The Green Line
by Polly Farqaharson
(Frances Lincoln)
Inspired by her own perambulations on Hampstead Heath with her children, a photographer takes us on one such springtime walk. Seen through a child’s eyes, we share the marvellous things, large and small, seen in the park – wild flowers, seed heads, grasses, insects, birds, feathers and the like.
The whole thing is linked by a green line traversing the pages in loops and wiggles giving the sense of a complete journey, but one that allows time to stop and wonder at, and delight in, cloud formations, raindrops on the grass, reflections, lichenous tree trunks and the dappling effects of sunlight in the woods.
(reviewed by Jill Bennett)
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Tweedle Dee Dee
by Charlotte Voake
(Walker Books)
Using her own version of the traditional folk song, ‘The Green Leaves Grew Around’, the artist treat us to a gentle unfolding of spring through her sylvan watercolour spreads of an oak tree in which we see a song thrush, its nest, eggs and chicks. There is another unspoken story unfolding too as a boy and girl picnic beneath the tree, sharing their spread with a pair of frisky squirrels.
Everything about this one makes you feel, along with those baby birds, like singing with the joy of spring.
(reviewed by Jill Bennett)
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When will it be Spring?
by Catherine Walters
(Little Tiger Press)
It’s Alfie Bear’s first winter and he’s finding it hard to sleep. He keeps looking out of the cave to see if he can spot the signs of spring that Mum has told him about. He keeps wrongly thinking that spring is here, but when it finally arrives he finds it’s unmistakeable. This gently funny book is a delightful way to encourage children to look for the signs of spring themselves.
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The Busy Busy Day
by Claire Freedman, illustrated by Daniel Howarth
(Little Tiger Press)
The arrival of spring motivates two friends, Ginger (a cat) and Floppy (a rabbit), to do some gardening. Excitedly the pair rush outside but their best intentions are frustrated at every turn: new life in the form of baby robins, tiny hedgehogs, mice and even caterpillars all have their own special places and need part of the garden too. Maybe the garden will do fine as it is: it’s certainly the perfect place for a welcome spring picnic.
A delightful story with an environmental message.
(reviewed by Jill Bennett)
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