Watercolor painting of a treehouse in a tree with a girl on a ladder and a boy peering out of a window, surrounded by watercolor greenery.

A watercolor illustration of a boy and girl looking at a book featuring a robot. The image is painted in soft pastel colors with a minimal background.

A watercolor painting depicting one hand reaching out and catching another hand, with soft, delicate colors and a minimal background.

A watercolor painting of two children with curious, interested expressions, looking at a flying device that combines the features of an airplane and a helicopter. Soft pastel colors and a minimal background.

Watercolor portrait of a boy with short brown hair, wearing a light blue top, looking to the right.

Watercolor illustration of a young girl with long brown hair, wearing a red t-shirt, denim shorts, and pink sneakers, running after someone

A watercolor painting of a boy running alongside a girl outdoors, with a robot running in the background. All three are moving toward an airplane-helicopter device. The scene is painted in soft pastel colors with a minimal background.

An illustration of three raccoons in a forest surrounded by green trees. One raccoon is standing on the ground holding a bow and arrow, while the other two are watching from tree branches. Two robots are nearby, with one pointing toward the raccoons

Watercolor drawing of various objects including a blue shell, a red first aid kit, a remote control, a green lighter, a small gray box, and other miscellaneous items on a grassy background.

A watercolor illustration of a helicopter flying through a cloudy sky with three characters inside: a girl with long brown hair, a humanoid robot sitting beside her, and a boy with brown hair piloting the helicopter.

Watercolor painting of two people, a girl in a red shirt with brown hair and a boy in a blue shirt with brown hair, standing inside a hallway with a red first aid kit on the wall. There are white envelopes with red stamps floating around, a beige pur

Watercolor painting of a boy paragliding with a blue-and-yellow glider. The sky is blue with white clouds, and the ground is green and yellow.

A young woman with brown hair holding onto two ropes, zip-lining through a bright, partly cloudy sky with green and yellow fields below.

A watercolor painting of two human figures, a boy and a girl, standing in a forest and staring toward the horizon, where a powerful yellow light like a fire can be seen. The colors are rendered in an infrared-camera style.

A drawing of a group of robots around a presentation board with the word 'Projekt' written on it, set outdoors with trees in the background.

Watercolor painting of a robot holding a box of red berries and a raccoon holding a bowl of red berries, walking along a colorful garden path with flowers and greenery.

Watercolor painting of a boy and girl looking at a small bird on the girl's hand.

Watercolor painting of multiple wind turbines on a hillside with mountains in the background and trees in the foreground.

Watercolor painting of two children in winter clothing walking on a snowy path through a forest with leafless trees. One child is reaching up, holding a snowball, and the other is holding a colorful kite. The scene is peaceful and outdoor winter acti

A watercolor illustration of a girl with pigtails wearing a pink jacket and a winter hat, sitting on the ground, and a boy wearing a blue jacket and a yellow-green winter hat, kneeling and reaching out to her. They are near a window.

A watercolor illustration depicting two children and a robot with a background of a wash of muted colors.

A watercolor illustration of a wooden device resembling a catapult, with an aircraft ready to be launched.

A watercolor illustration of a spacecraft cockpit with a pilot in yellow and brown, and a robot with an oval head and long limbs, looking at a screen inside the spacecraft.

Watercolor painting of a royal scene with a raccoon wearing a crown perched on a throne, surrounded by puppies and children, with festive balloons and streamers.

Watercolor painting of a scenic castle with green rounded roofs and lit windows, situated on a hill with a stone bridge and a river below. A boat carrying three raccoons, a humanoid robot, and two children is sailing along the river.

A watercolor painting depicting a winter scene with a large house or building, snow-covered trees, and colorful birds perched on branches.

Das Buch der Reisenden — A Family Project

Das Buch der Reisenden (original German edition), Cartea Călătorilor (Romanian edition), and The Book of Travellers (would be the English version) is a family project that began with a simple school assignment and gradually grew into something much bigger.

How it started

During the Covid lockdown, my ten-year-old son was given a homework assignment: to write a story in the simple past tense. He started writing, but the days went by and the story kept growing. He simply refused to finish it. Every time I told him, “Please, go and finally finish that story,” he would sit down, take another bunch of paper, and write and write for hours. He would then come back and tell me that he had finished another chapter. The same thing happened the next day, and the day after that.

After I explained the situation to his teacher, she decided to give him as much time as he needed to finish the story. Eventually, he exceeded the original deadline by several weeks.

What came out of it surprised not only his teacher, but everyone who read the manuscript.

From that moment, I knew that one day we had to publish the book. It was simply too special to leave it sitting in a drawer.

The story is imaginative, funny, and remarkably well constructed. It is filled with an impressive technical vocabulary that is unusual for a ten-year-old and demonstrates an extraordinary level of knowledge, creativity, curiosity, and attention to detail.

But what moved me most was the feeling behind it. This was a child who had created an entire world simply because he wanted to tell a story, not to make a homework. I believe that this is something worth sharing — and that the book might inspire other children to discover the joy of writing, to explore their imagination, and, most importantly, to believe in their own ideas.

For years, however, I never found the time to edit, illustrate and publish the book.

Then, in 2026, after years in the corporate world, I felt ready for a new chapter and decided to step away and dedicate some time to my personal projects. Among them were two ideas that had been waiting for years: publishing this book and working on my first exhibition.

That decision finally gave me the opportunity to bring to life something I had believed in since the day my ten-year-old boy began writing a story that simply refused to end.

Bringing the book to life

What began as a school exercise became a creative collaboration between our family.

My son and daughter have both contributed to the visual development of the book. They posed as models for the illustrations, helped recreate the characters and scenes, and became part of the process of bringing the story's imaginary world to life. The book was published on Amazon in German, in both paperback and Kindle editions, and was later translated into Romanian.

The result is more than just a children's book. It is a family story about creativity, imagination, and the courage to turn an unexpected idea into something real.

Buy "Das Buch der Reisenden" on Amazon

Buy "Cartea călătorilor" on Amazon

Book cover illustration titled 'Das Buch der Reisenden' by David Perta. It features an artistic watercolor-style painting of a landscape with a castle, a bridge, a boat with two children, a robot and two raccoons inside and a grassy area.

Book cover illustration titled 'Cartea calatorilor' by David Perta. It features an artistic watercolor-style painting of a landscape with a castle, a bridge, a boat with two children, a robot and two raccoons inside and a grassy area.

New Illustrations for Future Books

Watercolor illustration of a mouse wearing a striped hat and red vest, sitting at a table with a teapot and cup, looking at a blue and white teapot, in a room with a window showing a winter scene with snow-covered trees.

A watercolor painting of an indoor scene with one mouse. The room has a window with snow outside, a shelf with jars, and various pictures and objects on the walls.

Watercolor painting of a mouse wearing a red and green striped beanie hat and a red sweater, sitting at a table with a blue teapot and a teacup, with pastel-colored background.

A watercolor painting of a mouse wearing a red pullover and green apron, trying to sleep in a chair while crying. Through the window, a snowy winter scene with trees can be seen.

Watercolor illustration of anthropomorphic mice with glasses and colorful clothing, standing in front of a house with a thatched roof, surrounded by trees and colorful flowers, with one mouse waving and another with arms extended, against a blue sky

A watercolor illustration of a mouse reading a cookbook, with a table covered with food, including pancakes and strawberries, and a small mouse wearing a red-and-green striped winter hat sitting in a green high chair.

A watercolor painting of three mice hugging, sitting in front of a large window with a snowy landscape outside. The mice are wearing glasses and colorful clothing.

Watercolor illustration of mice baking in the kitchen

Watercolor painting of three mice celebrating a birthday with a cake topped with raspberries.

A watercolor illustration of two mice hugging in front of a door. Through the doorway, a winter scene can be seen. On the left, two other mice are standing quietly, suggesting that they do not want to interrupt the two mice who are hugging.

Watercolor illustration of a Christmas gathering featuring mice and a mouse standing on a table with a cake, surrounded by tea cups. A decorated Christmas tree stands to the right, and a purple curtain backdrop with falling snow is in the background.