Part A Boy and His Bunny (BCCB 4/05), part The Giving Tree, this is a joyous addition to any wordless picture book collection. STEPHEN MICHAEL KING CHILDREN’S PICTURE BKS INDIVIDUALLY PRICED Childrens Books Gumtree Australia Canning Area - Wilson 1277800427 A collection of picture books from Australian author and illustrator Stephen Michael King and various other authors Delightful stories and engaging.
King dabs muted color playfully across the figures, the lines always dominating, often restricting a page to two or three subtle hues of (appropriately) earthy green and brown and a touch of steely sky blue. Copious white space and deft use of simple lines and details make the watercolor illustrations cozy yet clever. In one scene, the boy falls asleep and has a series of seedling-threatening nightmares involving a giant caterpillar and rogue hedge-clippers. The boy’s zest for life is fully apparent as he cartwheels across pages and plays with his pup, and the sound effects (the only words) add further bounce and gusto. In a rapid-fire series of spindly pen-and-ink drawings, King records the boys attempts to preserve the seedling that has sprouted on top of his head and his jubilant frolicking with his similarly eager dog. The windup is a little heavy-handed and the protagonist’s initial gender ambiguity may make the conclusion a little startling up until then, though, this is a winsome and wonderful story that offers young viewers themes of humor, playfulness, introspection, and problem solving.
Retrieving the little seedling, he plants it outside, where it grows into a tree as time passes the boy too grows, continuing to come back and see the tree over the years, accompanied in his last appearance by a pregnant wife and two children. The boy is delighted with the plant, inventively attempting ways to care for it (he finally waters it by stepping in the shower), but unfortunately all revels are ended when the boy’s mother gives him a buzz cut. After a bird drops a seed on the boy’s head, it sprouts into a plant. Most of all Stephen loves to draw and spend time with his family.This nearly wordless picture book follows a shaggy-haired, high-spirited boy, who dodges his mother’s threat of a haircut by diving headfirst into a stand of bushes. The White Raven label is given to books that deserve worldwide attention because of their universal themes and/or their exceptional and often innovative artistic and literary style and design. He’s won the prestigious CBCA award for Best Junior Fiction Book, been selected for America’s “Pick of the list”, and the international “White Raven”.
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