Kickstarter opens October 20, 2026

A picture book about what actually matters.

The Orange Clown in the White House is an illustrated story for children aged 4 to 9 about kindness, responsibility, and what it really means to be in charge. Funny, warm, and free of lectures.

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The orange clown, an illustration from the book
From the book — spread 4
⭐ Hand-painted
📖 14 spreads
Kickstarter opens in Tuesday, October 20 · 9:00 AM ET
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A scene from the book: the circus has come to town
“The circus is in town…”
The story

What happens when a very loud clown takes over a very important house?

At first it's fun. He shouts. He boasts. He makes enormous promises. Then something slowly tips over. Friends start to feel overlooked, the house gets loud and confusing, and nobody is quite sure any more what's right and what isn't.

This is a funny, clear-eyed story about leadership and responsibility that never wags a finger. It trusts children to spot absurdity on their own, because they usually do.

A book to read aloud, laugh at together, and talk about afterwards.

From the book

A story told in rhyme.

Written the way a classic picture book is written — in rhythmic, funny verse that children happily hear again and again.

~ 01 ~
“Look, a clown! Big and loud!
Hair like fire, long ties so proud!
He juggles, he jumps, and honks his nose,
With floppy shoes and very funny clothes.”
~ 02 ~
“And soon the people stop their cheer,
This isn't right — it's getting weird!
No one knows what's wrong or right,
And every day feels like a fight.”
~ 03 ~
“No more noise, no silly show,
Just busy hands and gardens grow.
They build, they laugh, they make things bright —
Together shaping what feels right.”

Children understand humour long before they understand ideology. That's what makes this a conversation worth having.

— About the book
About the book

What makes it different.

one

Ages 4 to 9

Written for exactly the years when children start asking why the world works the way it does.

two

Painted by hand

All 14 spreads painted by a working illustrator. No AI, no stock art, no shortcuts.

three

Board book, 15 × 18 cm

Thick pages and rounded corners. Sturdy enough for sticky fingers, handsome enough for the shelf.

four

Five minutes to read aloud

Short enough for a bedtime that's already running late, and built to survive being asked for twice.

Who it's for

Read it aloud, laugh together, then talk.

It works as a bedtime story, as something to talk about over breakfast, and as a starting point in a classroom.

  • Parents who want to talk to their children about values
  • Teachers looking for a way into a difficult conversation
  • Grandparents after a gift that means something
  • Anyone who believes children understand more than we give them credit for
Children reading a book about leadership together
“Everyone can be a leader.”
Preview

What backers get.

Full reward tiers go live with the campaign on October 20. Here are the three most popular:

limited to 500
Tier · Early Bird
Early Bird Special
€18
  • 1 copy of the limited first print run
  • Your name in the Thank You pages
  • Ships ahead of everyone else
  • Updates from the studio as we print
only 50
Tier · Patron
Patron Edition
€90
  • 1 signed copy
  • Listed as a Patron inside the book
  • A personal thank-you illustration (digital)
  • Early access to the PDF

…plus tiers from €10 up to the school and library package. 🎒

See everyone who has backed the book

Behind the book

One independent voice. One honest story.

I write under the pen name Alex Grimsby — independent, with no publisher and no commercial pressure behind me. I think children deserve books that take them seriously: books that don't sugar-coat, and don't frighten either.

Your support is what keeps this project ad-free, well made, and fair to everyone who worked on it.

🎨 The illustrations Every spread was painted by hand by Vanka, a professional illustrator who has been on this project from the first sketch. I sent her a rhyme about a clown in a very white house and she sent back a character who is somehow funny and unsettling at the same time.
— Alex Grimsby

Free preview — and first in line when we go live.

Sign up and the free preview PDF arrives straight away, plus Early Bird access when the Kickstarter opens on October 20.

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