Different strokes for ...
The Age
Friday January 8, 2010
ISABELLA'S GARDEN By Glenda Millard and Rebecca Cool Walker Books Australia $27.95 Mike Shuttleworth Reviewer "These are the flowers that waltz in the wind that ruffles the buds, all velvety-skinned that swelled the shoots that sought the sun."Stories and poems about the seasons are a staple of children's early books. The task for the author is therefore to make something fresh where so many have stepped before.In Isabella's Garden the playfully controlled rhymed verse makes reading aloud something of a game.Repetition and also a keen ear for the way words sound is a pleasure that the adult and child can share. Rebecca Cool's lush folk art paintings are well-matched to Millard's verse.The paintings have both texture and boldness of colour, and evoke feelings of pleasure and wonder.The cool greens and blues are a delicious backdrop for the unfolding story.While text and image draw upon traditional styles, the combination of the two still produces something original and joyful.
© 2010 The Age
Share This