adage, ‘be careful what you wish for’.


Although


the political and p h il o so p h ic a l undertones are clear to the adult reader, the visual and verbal tone of the storytelling never preaches but delivers its message in a friendly, playful and mischievous manner.


That


message is all the more resonant for arriving inside this comedic ‘Trojan Horse’. You can’t have light without dark


– and the


people of the city soon realise this. The King is never portrayed as a ‘baddie’ but as vulnerable and misguided. The storytelling is perfectly structured in classic fairy tale style and exploits a simple two-colour palette to maximum effect to convey the relentlessness of a world without dark.


rendered in watercolour and gouache on a brown ‘paper-bag’ paper. The author’s studious avoidance of proselytism helps to deliver the ‘express yourself’ message all the more powerfully.


In recent years there have been countless variations on the Little Red Riding Hood theme in the world of the contemporary picturebook. The origins of the story can be traced back to 10th century Europe before being reinvented along the way by, among others, Charles Perrault and the Brothers Grimm. The story’s archetypal, timeless nature allows it to be adapted and reinterpreted in endlessly inventive ways, appropriate to time and place. In Red and the City, Marie Voigt replaces the deep, dark forest with the dull grime


There may be plenty of picturebooks themed around the metaphor of ‘reaching for the stars’ and learning to value what we already have but Fifi Kuo’s I Can’t Can Fly stands out from the crowd for its empathy, economy and once again, pure charm. Little Penguin’s urge to fly is described through simple blue and black coloured pencil drawings – no stylistic tricks or techniques, digital effects or complex combinations of media. It is the author’s absolute understanding of emotions expressed through body language, gesture and movement that makes the character so compelling and engages us so fully with his hopes, fears, disappointments and ultimate joy. Kuo is a major talent to arrive on the picturebook-making scene.


The inevitable attention that has surrounded Julian is a Mermaid by Jessica Love centres primarily around its theme of gender identity. Once again, a prominent contemporary topic finds its way into the picturebook-maker’s domain. Julian loves mermaids. He daydreams mermaids and at home he gathers clothes and plants with which to adorn himself and transform himself into one. His ‘abuela’ or ‘Nana’ as she is in the English version is depicted as quietly world-weary with an occasional look of mild surprise. But Nana is never judgmental as she takes Julian on a journey to a place full of mermaids (a thinly disguised Coney Island Mermaid Parade). Jessica Love’s artwork has a somewhat ‘raw’, untrained aesthetic,


and occasional bright lights of the modern urban jungle, with its distracting temptations of toys and sweets, guaranteed to lure Red away from the straight and narrow path of hearts that her mother had instructed her to follow. With Woody the dog playing a supporting, but important role in the visual narrative, this is an extremely well designed and produced picturebook. Voigt’s digital artwork employs red and half-tone black to striking narrative effect.


The Extraordinary Gardener by Sam Boughton, Tate, 978-1849765664, £9.99 hbk Looking After Daddy, Eve Coy, Andersen Press, 978-1783447107, £6.99 pbk


The King Who Banned the Dark, Emily Haworth-Booth, Pavilion Children’s Books, 978-1843653974, £6.99 pbk


I Can’t Can Fly, Fifi Kuo, Boxer Books, 978-1910716434, £11.99 hbk Julian Is a Mermaid, Jessica Love, Walker Books, 978-1406386424, £6.99 pbk


Red and the City, Marie Voigt, Oxford, 978-0192767745, £11.99 hbk


Martin Salisbury is Professor of Illustration at Cambridge School of Art, where he founded the MA in Children’s Book Illustration


Books for Keeps No.236 May 2019 13


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