|
| Ed. Benson, Chernaik, Herbert Ills. Kitamura |
| Walker Books |
| 1844280217 |
| Dec 2005 |
 |
|
Instantly recognisable and highly distinctive, Satoshi Kitamura has developed an illustrative style that speaks the unspoken sensitivities and imaginings of the ‘inner-child’.
Following on from picture books “Once Upon an Ordinary School Day”, “Igor the Bird Who Couldn’t Sing” and “Pablo the Artist”, all of which explore the importance of the imagination and the roles of creativity and expression, it seems natural and organic that the progression should be Walker Books’ “The Carnival of the Animals”… more a creative enterprise and a genuine inspiration than a book… The origins of this project span an impressive amount of time. Over a hundred years ago French composer Camille Saint-Saens wrote a series of musical vignettes depicting animals in a zoological ‘frame’ setting. In the present day, Gerald Benson, Judith Chernaik and Cicely Herbert from Poems on the Underground commissioned poets to write a poem for each of the animals. Music, poetry and illustrations are carefully interwoven to breathe new life into the menagerie of animals presented – the majesty of the monastic lion, the flightiness of the flightless cocks and hens, the power of the horses, through to the grace and elegance of the swan. A collection of creative vision, this is truly a book to treasure, to read and to return to - a great introduction to the arts of poetry, classical music and illustration!
|
Poetry: March 2006 Archives
|
| Trish Cooke |
| Frances Lincoln |
| 1845073789 |
| Mar 2006 |
| |
|
The mood is light, the rhythm is tight in this collection of fast tempo poems published as the second book in Frances Lincoln’s new fiction range for 8 – 12 year olds. Trish Cooke – familiar to many as the award-winning author of popular picture book “So Much” – brings lightness of touch and great verve to these exuberant explanations of how dog lost his bone, why wasp can’t make honey and… of course, the eponymous “Hey Crazy Riddle”.
In the author’s note, Trish explains how she is still able to hear her father’s mischievous voice teasing as he used to when he told her the stories. This lends the poems a real sense of heritage and you cannot help but feel a part of an age-old oral tradition when reading them aloud – and they must be read aloud and be allowed to be shared, because it is then that they become alive!
|
