»Historical Wimmelspass in Stuttgart« – a colorful and fun journey through the history of Stuttgart for children - hoffmanillustrates! - Kimberley Hoffman -Illustratorin und Designerin aus Wolfenbüttel

Find the Fun in History with »Historischer Wimmelspaß in Stuttgart—An Illustrated Adventure Through Stuttgart’s Illustrative History«

If you’re looking for a fun, visual way to introduce children to Stuttgart’s rich history, this search-and-find book is the perfect place to start.
Est. Reading Time: 5 Minutes
Author: Kimberley Hoffman
Illustrations from »Historischer Wimmelspaß in Stuttgart – eine fröhlich-bunte Zeitreise durch die Stadtgeschichte«
Illustrations, Graphics & Photos ©Kimberley Hoffman

Historical Fun in Stuttgart

»History is Fun in Stuttgart«—I’m done with it. Really, I am.

Depending on your POV, that could be a good thing or bad thing. In my case, it is definitely a good thing, being done with my newest book baby, »Historischer Wimmelspaß in Stuttgart« (meaning »Historical Fun in Stuttgart«), a playful, engaging and visually nutritious search-and-find book about the history of Stuttgart.

Graphic: A book dummy with the cover of the Wimmel book “Historical Wimmel fun in Stuttgart - a happy and colorful journey through the city's history. Cover illustration of the hidden object book “Historical Wimmel Fun in Stuttgart - A cheerfully colorful journey through the city's history. The image shows the city center of Stuttgart in the 18th century. You can see the New Palace, the Old Palace, the Lusthaus, the Stiftskirche and the vineyards of Stuttgart. A lively mix of people, rulers and horses are bustling around. Spot Illustrations: Two Horses named Rika and Rossi. They both wear bejeweled golden harnesses and Rika wears a golden crown spotted with jewels. The text reads: »History is Fund in Stuttgart« If you click on the image, you will be led to the publisher’s bookshop The background of the graphic grass green with wavy ascending, stamped lines. — Time travel through Stuttgart’s colorful and rich history with »Historical Wimmelspass in Stuttgart« Available from booksellers everywhere!

This is How this Children’s Book about Stuttgart’s History Came To Be

It was a long project, one born over coffee in a café in Tübingen. My publisher was pleased with my previous books and asked how she could reward me for my good work. If I could choose a project, what kind of project would I like to illustrate?

My 8-years’ old soul piped in (yes, part of me is still an 8 years old kid) and declared: One about history.

Whattttt? My adult me rolled her eyes and started thinking, »Oh, why did I say that? I can’t even remember birthdays, much less the names of people and places« I do need to embarrass myself a few times before that information sticks. But it is true. I love the idea of archaeology, of digging into the past and knowing that it is connected to the present. But I would never consider myself an expert on history.

Do you like searching for treasure, too?

However, you need to know one thing: My eight-years-old me wanted to be an archaeologist.

Admit it—your eight-years-old you probably wanted to be an archaeologist, too. Or at least a treasure hunter.

Over coffee in Tuebingen, we narrowed down the parameters of the book. Yay! History!!! My publisher is an archeologist at heart, and decided that we start with the history of Stuttgart, which is what launched me into digging into Stuttgart’s fascinating history. Not in trenches, but in books and archives, exploring the nooks and crannies of the internet, and reaching out to people who might know special facts about Stuttgart.

🏴‍☠️ ⚜️ Facts, but make them Fun

Part of my illustration work, and maybe my most annoying trait, is my penchant for fun facts. Since these search-and-find books generally are text free, I package my fun facts in images.

Did You Know These Fun Facts about Stuttgart’s History?

A fun hidden object scene from »Historischer Wimmelspass in Stuttgart.« In this scene, you'll see horses in the courtyard, knights, Duke Christoph, wine farmers at harvest time, a jousting tournament, a dung heap with buzzing flies, farmers in the vegetable garden, and children harvesting honey.

Excerpt from “Historical Wimmelspass in Stuttgart” The unforgettable wedding of Duke Ulrich and Sabina of Bavaria in 1511. This search-and-find illustration shows the celebrating guests on the former castle square, complete with an eight-armed wine fountain. The wine was literally flowing freely. Everybody is helping themselves. The people are dressed in medieval clothing. On the roof of the not yet completed Stiftskirche (Abbey Church), you can see craftsmen working on the West Tower and also funny animals who are celebrating their own wedding.

Excerpt from “Historical Wimmelspass in Stuttgart” - The Cannstatter Wasen. This search-and-find excerpt shows a colorful parade of Stuttgart’s wine farmers in traditional outfits showing the fruits of their labor. The Duke and Duchess are sitting in the stands enjoying the spectacle.

One fun fact is that Stuttgart got its name from the word »Stutengarten«. »Stute« means »mare« in German. You might recognize the suffix »-garten« from the word »Kindergarten«. It means garden. Pretty easy, don’t you think? The city developed out of a place for breeding horses—a garden for mares and foals. Heaven on Earth for horse-lovers everywhere.

Another fun fact is that Stuttgart hosts the second-biggest harvest festival in Germany on the Cannstatter Wasen. (The Oktoberfest is the biggest). And that this festival was preceded by a famine caused by a volcano on the other side of the world. King Wilhelm I was worried at the time that the hunger years could cause a revolt. So he did what any wise leader would do—distract them with a very large party. You know – with beer 🍻, bratwurst 🌭, pretzels 🥨 and attractions 🎠. It’s a method still in use today.

And did you know that 16,000 guests were invited to the wedding of Duke Ulrich of Württemberg and his Sabina of Bavaria? At the time, there were only about 6,000 people living in Stuttgart – and they were also invited. There was not only free beer for everyone, but also an eight-armed wine fountain. This amazing version of free wine was set up on the Schlossplatz which is now known as Lessingplatz.

I will say this, the people of Stuttgart always knew how to throw a good party.🍾🥳🎊🎉

How I created my Search-and-Find Book about Stuttgart’s History

A detail of the painting of Duke Christoph of Würrttemberg with the text: Duke Christoph had the Old A detail of the painting of Duke Christoph of Württemberg with the text: Duke Christoph had the Old Castle renovated into a Renaissance style at great expense.

This graphic shows a photo of painted tin figures depicting farmers at harvest time. The white text on a blue ground for this graphic reads: These painted tin figures are a great inspiration for my illustrations. They show the fashion, the harvesting process and the tools used by farmers.

This graphic shows an old print of two men and a woman wearing traditional regional costumes from Stuttgart. They are all wearing wide-brimmed beige or straw colored hats. The men are wearing red vests, white full sleeved shirts, black scarves or ties, and beige colored knee britches, white socks and black shoes with silver buckles. The woman is wearing a blouse topped by a low-cut black mieder-vest, a white apron which is decorated with a few red stripes, and a blue bulky mid-calf-length skirt, also decorated with red edging. She is also wearing white stockings and black flat shoes without buckles. The image is set on a red background. The white text reads: The people of Stuttgart dressed up in traditional costumes for festivals and holidays.

I explored a lot of information, historical documents, including photos and videos that I took in museums in Stuttgart, to show children and adult readers what it felt like to be there in history. What do you see, smell, hear? I researched the fashion of each era, from the rich to the poor, the dances, tools, carts–I even researched watering cans. I went down rabbit holes—and nearly got stuck in one about a fountain that was historically recorded as having existed, but had never been visually recorded. Ahh, what I would have given for that visual.

All this for just one completely illustrated book.

I can do the same for you.

And where can you find “Historical Wimmelspaß in Stuttgart”?

Look for my eighth search-and-find book »Historischer Wimmelspaß in Stuttgart« (History Is Fun In Stuttgart). Available from your favorite bookseller. Online and Offline.

ISBN 978-3-8425-2414-9
Silberburg-Verlag