Featured here is the game of peek-a-boo, universally enjoyed by the very young. Lottie, the star of this story, is on the receiving end of lots of peek-a-boos, the first being her Mumma as Lottie pulls the rug over her head. ‘Peek-a-boo, Lottie!,’ Mumma says. Lottie continues her game and invariably hears the ‘peek-a-boo’ refrain from others in the neighbourhood, each time stated in a different language. The game begins as Lottie hides behind a chair at breakfast time playing peek-a-boo. On the opposite page, the response is ‘Kkakkung, Lottie!’ in a speech bubble stating, ‘In Korean, kkakkung is pronounced kkah-kkung.’ A similar pattern follows.

The author reveals the story was inspired by her three-year-old daughter who loved playing this game. She was also inspired by her experience teaching classrooms full of children speaking different languages. Lottie plays peek-a-boo at home and around the neighbourhood. There’s a ‘peek-a-boo’ speech bubble in a different language with a guide to pronouncing each one as Lottie travels around her culturally diverse community. The following languages feature: Italian, Tagalog (spoken primarily in the Philippines), Indonesian, French, Greek, Persian and Dutch. The finale has mum putting Lottie to bed with a final line— this time in English—‘Peek-a-boo, Lottie’ with the added affectionate line, ‘I love you!’

Illustrator Kristen Willis reveals she used traditional mediums for her illustrations. These included Gouache (Liquitex Acrylic Gouache) underpainting, layered with colour pencil (Caran D’Ache Luminance) on paper (Fabriano Aquarello Artistico Hot-pressed 300gsm). The artist offers a glimpse into her studio and her work for this story.

‘Peek-a-boo Lottie’ exudes affection and humour as Lottie approaches her own and others’ families including neighbours, grocers, butcher, and others. Occasionally there is a grouchy response, but Lottie’s impish game eventually has everyone smiling.

‘Peek-a-boo Lottie’ was shortlisted in The Children’s Book Council of Australia’s 2025 Award for New Illustrator.

1. Cross Cultural Relations
2. Friendship
3. Kindness
4. Language
5. Migrants
6. Relationships
7. Respect
8. Social Life