Category Archives: Family

The Bippolo Seed and Other Lost Stories by Dr Seuss

Posted by Abbie Jury in Family, Picture books, Preschool picture book and tagged with

The Bippolo SeedTheodor Seuss Geisel may have shuffled off the mortal coils in 1991, but Dr Seuss is far from dead. Now we have a new book of seven stories. These were first published in magazines in the 1950s but have never been released in book form. I was particularly taken by the one called “Steak for Supper”, which I think is as delightful as any Dr Seuss I have read.

It is all vintage Seuss – same type of illustrations and the same rhyming verse with tongue twisters and repetition, the same curious beasties and good humoured quick wit. In terms of value for money, there are probably five books in one here and it is quite heavy on text. I am guessing that had there been more illustrations, they might have been released as separate books but with the author/illustrator so long dead, the publishers had to work with what they had. That said, most pages have a picture and it is typically bright, simple and colourful. You would probably still start with “The Cat in the Hat”, but families which are fans of Dr Seuss will want this book. With his typically restrained vocabulary, it is as relevant to learner readers so the interest age will be up to eight years old. This is a good book to take on family holidays because it crosses age groups from preschool to school age and there is plenty of material for reading aloud.

The Bippolo Seed and Other Lost Stories by Dr Seuss (Harper Collins; ISBN: 978 0 22 743845 7) reviewed by Abbie Jury

Sweet As by Garth Cartwright

Posted by Abbie Jury in Family and tagged with

Sweet AsI expected to enjoy this book which is subtitled: “Journeys in a New Zealand Summer”. It is a personal road trip story, written by an ex-pat journalist and author who has made his life in gritty South London. We know it is gritty because he tells us, at pains to let us know that he is used to living life on the edge. I thought he might bring some humour, verve and fresh insight to modern New Zealand with a touch of nostalgia for the country he left over two decades earlier. I was disappointed. It is long and wordy with convoluted sentences. There is far too much detail about each bend in the road and byway – both literally and figuratively, and rather too much of what felt like name-dropping. If there were many perceptive insights, they were a little too deeply buried.

The book might have benefited from some tight editing. The interest level simply wasn’t high enough to keep me persevering for 298 pages of rambling self indulgence.

Sweet As by Garth Cartwright (Allen and Unwin; ISBN: 978 1 87750508 9) reviewed by Abbie Jury.

Les Tres Riches Heures de Mrs Mole by Ronald Searle

Posted by Abbie Jury in Family and tagged with

Tres Riches Heures de Mrs MoleRonald Searle is probably best known for his cartoons and his St Trinian’s books, along with the Molesworth series. His style is very distinctive – often oversized bodies of animals or people topped with disproportionately small, angular heads and unmistakeable facial expressions conveyed with wonderful simplicity and humour. This little book is a special testimony to love – 47 drawings of Mrs Mole looking happy. You have to read the brief written notes to understand what it is about. These were private sketches done for his wife, one for each bout of chemotherapy as she began a fight against virulent breast cancer in 1969. They were Searle’s way of showing love and support in a situation where he was helpless in the face of her suffering. Each sketch celebrates Mrs Mole and an aspect of the life they planned together in a Provencal village.

The joy of the book is that, against all odds, Monica Searle survived and went on to live that very life with her husband for a further 40 years, not dying until July this year. Publishing the sketches in a small book format was clearly a mutual decision and the result is a touching affirmation of love, survival and simplicity. It is a wonderful book to give to any woman diagnosed with breast cancer but it may make a gift of love to any woman who is struggling with adversity in her life. There is such poignant charm in this little book of hope.

Les Tres Riches Heures de Mrs Mole by Ronald Searle (Harper Collins; ISBN: 978 0 00 744910 1) reviewed by Abbie Jury.

People by Blexbolex

Posted by Abbie Jury in Family and tagged with ,

People by Blexbolex

There are just two or three words (one of which is the indefinite article) and one illustration per page in this book by a French illustrator and cartoonist. He trained in screen printing and that is clear in the flat, very matt, deceptively simple pictures. It is the subtle nuances which make this book so rich – a blind man juxtaposed with a distracted man (the latter is about to walk into a post). A hostess is hurrying on a page facing a cat burglar in a very similar pose who is definitely sneaking furtively. A sailor and a siren, a romantic and a prince, a friend and a bully – there is much to look at, talk about and laugh at in this book. It is not for very young children. I would be holding off until the five to eight age range but in the end, I suspect it is another of those books which will be appreciated more by older siblings and adults. It is, perhaps, a book for children to grow into but it is also a book for families which are visually literate and inclined to conversation.

People by Blexbolex (Gecko Press; ISBN: 978 1 877467 78 3) reviewed by Abbie Jury.

Stories of the Wild West Gang by Joy Cowley

Posted by Abbie Jury in Family, Middle childhood and tagged with ,

Stories of the Wild West GangThe narrator, Michael, is the only child of prim and proper parents. He loves to escape the confines of a well ordered home and spend time with the unpredictable and wayward West family – his aunt, uncle and cousins. This new edition is a collation of ten individual stories, though they flow on from each other and there is development of the characters as the stories progress. Joy Cowley is one of our foremost children’s writers and these are rollicking, fun tales of family life and kids’ antics in a real world setting. There is plenty of laughter, irreverence and hilarity.

The stories were originally written as short chapter tales, perfect for the newly independent reader aged about 7 upwards as well as for the reluctant reader of maybe 10 or 11 or, indeed, for family reading aloud. The problem with this collated edition is that it is a thick book to handle so it may well appear too intimidating for a reluctant reader. Added to that, while the illustrations are by Trevor Pye who has a wonderful track record, the decision to go with a very retro, black and white style makes it look old fashioned. So I do not think this new edition is well suited to the reluctant reader in presentation, even though the content is appropriate. It is perfect family holiday reading, however, and children as young as 4 will enjoy sharing in the listening.

Stories of the Wild West Gang by Joy Cowley (Gecko Press; ISBN: 978 1 877467 85 1) reviewed by Abbie Jury.