Some lovely new books

Some new additions to our collection have made their way to us, a mix of ex library, op shop, local secondhand online seller, and Kmart!

East O' the Sun and West O' the Moon - P.J. Lynch (Illustrated)

I couldn't resist this book for so many reasons, firstly, it is a beautiful fairy tale with so many wonderful archetypes and hidden depth. It is a kind of Beauty and the Beast tale, with a heroines journey to save the Prince and win true love. Secondly, I love the illustrations of P.J. Lynch, they are so detailed, dramatic, evocative and they truly bring this already wonderful story to life. There appear to be many beautifully illustrated version of this story, so you can't really go wrong, but P.J. Lynch really brings a master stroke.

Book description:

A kind of Scandanavian Beauty and the Beast, this epic and romantic story about a bewitched prince and the determined lassie who loves him has just about everything: Rags and riches, hags and heroism, magic and mystery, a curse and a quest, wicked trolls and, finally, a happy ending.

The Wreck of the Zephyr - Chris Van Allsburg

Chris Van Allsburg's books are always stunningly illustrated, with dreamlike images portrayed in the most detailed and realistic style, a surreal realism if you will. I find his stories fairly sparse, but they create enough of a world to accompany the other world he is creating with his illustrations. I had never heard of this book, and chanced upon it in an op shop, and we really enjoyed it, of course we do like books about boats and sailing, so sailing through the air just added another dimension of magic to an already beloved theme.

Book description

At the edge of a cliff lies the wreck of a small sailboat. How did it get there? "Waves carried it up in a storm," says an old sailor. But is it possible that waves could ever get that high? There is another story—the story of a boy and his obsessive desire to be the greatest sailor, the story of a storm that carried the boy and his boat to a place where boats glide like gulls high above the water and not upon it. Chris Van Allsburg tells that story of the boy and his boat, the Zephyr, in words and haunting, full-color pastel paintings. His sailboats sail the night sky with the stars in pictures so vivid that the reader can almost hear the wind in the sails. Here is a work of unusual artistry that will enchant readers of all ages for many years to come.

Owl Moon - Jane Yolen

An ex-Library book that I purchased for 20 cents! I hadn't actually heard of it, but it had a Caldecott medal on its cover so who was I to pass this up? For me a picture book simply must have beautiful illustrations, because they carry the story, and they tell their own story. this is a lovely book, detailing such a sweet and special Father daughter moment, combined with the majesty and poignancy of a pure encounter with nature. A wonderful book for a cold winters night snuggled up!

Book description

Late one winter night a little girl and her father go owling. The trees stand still as statues and the world is silent as a dream. Whoo-whoo-whoo, the father calls to the mysterious nighttime bird.

But there is no answer.

Wordlessly the two companions walk along, for when you go owling, you don't need words. You don't need anything but hope. Sometimes there isn't an owl, but sometimes there is.

Distinguished author Jane Yolen has created a gentle, poetic story that lovingly depicts the special companionship of a young child and her father as well as humankind's close relationship to the natural world. Wonderfully complemented by John Schoenherr's soft, exquisite watercolor illustrations, this is a verbal and visual treasure, perfect for reading aloud and sharing at bedtime.

The Jolly Pocket Postman - Janet and Allan Ahlberg

I love the Jolly Postman!!! I loved it as a child and now I get to share it with my kids! My middle child pulled out the Christmas Jolly Postman book randomly, so I looked up the original book and saw that this book existed, which was released kind of after my time so I hadn't heard of it. Anyway I was pretty happy to find it at Kmart. It is just so much fun, and pretty crazy, and really fun to read aloud, and of course the kids fight to open the envelopes (in sort of a nice way....) Janet and Allan Ahlberg can do no wrong.

Book description

The third adventure for the Jolly Postman, complete with envelopes and letters big and very small!

Once more the Jolly Postman rides - and flies - and shrinks!

This brilliant book by Janet and Allan Ahlberg is the third adventure for the Jolly Postman, originally published in 1995 and now back in print! The Jolly Postman's morning is set off course when he suffers a bump to the head before he shrinks to the size of a postage stamp . . . and it just gets curiouser and curiouser!

Featuring a whole host of familiar characters, pull-out letters and a magnifying glass.

The Dream of the Thylacine - Margaret Wild and Ron Brooks

Margaret Wild is a wonderful writer and I have many of her books. This book is devastating, and difficult to read without getting emotional. It flickers between the grainy old movie stills of this creature in a Hobart zoo in 1930, the last of its kind, and the sweeping colour and life of its dream as it runs and lives through the Tasmanian wilderness. It reads like a timeless ancient poem, a powerful voice, silenced by time. This is very powerful, and heartbreaking. Perhaps not for young children.

Book description

The Dream of the Thylacine is a lament for a lost species, and a celebration of the Australian landscape. It interposes arresting text and images of the last known thylacine in a concrete cage with sweeping colour paintings of the animal in its natural environment. Intense, poetic and beautiful, this book will haunt you.

Kuan Yin - Kath Lock, Frances Kelley, Steven Woolman

I love religous stories, especially if they are beautifully illustrated, because much can be learned through the story form of these great spiritual figures as well as their accompanying cultures. They are teachings stories, and inspire an elevated way of life. I'm not that familiar with many Kuan Yin stories, so I jumped at the opportunity when I found this at a library sale.

Book description

Kuan Yin, goddess of compassion, helps the beautiful fifth wife escape marriage to an old and evil lord. This story is from ancient China where Kuan Yin is revered today.