Grey by Laura Dockrill & Lauren Child (Walker Books, $29.99)
From Laura Dockrill, a poet and author who wrote her way out of postpartum psychosis, and the much-loved illustrator Lauren Child, comes this exquisite depiction of moods and sadness for young ones. A child feels the colours in the world have disappeared – no sunshine yellow, balloon-bright orange or treetop green – but the feeling of not belonging anywhere has to be the worst. Using spare illustrations, the book offers reassurance: a sympathetic adult offers hope with an outstretched hand, there’s chalk to colour grey pavements, red-coat hugs and the promise that the colours are still there, “inside you, not gone away”. The best book on feelings in a long time.
Big Gorilla: A Book of Opposites by Anthony Browne (Walker, $29.99)
No one does primates like Anthony Browne. And no one else could make a cliché into a work of art the way he does in this, (surprisingly) his first book of opposites. With stunning technical mastery, his chimps, gorillas, capuchin monkeys and orangutans express a wealth of emotion alongside a pared-down text conveying the opposite of important concepts: old, sad, heavy, big. For the opposite of alone, the king of wild things brings together every primate he’s ever enlivened, from Willie the chimp to Beauty the kitten’s sign language-communicating gorilla friend, in a marvellous crowd scene.
The Doll Box by Deborah Kelly & Joanna Bartel (EK/Exisle Books, $29.99)
A sweet intergenerational story about finding your strengths through your heritage, this tale gives more than a nod to classics such as Milly Molly Mandy and Charlotte Zolotow’s enduring The Sky Was Blue. Overcoming fears, resisting stereotypes and believing in herself, Isla follows the example of the family dolls in her wee tin suitcase – “If she can do it so can I.” There’s an exuberance of pattern on every page, including the endpapers from the illustrator, who also designed the book. For every child who’s ever played with dolls.
Wren’s Nest by Heidi EY Stemple & Eugenia Nobati (Familius, $45)
When she was born, Wren’s Grandpa built a box outside her bedroom window so nesting birds could sing her to sleep. Moving house as the family grows, a new box draws no occupants – but another small bird arrives to nest above her window – and provide a name for her new baby sister, Phoebe. Quirky illustrations lift this story out of the schmaltzy into the endearing and deliver a strong citizen scientist message in the afterword. That they’re American matters not a jot – these are universal themes.
Unreal: Can You Tell Fact from Fake? by Kate Simpson & Leila Rudge (Allen & Unwin, $32.99)
A clever way of sharing the message about not taking things at face value, this sets out guidelines on sorting fact from fiction before launching into an odd-one-out quiz, with a young curator sorting specimens delivered by mistake. What belongs to myths and legends and what’s part of the natural history department? Adults will be surprised by what’s in this 64-page book, from underwater beasts to carnivorous and reptilian plants.
