Bard was born loving words and stories, and he grew up to be his village's storyteller. But when he unexpectedly fell silent one day, he caused consternation in his entire community. As the villagers attempted to figure out why he was now silent, and what they could do about it, Ballad, the local musician, set out to inspire his fellow artist to attempt to communicate again...

Originally published in Spain as Érase, Once Upon a Time is the first book I have read that is both written and illustrated by Guridi (full name: Raúl Nieto Guridi), although I have previously enjoyed books that he illustrated. I appreciated the narrative here more than I enjoyed it, finding the ideas implicit in the story - the way that creativity and communication can dry up, only to be inspired again by another form of artistic expression - quite appealing. The illustrations are quite interesting, often quite minimal, with adept use of line and blank space. I particularly appreciated the use of different designs, in Guridi's depiction of the houses. Recommended to fans of the artist's work, and to anyone looking for picture-books that explore issues of creativity, storytelling, and artistic expression. ( )