tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20283878888020286342024-03-05T00:50:11.943-04:00Mouse-traps and the MoonSue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.comBlogger143125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-87591007689641341702014-12-23T14:50:00.000-04:002014-12-23T14:50:12.189-04:00Beautiful Book #50<br />
<i>Classic Christmas Collection</i>. Illustrated by P. J. Lynch. Walker Books: 2009.<br />
containing <i>A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens</i>, <i>The Gift of the Magi</i> by O. Henry and <i>The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey</i> by Susan Wojciechowski.<br />
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Irish illustrator P. J. Lynch began making his mark early in his career. At 24, he illustrated Alan Garner's folklore collection, A<i> Bag of Moonshine</i> which won Britain's then-active Mother Goose Award, recognizing the talent of a newcomer to to the field of British illustration. He has since illustrated a number of tales and collections of folklore with specific emphasis on the Irish folk tradition. From the Rackham-esque black and white silhouettes that accompany Yeats' <i>Fairy Tales of Ireland</i> (1990) to the intricate, full-colour illustrations of tales such as 19th Century American, Frank R. Stockton's <i>The Bee-man of Orn</i> (2004), Lynch's work is always top-notch. I am particularly taken with his version of the Norwegian tale,<i> East O' the Sun and West O' the Moon</i>, so much so that I have included one illustration from it below. Lynch is a two-time winner of the Kate Greenaway medal for illustration, and he's only a smidge older than I am which I find simultaneously inspiring and humbling. <br />
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In 2009, Walker issued a gorgeous, slip-covered collection of Lynch's illustrated Christmas books: Dickens' <i>A Christmas Carol</i>, O. Henry's <i>The Gift of the Magi</i>, and Wojciechowski's contemporary and wildly popular, <i>The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey</i>. I've decided to choose this collection as book # 50 on my promised list because it lets me squeeze in three for the price of one. I'm not entirely happy with how <i>The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey</i> needed to be scaled down in size to fit the format of the collection, but, on the whole, this boxed set is such a great introduction to Lynch's work. The book design for the Dickens in particular is effective, with large type that makes it easy to read this holiday classic out loud--which, I might add, is no small feat given Dickens' predilection for periodic sentences and writerly flourishes and given my eyes' rapid decline with age. These three books are ones that any family who celebrates Christmas will return to time and again. If you can't get your hands on the collection, then seek out the books separately. Any public library worth its salts should have a copy of each of them.<br />
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If you want to know more about P. J. Lynch, his books, his posters and his other work, his website is <a href="http://www.pjlynchgallery.com/index.html" target="_blank">here</a>. <br />
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And with that, I have reached my promised 50 beautiful books by Christmas. Ta-da! I can now retire for the holidays. Come the new year, I will continue to chip away at all the titles that caused my list to spill over. I'll also assemble this list into some form of bibliography which will make it easier to go back to find posts on any given book, and which will also make it easier for you to look for them at libraries and new and used bookstores. Happy holidays!<br />
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from <i>A Christmas Carol</i></div>
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from <i>A Christmas Carol</i></div>
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from <i>The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey </i></div>
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from <i>East O' the Sun and West O' the Moon</i></div>
Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-18753653851740284212014-12-22T13:47:00.002-04:002014-12-22T13:49:07.748-04:00Beautiful Book #49<br />
<i>Through the Animals' Eyes</i>. By Christopher Wormell. Running Press: 2006.<br />
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Self-taught
wood engraver, Christopher Wormell is a leading commercial artist in
Britain. His Wikipedia entry presents him as a working class bloke who,
at the age of 27, bought himself wood engraving tools and, inspired by
landscape painting, taught himself the craft. The biography that
accompanies the back of his books reveals a deeper artistic legacy. His
father taught him and his siblings the art of lino-cutting and each
Christmas the Wormell family mass produced handmade Christmas cards as a
bit of a cottage industry.<br />
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His first book for children, <i>An Alphabet of Animals</i>
(1990), was done as a lino-cut book and won the Graphics Prize at the
Bologna International Children's Book Fair in 1991. Simple yet flawless
in design, it reminds me of C.B. Falls' 1923 <i>ABC Book </i>which was
featured on this list way back at #8. Since emerging on the scene with
round about the biggest bang there is, Wormell has published several
children's books, both those he has written and those he has illustrated
for others. I could have easily chosen one of his two alphabet books
for this list (because you all know my weakness), or, really, any one
of a number of his titles, but keeping things in the holiday spirit,
I've chosen <i>Through the Animals' Eyes</i>. For this book, Wormell
adapted the biblical story of the nativity into contemporary plain
language, A naturalist at heart, his lino-cut illustrations depict the
story as filtered through the perspective of animals who would have
inhabited the Holy Land at the time of Christ's birth. An appendix
describes each animal in more detail, thus making the book part Biblical
text, part independent visual narrative and part zoological history
textbook.<br />
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Images from the book are scarce online, but
trust me when I say this book is stunning. I've included the cover below
along with one illustration from this book and one from his
award-winning alphabet. To learn more about him and see more of his
stunning art, both commercial and book art, check out <a href="http://www.theartworksinc.com/portfolio/chris-wormell/" target="_blank">his profile on The Artworks Agency web page</a>. There are a number of beautiful images there to peruse, including the many of the woodcuts he has become known for.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-68941363199888049272014-12-19T13:36:00.000-04:002014-12-19T13:37:04.792-04:00Beautiful Book #48<br />
<i>Pippin the Christmas Pig</i>. By Jean Little. Illustrated by Werner Zimmermann. North Winds Press, 2003.<br />
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Jean Little has a way with storytelling. As one of Canada's most long-standing, prolific and diverse children's writers, she brings talent and skill to every project she touches. Partially sighted but legally blind since birth, her stories often speak of and to the outsider experience. Such is the case in <i>Pippin the Christmas Pig</i>, another take on the story of the nativity, this time through the eyes of the descendants of Bethlehem's stable animals. All the animals take great pride in what their ancestors offered to the baby Jesus, all except for humble Pippin who feels great shame that pigs were not part of the Christian Nativity. Feeling belittled and excluded, she runs away into a Christmas Eve blizzard--and that is when something rather remarkable happens.<br />
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Werner Zimmermann's soft colour scheme and his animals brimming with personality are well suited to this story. I also like the way he plays with line and direction to create a narrative flow for the eye on the page. When Pippin looks back at the warm barn, we look back in longing and doubt as well. When she leaps forward into the blizzard (and the page turn), we feel the tension created by the wind and the blue jay which force our eye to go back, as if to warmth and safety. Thematically, the illustrations are perfect.<br />
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I read this book every year with my daughter and even though I know the
story almost by heart now and even though my rational brain tells me it is
deliberately set up to milk my emotions, I openly weep every. single.
time. Such is the power of Jean Little's storytelling.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-13862056532782759282014-12-18T14:06:00.002-04:002014-12-18T14:07:03.405-04:00Beautiful Book #47<i><br /></i>
<i>The Nativity</i>. Text from The Authorized King James Version of the Bible. Illustrated by Julie Vivas. Harcourt, 1988.<br />
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Goodness gracious. I am sitting in my office looking at the list of books I drew up one lunch hour in August when I started this project, and, even with prioritization, there's 4 too many titles for my list of 50, not to mention about another 25 on my 'reluctantly didn't make it' list. And that's just from that quick, preliminary jotting down of the illustrated books I love. And then there are those books that were new to me this fall which started to bump the list around even more. I can't deny it any longer: this Beautiful Books Series should continue in the new year, well past the original promised 50. Given the demands of my work-a-day life, it certainly won't continue at the same pace, but maybe I'll be able to wrestle time away from other tasks to put one up every week or two for a while longer.<br />
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With that off my chest, I can now relax into the final four I promised in time for Christmas. It also lets me juggle the list enough so that I can make all four of those books, Christmas books. The library Christmas party starts in just over an hour, my colleagues are bedecked in ugly sweaters of red and green, and the time for Christmas books just feels right.<br />
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Australian water colour illustrator, Julie Vivas, is perhaps best known for her collaborative work with writer Mem Fox on the titles, <i>Hush</i>, <i>Possum Magic</i> and <i>Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge</i>. She has also illustrated for Margaret Wild among others, including today's pick... The King James Version of the Bible. Vivas' playful, pastel nativity is infused with the joy that the story of the nativity is meant to inspire. Her colour scheme is warm and summery which just seems fitting for an Australian's view of Christmas. It's hard not to love this book in a warm and fuzzy sorta way. Vivas' Angel Gabriel wears workboots and lands like a puffin, as if descending from heaven involved anything but grace. Other angels ride sheep with looks that mirror those of preschoolers on their first petting zoo ponies. Her Wise Men ride camels so tall that dismounting from their backs becomes comic fodder. But it is the soft, round illustrations of Mary in her bedroom slippers and the baby Jesus in his birthday suit that crack the heart wide open. In a holiday that has become so crass and commercial, it is good for everyone, even for those of us who do not profess a Christian faith, to be reminded that the heart of Christmas is ultimately about goofy, giddy love for a newborn baby.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-43857629624702846652014-12-17T15:34:00.002-04:002014-12-17T16:18:00.781-04:00Beautiful Book #46<br />
<i>Lii Yiiboo Nayaapiwak lii Swer: L'Alfabet Di Michif/Owls See Clearly at Night: A Michif Alphabet </i>by Julie Flett. Simply Read Books, 2010.<br />
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I know, I know. YET ANOTHER alphabet book, but when you see this one, you'll know why the list needed to make room for just one more. Métis artist, Julie Flett creates spare and stunning illustrations that balance light, space and colour beautifully. Her alphabet is a tribute to the highly endangered Michif language of the Métis, a language influenced by Cree, French and the Saulteaux dialect of Ojibway. As Flett explains, "Languages are precious: they capture the very essence of a culture. The exceptional night-sight of owls is akin to the insight that language offers in understanding a culture."<br />
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Flett's book begins with these two sentences as part of a brief introduction to the history and nature of Michif. The book ends with a helpful pronunciation guide, but it is the art and the words chosen in between that make this small book expansive and uncommonly beautiful. I've included a couple of images below but please go to <a href="http://julieflett.com/" target="_blank">Flett's website</a> to see more images from this book and to browse her other titles. Her recent <i>Wild Berries/Pakwa che Menisu</i> was chosen as the <a href="http://www.sols.org/index.php/links/fn-communities-read" target="_blank">First Nation Communities READ</a> book for 2014-2015, and she was the inaugural winner of that organization's Aboriginal Literature Award. And for those of you looking to buy a book for a baby this Christmas, might I recommend Richard Van Camp's <i>Little You </i>which is illustrated by Flett.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-52609413466657914002014-12-15T14:57:00.002-04:002014-12-18T11:35:54.480-04:00Beautiful Book #45The Gilgamesh books, retold and illustrated by Ludmila Zeman.<br />
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<i>Gilgamesh the King</i>. Tundra, 1992.<br />
<i>The Revenge of Ishtar</i>. Tundra, 1993. <br />
<i>The Last Quest of Gilgamesh.</i> Tundra, 1995.<br />
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Czech-Canadian author-illustrator Ludmila Zeman's adaptations of the <i>Epic of Gilgamesh</i> are gorgeous to look at. If I could blow her paintings up to wall-size, I would surround myself with them, so golden, intricate and calming they are. Adapted for child readers using the picture book format, these books are also remarkable for how simply and effectively they present the ancient epic's thematically complex narrative of power, love, friendship, mortality and humanity.<i> The Last Quest of Gilgamesh</i> won the Governor General's Literary Award for illustration in 1995, but each of these books is wonderful on its own, as are Zeman's other folklore-inspired picture books. Make sure you look her up next time you are at the library.<br />
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Zeman is also an animator. Our library has access to the National Film Board of Canada's collection where you can watch her short film, <i>Lord of the Sky</i>, based on the Pacific Northwest First Nations' legend of raven. If you can access it from UNB or from your own local library, it is a wonderful way to spend 13 minutes. If you have a bit more time, <a href="http://www.learner.org/courses/worldlit/gilgamesh/watch/" target="_blank">this 30 minute documentary</a> on the <i>Epic of Gilgamesh</i> is on the open internet and features both Zeman and her daughter, Linda Spaleny, along with other artists and historians. It is engaging and informative. And, finally, if you want to catch a glimpse of where Zeman's immense talent originated, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlJxf3FnhjI" target="_blank">here is a link</a> to one of her father's (the great Czech filmaker, Karel Zeman) films on YouTube. You won't need the language to follow along.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-49709266062801702952014-12-12T15:08:00.002-04:002014-12-12T15:08:41.742-04:00Beautiful Book #44<i><br /></i>
<i>A Book of Nonsense</i> by Edward Lear. Originally published 1846. I am working with the facsimile edition of the 1875 Frederick Warne reprint that was put out by The Osborne Collection of Early Children's Books, Holp Shuppan Publishers, 1981. <br />
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<i>The Dong with a Luminous Nose </i>by Edward Lear. Drawings by Edward Gorey. Adama Books, 1968.<br />
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I am getting close to the finish line at book #50 which means I am trying to squeeze as many books onto the list as I can. Edward Lear's <i>A Book of Nonsense </i>is a must, especially the Osborne facsimile edition with its 130 beautifully reproduced colour illustrations. Alas, most of you won't be able to get your hands on this particular edition (and cheap paperback editions just won't do), unless you pop up to my office or find yourself in proximity to a good research collection of children's literature. And so, today, I give you a bonus title that might be a bit easier to get your hands on.<br />
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But first, the original.Where to start with Edward Lear? His love of language and his willingness to play with sounds to the point were sense snaps meaningfully into nonsense is his greatest legacy to children's literature--and to poetry in general. But that just scratches at the surface of his genius. He popularized the limerick form long before it became a bawdy rhyme. A gifted artist with a background illustrating birds for the Zoological Society and the orthinologist Earl of Derby, he brought a self-deprecating playful whimsy to his children's book art. At a time when children's books were intended to teach, with some attempting to delight along the way, Lear pushed straight on through delight to a hedonism of sound and image that is tethered only gently to meaning. If I'm not mistaken, <i>A Book of Nonsense</i>, Lear's collection of limericks, is the earliest title on my list, thus making it the cornerstone for all that comes after it both in terms of art and language. It's hard to imagine there being a Sheree Fitch, a MaryAnn Hoberman, a Jack Prelutsky or a Dr. Seuss without there first being an Edward Lear. And among all the illustrators who owe a debt of gratitude to him, foremost among these is Edward Gorey.<br />
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And thus, today's bonus book. Edward Gorey is Edward Lear for the 20th Century. More macabre in his outlook, he remains tethered firmly to the glorious nonsense world first envisioned by Lear. As such, it is no surprise that Gorey illustrated two of Lear's poems:<i> The Jumblies</i> and <i>The Dong with a Luminous Nose.</i> Each is presented in a slim, hard-covered volume that rotates in and out of print. If you can find copies, do so, because each is a little sliver of enjoyment.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-77339966788652086122014-12-10T16:15:00.001-04:002014-12-10T16:16:01.270-04:00Beautiful Book #43<i><br /></i>
<i>Imagine a Night</i>. Paintings by Rob Gonsalves. Text by Sarah L. Thomson. Athenaeum, 2003.<br />
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Canadian magic realist painter, Rob Gonsalves, has published 3 picture books of his paintings: <i>Imagine a Night</i>,<i> Imagine a Day</i>, and<i> Imagine a Place</i>. The formula for each book is simple: paintings are paired with suggestive captions by Sarah L. Thompson and the rest is left to the reader's imagination. While Thomson's captions bring a dream-like quality to the books, Gonsalves' art is really where it's at. On the books' end papers, he acknowledges the influence of the Surrealist movement, particularly artists, Remedios Varo and René Magritte, but his work also owes a lot to the architectural illusions of M.C. Escher. Each painting is a work of precision but one does not follow the underlying logic or math needed to make it work, one simply surrenders to its visual sleight of hand. <i>Imagine a Day</i> won the Governor General's Literary Award for illustration in 2005, but I think <i>Imagine A Nigh</i>t is my favourite because the combination of magic realism with a dream-like duskiness takes the imagination in so many directions at once.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-8136692167225328572014-12-08T14:46:00.001-04:002014-12-09T09:47:52.270-04:00Beautiful Book #42<i><br /></i>
<i>Alice's Adventures in Wonderland: A Pop-up Adaptation of Lewis Carroll's Original Tale</i> by Robert Sabuda. Little Simon. 2003.<br />
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While we're on the topic of movable books, I might as well share my contemporary pop-up selection. Robert Sabuda has been designing pop-up books since 1994 and is widely considered a contemporary great of 3D paper engineering. He won the biannual Meggendorfer prize three times in a row between 1998 and 2002, and he's the one name people tend to know off the top of their head when the topic of pop-up books comes up. I'm sure you've seen at least a few of his his books, as he has been remarkably productive over the last 20 years. On occasion, I've seen his books show up at Chapters and Winners in their bargain books sections. If you ever have similar luck, snatch them up, because they are fabulous to own, to show off, to collect and to give to others.<br />
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I could have chosen any one of a number of his titles for this list but not only am I partial to his take on <i>Alice</i> I am also keen to have his version stand next to those of Moser and Oxenbury who are also on the list. Influenced by paper engineering greats such as mid-20th-century, Czech Vojtěch Kubašta who also produced a pop-up version of <i>Alice</i>, Sabuda has pushed the boundaries of the movable format further than any of his predecessors. His 3D designs spring high from the page, he uses uses ingenious devices to accommodate text, he hides sub-pop-ups inside attachments on the page, and he sometimes uses telescoping devices to play with perspective (as shown below with Alice's fall into the rabbit hole). Enjoy the pictures I've included here, but make a point to get your hands, delicately, on the real thing. And if there is someone on your Christmas list for whom a wow-book would be appropriate, Sabuda might just be the answer you're looking for.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-37237133027045675702014-12-05T14:52:00.000-04:002014-12-05T14:52:20.880-04:00Beautiful Book #41<br />
<i>Magic Windows</i> and <i>Playtime Surprises</i>. Reproductions of late Victorian movable books by Ernest Nister. Philomel. 1980 and 1985.<br />
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"Keep these posts short," I tell myself. "Limit yourself to one book per person," I tell myself. "You have 10 books to go before Christmas," I tell myself. "Don't get bogged down in the details." <br />
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But then my mind jumps up and down like a puppy: "but I haven't had a single pop-up or movable book on the list! I don't know how to choose a single pop-up or movable book! Nister is a must but so are Lothar Meggendorfer and Raphael Tuck! And that's only the pre-20th Century tradition of movable books! I'll want to talk about Bavarian colour printing and the influence of Germans on movable book history!..."<br />
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And that's when I try to calm the mental puppy down and get on with the business of selecting and featuring a book. So, Nister it is. Many of my choices so far have featured a compelling darkness in children's literature. Not so today. It's hard to imagine children's books more sweetly sentimental than the late 19th movable books of Ernest Nister. With verses likely written by Edward Weatherly (the writer is not acknowledged on the books nor are any specific artists) and pictures of cherubic Victorian children and kindly animals, Nister's books drip with the nostalgia of an idealized childhood. And, you know, sometimes, that can be a very good thing indeed.<br />
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The two books I've chosen each use a different form of dissolving picture mechanism that I've tried to show in action below. <i>Magic Windows</i> relies on the reader twisting a circular image until it creates an entirely new picture. <i>Playtime Surprises</i> is constructed more like pull down blinds where one picture dissolves into another. If you want to see these books in action, we have 25 of them in the Wallace collection thanks to a generous donation from J.C. Belzile. We also have a small handful of reproduction Meggendorfer books as well. Feel free to stop by. While you're here you might want to linger over Peter Haining's <i>Movable Books: An Illustrated History</i>, so that you too can turn your mind into an exited, book-loving puppy.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-7498969604142871532014-12-04T14:13:00.000-04:002014-12-04T14:13:11.895-04:00Beautiful Book #40<i>Snow-White and the Seven Dwarfs</i>. A tale from the Brothers Grimm translated by Randall Jarrell. Illustrated by Nancy Ekholm Burkert. Farrar, Strauss and Giroux. 1972.<br />
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I have to remind myself that this book was published in 1972. On the one hand, the illustrations have a medieval European feel to them, but on the other hand the book feels so contemporary, or, more to the point, it feels like a 90s picture book--and that is high praise coming from me because I think the 90s were a golden decade for the picture book genre. In a world swimming with interpretations of <i>Snow White</i>, this version is my favourite. The text is from the original with all its Grimm darkness. Jarrell's translation is suited to oral story-telling (with its pace, cadence, repetition and spareness), which is good given that text and illustration alternate pages. Burkert's illustrations are detailed and naturalistic with heraldic touches that lend it that medieval feel. I am also enamoured of the way she uses light subtly and to great effect. More than any other folk tale, <i>Snow White</i> carries a cartoonish legacy, not just because of Disney but because those dwarfs are, time and again, depicted as comic. Burkert, thankfully, doesn't fall into this trap. <i>Snow-White and the Seven Dwarfs </i>was a Caldecott Honor Book for 1973. <br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-33110585968386498912014-12-03T11:58:00.000-04:002014-12-03T11:58:17.503-04:00Beautiful Book #39<i><br /></i>
<i>The Snowman</i> by Raymond Briggs. Hamish Hamilton. 1978.<br />
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December's here and it's time for a winter book. Some might call <i>The Snowman </i>a holiday book given the story's ubiquity as an animated Christmas favourite in the UK, not to mention all the product merchandising around it, but I'm not one of them. <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/news/raymond-briggs-the-snowman-is-not-really-about-christmas-its-about-death-8399520.html" target="_blank">Neither is Raymond Briggs</a>, whose own grumpiness about Christmas is rivaled only by that of his Father Christmas from his 1973 book of the same name. A pioneer of comics format in children's books, Briggs is comfortable writing for adults as well as children. Political/social issues are never far from his works, as evidenced in titles like the anti-nuclear <i>Where the Wind Blows</i> or the class-aware <i>Gentleman Jim</i>.<br />
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In all his works Briggs, conveys remarkable depth of character with nothing but subtle strokes and minimal dialogue. <i>The Snowman</i>, a wordless comics picture book in which a boy's snowman comes to life to spend one night with him before melting in the morning, has fantastic narrative flow and takes the reader through a range of emotions from pure joy to grief. Created entirely with pencil crayons, the illustrations are soft, child-like and accessible. The book, like the snowman himself, feels like an old friend you want to hang onto as you soar to imaginative places. Our library copy is so beat up, one could scarce call it beautiful anymore...which I guess is testament itself to the beauty of the book.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-82058147547967627862014-12-02T12:50:00.001-04:002014-12-18T11:47:53.583-04:00Beautiful Book #38<br />
The Visions in Poetry Series published by KidsCan Press. 2004-2008.<br />
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<i>Jabberwoky</i> by Lewis Carrol. Illustrated by Stéphane Jorisch. 2004<br />
<i>The Highwayman</i> by Alfred Noyes. Illustrated by Murray Kimber. 2005 <br />
<i>The Lady of Shalott </i>by Alfred Lord Tennyson. Illustrated by Geneviève Côté. 2005<br />
<i>Casey at the Bat </i>by Ernest Thayer. Illustrated by Joe Morse. 2006.<br />
<i>The Raven</i> by Edgar Allan Poe. Illustrated by Ryan Price. 2006. <br />
<i>The Owl and the Pussycat </i>by Edward Lear. Illustrated by Stéphane Jorisch. 2007.<br />
<i>My Letter to the World and other Poems </i>by Emily Dickinson. Illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault. 2008.<br />
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KidsCan Press took bold, artistic step in 2005 when it began publishing classics from the children's/young adult poetry canon re-envisioned by daring Canadian illustrators and published in small, beautifully designed and bound keepsake books. Given the relatively small market for poetry in general, let alone children's/YA poetry, and given the ubiquity of these texts in other editions, the press's creative and financial risk was not insignificant. I do think they pitched the project perfectly, though; The Visions in Poetry books are equally at home in a collector's hands as on the shelves of a high school library. The first title released, Jorisch's dystopian urban war-scape vision of <i>Jabberwocky</i>, won the Governor General's Literary award for illustration in 2004, as did his subtle class/species segregation version of <i>The Owl and the Pussycat</i> in 2008. Don't stop with the two award-winning titles, though. The entire series is worth poring over time and again as you will see from the glimpses below. I've included the cover and an image from each. <br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-59171905716652986902014-11-28T11:33:00.003-04:002014-11-28T12:27:50.781-04:00Beautiful Book #37<br />
<i>Zoo</i> by Anthony Browne. Julia MacRae Books, 1992. <br />
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Art history playfully demystified. Human apes and ape humans. Anxious children encountering empathy. Simple stories that peel back family and societal dysfunction. The gap between text and image widened to profound inference. Damn. Fine. Art. Any single Anthony Browne picture book will entice you but his body of work as a whole will impress upon you the significance a single voice can have on the picture book genre. The Hans Christian Andersen medal committee saw this significance when they awarded him their medal, the highest international award for a body of work in illustration, in 2000. The British Booktrust also saw it when they appointed him the 2009-2011 Children's Laureate. Browne's books are highly decorated: two have won the Greenaway Medal (<i>Gorilla</i> and <i>Zoo</i>) with others making the honour list. He's also been awarded the Emil/Kurt Maschler Award, the New York Times Best Illustrated Book and The Boston Globe Book Award. <i>Gorilla</i> is his most highly decorated book (maybe _the_ most highly decorated picture book of the contemporary award age), but all his books are worth falling headlong into. Me? I'm a fan of his Willy books but his takes on fine art also always reel me in. I also have a soft spot for <i>Silly Billy </i>because it came to me and my daughter at exactly the right time. <br />
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I've chosen <i>Zoo</i> because in many ways it is his ugliest book (at least in terms of theme). The beauty of this book lies not only in the quality of Browne's art but in his ability to start a conversation that he leaves the reader to finish. You will never see a family trip to the zoo in the same way once you've read this book. What I find most astonishing about the book is how my reading of it has changed over the years. When I first read the book, all my empathy was for the animals. Now, my empathy shoots off in all sorts of directions at once. The book leaves me feeling deeply conflicted and, frankly, I can't think of higher praise for a book than that.<br />
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And a treat from <i>Willy's Pictures</i>:</div>
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-81876648785257689382014-11-25T13:03:00.001-04:002014-11-25T13:04:33.238-04:00Beautiful Book #36<i><br /></i>
<i>The Circus</i> by Brian Wildsmith. Oxford, 1970.<br />
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Someday I would like to see Brian Wildsmith's original art for the well over 80 books he has illustrated. Sure, the mountains of trade paperbacks and beat up hardcovers that surround me are grand, but that art...those colours...those splashes and shapes...I want to see them big. I want to put my nose so close to them that the museum guard must clear his throat to hold me at bay. I want to stand 15 feet away from where they hang on a wall, close my eyes, inhale deeply, and then open my eyes to drink them in.<br />
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When his <i>ABC</i> was published in 1962, Brian Wildsmith gave birth to the joyous, 1960s revolution of colour in children's literature. In his books, each illustration is a work of art and most don't really need text at all. This is why the wordless <i>Circus</i> is my favourite of his books. I am afforded the privacy I so demand with his illustrations.<br />
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Some day, if I save my pennies and am lucky, I may get to the Wildsmith museum that has been built outside of Tokoyo--or maybe there will be an exhibition somewhere in striking distance to Atlantic Canada. Until then, I will content myself with his books. If you are looking to give a gift to a young child this Christmas, you can still get new copies of <i>Brian Wildsmith's Favourite Nursery Rhymes</i> and <i>Brian Wildsmith's Favourite Fables </i>for a good price. Many of his other books are also still in/back in print but the two I mention do make excellent gift books. <br />
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And here are a couple of online articles about him: one from an <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/brian-wildsmith-technicolor-artist-of-wonder-and-beauty-1941260.html" target="_blank">interview with The Independent</a> and the other which is short and sweet but <a href="http://www.sgiquarterly.org/artedu2003Jly-1.html" target="_blank">features pretty pictures</a>. <br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-4436691838634934982014-11-24T14:16:00.001-04:002014-11-25T13:04:33.234-04:00Beautiful Book #35<br />
<i>Under the Window</i> by Kate Greenaway. Routledge, 1879. <br />
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There are so many Greenaway award winners on this list, but so far
Greenaway herself has not made an appearance. That all changes today.
Immensely popular from the moment <i>Under the Window</i> was released
in 1879, Greenaway was imitated to the point of plagiarism. The
pinafores, skeleton suits, bonnets, and mobcaps that defined her idyllic
view of childhood harkened back to 18th Century Regency fashion, but
Greenaway made the look so distinctive that her influence on late
19th-century children's fashion rivaled that of her influence on book
illustration. It amuses me to think of a pretend Victorian <a href="http://www.humansofnewyork.com/" target="_blank">HONY-style</a> photographer snapping pictures of Greenaway children for a "<a href="http://www.humansofnewyork.com/post/96803000236/today-in-microfashion-kiev-ukraine" target="_blank">Today in Microfashion</a>" series. If you are interested in her influence on fashion, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AonXTiT5I3g" target="_blank">this short video put out by ABE Books</a> is instructive. <br />
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Greenaway's art was influenced by the Arts and Crafts movement with its
nostalgic, pastoral depictions of childhood and its use of soft colours,
formally framed on the page. Along with Walter Crane and Randolph
Caldecott, she helped define what the modern picturebook would become.
Her influence has never really faded; you can see it throughout the
history of illustrated children's books from Tasha Tudor to Barbara
McClintock and beyond. When I first saw a Greenaway illustration, it
felt a bit like coming home, in part, I think, because of my childhood
fixation with 1970's Holly Hobbie. <br />
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While I've chosen <i>Under the Window</i> as today's beautiful book, I've also included the cover of <i>A Apple Pie</i>, her alphabet book, along with one illustration from it because I love the unspoken humour of it.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-49647899743852756172014-11-18T13:41:00.000-04:002014-11-19T10:50:18.541-04:00Beautiful Book #34<br />
<i>The Pied Piper of Hamelin</i>. Retold by Sara and Stephen Corrin. Pictures by Errol Le Cain. Faber & Faber, 1988.<br />
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I recently turned 49 and kid myself on my good days that I've accomplished something with my life. Ah, but then I think of the life and productivity of Errol Le Cain and humility comes crashing down around me. Born in Singapore in 1941, Le Cain rode out the war years in India before he and his family emigrated to Britain. He died in 1989 at the age of 47, and during his short life he worked as both an animator and a children's book illustrator, producing roughly 50 books and working on many animation projects including the highly influential yet never released <i>The Thief and the Cobbler</i>, Richard Williams' 25-year epic animation project that has been described as "the greatest animated film never made." <br />
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I've chosen Le Cain's interpretation of <i>The Pied Piper of Hamelin</i> as today's beautiful book for its sinister medieval feel and its overall book design, but I've also included an image below from <i>Thorn Rose</i> because not only is it stunning, it shows a greater range to his style... and, well, because it's just damn hard picking a single book of Le Cain's to showcase. He won the Greenaway Medal once and was commended for it four times--not too shabby for an artist with no formal training. The man had talent in spades. Do a Google image search on his name and you'll see what I mean.<br />
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If you find yourself smitten, YouTube has several of his animation projects online from both his work with Williams' studio and his work with the BBC. I rather like this five minute short: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30yEdTmvJfU" target="_blank">The Sailor and the Devil</a>. You could also watch Williams' 90 minute workprint of the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_aHoRGr8KQ" target="_blank">Thief and the Cobbler</a> if animation is your thing. <br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-70563770256517645602014-11-17T13:39:00.002-04:002014-11-19T10:50:18.573-04:00Beautiful Book #33<br />
<i>The Complete Alice</i> by Lewis Carroll. Illustrated by Helen Oxenbury. Candlewick, 2007.<br />
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If you were lucky like me, you found this slip-covered edition of Oxenbury's <i>Alice</i> at a remaindered book store on Bloor in 2009 and picked it up for a song. This is the <i>Alice</i> I read to my daughter and, together with Tenniel's and Moser's, this is what I think of when I think of <i>Alice's Adventures in Wonderland</i> and <i>Through the Looking Glass</i>. Carroll's text has remained clever, pun-ridden, maddening, and nonsensical in the nearly 150 years since these books were first published; as such, contemporary children often struggle with his style. Oxenbury's editions open a door to Carroll by showing an Alice who is young, contemporary, often bored, and always a bit confused. I read these books to my daughter when she was 6 and that seemed the perfect window for them: while she was still content to not know everything that was going on, before she became inured to the predictability of genre fiction, and at that precise point when she entered a more sophisticated and slippery understanding of language as word play. Furthermore, Oxenbury's illustrative world is familiar and comfortable to most children given the enormous popularity of books like <i>We're Going on a Bear Hunt</i>, <i>Farmer Duck</i>, <i>10 Little Fingers and 10 Little Toes</i>, and <i>The Three Little Wolves and the Big, Bad Pig</i>, all of which (and more!) she illustrated.<br />
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Oxenbury's <i>Alice's Adventures in Wonderland </i>won the Kate Greenaway Medal when it was first published by Walker Books in 1999. It and <i>Through the Looking Glass</i> were published and sold separately as both hardcover and softcover editions, so even if you can't find the boxed set, you can still track down and enjoy these books.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-17155222317141117812014-11-14T14:42:00.000-04:002014-11-19T10:50:18.483-04:00Beautiful Book #32<i><br /></i>
<i>Johnny Crow's Garden</i> by L. Leslie Brooke. Frederick Warne, 1905.<br />
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There was no way L. Leslie Brooke was not going to be included on this list. No one else captures the humour of anthropomorphized animals quite like him, and legions of artists who have illustrated animals in 20th- and 21st-century children's literature, from Kurt Wiese (of Walter Brooks' <i>Freddy the Pig</i> books) to David Wiesner, owe an artistic debt of gratitude to him. I've chosen <i>Johnny Crow's Garden</i> for no better reason than one of my favourite illustrations of all time is in it: the pig who dances a jig.<br />
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Brooke illustrated and wrote-and-illustrated numerous books, many of which can be viewed at <a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/3547" target="_blank">Project Gutenberg</a>. Make a point to linger on his interpretations of Lear's nonsense verse as well as his many nursery books. Along with Beatrix Potter, Brooke was a darling of Frederick Warne and Co., although his Johnny Crow has not become the household name that Peter Rabbit has. Brooke published a total of three Johnny Crow books: two while he was in his 40s and a third when he was in his 70s. I like looking at them all together for a longitudinal comparison. The bear who was naked in the first book, only to be styled in a fashionable vest, striped trousers and a waistcoat by the apes, retires to his pyjamas in the final book. Similarly, the lion who comes to the first party in his green and yellow tie abandons it on the final page of the last book as he bids goodbye to his friend, Johnny. The final book also features a venerable looking turtle contemplating the 19 mile journey to Johnny Crow's garden, which, to me, is a lovely, understated comment on age and retirement.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-28297486797836103792014-11-10T14:30:00.000-04:002014-11-19T10:50:18.504-04:00Beautiful Book #31<br />
The Simon books by Gilles Tibo. Tundra. 1992-2001<br />
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Philosophical magic realism for the pre-school set: this is the most apt description I can think of for Montrealer Tibo's 11 Simon books, each of which was published first in French and then in English. The books are small, gentle, imaginative, playful and practically perfect. I don't think I could pick a favourite among them, although <i>Simon and the Snowflakes</i> and <i>Simon and his Boxes </i>hold special memories for me of reading them with my daughter. The way Tibo combines light and colour to depict the natural world as seen through Simon's 1st person narrative is so complex in planning and execution yet so simple in presentation that the books seem meant to be. When I imagine a three-year-old, book in hand, the book is usually a Simon book, unless, of course, it's one of Roslyn Schwartz' Mole Sisters books or one of Marie-Louise Gay's Stella and Sam books. What's with Montrealers and their insight into the preschool mind? <br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-86055196007125420232014-11-07T12:51:00.003-04:002014-11-19T10:50:18.602-04:00Beautiful Book #30<br />
<i>Seven Blind Mice</i> by Ed Young. Philomel, 1992.<br />
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Chinese-American illustrator, Ed Young, stands atop an impressive body of work: over 80 illustrated children's books with several of those titles also written by him. His art spans a range of styles, from pencil drawing to collage, and the genres of books he illustrates are equally diverse, although I think he is at his best when interpreting folklore. His work philosophy sees illustration in conversation with text: when a book is successful the two complement each other to create a balanced and complete work. He is best known for <i>Lon Po Po: A Red Riding Hood Story from China</i> for which he won the Caldecott Medal in 1990.<br />
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I am rather fond of his take on the fable of the seven blind mice. Its black background, brightly saturated colours and paper-collage texture make it a visual feast. The text is spare, as is fitting a fable, and the moral is revealed neatly and succinctly at the end. Its simplicity makes it easy to read with very young children who are too often alienated by the maturity of folklore. Whether you're young or old, the book is a treat.<br />
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Despite the longevity of his career (his 1st book was published in 1962), he is still active as an illustrator and has two forthcoming books for 2015. You can learn more about those and his other works at <a href="http://edyoungart.com/index.html" target="_blank">http://edyoungart.com/index.html. </a><br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-1911216400735813072014-11-04T11:32:00.001-04:002014-11-19T10:50:18.496-04:00Beautiful Book #29<br />
<i>A Farmer's Alphabet</i> by Mary Azarian. David R. Godine, 1981.<br />
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Every few years I mount a book display outside the collection called, "Black and White and Re(a)d All Over." You'd be surprised how many illustrated books use this simple yet stunning colour combination. Key among them is Azarian's 1981, woodblock tribute to the agricultural history of New England. Yes, I know: yet another alphabet book on this list and yet another woodblock artist. I confess that both are weaknesses for me. But there are many reasons to love this particular alphabet. The design of the book is simple, effective, and as matter-of-fact as its subject matter; the paper it is printed on is thick and creamy, making the book feel anything but mass-produced; and the representation of rural life depicted on its pages is honest: sentimental without being reductive or saccharine.<br />
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Too often in children's books the word, "farmer," is synonymous with "man," as if Old MacDonald is the only lens through which a child is allowed to imagine rural life. Azarian depicts a broader reality. The work on her farm is shared equally by man and woman, and the children represented live in a world of play. The book is a tribute to the family farm and that feels historic today, but was perhaps more contemporary to the time in which the book was published. I spent part of my childhood on a farm like this one, and I can't help but wonder how many such farms have been lost in North America over the last 40 years.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-57146285078265510252014-10-31T12:56:00.000-03:002014-11-19T10:50:18.559-04:00Beautiful Book #28<br />
<i>The Ship that Sailed to Mars</i> by William Timlin. George Harrap, 1923.<br />
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Published in a run of only 2,000 books, 250 of which were made available in North America, William Timlin's <i>The Ship That Sailed to Mars</i> is a rare and strikingly beautiful science-fiction/fantasy classic. Timlin, an artist and architect, began creating the book for his young son in 1921. This was no small feat given that the book comprises 48 colour plates and 48 pages of text handwritten in calligraphy by the author. When George Harrap agreed to publish the manuscript in 1923, he decided to keep Timlin's calligraphy rather than having the book typeset. The result is a book unlike anything I've ever seen: ancient, yet futuristic, fantastical yet grounded in early 20th century artistic traditions. It anticipates so much 20th Century science fiction and fantasy and does so with elegant whimsy; for example, the space ship is not a rocket but rather a sailing ship designed by fairies, and the old man who sails it does so in a vest and waistcoat.<br />
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One of my favourite bits of text reads: "On their arrival at Mars, following their flight from the Moon, they found
the land fair and free of Man or Fairy, but roaming its woods were harmless
but inexpressibly Hideous Things. Many were like unto the evil thoughts of a
maniac at moonrise; others were sluggish, amiable beasts, and then there were
those Monsters that flew." <br />
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When I first heard about this book, I knew I wanted a copy. Thankfully, Calla Editions, an imprint of Dover, created a facsimile of the original in 2011, one that can still be snagged new for a great price via online bookstores. Trust me when I say, you won't regret the 20-some odd dollars you spend on it. And if you are lucky enough to find a copy in your local library, all power to you.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-17003566748382732332014-10-30T10:48:00.000-03:002014-11-19T10:50:18.479-04:00Beautiful Book #27<br />
<i>The Mysteries of Harris Burdick</i> by Chris Van Allsburg. Houghton Mifflin, 1984.<br />
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Illustration and design of children's books in the last 40 years has been highly influenced by the Rhode Island School of Design. RISD boasts David Macaulay, Brian Selznik, and David Wiesner among other prominent illustrators as alumni. Barry Moser taught at the school for many years, as did Macaulay. Smack dab in the centre of this deep community of talent, you will find alumnus and former instructor, Chris Van Allsburg. Trained as a sculptor, Van Allsburg, on the advice of his wife, Lisa, turned to book illustration as an extension of his art. His use of sculptural form, child-centred perspective, eerie atmosphere, the darkness of folktale morality, and subtle humour have rendered his voice unique and ground-breaking in the picture book genre.<br />
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He is best known for his books that have been adapted to film, <i>The Polar Express</i> and <i>Jumanji</i>, but my personal favourite is and will always be <i>The Mysteries of Harris Burdick</i>. The book's concept is simple: a fictional children's book publisher is visited by an illustrator who leaves his portfolio for consideration but then never returns to collect it. Inside the portfolio are are series of evocative drawings containing nothing but a title and caption. Readers are encouraged to engage with the illustrations, to write the stories for themselves...and so they have, all over the world as part of classroom assignments and solitary flights of fancy. In 2011, noted authors, including Kate DiCamillo, Sherman Alexi, Walter Dean Myers and Stephen King, joined forces to publish, <i>The Chronicles of Harris Burdick</i>, 14 stories based on the book's original illustrations. While I very much enjoyed their takes, for myself, I prefer to let the mysteries behind each picture be.<br />
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I have included a few of these illustrations here, but I encourage you to find the book to linger over for yourself. And while you're at the library, look for his other titles: <i>The Garden of Abdul Gasazi</i> and <i>The Sweetest Fig</i> are other favourites of mine, and I cannot resist the post-modern charm of <i>A Bad Day at Riverbend</i>. Given that today is the 30th of October, I should also single out <i>The Widow's Broom</i>, a title well-suited to Halloween.<br />
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2028387888802028634.post-48901477464387082812014-10-23T14:54:00.001-03:002014-11-19T10:50:18.537-04:00Beautiful Book #26<br />
<i>Down Singing Centuries: Folk Literature of the Ukraine</i>. Translated by Florence Randall Livesay. Compiled and Edited by Louisa Loeb. Illustrated by Stefan Czernecki. Hyperion Press, 1981.<br />
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When I logged into Twitter this morning, the day after the horrific violence on Parliament Hill, I was struck by the top two Trending Topics in Canada: #OttawaShooting and Happy Diwali. "This is my country," I thought. "This is the country that I love."<br />
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Today's beautiful book is a fascinating contribution to Canadian cultural history of another sort. Published in 1981, it collects and brings forward the translations of Ukrainian songs and folktales undertaken by Florence Randall Livesay in her Winnipeg home. Mother to famed Canadian poet, Dorothy Livesay, F.R.L. became interested in Ukrainian culture when she took in immigrant girls as 'mother's help' in the early years of the 20th Century. Her interest in their songs was so great that she sought help from Reverend Paul Crath, a Ukrainian Baptist Minister to learn the language so that she might translate these songs. She persisted in her efforts and brought her own poetic sensibilities to bear, publishing <i>Songs of Ukania with Ruthenia Poems</i> in 1916. She continued to work on translating Ukrainian folklore after this book's publication but didn't publish again. <i>Down Singing Centuries</i> is an academically impeccable bringing together of Livesay's translations from her original book and beyond edited by scholar Louisa Loeb, and gorgeously accented with colour plates provided by German-Canadian artist Stefan Czernecki. The book is a pleasure to read, to look at and to touch. <br />
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Portrait of F.R.L</div>
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<br />Sue Fisherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05582266091360887883noreply@blogger.com0