> SMALL PRINT: DEIRDRE BAKER
Door By JiHyeon Lee (Chronicle, 56 pages, $25.50, ages 3 to 6)
Alost key, a curious child, a secret door … what more do you need for adventure? A boy unlocks an overgrown door and finds himself in a vivid, fantastical garden — but it’s occupied by beaky, strange-looking picnickers. At first, he’s terrified! But their invitation to play and picnic is unmistakable, and soon he’s frolicking with a crowd of new friends. This wordless picture book is full of airy light and humour, all set up by Lee’s delicate pencil crayon illustrations. With a playful combination of the surreal and the familiar, Lee gently invites us to get over our fears of others, take a leap of imagination and play. A mild, mysterious triumph that rewards many viewings.
The Extremely Inconvenient Adventures of Bronte Mettlestone, by Jaclyn Moriarty, with drawings by Karl James Mountford (Arthur A. Levine, 377 pages, $23.99, ages 8 to 13)
When Bronte Mettlestone’s parents are killed by pirates, Bronte isn’t particularly bothered. After all, they abandoned her to be brought up by an aunt, and she never really knew them. But then their will kicks in — a will bound by “Faery cross-stitch,” stipulating that unless Bronte delivers certain gifts to each of her 10 other aunts, disaster will ensue. Bronte’s gift-giving travels turn into a quest of sorts, one that surprises her not just with its eventfulness (prison, avalanche, dragons, elves and pirates, to name a few) but also with the way it helps her get to know her parents. Moriarty’s plot is tricky and clever, and Bronte’s an appealing heroine, exceptionally polite and with a good sharp edge to her. Indeed this whole story has an edge to its comic wit and inventiveness, and that’s in its celebration of the glory of aunts.
The Lost Words: A Spell Book, Written by Robert Macfarlane, illustrated by Jackie Morris (Anansi, 128 pages, $40, ages 9 to adult)
This sumptuous volume of poetry and art was inspired by nature words excised from the most recent edition of Oxford Junior Dictionary: acorn, adder, bluebell, raven, willow, wren … “To read it,” says the preface, “you will need to seek, find and speak.” In subtly coloured l etters, curling fern fronds and bramble vines, we’re invited to look for the words that hide. Turn the page and there’s Macfarlane’s poem, an evocation and celebration of plant or creature. With the poem comes Morris’s lavish image: lark, magpie, otter — with a vast, glorious spread of woods or waterways, nests or golden skies. A bestiary of sorts, a botany book, a lyric summoning of the very elements of nature that have vanished from the children’s dictionary, this is a magical tome for all ages. And Macfarlane’s poetry has everything to offer — a play of words that respects and nourishes children’s language. Highly recommended.
Daemon Voices: On Stories and Storytelling By Philip Pullman (Knopf, 455 pages, $40, ages 14 to adult)
Ostensibly for adults, this is a good book for thinking teens. Over 30 of Pullman’s occasional talks and articles are collected here, ranging in topic from the making of stories to a preface to Ol
iver Twist, from opinions about Christianity to a celebration of Renoir’s Bar at the Folies-Bergére. Where the collection has most meat — especially for fans of The Golden Compass et al. — is in its pieces on writing, fiction and storytelling, matters at which Pullman’s an expert. Articles on topics about which he’s an amateur (in the positive sense: a thoughtful enthusiast), such as art, film, theology and Burton’s The
Anatomy of Melancholy, will entice or annoy, depending on the reader’s expertise. But no matter the topic, Pullman is always forceful, opinionated and energetic, a robust combatant. A volume that illuminates the character of the author as much as it illuminates the topics he addresses. Deirdre Baker is author of Becca Fair and Foul.