A pair of foxes
I couldn’t find a good term of venery for two foxes, but hopefully that won’t make this post any less eloquent. Neither should, I hope, the fact that these two books are brought together not only because of the fox connection, but because I desperately need to return them to the Library!
Onwards.
My Father’s Arms are a Boat, 2012 (original Nowegian edition published 2008)
Author: Stein Erik Lunde
Illustrator: Øyvind Torseter
This book finds its way back into my library pile, again and again. I am drawn to the huge feeling given in the combination of soft, simple words, and the tender, naïve illustrations. The combination of author and illustrator is perfect, and the whole book creates an atmosphere greater than the sum of its parts. A soft, dull ache, in moments so deeply raw and new…
A cool, muted colour palette combines with a rich fiery warmth and strong light and dark contrasts. This range gives depth, evoking the bright, harsh snow and deep dark shadows of night. There is a resonance here, with the feelings of the characters and ideas explored – the sleepy child who can’t sleep and is navigating a world beyond his years, and a father coming to terms with a situation beyond his control. The overarching sense of stillness and wonder creates a sophisticated world that doesn’t shy from the depth and difficulty of the subject matter, but presents a sense of reality and truth – it is ok for the reader to be joining this journey.
And the fox? It continues its own journey through the night, a bright spark of life in the cool darkness…
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The Fox and the Star, 2015
Author/Illustrator: Coralie Bickford-Smith
WOW! I don’t know how I’ve missed this amazing artist until this book (especially seeing how much I have admired those Penguin clothbound classics…). You can find more beautiful work here.
This beautiful book cover reminds me of William Morris, which is lucky as this is clearly a huge inspiration for the artist. I love the intricacies and flowing patterns of the cover and endpapers, and this continues throughout the book, sometimes confined within a border, sometimes flowing off the edge of the page. Bickford Smith is clearly a master of pattern.
The whole story pulsates with life – small beetles, stars, spiderwebs and would capture the attention of even the smallest reader. There is a sense sophistication and refinement that is reminiscent of medieval illuminated manuscripts, which adds to the sense of this being a story for the ages – a folktale or fable. I love how Bickford-Smith uses the book as an object to aid the storytelling – a deep dark cover and very classic preliminary pages, but then she moves into a world of macro/micro, realistic description/conceptual symbols, creating a complex and intriguing journey. The typography also ranges from classic through to illustrative. I also love the bursting orange of the fox and leaves, first hinted at with glimpses of fur.
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SO MUCH LOVE for these two books. Beautiful design, beautiful illustration, beautiful stories.