The Illustrators Series: Miroslav Šašek – Book Review
News | 13th January 2022


Martin Salisbury on Šašek, whose paintings capture the scale of the human to building and building to landscape that perfectly aligns with his vision.
Martin Salisbury on Šašek, whose paintings capture the scale of the human to building and building to landscape that perfectly aligns with his vision.
How do you communicate complex ideas and inter-related biological systems to young children? How do you convert ideas into long lasting actions? This book explains.
A tale about coping with responsibilities and finding surprising solutions to problems, our young hero discovers his Grandma is not quite what she seems.
This book is jam-packed with gold and silver delights, says reviewer Karl Foster. From the debossed cover to the skilfully rendered designs within you will discover the range of items that reside in the category of tinned oily fish. All drawn by Glynn Boyd Harte.
This book shows the consequences of the British Empire at work within the class system, the collecting of ‘specimens’ from across the globe and the fact that London has always been a cosmopolitan city devoted to the amassing of capital.
Olive, who lives by the shores of a small port town loves books. She is a shy child and will only leave the house to borrow them from her Library in Craggy Bay. After Olive loses her latest Library book there begins a mystery that affects the whole town. Just what is going on? Asks reviewer Karl Foster.
Malu, the Mermaid Queen decides it is time to find a consort and she employs her chief hand-maid Brooke to make it so. Reviewer, Karl Foster, says the story is designed to help us to understand that each time that you look far and wide you also need to remember to look closer to home for solutions
One night Fin remembers do everything the correct way before his bedtime, but alas he forgets one very important thing! Karl Foster reviews Adam Stower’s new book.
‘One Of A Kind’, a picture book by Neil Packer is an excellent publication that allows you to stop, be still and take the time to think. Inside our protagonist is a youngster called Arvo, whose journey takes us from Linnaean nomenclature to the Dewey decimal system by way of aspects of time and space.
The theme for this issue is SECRETS & LIES. The Features articles drill down into the conceits that are inherent in the very structure of film, and how classic and modern narratives are shaped by geo-political, cultural and societal upheavals.
Reviewer Karl Foster believes that This Book Is Anti-Racist will help children to help their elders to understand the inequities of racial prejudice and the work necessary to help them to ‘change their minds.’
Writer and Artist Sara Lundberg’s story takes place on a farm in the spare landscape of rural Sweden in the 1920’s and is inspired by the paintings, letters and diaries of the artist Berta Hansson. It begins when Berta is young and standing at a crossroads in her life. Our hero has to decide whether to stay or go.
In Ways of Drawing we are able to glimpse the personal, reflective and in some cases passionate evocation of the compulsion to make sense of the world through mark-making.
Written by Chiara Mezzalama Illustrated by Régis Lejonc Published by Book Island ISBN 978-1-911496-16-8 Reviewed by Karl Andy Foster This is a story that sets out its context carefully as […]
The story of an obsessive Emperor’s daughter who demands extraordinary birds. She wants a talking bird to fill the golden cage.
Greta Thunberg, the 17-year-old, Swedish school child who has become famous through her stand to save the world, has been cast in a fictional tale to help children grasp the concept of activism.
One of the world’s most popular illustrators, Shaun Tan – known for a series of fascinating picture books – has just published The Bird King, An Artist’s Sketchbook. A book containing ‘much fun, wit and wisdom’, according to our reviewer, Karl Foster, who spoke to Shaun about sketchbook vs tablet, the influence of his Australian location and how he pursues the use of scale in his artwork.
There was possibly no other artist of this period capable of creating a work like The Starry Night – it’s sublime. This is a simple but effective addition to the many books on the artist.
“You can’t plan it and all that randomness can be terrifying,” Sydney Smith talks about inspiration striking and his new book, and Karl Foster reviews this ‘classic’ title.
This highly detailed illustrated book alive with textures and vibrant imagery is from the hand of artist and printmaker Graham Carter. The main excitement comes from his spectacular bird illustrations: the vivid colour and dynamic shapes helps to drive the narrative and grab our attention.
Featuring an unlikely female anti-hero who is well into middle age and has hardly any redeeming features, with this graphic novel Posy Simmonds has put her finger on the zeitgeist, presenting to the reader a world no longer sure of itself, where pigeons always come home to roost.
This scholarly and engaging collection of key readings provides an excellent body of work for those who wish to understand how the subject of graphic design is moving from a field towards a discipline.
In the first part of Stagdale, nostalgia is as vivid as the swallows that dart about in the cauldron heat of the summer of 1975. The drawing style and character design of this credible world combines modulated lines with delicate textures and sumptuous colour with somber tones.
The life of the world famous boxer and wit is richly evoked in this picture book. It illustrates his enduring legacy and the inspirational story behind his success.