PMJ donates copies of Norbury’s The Journey to every UK Samaritans branch

Penguin Michael Joseph (PMJ) has donated a copy of James Norbury’s The Journey to all 203 Samaritans branches across the UK as part of a campaign to celebrate World Kindness Day on November 13th. 

Norbury created Big Panda and Tiny Dragon while volunteering for the Samaritans, talking to people finding it hard to cope with life. The publisher said that those conversations made him “want to do something, however small, to brighten people’s day and share his own feelings”.

He also collaborated with the charity earlier in the year on their 2022 Brew Monday campaign, creating an exclusive illustration of Big Panda and Tiny Dragon.

Norbury said: “As a Samaritans volunteer, there were times when I wished I could have shared with callers some of the ideas and concepts I had learned about and which had helped me, but as you know, Samaritans are there to listen rather than offer advice. So I searched for a way to share these ideas with people in a way that was both gentle and easy to absorb; that’s how I landed on creating the characters of Big Panda and Tiny Dragon.

“I still retain a policy of not giving advice, and instead offer my illustrations and words in the hope the people may take away an idea or two that might help them. This way of doing things, I hope, honours the Samaritan tradition and I am sincerely grateful for my time there. It changed me forever. I’m so pleased that Penguin is donating a copy of The Journey to every Samaritans branch, and hope the volunteers enjoy it.”

PMJ will also be partnering with Crew Clothing on a competition and interview with Norbury to celebrate World Kindness Day, and the campaign also involved sponsoring select bookshop cafes to offer free hot drinks throughout the day. Stores included Waterstones Swansea, Waterstones Cardiff, Book-ish, Booka Bookshop, Waterstones Princes Street, Berts Books, Waterstones Bristol and Waterstones Bath.