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Nancy “feels
small” and keeps on asking members of her family to do things with her. The
answer is always, “Later.” Frustrated and rejected, Nancy climbs a tree where
she invents her own tree-based entertainment. By the time she comes down, she’s
feeling much more confident – and her family are all waiting for her. In
today’s busy, bustling world it’s a theme many small children will identify
with. The illustrations are done in an unusual style using Japanese wood cuts
and stencils. I’d call it old-fashioned, though the proper phrase could be
1950s retro. The colours are subdued, with much use of dense, textured backgrounds and stark
silhouettes. The formatting is repetitive, with each double spread consisting
of a page of plain text opposite a full-page illustration.
I suspect this
quiet, subtle story will need some explaining if you’re reading it to a child
of four or five (it’s not suitable for younger children). Nancy herself looks
to be about seven in the illustrations, but it’s a very large tree she climbs
and she goes right to the top – so I’m not sure what age she’s logically meant
to be...
Reviewed by
Lorraine Orman
Many readers
of children’s picture books know and love Fearless the bulldog – this second
title will not disappoint his fans. “Fearless was not a complicated dog,” it
begins, and goes on to explain that Fearless’s mother told him, “Life is much
nicer if you love everyone.” So that’s what young Fearless sets out to do. But
loving (and eating) his bed, and loving (and eating) the winning lottery ticket
just makes his family cross with him. Poor Fearless is getting very confused –
until he meets Primrose from next door, who turns out to be – you guessed it, a
beautiful bulldog! At last Fearless has found true love.
Children
will identify with Fearless, who only wants to do the right thing but gets into
continual trouble. They’ll love the big, bright illustrations full of action
and humour (and bulldog drool). You don’t have to be a dog person to enjoy this
book. It would be okay to read to a small group, but especially good to read to
individual children of about four to seven because of the interesting detail in
the pictures.
Reviewed by
Lorraine Orman
Seesaw Po by Kyle Mewburn, illus. Katz Cowley,
Scholastic New Zealand
A group of
animal friends (hippo, orang-utan, giraffe and armadillo) visit a playground.
They’re keen to play on the equipment, but big, kindly hippopotamus Po makes
sure a tiny ant gets a proper swing first. Uta, Raff and Madi have a fabulous
time on the swing and the slide and the roundabout and the seesaw. But poor old
Po is just too big and heavy. He can’t even have a play on the seesaw. But when
his friends go home, Po sees the ant returning – with millions of other ants –
and his kindness is rewarded.
Children
will enjoy the simplicity of this little fable with its easy-to-understand
message. They’ll also appreciate the spaciousness, clarity, and humour of the
illustrations with their friendly cartoon animals. I’m looking forward to
reading it to my four-year-old grandson - I’m sure he’ll be intrigued by the
clever ending. The book could be comfortably read aloud to a pre-school group,
and should be enjoyed by children of about four to six. The Maori edition is
called E Pīoi e Po!
Kyle Mewburn is an Australian living in New Zealand. He has won many awards for his picture books in New Zealand and overseas. Katz Cowley is a New Zealander now living in Australia. She illustrated the bestselling book The Wonky Donkey.
ISBN 978 1
77543 026 1 RRP $19.50 Pb
Reviewed by
Lorraine Orman
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