Author and Illustrator: Bob Graham
For Ages: 5 and above
No. of Pages: 32
Publisher: Walker Books, London
Year: 2005
ISBN: 978-0-76362-699-0
ISBN: 978-0-76362-699-0
Here’s a story of sweet, little Oscar who’s just turned 6 months old. Millie, his 4-year-old sister and his parents are excited as they look forward to celebrating his ‘half-birthday’.
The sensitive
narrative could easily be a slice of life from any of our lives. The author
obviously has closely observed a baby with all the tenderness that can well up
only in a parental heart. Or maybe I’m wrong. It is Bob Graham, after all, an
award-winning children’s author.
Check out this passage:
In the lift, Millie (Oscar’s sister) the dinosaur presses all the buttons. Bright as a Christmas tree they shine, bright as candles on a cake, glinting in Oscar’s dark eyes …
And, this sentence:
Oscar frowns up against the light – six different expressions on his face in the time it takes a leaf to fall.
Or this one:
His (Oscar’s) shoulders are hunched, his head nods and the sun shines through his ears, lighting them up like little lanterns.
The book is a treasure, not just for its heart-warming text and gentle humor but also for its breathtakingly detailed illustrations.
