I know the first person you would think of as a children’s author probably wouldn’t be Nick Cave but he seems to be pretty good at it.

The Australian icon has written and illustrated a book for kids, titled The Little Thing, which can be found on his Cave Things Store.

“The Little Thing is a story I wrote for my three-year-old neighbour, Esme,” Nick explained. “I drew the pictures too, in case you’re wondering. It is the tale of a little thing that goes on an epic adventure to discover the true nature of its identity.

‘What am I?’ asks The Little Thing. Along the way it meets a cast of diverse characters – including a tomato, a toilet roll, a showerhead, a cupcake, and a corn on the cob, that guide The Little Thing toward its final joyous realisation.”

And Cave stopped by BBC 6Music yesterday, November 10th, to give a live reading of his children’s story. “Fancy a bit of existentialism for kids this Wednesday?” 6Music asked ominously on Twitter as they introduced Cave’s reading.

His musician mate Warren Ellis even stopped by, providing some drone accompaniment, while a glock melody plays under Cave’s words. Listen to Cave’s live reading (a lovely reminder that radio is still a nice thing that exists) below.

Cave has been extremely busy away from the world of children’s books. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds released a sequel to their 2005 b-sides and rarities compilation, B-Sides and Rarities Part II, at the end of October. He stars as author HG Wells in the film The Electrical Life of Louis Wain (available to stream on Amazon Prime now).

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It’s also been announced that Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds and Sinéad O’Connor will headline All Together Now Festival in Ireland next year.

Listen to Nick Cave reading The Little Thing:

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