Winter’s Tale (2005) by Robert Sabuda is a dazzling pop-up book that transforms the magic of winter into an immersive, three-dimensional paper theater. Renowned for his intricate paper engineering, Sabuda captures the season’s quiet beauty and whimsy through six stunning spreads—each bursting with delicate snowflakes, frosted forests, ice-skating scenes, and a majestic winter palace, all rendered in shimmering whites and blues.
The book’s minimalist text (a single poetic line per page) lets the elaborate pop-ups take center stage, with pull-tabs and layered constructions creating movement, like twirling skaters or a gliding sleigh. A standout is the final spread: a towering, crystalline castle that seems to glow against a starry backdrop. Designed as much for art lovers as for children, Winter’s Tale showcases Sabuda’s genius for turning paper into enchantment, making it a cherished seasonal treasure and a testament to the craft of pop-up storytelling.
