YUSOF GAJAH has a deep and abiding love for children’s books and working with children. While a busy artist, he has managed to write and illustrate a number of books for children and have won the National Book Council Award for best picture book and the Noma Concours (ACCU) award for best illustrations.

His popular picture book, ‘The Real Elephant‘ was first published in Malay and has been translated into Japanese. Its enduring qualities have enabled an English publication in 2010. He has also created the ‘ELEPHABET‘ which continues to attract both children and adults.

Yusof Gajah’s The Real Elephant won the Grand Prize of the Noma Concours in Tokyo in 1996.

The story in brief: An elephant ate some fruits from a strange tree and found itself changing from one weird animal to another until finally it looked like a strange monster. It was regretful and wished it could become itself again.