Hardcover: 44 pages
  • Languages: English, German, Dutch
  • Dimensions: 30,5 x 24 x 0,9 cm
  • Weight: 530 gram
  • Age group: 6-99 years
  • List Price: Euro 14,95
  • ISBN: Depends on language edition
  • Published: 2011

This adventure of Tata&Squack tells the story of the Great Migration of the Wildebeest, one of the most impressive events in the natural world. Tata’s parents travel across the world, studying nature wherever they go. The Great Migration of the Wildebeest brought them to the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania, Africa, and she came along.

Have a look in the book  < >