As I smack down some lamingtons over the Straya Day long weekend, I am reminded of how my first encounter with half of the Aussie Coat of Arms filled me with unaccountable terror. A bristling periscopic neck thrust its way deep into our car’s interior in search of edible morsels as I shrank deep into the rear seat. Being young and unacquainted with the ways our largest flightless bird, I convinced myself their diet must include the tender noses of young innocents. Thankfully I was wrong. And thankfully, the talented team who brought us Town Possum, Outback Possum, Yvonne Morrison and Heath McKenzie, have created a version of Aesop’s well-known fable, The Goose That Laid the Golden Eggs, entertaining enough to salve my terrifying first impression of – the emu.
But are all emus as undiscerning and bold enough to lunge for any old scrap? Apparently not, for Emma’s taste requires greater stimulation than the mere leftovers the rest of her flock dines on. Her insatiable appetite leads her far from home until exhausted and starving; she gorges on what she mistakes for kernels of corn. You’d think laying a golden egg would stem your starvation somewhat but it does little to abate her hunger and she soon abandons the glimmering egg.
Enter stage right, the baddies; two rotten scoundrels, keen on stealing whatever they can get their grubby little, pink paws on. Before long, Emma is trapped by their devious plot to become the richest possums this side of the goldfields. Their crafty plan soon unravels thanks to Emma’s gluttony and a certain black beetle. Jammy Emma escapes to reunite with her flock and the realisation that greed gains nothing, and leftovers taste far better than, ‘brass, glass and gold!’ (Which I hasten to point out; is why it is paramount to keep your windows up when driving through wild life reserves featuring roving emus. Tourists confined in cars are nearly always a better option for them than running down bugs.)
This charismatic picture book portraits our oft times misunderstood emu as a hugely likeable misfit who is just after a good feed. I adore Morrison’s trade-mark lilting verse, and really relish a picture book which dares to include vibrant snappy vocabulary; vital for enabling young children to strengthen their literacy muscle. Unforced, clever and chock-full of interesting and evocative words and images, the swaying rhyme is a delight to read out loud.
McKenzie’s bold illustrations bounce off the page with as much zeal and fervour as a hungry emu bounding towards a car full of tourists with an open bag of CCs. Brilliant and fun.
I still harbour one or two reservations about emus. Hard not to when they stalk up close and stare you down with those Delphic, ember-coloured eyes. But I have absolutely no reservations in recommending The Emu That Laid the Golden Egg to anyone who loves a true-blue Aussie yarn, iconic Aussie characters and the odd blowfly or two.
Oi! Oi! Oi!
Published by Little Hare Books 2012
The Big Book of Words and Pictures by Ole Könnecke,Gecko Press
This is definitelya big board book (about 35cm tall) so it’s probably best viewed on the floor –both you and your preschooler, that is. In fact, you may even like to justleave it lying on the floor in view of the preschooler, and watch what happens.Hopefully the child will open the sturdy pages and become intrigued by thesimple, attractive displays. There is no story, just a host of objects on eachpage with names underneath. The first page contains child-related objects(book, bed, pillow, teddy bear), the third and fourth pages contain householdobjects such as spoon, frying pan, bib, chair – and so on through topics suchas the seasons, food, animals, the sea, flight, transport, music, sports, etc.Most objects are within the ken of a 3-year-old (for instance) but you may becalled upon to explain some unfamiliar items, such as moisturiser,overtrousers, secateurs, sleigh bells, unicycle, water pump, petanque... Thebook was originally published in German, so does not have a New Zealand tone.However the illustrations are fresh and appealing, and the interested adultwill pick up subtle flashes of humour tucked away here and there.
ISBN 978 1877467 87 5 RRP $29.99
Reviewed byLorraine Orman
The illustration above is from a picture book I recently completed called 'My Aussie Dad' by Yvonne Morrison. It's due out soon with Scholastic Australia.
When I was a kid, I used to draw an awful lot. The subject matter at first (several years) was fairly narrow in scope. Anything with wheels. This annoyed my mother, a handy fine artist herself, because she believed that I was capable of drawing other things that were wildly more interesting. Also, she felt slightly annoyed that I would seek my father out for drawing advice. Generally speaking he was a hopeless drawer, but he did have a knack for drawing vehicles. Very simple vehicles. His machines were fairly normal looking except that they always had these cool little, weeny wheels. The wheels looked ridiculously small in comparison to the load they were carrying. I thought they were bloody fantastic. Eventually, of course, I got tired of drawing cars, trucks and motorbikes jumping things and moved on to landscapes and girls.
Every now and then, these days, I have an opportunity to draw a car or truck or row of trucks ('Wendy' below).
And not a whole lot has changed. Aside from a bit of perspective, I still draw them fundamentally the same way that I used to as a kid. It's just the way I see them in my head. They have the normal shape (although somewhat bubble-like) with the tiny (abnormally strong!) wheels. I only noticed this quite recently. It must be a subconscious thing.
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