Two Rhyming picture books by Mara Bergman - Reviewed by Chitra Soundar

This week I had the wonderful opportunity to read these two rhyming texts written by Mara Bergman.

 

 

 

Mara is a master in narrative rhyme. Both these stories are full of intricate details and naturally falling rhythms, matched by the wonderful illustrations.

The Tall Man and the Small Mouse is illustrated by Birgitta Sif and Best Friends is illustrated by Nicola Slater.

 

I read these two books to my nephews – 8 and 5 – and they were engrossed in the story so much that they wanted to turn the page without waiting. They spent a long time poring over the little details in the illustrations from the endpapers to the main characters.

 

In The Tall Man and the Small Mouse, we see how two people however different can work together if they work to their strengths and how such friendships are valuable and wonderful for all of us.

 

In Best Friends, we see three dogs, very different in their appearance and attitude making friends with each other and also connecting their families to be friends too. That’s what best friends do – they bring together everyone. It subtly reminds us that to be good friends and best friends, we don’t have to be cut of the same cloth.

 

In both the books, the rhyming verse is precise and beautiful and unexpected. The twists and turns in the story keep them wanting to turn the pages.

 

If you love rhyming books or dogs or clocks, if you love writing them or reading them, then don’t miss these two books. And check out all of Mara Bergman’s books – both for children and adults alike.

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Midnight Feasts - poems chosen by AF Harrold, Illustrated by Katy Riddell, reviewed by Dawn Finch

First the blurb...
One thing that unites us all – across time, nations and peoples – is food. From chocolate, rice pudding and sandwiches to breakfast in bed, banana phones and the fruit of a mythical jelabi tree, A.F. Harrold has brought together a wonderful and diverse collection of poems on the topic of food.

Illustrated in full colour by rising star Katy Riddell, this anthology brings together work from a broad range of poets, including William Carlos Williams, award-winning Joseph Coelho and Sabrina Mahfouz. 

I love a good poetry book, and this one is particularly delicious. A.F Harrold has expertly gathered together works by some of the finest poets for children and baked them into a collection that is deeply satisfying. The poems span continents, and cultures, and time all linked together with the one thing that binds us all - food.

There are so many feasts to be had here, and food from around the world is stuffed into the pages. I particularly enjoy the fact that this book contains so many different forms of poetry too. Here the reader can find poems from the hilariously funny (I laughed out loud at Harrold's own poem, "The Perils of Breakfast" and Cat Weatherill's "The Unknown Jelly Baby") to the deeply moving (Imtiaz Dharker's tiny gem-like poem of homesickness, "Crab Apples", is one of the most beautiful things I've read in a long time).

Katy Riddell provides the illustrations and she has a deft and charming touch that gives a sense of great familiarity to the pages. These seem to be people and places we know and recognise, and the food all looks as if we could pluck and eat from the pages. Her work makes this a very complete book, and a lavish-feeling physical object that will make a wonderful addition to any bookshelves and one that should be dipped into regularly. Snacked on, feasted on.

Stuff yourself with these poems, they're so delicious they should be fattening!

Dawn Finch is a children's author and librarian.
Chair of CWIG committee and trustee of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP)

www.dawnfinch.com
@dawnafinch




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