Book Review of Never Forgotten
The Children’s Book Review
Never Forgotten
Written by Suria Scapin
Translated by Maria Carolina Reichmann Rodrigues
Illustrated by Lumina Pirilampus
Ages: 4+ | 42 Pages
Publisher: Catavento Press (2025) | ISBN-13: 979-8986505701
What to Expect: Grief, loss, memories, and intergenerational love.
A poetic picture book about loss and memory, Never Forgotten is about how the quiet ways the people and things we love stay with us forever.
A young girl who considers herself a champion of losing things — an earring, a lucky stone, a beloved book, a toy bear — begins to wonder what it means when the thing she loses isn’t a thing at all, but her grandmother. Through a gentle, searching narrative, she discovers that a “kingdom of lost things” holds more than misplaced treasures. It turns out that the act of remembering may be the most powerful way to keep someone close.
Originally published in Portuguese as Desesquecida, author Suria Scapin’s text is tender and philosophically rich, carrying a lyricism that translator Maria Carolina Reichmann Rodrigues handles beautifully. The language feels natural and warm. The narrative arc moves beautifully from whimsy to grief and back to joy again, as both the words and the art collectively trust young readers to hold the emotional complexity of what it means to lose something or someone—the closing line lands with a light, confident touch that lingers well after the book is closed.
Pirilampus’s illustrations are a visual feast — vibrant, collage-inspired mixed-media spreads that burst with color and playful energy until the palette shifts to soft grayscale as the story turns to memories of grandma’s childhood. This stunning visual choice quietly signals the passage of time until the final spreads erupt back into full color, making the emotional reunion feel genuinely celebratory.
Never Forgotten is a rare and beautiful book about grief that also feels joyful—ideal for families navigating loss, for hands of educators looking for an emotionally resonant read-aloud, and for anyone who treasures picture books that treat children as thoughtful, feeling human beings.
