Illustrated books for young imaginations

THE BRAVE TURTLE | By BD Harris | Illustration by Megan Bird | Publisher: Imagnary House | ISBN: 9780639934389

Having collaborated with the NSRI for this innovative fundraising and awareness initiative over a number of months, the intention was to bring to life a book that would illustrate the power and magic of the ocean and its creatures. In addition, the Two Oceans Aquarium has assisted with valuable information on the plight of our turtles. The result is The Brave Turtle, a beautifully illustrated story that will grip readers, young and old.

Imagine what could happen if it just kept raining and raining and raining and the water rose and rose! For our heroine Sam, who rolls off her bed late one night and, with a splash, finds her entire room flooded, this is the beginning of a huge adventure. And it’s not just her room, the whole house is filling with water as the world floods outside. Confused and cold, Sam is rescued by a wise little turtle called Neville who takes her along the beautiful underwater highway, teaching her the ways of this watery world.

Floating on driftwood, upturned cars and general flotsam, humans and sea creatures work together to search and save those lost in the floods. This is a wonderful story that carries many underlying messages, the main one being that if you’re in the water: ‘Keep calm’.

Not only does the book offer lifesaving messages but it creates awareness of our turtle population. Profits from the sale of this book will be donated to the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) to extend their water safety and drowning prevention programmes.

THE CHALK GIRAFFE | By Kirsty Paxton | Illustration by Megan Lötter | Publisher: Imagnary House | ISBN: 9780639934334

What sort of landscape would you like to live in? Imagine if you had the chance to tell the artist how you wanted to look? Well, the animals of Africa – starting with the giraffe – have a say in creating their own personal landscape when our artistic child draws a giraffe in chalk. When the drawings magically come to life, the characters become rather demanding art critics, and some things have to change!

We all know how fabulous it is to draw with chalk and create characters that we love and then rub them clean when we want to change them, only to recreate the original picture. In The Chalk Giraffe, author Kirsty Paxton gives us all these elements along with rhyming text and a creative child with wildly messy hair and a vivid imagination. When her creation comes to life and asks for more colourful surroundings, she happily draws them for him.

“‘I’m alone,’ he cried out, ‘there’s just grey all around’. So I drew him a tree growing up from the ground.”

But as he asks for more and more, our little artist gets frustrated and things start to unravel! What follows is a quirky and humorous tale of creativity and perspective, with the beautiful African landscape as a backdrop to this unlikely friendship.

THE STRAW GIANT AND THE CROW | Author/Illustrator: Jess Bosworth Smith | Publisher: Imagnary House | ISBN: 9780639934310

This heartfelt and off-the-wall story about a mysterious relationship between a straw giant and a crow has you entering the magical and mysterious world that author and illustrator Jess Bosworth Smith has created around these two unlikely characters.

There is a field afar that holds an incredible secret... a giant lives there who is made of straw. One winter, grumpy and miserable with his cold surroundings, the Straw Giant chases away all the other animals in his field. That is, until the Crow arrives and begins to leave him little gifts each morning.

A sweet and subtle friendship emerges – but will the Crow be able to last the Winter Solstice? Will their friendship defy the cold clutches of winter and last out?

FARRAH IS NOT A DALMATIAN | Author/Illustrator: Adrie le Roux | Publisher: Bumble Books | ISBN: 9780994690739

Poor Farrah. She is a small dog with a big problem. Everyone thinks she is a Dalmatian and all she wants is to be recognised for what she really is… an English Pointer. What happens when no one notices you are different?

Farrah is NOT a Dalmatian was inspired by Adrie le Roux’s sister’s dog, an English Pointer, who people often mistook for a Dalmatian.

A popular author and illustrator, Le Roux’s talent brings this delightful character to life and takes the young (and older) reader on a journey that reinforces that no matter how different we all seem to be, we are in fact all the same.

Farrah is NOT a Dalmatian is available in English and Afrikaans. A percentage of all proceeds from sales will be donated to the Underdog Project.

WHAT ON EARTH AM I? | By Lara Salomon | Illustration by Megan Bird | Publisher: Imagnary House | ISBN: 9780639934303

The curiosity of a child knows no bounds. Questions about what they are in the big world can take a child on a magical journey of self-discovery, but can also be confusing.

What on Earth am I? explores complex topics such as identity, diversity, and existentialism, which all come to life through Lara Salomon’s delightful verse and imaginatively visualised under Megan Bird’s talented pen. Simply put – a dive into identity and deep world-questions posed in a fun way for kids.

It’s easy to understand how a small child may become confused as to what they are. So many stories and so many characters, but where do I fit in? Salomon deftly deals with this in easy to memorise rhymes, which ask all those puzzling questions that a child may ask after being read many fairy stories.

There are more questions than answers, but this is a book that will have a lasting place on a child’s bookshelf.