Tomi Ungerer, French illustrator, is well known for his particular sense of humour and irreverence. He has illustrated more than 120 children's books, and his work led him to win the Hans Christian Andersen Award in 1998.
You can either love or hate Ungerer. I particularly love him. He is an artist who decides to capture in his drawings the truth that surrounds him, with a unique satire and mischief; he does not disguise reality for children, but he presents it in an honest and, at the same time, amusing way.
One of Tomi Ungerer's emblematic books is Flix (1997), in which he presents a story about discrimination, tolerance, and self-acceptance as a breakthrough to our place in the world.
A cat couple was very happy waiting for their first child to be born. However, this one turned out a little different from them: it was a dog (a little Pug, actually).
The parents were confused; however, they raised their son with lots of love and tried to teach him feline customs.
Flix grew up smart, kind and happy. His parents taught him to speak cat, which he pronounced with a dog accent. His mom used to file his nails and teach him how to climb trees. Flix enjoyed his meals - whether it was fried mice, canaries in vinegar or hot dogs - and he purred when his mom gently scratched him to sleep.
As time passed, Flix also learned to speak dog (with a cat accent), and although he had a great time with his family, he had no friends to play with.
Flix started attending dog school in Dog City. He realized that it wasn't much different from Cat City: there were different breeds everywhere.
The life of the little Pug would change one day, when he rescued a cat from drowning in the river. Since cats can't swim, and Flix did, he jumped into the water to save it. Since then, Flix would be recognized by the cat community.
Flix's heroic activities would continue in college when, climbing quickly up a tree like a cat, he rescued a little female dog named Mirzah from a fire. They both fell in love.
Flix and Mirzah were married, and their wedding was celebrated by many residents of Dog City and Cat City. Later, Flix enters the political world and creates a new party to unite dogs and cats, and ensure equal rights and respect between the two species. Because of his heroic deeds and successful businesses linking the two cities, Flix was very popular and became mayor.
The day Mirzah had their baby, they watched tenderly as a little female kitten was born.
Through a small Pug, Tomi Ungerer teaches us that the important thing is not the differences but the learning we can get from different cultures and races, and this will open us to the world and help us to see it as one. Flix could only save Mirzah because he had cat skills, and he could only save the cat from drowning because he could swim like a dog. Through his own acceptance, Flix began to be appreciated by others, and finally achieved a change and union of both worlds, of which he was a part from his birth.
