Illustrators

Tales from the Inner City by Shaun Tan

January-February 2019, no. 408

It is hard to think of a more distinctive and idiosyncratic author than Western Australian Shaun Tan. Winner of the prestigious Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award for children’s literature, Tan’s work has also been recognised by numerous awards in speculative fiction, illustration, and children’s book ...

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Bunyips and Dragons (NGV)

by Margaret Robson Kett •

17 August 2015

The pleasures of looking at pictures from a young age inspired Albert Ullin. At the opening of this exhibition to mark his donation of eighty works by Australian children’s book illustrators to National Gallery of Victoria, he expressed the hope that they would be recognised as mainstream art.

In 1960, Ullin established the

Standing on the Shoulders of GIants: Insights from Great Australian Picture Book Authors and Illustrators by Mark Rafidi

by Ruth Starke •

April 2015, no. 370

Ruth Starke reviews 'Standing on the Shoulders of Giants' by Mark Rafidi

‘When I think about picture books,’ writes Mark Rafidi in the first line of his foreword, ‘the words of the young girl in David Legge’s Bamboozled strikes [sic] me immediately.’ What strikes me immediately is that Standing on the Shoulders of Giants is a book that hasn’t been properly edited. By the time I reached the final page I wondered ...

Stephanie Owen Reeder reviews 'ANZAC Biscuits' by Phil Cummings and Owen Swan, 'An ANZAC Tale' by Greg Holfeld and Ruth Starke, 'The Promise' by Derek Guille, Kaff-eine, and Anne-Sophie Biguet, 'Vietnam Diary' by Mark Wilson

by Stephanie Owen Reeder •

July–August 2013, no. 353

Stephanie Owen Reeder reviews 'ANZAC Biscuits' by Phil Cummings and Owen Swan, 'An ANZAC Tale' by Greg Holfeld and Ruth Starke, 'The Promise' by Derek Guille, Kaff-eine, and Anne-Sophie Biguet, 'Vietnam Diary' by Mark Wilson

Depicting war in a picture book requires a deft hand. Historical imperatives need to be considered, while also avoiding glorifying war for a young and impressionable audience. Ideally, such books should promote informed discussion rather than mindless militarism.

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Fog a Dox by Bruce Pascoe & Figaro and Rumba and the Crocodile Cafe by Anna Fienberg

by Joy Lawn •

May 2013, no. 351

Animals and friends are a perennial subject in children’s literature, and the junior novels and series books reviewed here highlight those interests. Most of these titles, however, are also notable because they are told with humour, even whilst exposing the anxieties of children.

Fog a Dox (Magabala Books, $19.95 pb, 111 pp, 9781921248559) is a new novel for primary-aged children by esteemed Indigenous writer Bruce Pascoe. The intriguing title springs from fox cub Fog, one of three pups rescued by ‘tree feller’ Albert Cutts and reared by his dingo-cross dog, Brim. Fog’s vixen sisters leave when they are old enough to survive on their own, but Fog stays, balancing his fox instincts with learned dog behaviour; Albert describes him as a ‘dox’.

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