Tim Warnes's Blog: My Life in Books, page 20
July 19, 2019
Rejected - But Hopeful
Developmental art from my rejected idea © 2019 by Tim Warnes
“An irresponsible holiday story that will never sell.” Rejection of The Wind In The Willows by Kenneth Grahame. The novel did sell: 25 million copies worldwide.
— Best Sellers Initially Rejected (LitRejections.com)
Part of the publishing process is being rejected.
Last week I wrote about an idea that I was developing alongside a publisher. Since then, I have learnt that they have decided to pass on the book. I'm disappointed because I feel like I’m back at square one: Will this story ever see the light of day? On the other hand, it came as no surprise. I’d already reached the same conclusion as them - that they were the wrong fit and not edgy enough; so now I’m free to approach another publisher.
Not only that - a further three submissions of mine have been rejected, all in the same week! So consider this post a bit of a pep talk to myself.
I could just give up on the ideas. Except I believe in them. If I’d like to see them as fully-formed picture books, then it’s likely that someone else will, too, right?
So rather than feeling like it's the end of the world, I’m choosing to see it as an opportunity to find someone new to work with. And the reality, of course, is that I am not back at square one. I am well beyond the story seed stage, with a fully formed idea.
I encourage myself with the fact that many famous and successful children’s books suffered initial setback and rejection. Here are some cracking examples: And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street by Dr SeussSeuss's first published book received 27 rejections before going to print in 1937. One editor dismissed it as, 'Too different from other juveniles on the market to warrant its selling.' WRONG! Mulberry Street is still going strong, and Dr Seuss is the ninth best-selling fiction author of all time.
Rejected seven times: “Older children will not like it because its language is too difficult.” Yet one of the fastest-selling books in history, remaining in print since its initial publication in 1972.
This nursery favourite was rejected so many times that Potter decided to self-publish 250 copies. 45 million sales and counting!
Was rejected as being ‘too radical’. Which of course is why it stood out and has endured, with 15 million sales to brag on.
Child’s first book had four years of rejection before publication in 1997. She has just finished serving as the UK’s Children’s Laureate 2017-2019.
After receiving twelve rejection letters in a row, Bloomsbury were the ones to take a chance on Rowling. Unconvinced by their own decision, the editor advises the author ‘to get a day job since she has little chance of making money in children’s books.’ Rowling’s last four novels in the series ‘consecutively set records as the fastest-selling books in history, on both sides of the Atlantic, with combined sales of 450 million.’
(Most of these stats are from Best-Sellers Initially Rejected on litrejections.com. Here’s one of the best, sent to William Golding for one of my favourite novels, The Lord of the Flies: “An absurd and uninteresting fantasy which was rubbish and dull.”)
Blue Skies - developmental art from my rejected idea © 2019 by Tim Warnes
Rejection after rejection, followed by smash-hit status. What on earth are we to make of the strange world of publishing?
I think it’s pretty simple. Editors are individuals, with their own personal preferences. We make connections with stories on a deep, personal level - and because we are all different, we don’t all respond the same way. Publishers also try and analyse the market to guess what will sell. (They are businesses after all, and need to be profitable.) So when a more unusual or unique text is presented, there may be little in the market to compare it to, leading a publisher to reasonably conclude, Nobody wants this.
I remember when I first saw a copy of The Gruffalo. I couldn’t believe it had been published! It went against everything I had learnt and observed in children’s publishing. Its main character was a grotesque monster; the book's layout was very traditional and the biggest no-no: it was written in rhyming couplets.
(At the time, very few books were in rhyme, the reason being that they complicate the translations, thereby making it harder to sell to co-publishers.)
So whoever decided to publish The Gruffalo was taking a risk on something out of the norm. Which I believe was the prime reason that it caught the public’s attention in the first place. Because it was out of the ordinary.
So if (or should that be 'when'?) a story is rejected by a publisher, it may not be that it is crap. It may be that the editor just doesn't connect with it. Or their instinct is that a different publisher would ‘be a better fit.’
I have a good feeling about which publishers to try next.
I’ll keep you posted about that contract…
Some important take-aways for would-be writersthe idea may be rejected, but don’t take it personally. You don’t need to feel rejected.
some of the greatest books out there were repeatedly rejected before finding favour with a publishing house!
SourcesBest Sellers Initially Rejected (litrejections.com)
July 12, 2019
Story Seeds
Mr. Tumnus the Faun © 2019 by Tim Warnes
The ‘Lion’ all began with a picture of a Faun carrying an umbrella and parcels in a snowy wood. ... This picture had been in my mind since I was sixteen. Then one day, when I was about forty, I said to myself: “Let’s try to make a story about it.”
— C.S. Lewis on 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe'
I’m currently working on securing a publishing contract for an idea that I originally had in 2008.
Lengthy gestation periods for my ideas is not unusual (I like to leave my subconscious to work on them awhile). Plus, it’s not easy to prioritise working on something when you’re not being paid for your time. (The example I opened with is on - I don’t know - the fifth or sixth edit. I have filled four notebooks with sketches and ideas and have many, many pieces of art to show - in part because it covers a tricky subject. All the same, that’s a lot of unpaid time.)
I’ve learnt the importance of immediately capturing these fleeting thoughts / incomplete ideas before they disappear into thin air. My favourite tool is an old school notebook; but I’ve recently started to dictate into my phone, using the apps, Otter (which transcribes for you) or Evernote. Wherever, or however, I capture these thoughts, I then gather them all into one place.
So on my computer (or rather, floating somewhere above me in a virtual cloud), I have a folder of documents entitled, Story Seeds. Because for me, that is what these ideas are like.
are tiny (often just a word or two).
probably look insignificant.
are likely to be lost if not kept safe.
need time to germinate.
may sprout a root or two - even a stem.
may flourish, grow and reach their potential.
may die and never see the light of day.
seed:
: the beginning of something which continues to develop or grow
- Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Story seeds are full of potential, which makes them precious. When we find one, we must look after it. It's our responsibility to curate it and cultivate it. Only then do we get to see what they might become. Just imagine if CS Lewis had never held tight to that mental image of Mr. Tumnus, carrying parcels through the snowy woods - Narnia might never have existed!
A farmer went out to sow his seed. Some of it fell on the road; it was tramped down and the birds ate it. Other seed fell in the gravel; it sprouted, but withered because it didn’t have good roots. Other seed fell in the weeds; the weeds grew with it and strangled it. Other seed fell in rich earth and produced a bumper crop.
- Jesus (Luke 8:5-8 The Message)
© 2019 by Tim Warnes
Examples from my Story Seeds folder.
One off lines, like this:
Old Stella’s Cellar was a funny old place.
And potential titles, like this -
Has Anyone Seen My Mouse?
Or this one:
It leaked through here;
It leaked through there;
It leaked through almost everywhere.
And Frog did not mind one bit.
I also have a list of potential character names in my Story Seeds folder, including Big Belly Joe and Agatha Custard.
Sometimes the idea comes as an image, which I capture as a drawing.
© 2018 by Tim Warnes
… I read the text I’d written again, cut and pasted it into my jottings file. I’d been working on a novel for five years, and so whatever I wrote could not be lacklustre. And this was not radiant enough. Yet the solution lay in the existing text … there was something in it I was after. It felt as if everything I wanted was there, but in a form that was too compressed. The germ of an idea that had set the text in motion was particularly important …
My StrugglE:1 - A Death in the Family by Karl Ove Knausgaard (©Forlaget Oktober 2009 / Don Bartlett 2012)
The germ of an idea.
Germ:
: the origin or basis of something
: a very small amount of something
: the embryo with the scutellum of a cereal grain…
- Merriam-Webster Dictionary
It sounds a bit of a cop out, but honestly, sometimes they just pop into my head.
I’ve no idea where they come from (I have discovered this is the plus side of having an ADD brain).
Other ideas are triggered by something I’ve read, or seen.
I do know that having free mental space (time to let your mind wander) is an excellent way to discover them (except it’s more like, they make their way to us). Which is probably why I often have my creative thoughts when I’m out walking or taking a shower.
Storytelling (in words or pictures) is a very organic process, which is why the analogy of seed works so well for me. If you probed a bit deeper, I would tell you that they came from God.
Here’s one given to me while staying at an old mill cottage in Haye-on-Wye, March 2018. (Inspired by the view from the kitchen window, and the hooting owls.)
The Owl Tree sits on a wooded bank above a tumbling stream.
It is home to a pair of tawny owls.
The top of the tree is a scarred mess - not supple and elegant like its neighbours, but jagged and crude, thanks to the storm that sliced through the sleeping giant so many winters ago.
But it is home.
It is home to a whole myriad of creatures - neighbours of the owls.
- Tim Warnes (unpublished)
That is what I’d describe as a story seed. A germ - the origin or basis of something. I’m just not sure what - yet.
And from time to time, I will take them out and look at them afresh, to see if I can make any new connections.
You could use cooking as the analogy for these fragments of ideas.Let the idea percolate; let it brew.
Let it simmer.
Let it cook.
But don’t half bake it. No one wants a half baked idea.
Put it on the back boiler, let it simmer some more…
You add another ingredient later - another fragment of an idea.
Taste and see.
Do they compliment each other?
Yes, but it still needs something else.
So you add something more - and so on…
With this in mind, I am thankful to have such a wealth of ingredients put aside in my store cupboard!
Once there’s a bit more substance to the story idea, it graduates from my Story Seeds folder into my Story Ideas folder! Even then, patience is required, which is a tricky balance - at what point does waiting become procrastinating?
(C.S. Lewis waited forty years to write The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe!)
The story seed - the germ of the idea - came to me in 2008. Jane had Non-Hodgkins lymphoma and was at the hospital getting a scan. I was sat waiting in the hospital, and this image came to mind. I was without a notebook (unusual for me), so I doodled on what was at hand.
Story seed for The Great Cheese Robbery © 2008 by Tim Warnes
Over the next few months, I sketched some more, and the seed became a collection of drawings featuring an elephant being scared by mice.
Development art from The Great Cheese Robbery © 2008 by Tim Warnes
Development art from The Great Cheese Robbery © 2008 by Tim Warnes
This drawing (made a few years later, on the page of a catalogue) was the pivotal moment - where the mice become thieves. Again, the catalogue was there. A pencil was there. It just happened!
Development art from The Great Cheese Robbery © 2011 by Tim Warnes
Add.
Taste.
Simmer.
Bake.
And that’s how my story, The Great Cheese Robbery (Little Tiger Press, 2015) was formed.
I have several ideas in my Story Ideas folder that are more than ready to be dusted down (the folder itself is jam-packed). Some have already received a favourable nod from my publishers, and several are in the midst of this strange growth process.
Now it’s up to me to prioritise the time to give them the attention they need.
To add a handful of bonemeal; that teaspoon of baking powder.
To create a satisfying something - with substance!
The Great Cheese Robberyby Tim Warnes(Little Tiger Press 2015)
“A great book to share.”
- Booktrust
“a delightfully off-beat and slyly funny story.”
BUY NOW USA
Buy Now UK
SourcesC.S.Lewis quote: Bookworm. A memoir of Childhood Reading by Lucy Mangan (Vintage 2018)Scripture taken from The Message Remix translated by Eugene H. Peterson (Nav Press Publishing 2003)My StrugglE:1 - A Death in the Family by Karl Ove Knausgaard. Translated by Don Bartlett (Vintage 2014)Merriam-Webster DictionaryThe Great Cheese Robbery by Tim Warnes (Little Tiger Press 2015)
July 5, 2019
Comics, Chalk & Cheese
21:05 from Chalk & Cheese Comics © 2012 by Tim Warnes
Many of the most endearing friendships in children’s literature, from Pooh and Piglet to Laura Seeger’s Dog and Bear... turn on the formulaic but charming incongruity of the main characters’ personalities; so it is here [in Chalk & Cheese] ...
— Kate McClelland, School Library Journal
They also just happen to be based on me and Noah.
Uppercase from Chalk & Cheese Comics © 2012 by Tim Warnes
I’ve always been passionate about comic strips
- in particular, Charles Schulz’s infamous Peanuts (which I grew up on); Calvin and Hobbes; Mutts; Cul de Sac; Pearls Before Swine.
I love their pacing and brevity of words; the simplicity and beauty of the line; the sound effects (WHUMP!) and speech bubbles.
I love the unfolding relationships and evolving storylines.
Above all, I love how they make me feel - they bring a smile to my face and sometimes make me laugh out loud. But they never fail to brighten my day.
So I was really pleased to come across this early Peanuts strip at last year’s exhibition, Good Grief, Charlie Brown! at Somerset House in London.
Charlie Brown and I have a lot in common.
© Charles Schulz
Historically (perhaps less so nowadays), comics have been dismissed as inferior reading material. Think about how those early comic strips were thrown out with the daily news cycle. Or my childhood comics, The Beano, Spiderman and Batman - printed on cheap paper. Pulp fiction. Consumed rapidly like fast food literature.
Personally, I think they are a really important and valuable reading resource.
Because comics (by which I mean a story told through narrative, sequential panels) can be incredibly complicated. That’s a whole article in itself - suffice to say research has proven their value. One U.S. study concluded that -
for students to improve their vocabulary they must be exposed to as many complex or difficult words as possible. [California State University’s] research found that “the language used by comics is far more advanced than that the oral communication of college graduates, and uses almost twice as many rare or difficult words!”
- Lucas Maxwell, A FRIENDLY REMINDER THAT COMIC BOOKS STILL COUNT AS READING
It was inevitable that this major childhood influence would eventually inform my professional work. Enter Chalk (a New York City dog) and his irrepressible house guest - Cheese (an English country mouse).
These unlikely friends first appeared in my self-penned picture book, Chalk & Cheese (Simon & Schuster 2008):
© 2008 by Tim Warnes
In expansive, humor-laden art, some drawn in cartoon-strip style, the duo gad about New York... There, Cheese hopes he’ll get to see King Kong; instead he gets lost, lured away by the aroma of warm nuts... What’s best is the sheer exuberance both feel about New York, to which this story is a love letter.
- Ilene Cooper, Booklist
I desperately wanted my story to be told in the form of a graphic novel for kids, but it seems I was ahead of my time. My editor wouldn’t let me take it that far, so it ended up as a slightly unconventional picture book that made good use of comic devices and formatting. Conceived initially as ‘Ralph and Mouse’, Chalk and Cheese take their names from the British phrase ‘to be like chalk and cheese’ - meaning to be complete opposites.
From Chalk & Cheese © 2008 by Tim Warnes (Simon & Schuster)
That was eleven years ago now. So it felt good to receive this unexpected email in March this year:Large, full-page illustrations peppered with word balloons alternate with comic-strip-style panels to tell the pair’s story... Children will relate to Cheese’s perpetual motion (his ears are constantly aquiver) and enthusiastic lack of restraint as well as his occasional tendency to mispronounce words (“ridiclious”) or coin new ones (“slippety”); adults will easily sympathize with the patient and long-suffering Chalk.
- The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
Hi! My name is Christina Poerstel. I am a full-time intern in a second-grade classroom in Harford County, Maryland. I am currently a senior at Towson University and working on my Honors Capstone project.
I want to see the impact of students writing when their assignment has greater purpose. In the students current writing unit, we are writing opinions about picture books (favorite characters, pictures, setting, problem and solution...) to a friend. I want to study if writing to the author of a book has an impact on the quality and quantity of their writing. My hope is that students will be more motivated and create stronger opinion letters when they are writing to someone in the outside community.
My students love your book, Chalk and Cheese! I thought this would be the perfect book to write our opinion letters on since everyone loves this book.
How could I say no to such a friendly approach? So I agreed - and duly received a parcel of charming letters from the students. This was the very first one I read, and the salutation made my day -
‘Dear Mr. Tim’ …
Favourable reviews are always good to read, but I don’t go out of my way to find them. On the other hand, kids’ letters like these make my day! To see that I am bringing joy and contributing to someone’s ambition to become a writer is so mind blowing!
‘I think I want to be a writer just like you.’
It would have taken too long to write each individual reply, but I also didn’t want to send a generalised blanket cover letter back. So I picked up on some specific questions and mentioned some of the students by name.
Like Delaney, for example. How cute is her drawing of Chalk and Cheese?
© 2019 by Delaney
Here’s some of my reply to those second graders:
Jordan wrote, Cheese is just like me because I am funny. Sometimes I am like Chalk.
You sound great, Jordan - funny, kind and gentle! I bet you make a really good friend. I’m a little bit like them both, too. Mia wrote that Chalk is caring and that it’s cute he helps Cheese around the city. It’s good to have friends and be a friend, isn’t it?
Clara - you said your favourite picture was when they are at the train station. I think that might be my favourite one, too - or maybe when they are walking home in the snow. I was in New York once, and it snowed. It was magical!
From Chalk & Cheese © 2008 by Tim Warnes (Simon & Schuster)
Thanks, Declan, for saying my drawing of the Empire State Building looks like a photograph. That’s really encouraging to me, because I think I’m really good at drawing characters like Chalk and Cheese, but not so good at drawing things like buildings.
All the kids thought Cheese was really funny. I based most of his dialogue on things Noah said when he was younger. (And yeah, he was hilarious.)
My favourite character is Cheese cause he is relly funny one reason that cheese is funny is when chalk took cheese to the Empire state building and cheese says “Where’s Kong”? Silly cheese everyone knows kong is not real.
— Sophia
As well as Cheese’s obsession with King Kong, lots of the kids wrote about racoons, including this letter from Camden:
From Chalk & Cheese © 2008 by Tim Warnes (Simon & Schuster)
Cody - you signed off your letter, the writer Cody. That’s so cool - I hope one day you get to have your own book published.
Savannah wrote, Cheese sees a cockroach and says to Chalk, “Can I keep him?” I think that’s funny and it’s sooo funny when Cheese says, ‘I will name you Cutey Pops!”
From Chalk & Cheese © 2008 by Tim Warnes (Simon & Schuster)
My favorite picture is when he’s holding a cockroach because he’s hugging it and Cheese asks to keep him as a pet. Eww!
— Leah
This, too, was based on a real life scenario - Noah found a woodlouse or something and named it Cutey Pops (it later became the name of Levi’s cuddly toy sausage dog).
Claire Brown noticed, and enjoyed the fact, that Cheese is easily distracted. Noah and I both have ADD so we are both easily distracted. He is still very easy to lose when we go places (despite being nearly 20 years old now!).
Sophia - I liked the cartoon of Cheese Mouse that you drew at the end of your letter for me, where he’s saying, Wait - it’s the ending already?! You’ve captured him perfectly! That’s exactly what he might say. Delaney’s drawing was delightful, too!
© 2019 by Sophia
Lots of you asked, will there be another Chalk & Cheese book?
The answer: I don’t know. I hope so, but there are no plans yet. I think about them often.
(If I do, Ella had a good idea with ‘Chalk and Cheese Go to School!’)
Caleb asked if I do write another book, whether I can put his dog Stanley in it! That’s a great idea. The only problem is - I don’t know what kind of dog he is, Caleb! My friends have just got a pup, and they called him Stanley, too. He’s a beagle. (Did you know that Chalk is based on an English Bull Terrier?)
Hadassah wrote, I’m glad you wrote that book.
Well, I’m glad you all wrote those letters!
I signed off with an apology -
I’m sorry if I have made some of you feel left out by not mentioning you all by name. Unfortunately, I have to get on with my other work. But truly I’m grateful to hear from you.
Your friend,
Tim
Although there is (so far) only one Chalk & Cheese book, I did develop them in my online comic which ran for two years.
They also made a guest appearance in the collective Team Cul de Sac book (in a spread opposite the creator of Calvin and Hobbes, Bill Watterston, no less!), which was created to raise funds for Parkinson’s research. It’s on my to-do list to spend time working on some more Chalk & Cheese ideas and approaching a publisher again. I would love to work on them once more, though.
Escapees from Chalk & Cheese Comics © 2011 by Tim Warnes
Back to Christina, the kids’ student intern teacher.
Remember - the class were writing as part of her project, to see if writing to the author of a book has an impact on the quality and quantity of their writing.
Here’s the outcome:
I found writing and communicating to someone outside of our community had a positive impact on their literacy skills, motivated, and inspired the students. While presenting my presentation, professors were blown away with the positive and quick responses I had from you. I wouldn’t have been able to do this without you!’
I cannot thank you enough for the time you spent writing our class back! That was such a thoughtful message and my class was blown away you answered so many of our questions and included so many examples from their letters. While I read the message out loud students were squealing when they heard their name or a classmates name.
Christina ended her thank you with this little aside:
Your name is brought up in our room like you are a friend.
At the start of this piece, I mentioned my love of Schulz’s Peanutz. Well, when I was a kid, I had a patch sewn onto my camp blanket. It was of Charlie Brown, against a bright green background, beneath the slogan:
I need all the friends I can get!
I guess that can include a class of kids way across the Atlantic Ocean, laughing at my story of a friendship between a dog and a mouse, created over 10 years ago. As Cheese Mouse would say,
‘That’s totally AWESOME!’
Chalk & Cheeseby Tim Warnes (2008, Simon & Schuster)
‘Children will find [Cheese’s] game enthusiasm for everything from subway cockroaches to skating at Rockefeller Center ("Splat!") simply hilarious.’
- Kate McClelland, School Library Journal
Buy Now USA
Buy Now UK
SourcesChalk & Cheese - School Library Journal Review- Chalk & Cheese Comics- A FRIENDLY REMINDER THAT COMIC BOOKS STILL COUNT AS READING - Lucas Maxwell, (Bookriot, 8 February 2018)- Chalk & Cheese by Tim Warnes (Simon & Schuster 2008)Chalk & Cheese - Booklist reviewChalk & Cheese - The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books review
June 28, 2019
Are Sendak’s Wild Things Genderqueer?
After Maurice Sendak. © 2018 by Tim Warnes. Unused art from The Big Book Adventure by Emily Ford and Tim Warnes (Silver Dolphin 2018)
How much does it cost to get to where the wild things are? If it is not too expensive my sister and I want to spend the summer there. Please answer soon.
— Letter to Maurice Sendak
There's currently a lot of discussion in the world of kid lit about gender inequality - in particular, the under-representation of female characters in children's books.
Online article The Gender Gap in Children's Books is the Real Monster in the Room claims that:
The ongoing celebration of Maurice Sendak, Dr. Seuss, P.D. Eastman, and Jack Ezra, among others, as the greats in children's literature means that today's kids will inherit a canon that is similarly skewed towards male authors and characters.
- Samantha Grindell, The Gender Gap in Children’s Books is the real monster in the room
Now, whilst I recognise the need for diversity, and for all kids to see themselves reflected in books (and acknowledge that yes, the statistics clearly show a higher percentage of male to female lead characters), I do wonder if sometimes we are in danger of exacerbating the problem, making it more potent than it actually is, and potentially depriving kids of some great books.
Let me explain.
The author of The Gender Gap in Children's Books highlights the classic picture book Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak (Harper & Row, 1963) as being problematic, stating:
[Max] enters into a wild world of his making where he has total control and there are no girls. … a land devoid of females.
- Samantha Grindell, The Gender Gap in Children’s Books is the real monster in the room
Well, that piqued my interest. Because in my mind, the wild things aren't assigned any gender. So I went back to the book to explore Grindell’s assertion that the land of the wild things really is 'devoid of females.'
(Incidentally, since originally publishing this piece, Jonathan Weinberg, Ph.D. of The Maurice Sendak Foundation e-mailed My Life In Books, pointing out that ‘many of Maurice Sendak’s protagonists are girls, including, Really Rosie, Outside Over There, and Higgelty Pigglety Pop! (a girl dog).’ To which I would add, Circus Girl, Charlotte and the White Horse and Maggie Rose: Her Birthday Christmas.)
Illustration © The Maurice Sendak Foundation. Used by permission.
Although not shown pictorially, Wild Things begins with Max's mother:
His mother called him "WILD THING!"
And Max said "I'LL EAT YOU UP!"
So he was sent to bed without eating anything.
Admittedly, this is before the forest grew up in Max’s room, before ‘the walls became the world all around' and before he sails away 'to where the wild things are.'
Yet once Max reaches the land of the wild things, nowhere in the story are they referred to as either male or female.
Which puzzles me.
What is it about the book that makes Grindell assume the wild things to be male?How come they end up being made the scapegoat for her argument?
(Although I agree that, yes - the wild things do have a masculine feel to them.Whatever that means.)
Why is that?
Is it merely because they are monsters - strange, mythological blends of human and animal parts? Surely that is a stereotype in itself?
(Another article from The Guardian - Must monsters always be male? Huge gender bias revealed in children's books - supports this idea.)
Is it because they are (at times) menacing, making a big show of how terrible they are?
(So, too, are wicked step mothers; witches; Miss Trunchbull; Cruella de Ville.)
Is it because most of them have horns?
(But so do female reindeer, cows, goats, and some sheep.)
Maybe it's because some of the wild things sport beards - a generally masculine trait.
Yet a few have long flowing hair, a generally female trait.
(If you don't believe me, ask my boys how many times they've been assumed to be girls for having long hair.)
Or is it just that they are genuinely WILD - and they know it?
After Maurice Sendak. © 2018 by Tim Warnes. Development art from The Big Book Adventure by Emily Ford and Tim Warnes (Silver Dolphin 2018)
The name 'wild thing' was informed by Sendak's Jewish heritage and the Yiddish phrase, 'vilde chaya' (meaning wild animal or beast):
"It's what almost every Jewish mother or father says to their offspring. 'You're acting like a vilde chaya, stop it!'" he explained.
- Maurice Sendak, Huffington Post
The 'wolf suit-wearing hero, the temperamental Max', tames the wild things 'with the magic trick of staring into all their yellow eyes without blinking once.’ Then they acknowledge him as 'the most wild thing of all' and crown him king, after which Max - ‘the ultimate vilde chaya’ - proclaims those immortal words:
Illustration from Where the Wild Things Are © The Maurice Sendak Foundation. Used by permission.
That glorious, wild rumpus - three wordless spreads where the pictures say it all. Perhaps it is those iconic images which cement the notion that the wild things are male.
We see them - Max included - in wild abandon, howling at the full moon, leaping ecstatically; swinging from tree branches; carrying their king high in a parade. As a father of two boys and uncle to six nephews, I can see their boyhood behaviour on display here (all they're lacking is a bush-whacking stick!).
It’s also true that I know some champion tree climbers who are girls. And I know some girls that can howl and wail like banshees, who can really make a ruckus! None of which gets us any closer to answering the question: why assume the wild things are male?
Consider this.If the character of Max was a girl who was crowned queen, would we regard the wild things as female?
(Which got me thinking… Which female picture book character would be worthy of being crowned queen of the wild things? I'll reveal my answer in a moment.)
Conversely, does the fact that Max is crowned king somehow infer masculinity upon the wild things?
Illustration from Where the Wild Things Are © The Maurice Sendak Foundation. Used by permission.
Here’s Maurice Sendak himself, revealing the inspiration behind the wild things in this radio interview from 1986:
… I didn't want them to be traditional monsters, like griffins and gorillas and suchlike. I wanted them to be very, very personal, and they had to come out of my own particular life. And I remember it took a very long time until that gestation occurred and where they began to appear on drawing paper and they began to be what I liked, and it was only when I had them all that I realized they were all my Jewish relatives.
They were all the adults who treated us in such silly fashions when we were kids, and these were the real monsters of my childhood. You know, people come on Sunday and wait to get fed, uncles and aunts, and you used to get all dressed up, and you have to sit and listen to their tedious conversation when you want to be with your brother and sister and listening to the radio or whatever.
And they all say the same dumb thing while you're beating time until food gets put on the table - how big you are and how fat you got, and you look so good we can eat you up. In fact, we knew they would because my mother was the slowest cooker in Brooklyn, so if she didn't hurry up, they would eat us up.
So the only entertainment was watching how - watching their bloodshot eyes and how bad their teeth were. You know, children are monstrously cruel about physical defects.
So my entertainment was to examine them closely, you know, the huge nose, and the hair curling out of the nose and the weird mole on the side of the head, and so you would glue in on that, and then you'd talk about it with your brother or sister later, and they became the wild things.
- ‘ Fresh Air’ Remembers Author Maurice Sendak with Terry Gross
I think it’s safe to assume that the wild things - in Sendak’s mind at least (blended from memories and feelings of his 'unkempt' aunties and uncles), were both male and female. (A view supported by the fact that in 2009, Sendak worked closely with the live action film of the book, in which the wild things are fleshed out some more - and include two female wild things, KW and Judith.) Certainly not solely male.
Sendak’s decision to leave us guessing must have been intentional - perhaps to add to their mystery and monstrosity.
Maybe over time we’ll see the wild things become adopted by the genderqueer community as non-binary role models, since they display both male and female characteristics and are defined by neither:
genderqueer: any position in a wide variety of gender identities, spanning the spectrum between male and female.
-Urban Dictionary
genderqueer: of, relating to, or being a person whose gender identity cannot be categorized as solely male or female.
- Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Illustration from Where the Wild Things Are © The Maurice Sendak Foundation. Used by permission.
Back to that original article, The Gender Gap, which incriminates another big name in kid lit for gender imbalance in their books -
Another example is Mo Willems, who's known for his anthropomorphic narratives about an elephant named Gerald and a pig named Piggie ... Willem's stories make reading fun and offer an endless number of surprises, but he deals almost exclusively in male characters.
- Samantha Grindell, The Gender Gap in Children’s Books is the real monster in the room
Again, this statement is misleading (which is a pity, since it undermines the author's argument). Because Willems' books (which really are a whole lot of fun!) include:
four Cat the Cat books (Cat’s a girl)
Knuffle Bunny (three books, featuring Trixie - named after Willems’ daughter - as lead character)
Hooray for Amanda and her Alligator!
Big Frog Can’t Fit In (girl)
Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs (includes Mama Dinosaur)
Nanette's Baguette
Edwina the Dinosaur
And ironically, in Willems' 25 book Elephant and Piggie series (the example included in the criticism), Piggie is - you guessed it - a girl! Referring to his character, Piggie, Willems has even said, 'there's a bit of my daughter, there's a bit of my wife there.'
To my mind at least, that gets Mo Willems off the hook.
Elephant and Piggie. © by Mo Willems (Source: Entertainment Weekly)
I’m not trying to deliberately undermine Grindell’s article, The Gender Gap. Whilst some of her facts are skewed, the underlying thrust of the argument should be taken seriously, and she raises some pertinent points.
If my books were put under scrutiny, I would be guilty as charged.
Because as far as my work is concerned, there are definitely more male characters to female in my oeuvre to date. When I have my own story ideas, they usually originate in childhood thoughts and feelings, so inevitably feature a version of myself - an issue that, in 2019 and beyond, I am aware needs careful monitoring.
The only books I have written that have a female lead are Can't You Sleep and Happy Birthday, Dotty (aside from a whole book of mummies in Mommy Mine.) Mummy Elephant, who appears towards the very end of The Great Cheese Robbery has only a supporting part, but she is the character with authority. Meanwhile, the Lumpy-Bumpy Thing from DANGEROUS! was deliberately not assigned a gender.
So you'll be pleased to hear that the story I am currently developing features a female lead!
Hey - I nearly forgot! Which female picture book character do I think is worthy of being crowned queen of the wild things?Ian Falconer's Olivia, of course! If anyone could tame them, she could. Oh, how she'd love their wild rumpus!
Olivia, Queen of the Wild Things © by Tim Warnes 2019. (Adapted from Where the Wild Things Are / Olivia… and the Missing Toy).
I'd love to hear your suggestions for Queen of the Wild Things!
E-mail me
Addendum
In terms of your piece itself, I appreciate your praise for Where the Wild Things Are and the fact that the Wild Things are potentially of both genders (or non-gendered), but given your subject you might add that many of Maurice Sendak’s protagonists are girls, including, Really Rosie, Outside Over There, and Higgelty Pigglety Pop! (a girl dog)….
- Jonathan Weinberg, Ph.D., The Maurice Sendak Foundation (via e-mail to My Life In Books)
SourcesOpening Quote: Maurice Sendak, King of all Wild Things by Jonathan Cott (Rolling Stone, 30 December 1976) The Gender Gap in Children’s Books is the real monster in the roo M BY Samantha Grindell (Romper, November 14, 20180Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak (Harper & Row, 1963) Must monsters always be male? Huge gender bias revealed in children’s books by Donna Ferguson (The Guardian, 21 January 2018) There’s a Funny Story Behind the Title of ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ by Taylor Pittman (Huffington Post, 29 June 2018) Jewish Roots for ‘Where the Wild Things Are ’ by Rachel Tepper (Jewish Telegraphic Agency, 20 October 2009)‘ Fresh Air’ Remembers Author Maurice Sendak with Terry Gross (NPR, 8 May 2012)Urban Dictionary Elephant and Piggies’ Mo Willems Talks (Entertainment Weekly, 27 October 2011)
June 21, 2019
A mad tea-party
Adapted from The Big Book Adventure © 2018 by Tim Warnes (Silver Dolphin 2018) / Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland by Lewis Carroll - Public Domain
Alice felt dreadfully puzzled. The Hatter’s remark seemed to her to have no sort of meaning in it, and yet it was certainly English.
“I don’t quite understand you,” she said, as politely as she could.
— 'Alice's Adventures In Wonderland' by Lewis Carroll
I have always loved the Alice books by Lewis Carroll.
I was given them (with the original woodcut illustrations by John Tenniel) for my birthday when I was - I don’t know … eight? Nine years old? I do remember where I read them - I was sleeping on a camp bed at the time (my Nan was visiting for a few days, and sharing my room). I still have those very same copies, next to me as I write - now dog-eared and lightly foxed around the edges (a description that applies equally to the books and their owner).
Carroll’s Wonderland is a world inhabited by creatures who put logic before sense, creating a complicated kind of nonsense that becomes, as Alice herself noted, ‘curiouser and curiouser’ - to such an extent that what at first appears nonsensical actually begins to make complete sense!
One of my favourite parts of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is the Mad Tea Party in Chapter VII. The nonsense is rife, thanks to the March Hare and Hatter, whose dialogue deals almost entirely with the baffling inversion and twisting of logic and puns. The insanity of the party eventually becomes too much for Alice, who gets ‘up in great disgust’ and walks off.
In The Annotated Alice, Carroll’s nonsense is described as ‘a sanity-insanity inversion’:
The ordinary world is turned upside down and backwards; it becomes a world in which things go everyway except the way they are supposed to.
- Martin Gardner, The Annotated Alice
Taking phrases literally, instead of as they are commonly understood, is characteristic of all the inhabitants of Wonderland, and form the basis for much of Carroll’s humour. (For this very reason, many readers find his work irritating, rather than humorous).
“… I believe I can guess that,” [said Alice].
“Then you should say what you mean,” the March Hare went on.
“I do,” Alice hastily replied; “at least - at least I mean what I say – that’s the same thing, you know.”
“Not the same thing a bit!” said the Hatter. “You might just as well say that ‘I see what I eat’ is the same thing as ‘I eat what I see’!”
“You might just as well say,” added the March Hare, “that ‘I like what I get’ is the same thing as ‘I get what I like’!”
“You might just as well say,” added the Dormouse, who seemed to be talking in his sleep, that ‘I breathe when I sleep’ is the same thing as ‘I sleep when I breathe’!”
“It is the same thing with you,” said the Hatter…
This inversion works particularly well, since on reflection, it is Alice who is talking nonsense, while the insane intellectuals are making complete sense.
From Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Illustration (1865) by John Tenniel - Public Domain
Another example of a logic trap that occurs later during the tea party:
“Take some more tea,” the March Hare said to Alice, very earnestly.
“I’ve had nothing yet,” Alice replied in an offended tone, “so I can’t take more.”
“You mean you can’t take less,” said the Hatter: “it’s very easy to take more than nothing.”
Genius!
In my award-winning book, The Big Book Adventure by Emily Ford (Silver Dolphin 2018), Foxy and Piggy are excitedly telling each other about the books they have read, and the worlds those stories have taken them to - including Wonderland, suggested by the author’s opening text:Well, first I found a little door,
Right there on a tree.
I stepped inside and made some friends
And joined them all for tea.
When I read this, I could only think about those exquisite Tenniel illustrations of the Mad Tea Party, which are now so iconic. I thought to myself, if only I could just pop Piggy straight into those illustrations…
I investigated the copyright, and sure enough, the engravings are in the public domain (since Tenniel died more than seventy years ago) - meaning I could use them! Since these illustrations are so recognisable, this opening spread became the linchpin for the premise of the whole book - that we are entering these different worlds via the stories that Piggy and Foxy have read.
Here’s the very first idea I mocked up in my sketchbook, with Piggy seated at the tea table -
Development art for The Big Book Adventure © 2018 by Tim Warnes (Silver Dolphin 2018). Original Tenniel illustration Public Domain
For the final spread - taken from my original childhood copies of the Alice books - I decided that showing Piggy entering through the door in the tree (the same door that led Alice back to the long hall with the glass table) would be most effective. For this, I adapted the tree from the background of an illustration of Tweedledum and Tweedledee in Through the Looking Glass.
Development art for The Big Book Adventure © 2018 by Tim Warnes (Silver Dolphin 2018). Original Tenniel illustration - Public Domain
Keen eyed readers will note that, in order to fit the dimensions of The Big Book Adventure, I had to adapt and continue Tenniel’s original illustration:
by adding a tree to the far right;
by extending the background trees upwards to the top page edge;
by removing the suggestion of a building behind the March Hare.
Finally, I hand coloured the black and white illustration in watercolour, based on Tenniel’s own updated work for The Nursery “Alice” (Macmillan 1889).
The Big Book Adventure © 2018 by Tim Warnes (Silver Dolphin 2018). Original Tenniel illustration - Public Domain
From The Nursery “Alice” , illustration by John Tenniel (Macmillan 1889). Public Domain
I really enjoyed adapting and using someone else’s work in this way. I’m not sure how, but one day I’d like to have the chance to do something similar again.
The Big Book Adventure -… we absolutely, positively LOVED it. … [A]n adorable pig and fox … visit some of the classic stories we all know and love like Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Goldilocks and the Three Bears and more. My daughter so enjoyed trying to figure out which stories they were visiting as we read through. As a family of book lovers, this one really appealed to us. It had a great flow that we just could not get enough of...
- reviewed on A Modern Day Fairy Tale blog
The Big Book Adventure © 2018 by Tim Warnes
The Big Book Adventure by Emily Ford, illustrated by Tim Warnes (Silver Dolphin Books 2018)
‘Truly delightful’ - books4yourkids.com
Winner: 2019 IBPA Benjamin Franklin Silver Award (Children's Picture Books)
Winner: 2018 Foreword INDIE Gold Award (Picture Books, Early Reader)
BUY NOW - USA
BUY NOW - UK
SourcesAlice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, ill. by John Tenniel (Macmillan 1865)The Annotated Alice by Lewis Carroll, with introduction and notes by Martin Gardner (Clarkson N Potter 1960) THE BIG BOOK ADVENTURE BY EMILY FORD AND TIM WARNES (SILVER DOLPHIN 2018)Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carrol (Macmillan 1871) Celebrate Summer Reading with The Big Book Adventure - A Modern Day Fairy Tale blog
June 14, 2019
Why we should value those Daddy Hugs!
© 2019 by Tim Warnes
When you read with your kid… [y]ou’re not just reading them a story. You’re holding their hand, opening a door, and showing them what the world is like.
— Tom Burns: 'Why Should Dads Read with Their Kids? I'm Glad You Asked … '
One of the goals of My Life In Books is to guide you to quality picture books.
I want to reduce your confusion and save you time when it comes to selecting picture books that will satisfy both you and the kids in your care. Obviously, there's no one size fits all, and my Good to Read recommendations at the bottom of each article are by no means exhaustive. But my goal remains the same - for you to experience and enjoy the intimacy of story time, because I know firsthand how powerful that is.
This week, I am sharing another dad’s story with you, and his own mission to help connect fathers with newborn babies through the power of reading.
In 2007, Jane and I worked on the picture book, Daddy Hug (HarperCollins 2008) - a celebration of fathers from the Animal Kingdom (and follow-up to 2005's Mommy Mine).It’s unusual for us to work on the same project, and we treated the collaboration much the same as any other: I wrote the text; it was edited and approved by the publisher and then passed on to Jane to illustrate. She did an amazing job, and Daddy Hug was shortlisted for a Booktrust Early Years Award (Best Book for Babies), who described it as a ‘beautiful picture book.’
Image © 2008 by Jane Chapman. Used by permission
Daddies come in all shapes and sizes—slimy and scruffy, long and fluffy! And daddies make all different kinds of noises—squeak and chirp, buzz and bumble! But what do all daddies have in common? They make us feel safe and snug with tender daddy hugs!
- Daddy Hug synopsis
From Daddy Hug (HarperCollins) © 2008 by Tim Warnes and Jane Chapman. Used by permission
It's funny.
When you work on a book, you have no idea what impact it may have somewhere later along the line.
That's the cool thing about books. They transcend time and space. And the annoying thing too - once they're out there, they take on a life of their own. Like kids who have fledged the nest.
In April this year, we received a heartbreaking message from a father in the U.S., Dan Courtine. With Dan’s blessing, I would very much like to share his family’s story, as it’s such a vivid illustration of the power of story time.Dan wrote:
From the day of their birth 8 and 9 years ago, my sons and I have read and thoroughly loved Daddy Hug. We acted it out… We laughed, and we bonded.
Sadly, my 9-year-old passed away unexpectedly in February. This tragedy has left a tremendous hole in my heart as I can't give him any more Daddy Hugs.
I have set up a foundation in his honor. You can see details and our goals at www.jamesonsjoy.org and on Jameson's Joy on social media.
One of the projects I want to undertake is to provide the opportunity for people to purchase a copy of Daddy Hug, which will be stamped with our foundation, and then I provide a copy of the book to fathers of newborns. I want to help them connect with their kids.
'I want to help them connect with their kids.'
Dan and I speak the same language, which is why I have decided to support his work in honouring the life and legacy of his 9-year-old son, Jameson, and share the foundation’s Daddy Hug project here.
Reading the opening paragraph in Dan's email made my spine tingle. It amazes and humbles me to think (and discover first hand) that we are part of the lives of families around the world through the work we do.
To hear of this family laughing and bonding over Daddy Hug - that our book became part of a cherished routine - is terrifically satisfying; yet makes learning about the tragic loss of Jameson and the family's pain even sadder. Reading their story - getting the tiniest glimpse into Dan’s pain as he continues to do his best to carry on living - genuinely brought tears to my eyes.
As you can imagine, this was not an easy email to reply to.
I love the creative ways the family are exploring to honour Jameson's memory and work through their grief.
I love that Dan has stepped up to the plate and is making the project happen. That's a really admirable quality, particularly given the circumstances.
Daddy Strong comes to mind.
From Daddy Hug (HarperCollins) © 2008 by Tim Warnes and Jane Chapman. Used by permission
Dan Courtine again, from Jamesons Joy website:
There were three rules we had while reading [Daddy Hug].
Rule 1 was that we had to just BE together, be in the moment and enjoy it.
Rule 2 was that when we saw the moose on the opening pages we had to put our moose antler hands in our ears and MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSE as loud as we could. We scared mom many times with this part, but a rule is a rule.
And Rule 3 was that the snake page had to be read as quickly as possible.
(Dan and I may share a desire to help fathers connect with their kids, but we don't share an affinity for snakes!)
From Daddy Hug (HarperCollins) © 2008 by Tim Warnes and Jane Chapman. Used by permission
what makes Daddy Hug a successful picture book?
Simple rhyming couplets (great for reinforcing the concepts of adjectives and verbs)
It can be read very quickly (always good for when your kid is asking for just one more!)
It can be read very slowly (thanks to Jane's detailed art and her choice of animals).
It encourages conversation - when will the baby porcupines grow spikes? Are baby snails born with shells?
It ticks the educational box because of the diverse array of animals presented - old favourites as well as the more obscure (for example, porcupines and walruses).
It's FUN to read aloud!
Daddy Hug has always given my sons and I happiness together. And it's time to pay that forward. Jameson's Joy is proud to present a copy of Daddy Hug to fathers of young children. For a donation of $30, we will send a copy of Daddy Hug to fathers so they can enjoy a bond like no other. Just BE in the moment and read with your child.'
- Dan Courtine (Jameson’s Joy / Be in the Moment)
From Daddy Hug (HarperCollins) © 2008 by Tim Warnes and Jane Chapman. Used by permission
Over the last few years, I have been learning the importance of allowing yourself to just be in the moment. To try and focus on what is right there before my eyes and where possible to stop and appreciate it. Because as Dan's family know only too well, those moments do not last forever. But our memories can.
So back to the core purpose of My Life In Books - to help parents and carers make the kinds of connections that Dan most clearly did with his boys - using books as the glue. I have written of experiencing this deep intimacy myself as a child, particularly with my father, and like Dan, wish for others to experience that same joy.
Jameson's Joy.
*
Readers in the USA can support Jameson's Joy - and encourage fathers to BE in the moment with their children - by placing an order with them for a presentation copy of Daddy Hug.
What better way to celebrate fatherhood and start a lifelong journey together?
Email Dan at info@jamesonsjoy.org indicating how many copies you want to pass forward, the dad's name and mailing address, and any other messages you wish to include.
Should you need any more convincing why reading with your children (by you dad or mum, grandparent, teacher, carer…) is a good thing, I'll leave you with the full excerpt from the opening quote:
When you read with your kid…[y]ou're not just reading them a story. You're holding their hand, opening a door, and showing them what the world is like.
If that introduction is too big, scary, or confusing, you're the one there with them, trying to explain what everything means. And, even if you don't know what everything means, you're there as their partner, saying, "Jeez, I don't know. Let's find out together."
That's a big deal. And, as a dad, that's something I want to be there for.
- Tom Burns (Why Should Dads Read with Their Kids? I'm Glad You Asked …)
Daddy Hug by Tim Warnes, ill. by Jane Chapman (Harper Collins 2008)Shortlisted - Booktrust Early Years Award (Best Book for Babies) 2008Jameson’s Joy Transforming Communities Through Acts of KindnessUS customers - Please support the foundation by purchasing a presentation copydonations to the Jameson’s Joy Foundation can be made here(Customers outside the USA can buy Daddy Hug here)
Good to Read
In celebration of dads
Only My Dad and Me by Alyssa Satin Capucelli, ill. by Tiphanie Beake (HarperFestival 2003)
Just Like You by Jane Chapman (Little Tiger Press 2018)
The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish by Neil Gaiman, ill. by Dave McKean (Bloomsbury 2004)
The Emperor's Egg by Martin Jenkins, ill. by Jane Chapman (Walker Books 1999)
Daddy Hug by Tim Warnes, ill. by Jane Chapman (HarperCollins 2008)
SourcesWhy Should Dads Read with Their Kids? I'm Glad You Asked… by Tom Burns (www.readbrightly.com)Daddy Hug by Tim Warnes, ill. by Jane Chapman (HarperCollins 2008)Be in the Moment (www.jamesonsjoy.org)Daddy Hug - Kirkus Review
June 7, 2019
Teaching empathy through picture books
From the forthcoming, Only You Can Be You by Sally & Nathan Clarkson (Zonderkidz). Image © 2019 by Tim Warnes
Empathy Day… is a lightning rod for a new story-driven empathy movement. A wide range of organisations are joining forces to harness books’ empathy-building power, inspired by scientific evidence that in identifying with book characters, we learn to see things from other points of view.
— Empathy Lab
Next week - Tuesday June 11th 2019 - is Empathy Day (I know this because of the promotional display that greeted me as I entered my local public library).
Books, be they fact or fiction, reveal new truths about ourselves and the world we inhabit. They allow us the opportunity to discover worlds beyond ours; to give words to our feelings; and allow us to step into someone else’s shoes - which help develop empathy.
That is why diversity in children’s books is so important. It’s crucial for our children to see, not only representations of themselves in books, but also people who look different, feel different and experience things differently to themselves. And as we’ll see from today’s example, this extends beyond mere skin colour.
As with graphic novels, children’s picture books are great for exploring empathy. Why? Because they are weighted towards visual storytelling, and the visuals - the illustrations - can speak volumes.
Publisher of Enchanted Lion Books, Claudia Bedrick, describes their power perfectly:
This week I am highlighting a powerful story that is a wonderful lesson in empathy - The Day War Came by Nicola Davies, illustrated by Rebecca Cobb (Walker Books 2018) - which I believe will become a picture book classic.Through pictures we are given body language and expression, tone, mood, and emotion in ways completely different from descriptive language… seeing a certain slope of shoulders, a stance, a facial expression, a certain thickness of line or movement of color in a picture will affect us completely differently from the words on the page.
- Children’s Literature in Translation: Enchanted Lion Books
From The Day War Came by Nicola Davies (Walker Books). Image © 2018 by Rebecca Cobb. Used with permission
Described by Booktrust as ‘a devastatingly simple and deeply affecting prose poem’ which ‘pulls no punches’, War is narrated in the first person by a little girl, tenderly illustrated (with her usual naive charm and childlike simplicity) by Rebecca Cobb.
The voice of the child in the text and Rebecca Cobb’s illustrations of friendly faced children encourage empathy, enabling young children to think and ask questions.
- CLPE review
Her characters’ large, black dots for eyes speak volumes - first of a happy innocence, then blank emptiness and fear. These sentiments, of course, are projected onto them by us, the reader - which the simple design of them allows for. This softens the visuals without diminishing the story’s power (making it a less scary entry point into discussing displaced people with our children).
We are not told the little girl’s name (nor where she lives) but in interview Davies has said,
[The story was] prompted by the Syrian war and the wave of refugees it had created, I began to write a picture book about war, from a child’s perspective. I thought about the utter alone-ness of what we call "unaccompanied child refugees" and the first line I wrote in my notebook was:
‘War took everything, war took everyone.’
That line sat on its own for some time, while I thought about how it might be for families in war zones, for parents trying to protect their children from harm, and from the fear of harm.’
- The Day War Came: telling the story of child refugees
Her story opens with a disarmingly domestic scene of everyday life.
In the background a line of washing flaps; there is food and drink on the table; a peaceful babe in arms is cradled.
We read:
The day war came there were flowers on the window sill and my father sang my baby brother back to sleep.
From The Day War Came by Nicola Davies (Walker Books). Image © 2018 by Rebecca Cobb. Used with permission
The girl is accompanied to school by her mother - a clever tactic allowing the child reader to relate to the girl based on their own experience, immediately establishing a connection between themselves and the characters. Davies’ explains: ‘I wanted to talk about school too. School is a big part of ordinary normality for kids, and without education they lose not just their present stability, but their chance of a future.’
But everything is about to change for the happy family.
What follows is a powerful page turn, shocking in its contrast to the story’s opening.Then, just after lunch, war came.
From The Day War Came © 2018 by Nicola Davies & Rebecca Cobb (Walker Books). Used with permission
Gone are the girl’s classmates and teacher. She is all alone (and remains so for the following two spreads); sat at her desk, shielding herself from the blast ‘like a spattering of hail’, flying chairs and an encroaching cloud - ‘all smoke and fire and noise that I didn’t understand.’
Another picture shows the girl (still alone) crouched in the rubble of her shattered world, surrounded by blazing buildings and plumes of smoke. The flowers from her window sill lie to one side with their shattered pot. This is a really clever, subtle piece of visual storytelling (a detail that passed me by on first reading, since the flowers are the same colour, and echo the shape, of the background fires). Without spelling it out in black and white we witness her shattered life.
‘I heard a story about a refugee child coming to a school next to the camp where she’d ended up, and asking to come in. The teacher turned her away, saying, 'There isn't a spare chair or desk for you sit at.' The next day, the child returned carrying some broken, improvised approximation of a chair and asked: 'Now, can I come in?'
Nicola Davies - The Day War Came: telling the story of child refugees
Inspired, Davies wove this sad story into War. We see the girl huddled under a dirty blanket in the corner of a hut at the refugee camp:
The door banged. I thought it was the wind - but a child’s voice spoke.
“I brought you this,” he said, “so you can come to school.”
It was a chair.
‘It is a very simple everyday object,’ explains illustrator Cobb on the Walker Books blog, ‘but it somehow represents the things that children should be able to expect from life - a secure, safe home environment and access to an education.’
From The Day War Came by Nicola Davies (Walker Books). Image © 2018 by Rebecca Cobb. Used with permission
Nicola Davies heard the chair story (‘I don't know if it’s true’) in 2016 - the same time as the UK government refused to allow 3000 unaccompanied child refugees to enter the country (which, sadly, is true). Incensed by the whole situation, she wrote a heartfelt poem, The Day War Came, which was the start of the book. First published in The Guardian (later picked up by Davies’ publisher, Walker Books), it has barely changed at all since the lines first poured out of her. The most notable tweak was to the part described the fleeing refugees, escaping ‘on a boat that leaked and almost sank and up a beach where babies lay face down in the sand.’
In the final book this line is softened to read, ‘where shoes lay empty in the sand.’ All the same, it is a haunting image, made all the more poignant by the accompanying visual - a pair of tiny red sandals that the girl discovers.
I’m pleased to say that the story (whilst addressing the realities of conflict) is, ultimately, uplifting.It ends with smiling, friendly faced children; and it is they who provide the hope - and the chairs - for the refugee children in an act of solidarity that results in ‘pushing back the war with every step.’
Owing in part to the publisher’s choice of illustrator, and the author’s decision to focus on telling the experience from a child’s perspective, The Day War Came is appropriate to share with younger children. The publisher’s recommended age is five plus - I would suggest that a sensitive child could find the book upsetting, despite the subtlety of the incidental details (for example the tiny helicopters, flowers in the rubble, the shoes adrift). It would work equally well for much older children, too.
Ultimately I think this remarkable book is a fantastic resource which will allow for discussion of some hard topics in a humane way - topics that our children are unfortunately surrounded by, and will hear about, if not directly then by osmosis, from their peers or background media. And in doing so we will help develop the children’s capacity for empathy.
I shall leave the parting shot to the author, Nicola Davies:
The message of The Day War Came is so simple, as simple as an empty chair: we need to be kind; we need to share. Because we could be next. Because every person matters. Because that’s what makes us truly human.
Nicola Davies - The Day War Came: telling the story of child refugees
With thanks to Nicola Davies and Rebecca Cobb for allowing me to reproduce their work.Find out more about their work here:Nicola Davies- children’s AuthorRebecca Cobb illustration Good to read
For developing empathy
Picture BooksKing of the Sky by Nicola Davies, ill. by Laura Carlin (Walker Books 2017)
The Colour Monster by Anna Llenas (Templar 2012)
Julián is a Mermaid by Jessica Love (Candlewick 2018)
I’ll Never Let You Go by Smriti Prasadam-Halls, ill. by Alison Brown (Bloomsbury 2005)
My Many Coloured Days by Dr Seuss (Red Fox 1996)
DANGEROUS! by Tim Warnes (Little Tiger 2014)
My Friend is Sad by Mo Willems (Walker Books 2007)
For Older Readers
Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White (Harper & Row 1952)
#ReadforEmpathy SourcesEmpathy LabChildren’s Literature in Translation: Enchanted Lion Books - Books Without BordersThe Day War Came - Booktrust reviewThe Day War Came - CLPE review The Day War Came: telling the story of child refugees - Booktrust Picture Book Party: The Day War Came - Walker Books blogThe Day War Came - a Poem About Unaccompanied Child Refugees - The Guardian, 28 April 2016
May 31, 2019
The enduring appeal of 'The Tiger Who Came to Tea'
© 2019 by Tim Warnes
I hadn’t planned to become an author. I just thought I’d try to do a picture book.
— Judith Kerr (Desert Island Discs, 2004)
Last week saw the passing of a legend in children’s books - Judith Kerr. Appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2012 for services to children's literature and Holocaust education, the Booktrust Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016. In 2019 she was named Illustrator of the Year at the British Book Awards - just a week before her death.
Judith Kerr bore an uncanny resemblance to my Nan Warnes. And if you’re the type to worry about getting old, just read or watch an interview with her. They will be sure to allay your fears.
Because Kerr exuded joy. Self-deprecating, humble and witty, she worked up in her attic studio every day; giving her a sense of purpose, meaning and motivation. Kerr’s life was an example of what the Japanese refer to as ikigai - living life to the full and finding happiness in the everyday. Right up to her (final) 95th year. Her latest (and last) book, The Curse of the School Rabbit (HarperCollins 2019) will be published posthumously in June.
Kerr’s first book was originally a bedtime story, made up for her young daughter, Tacy:“I first told this story to my small daughter long ago. She was rather critical of my other stories but used to say, 'Talk the tiger!' So, when she and her brother were both at school and I had more time, I thought I would make it into a picture book – and much to my amazement, here it still is 50 years later.”
- The Tiger Who Came To Tea: author Judith Kerr discusses 50 years of classic books
In celebration of Judith Kerr - let’s talk the tiger!
from The Tiger Who Came to Tea © 1968 by Judith Kerr
The Tiger Who Came to Tea was first published in 1968 when Judith Kerr was aged 45.
Let’s stop right there.
Judith Kerr was 45 years old when her first book was published.
(For me, that’s a considerable encouragement, as I’m only a little older myself. It reminds me of the potential impact the cumulative effect of my work might have on generations of kids to come.)
And since then, The Tiger Who Came to Tea has remained in print, celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2018. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Kerr’s depiction of a typical 1960’s household looks quite old fashioned and quaint now, with its stay-at-home Mummy waiting for Daddy to come back from work. (Contrast this with, for example, the chaotic and modern families in Lauren Child's books, where mum and dad are both out working - in fact, Charlie and Lola’s parents are never seen, and appear to be barely present.)
Kerr shows the milkman and his float; the grocer’s boy making home deliveries by bicycle; the Formica kitchen with its enamelled oven and stovetop kettle. They all hearken back to the past.
And at the end of the book - after the tiger has eaten them out of house and home and departed - Sophie’s family go out for supper. Not 2019 noodles; a cheeky tofu salad with heritage vegetables; or a gourmet burger in a lightly toasted brioche bun (served with heritage tomato relish and sweet potato fries). But to an old school café for ‘sausages and chips and ice cream.’
I like the way tiger has dated. But it’s not only Kerr’s illustration - the story itself hearkens back to a publishing industry of yesteryear.Because honestly, I think you would be hard pushed to get anyone to publish Tiger today. Not that it’s unworthy of publication - if that were true it would not have endured and become a classic. But because it has such a simple storyline. There is no hook; no dramatic climatic moment of threat. Her tiger arrives, eats and drinks his fill, then leaves.
He doesn’t frighten anyone.
Nobody gets lost (or eaten).
The worst that happens - Daddy’s left with no supper.
Perhaps the book’s simplicity is the secret of its enduring appeal?
There’s nothing extraneous - as Kerr frequently explained:
“… I thought that children shouldn't be made to read anything unnecessary. And so I would never put anything in the text that was in the pictures. You know, if you say ‘he was wearing red trousers’, and you see a boy with red trousers… it's a waste of [the child reader’s] energy. I didn't want them to have to do that. So, I try to use as few words as possible, as well as possible.”
- Kerr speaking on Desert Island Discs
For example, the text reads -
So Sophie’s mummy said, “Would you like a drink?” And the tiger drank all the milk in the milk jug and all the tea in the teapot.
It’s Kerr’s art that fills in the detail. Look how relaxed the tiger is - emptying out the teapot by leaning back in a most casual manner, holding it high and pouring the tea down his throat. He’s relishing every drop! The milk jug, meanwhile, lies on its side on the table.
(I write more about the role of illustration in storytelling here.)
from The Tiger Who Came to Tea © 1968 by Judith Kerr
On illustrating the tiger, Kerr remarked in 2008 (in a typically self-deprecating way):
“I should be able to draw tigers, but I can’t… it's not really a tiger at all. Quentin Blake would have made it much funnier and Michael Foreman would have drawn it better.”
- Tiger! Tiger! Burning Bright
I love her tiger, with his slightly sneaky eyes and big Muppet-esque paws!
Former Children’s Laureate, Michael Rosen commented on Tiger:
“Judith has created a totally feasible unfeasible experience, the juxtaposition of two realities in a way that would be impossible in our world. The result is both very funny and slightly unsettling.”
- Tiger! Tiger! Burning Bright
This ambiguity poses questions for the young reader -
Where has the tiger come from?
Why is it so friendly?
Does anyone own it?
Where does it go next?
Why didn’t it ever return?
Theories abound as to the deeper meaning behind the unexpected visitor - all refuted by Kerr - including this, from her annotated copy of Tiger:
“The excellent Michael Rosen thinks that I subconsciously based the tiger on my fears of the Gestapo, but I don’t think one would snuggle the Gestapo - even subconsciously.”
Time after time, Kerr has insisted - it’s about a tiger who wants some tea.
But there’s no denying Kerr’s claim. These are not threatening scenes. (Besides, she covered her experiences as a refugee fleeing Nazi Germany in When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit.)
There’s Mummy and Sophie taking tea with the tiger, all smiles;
There’s Sophie, tickling the tiger under the chin;
Now she’s rubbing her cheek into his tail, using the fluffy tip to tickle under her own chin.
from The Tiger Who Came to Tea © 1968 by Judith Kerr
I especially love this last image! It shows such tenderness - and Sophie’s deep longing to snuggle into the soft tiger, who, in typical feline fashion, ignores Sophie to drink ‘all the water in the tap’ -
a scene derided by her publisher as “rather unrealistic”, which Kerr thought “was odd in view of the rest of the story.”
Fifty years after her tiger came to tea, Judith Kerr lets loose a crocodile – Interview published in The Independent
Odd indeed - considering Kerr’s tiger swigs from the teapot, drinks from a glass through a straw, and plays a toy trumpet elsewhere in the book! In fact, looking at it again, I’d say the scene of the beloved tiger drinking from the tap is probably the most believable and naturalistic. Publishers, eh?
“... it wasn't so much that I wanted to kill her off, as that I wanted to say something about dying and being remembered.”
Why Mog Had To Die
I’m inspired by Kerr’s example, who embraced mortality and continued to write and illustrate until the end of her life. There’s no doubt that her work will be around for many years to come, continuing her legacy. Once something is so ingrained in the public consciousness (as are so many of her books) they start to take on a deeper meaning, becoming firmly rooted and entwined into a family’s history. My generation - the kids who grew up on Tiger and Mog in the ‘70s - now have children who have entered adulthood. Kerr’s stories are being handed down to a new generation.
She’d be delighted to know that her wish is being honoured -
“Remember me. But do get on with your lives.”
Why Mog Had To Die
Judith Kerr OBE
1923 - 2019
Good to readPicture books featuring unexpected visitors:
A Bedtime for Bear by Bonny Becker, ill. by Kady MacDonald Denton (Walker Books 2010)
The Bear by Raymond Briggs (Red Fox 1994)
Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers (HarperCollins 2005)
The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss (HarperCollins 1956)
The Great Cheese Robbery by Tim Warnes (Little Tiger Press 2015)
SourcesJudith Kerr on BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs (2004)WikipediaThis Japanese secret to a longer and happier life is gaining attention from millions around the world (CNBC.COM)The Tiger Who Came To Tea: author Judith Kerr discusses 50 years of classic book (The Irish News, 29 May 2019) Tiger! Tiger! Burning Bright (The Guardian, 29 November 2008)Fifty years after her tiger came to tea, Judith Kerr lets loose a crocodile (The Independent, 24 Septemeber 2014)Why Mog Had To Die (The Guardian, 4 December 2002)Judith Kerr reveals the story behind The Tiger who Came to Tea - BBC NewsnightMay 24, 2019
Learning through play
© 2014 by Tim Warnes
[A]s well as a great story, DANGEROUS! provides a beautiful demonstration of nouns and adjectives in play.
— Angela Inns, Librarian (Readingzone.com)
I was recently contacted by Marjolijn Sonneveld, Youth Librarian at Bibliotheek Westland in the Netherlands, who wrote to tell me how her team of Educational Librarians use my book, DANGEROUS! to inspire early readers.
They have repeated the event over the last four years. 'It is still a big success,' says Marjolijn. '41 groups in a year hear about your cute crocodile. And they love it.'
DANGEROUS! (Little Tiger Press 2014) is set in a sandy, boggy, coniferous forest - the kind of place you might find a Heffalump trap or spot a misplaced Swimming Animal atop a tall pine. It's a habitat I roamed as a child, and continue to enjoy nowadays, here in Dorset.
Featuring an obsessive little mole, my story begins:
Mole loved labelling things.
All sorts of things.
Anything really.
Naming things was what Mole liked best.
from DANGEROUS! © 2014 by Tim Warnes
Using post-it notes, Marjolijn dresses the library as if Mole has visited, covering everywhere with labels ("On the computer, the chairs, the books, on everything!) - and tells the children that something strange happened during the night. The kids are then sent on a word hunt. "Children love to read all of them."
When Mole finds 'something unusual on the path', he is dumbfounded. Unable to name it, he begins to describe it instead, covering it with a multitude of sticky notes and adjectives. 45 in total!
from DANGEROUS! © 2014 by Tim Warnes
Lumpy, bumpy, knobbly, bobbly, scaly, rough and peculiar… it was tricky to find so many. (I asked my boys for ideas - they came up with mossy and pine-coney, which I thought were really descriptive.) From time to time, I come up with a new word. I wish I could just keep adding to the list. For example, last week I discovered the word scabrous, meaning ‘a rough surface’. If only it had been in my vocabulary when I was writing the book.
Marjolijn recreates this pivotal scene using a large, inflatable crocodile, adorned with more post-its. As the young visitors gather round, they wonder, ‘Who did this?’
© 2019 by Marjolijn Sonneveld
Using a powerpoint presentation, she reads my story, introducing de kinderen to Mole and the Lumpy-Bumpy Thing. 'And we play and see words and tell them how your vision on what first seem strange and big and sharp and dangerous can change if you make friends.'
That last line brought a smile to my face. Because although DANGEROUS! has turned out to be a fun tool for teaching the difference between nouns and adjectives, it was not my primary goal in telling the story.For me, it was about being non- judgemental, not acting on first impressions - because the real danger is that we may be wrong. Beneath all the wordplay, DANGEROUS! is a story of acceptance, tolerance and ultimately friendship.
(Credit goes to my editor at Little Tiger Press who suggested we restrict Mole to nouns at the start. In fact, my very first sketches for the story show Mole labelling stuff - but using a mixture of nouns and adjectives.)
What I find most exciting about Marjolijn's email is her enthusiasm. Imagine being a youngster and experiencing that! My local library, with its thoughtful librarians, played a massive part in my early years - so hearing from this Dutch library really made my day.
Have you used my books (in the classroom or at home) as teaching tools? I'd love to hear your suggestions for engaging literacy activities. Please drop me a line: tim@chapmanandwarnes.com.
With thanks to Marjolijn Sonneveld for allowing me to share Bibliotheek Westland's teaching ideas available from your local indie bookseller or wherever books are sold"Packed with adjectives, it's fantastic for expanding your child's vocabulary too."
- lovereading4kids.co.uk
© 2015 by Tim Warnes
BUY NOW (UK)
BUY NOW (US)
"a charming lesson in the perils of judging a book by its cover"
Rebecca Davies, The Independent
Nominated - Kate Greenaway Medal 2015
Finalist - Coventry Inspiration Book Awards 2016
Shortlisted - Oscar's First Book Prize 2015
Longlisted - North Somerset Teachers' Book Awards 2015
Shortlisted - IBW Book Award 2016
© 2018 by Tim Warnes
Good to Read
Featuring other Lumpy-Bumpy Things!
Melrose and Croc by Emma Chichester Clark (HarperCollins 2005)
The Enormous Crocodile by Roald Dahl, ill. by Quentin Blake (Jonathan Cape 1978)
Alligators All Around, part of The Nutshell Library Collection by Maurice Sendak (HarperCollins 1962)
The Crocodile’s Toothache, featured in Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein (Harper and Row 1974)
WARNING! This Book May Contain Rabbits by Tim Warnes (Little Tiger Press 2016)
© 2005 by Emma Chichester Clark
SourcesReadingzone.comLovereading4kids.co.uk
May 17, 2019
Into the Woods
from The Big Book Adventure © 2018 by Tim Warnes (adapted from Tenniel’s Alice illustrations)
… there is a relaxing privacy to a wood… a wood is a desert island - but of solitude, and plumb in the middle of rural England. A wood is an escape.
— John Lewis-Stempel
At the moment I am reading The Wood by John Lewis-Stempel. It’s a passionate ode to woodland, full of interesting facts and poetic language. It has me captivated - and was the inspiration behind this week’s post.
Shortly after 5 am on Sunday, May 5th I was in the woods - Tincleton Hang - enjoying the magic of the dawn chorus.As the darkness slowly faded, blackbirds and garden warblers welcomed me into their secret world. A distant pheasant cok-coked, as more birds joined the chorus — thrushes and siskens; woodpigeons, robins and wrens. At about 6.15 am, I sat on a low tree stump, soft with moss, and cracked open my flask of tea. From above came a rhythmic swooshing, as of a hefty stick being wielded as a weapon, cutting the air: an incoming raven, announcing his presence with a deep, hearty cronk.
Can you tell I love being in the woods? They offer me a great sense of peace, and I find myself slowing down, wandering in search of something - yet nothing. Woodlands hold their secrets tightly, but are willing to share if we just take our time to look and listen. They are a place of solace and mystery.
© 2019 by Tim Warnes
Within the tradition of stories, notably children’s literature, readers are more likely to be warned of the dangers awaiting them if they stray off the path and head into the woods, than encouraged to seek out their solitude. It starts as early as pre-school with Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel and any number of fairy tales. (Even my recollection of the teddy bears’ picnic has sinister undertones: If you go down to the woods today, you’re in for a big surprise…)
Cautionary tales are rooted in oral storytelling, with our ancestors gathered around a fire. And in days of old, people would have had reason to fear the woods.Predatory animals; the risk of getting lost and separated; rival clans.
Falling acorns. (Silly Chicken Licken.)
This natural caution has become so entrenched in the human psyche that it continued to influence modern children’s literature. Examples include -
The thick woods of Oz (so creepily portrayed in the classic MGM movie):
There was no way of going around it, for it seemed to extend to the right and left as far as they could see; and, besides, they did not dare change the direction of their journey for fear of getting lost. So they looked for the place where it would be easier to get into the forest… just as [the Scarecrow] came under the first branches they bent down and twined around him, and the next minute he was raised from the ground and flung headlong among his fellow travellers.
- The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
Little Wolf’s experience of Frettnin Forest:
The fox was right. This IS the shockingest, dismalest darkest part of the forest… Talk about spooky. So overgrown, with eyes and croaks and squeaks everywhere! Good thing I have got my torch…
- Little Wolf’s Book of Badness by Ian Whybrow
Mole’s disorientation in the Wild Wood:
The pattering increased till it sounded like sudden hail on the dry-leaf carpet spread around him. The whole wood seemed running now, running hard, hunting, chasing, closing in round something or - somebody? In panic, he began to run too, aimlessly, he knew not whither. He ran up against things, he fell over things and into things, he darted under things and dodged round things. At last he took refuge in the deep dark hollow of an old beech tree, which offered shelter, concealment - perhaps even safety, but who could tell?… And as he lay there panting and trembling, and listened to the whistlings and the patterings outside, he knew it at last, in all its fullness, that dread thing which other little dwellers in field and hedgerow had encountered here, and known as their darkest moment - the thing which the Rat had vainly tried to shield him from - the Terror of the Wild Wood!
- The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
from The Wind in the Willows © by E.H. Sheperd 1908
A few years ago, Noah and I got lost in an unfamiliar woodland - Duncliffe Wood - at dusk. As the gloom deepened, I trotted faster, anxious to find our way out. Night fell - and we were lost. We eventually managed to pick our way to the edge of the woods, found a remote farmhouse, and were pointed in the direction of the car park. Grahame’s description of the panicky Mole - who’s rising fear is palpable - suddenly became all too real.
The examples above are from stories I love (Little Wolf’s Book of Badness is just about My Favourite Book To Read Aloud). But I wonder - how much do such cautionary tales, set in woodlands and forests, breed fear and mistrust; warning kids away from - rather than enticing them into - their leafy embraces?
For a more positive portrayal of woodland, I recommend Simon James’s celebratory picture book, The Wild Woods (Walker Books 1993).The story is dedicated to Plymbridge Woods in Devon - and you can tell from James’ evocative art that this is a wood that he knows and loves.
from The Wild Wood © 1993 by Simon James. Used by permission
It features Grandad and Jess, who is led astray by an enticingly cute squirrel - with her poor, old grandad in hot pursuit! (For some reason, whenever I read it I aloud I give them Yorkshire accents.)
“But Jess, come back!” shouted Grandad. “You can’t keep a squirrel. Where’s he going to sleep?”
Part of its appeal to me is that it reflects my childhood experience of woodland walks, while reminding me of when our boys were young. (Jane and I had a mantra when it came to squirrels - if you catch it you can keep it!)
from The Wild Wood © 1993 by Simon James. Used by permission
“Hurry up, Grandad!” said Jess. “Come and see. I think I’ve found a waterfall.”
What follows is a silent spread, with no words - a device used by James to allow us to pause - just as his characters do - and stare out across the raging river with its waterfall (Grandad leans against a tree, mopping his brow and looking exhausted!). James’ use of expressive watercolour is perfect for capturing the fluidity and movement of the scene. As with his other illustration, it reveals great skill with the medium, which looks deceptively easy but which is, in fact, a swine to master.
from The Wild Wood © 1993 by Simon James. Used by permission
“I love being in the wild,” Jess said. “Can we come back tomorrow?”
A visit to a sanitised wood, with waymarks and toilets and passers-by, will still hold secret things of beauty. But I am always left feeling cheated. And as James’ The Wild Wood exemplifies, books about the woodlands or forests don’t have to be full of suspense and drama. They can be nothing but a glorious celebration.
I hope I get to create such a book someday.
With thanks to Simon James for granting permission to use his workVisit Simon James Books to see moreGood to ReadPositive portrayals of woods
Picture BooksToot and Puddle - Let It Snow by Holly Hobbie (Little Brown 2007)
The Wild Woods by Simon James (Walker Books 1993)
Time to Say Goodnight by Sally Lloyd-Jones, ill. by Jane Chapman (HarperCollins 2006)
Down in the Woods at Sleepytime by Carole Lexa Schaefer, ill. By Vanessa Cabban (Walker Books 2000)
Chapter BooksDanny Champion of the World by Roald Dahl
Winne-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne, ill. by E.H.Shepherd
Calvin and Hobbes (various titles) by Bill Watterson
SourcesThe Wood. The Life and Times of Cockshutt Wood by John Lewis-Stempel (Doubleday 2018)The Wizard of Oz by Frank L. Baum Little Wolf’s Book of Badness by Ian Whybrow, ill. By Tony Ross (Collins 1995)The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame (Methuen 1926)The Wild Wood by Simon James (Walker Books 1993)My Life in Books
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