A cosmonaut, a distant planet, a fairy-tale castle – pictures that spark stories in an instant. For blind children, however, the magic of books is incomplete. They cannot see the vibrant illustrations that other children absorb at a glance, and much of that visual wonder remains out of reach.
The project “The World Under the Fingers of a Blind Child”, supported by “Fantastico to You” and the National Library for the Blind “Louis Braille 1928”, is working to change this. Special books with beautifully embossed illustrations are being created, allowing children with visual impairments to experience stories through the sense of touch – bringing imagination to life in their own hands.
“By reading Braille, I can expand my vocabulary, learn how to spell, and understand the meaning of words I hear for the first time. If books had illustrations, it would be even better – it would help me picture what things look like and imagine them”, says Dimana.
The project does more than change how children read – it transforms how they experience the world. Books become more than just lines of text; they turn into rich, multisensory adventures. “This support is truly invaluable”, says Mladenov. “With our limited budget, we could never create something like this on our own. The special paper is extremely expensive – just one sheet costs 3 leva – so what we’ve achieved is entirely thanks to Fantastico.”
Through the library at the community center for the blind, these books are being shared nationwide. The goal is simple yet powerful: to give as many blind readers as possible the chance to explore the world in a new way. “I think the world is both more beautiful and more real”, says Yana Yordanova.
Learn more about the initiative here.
