NorthWrite2012

I am busily reading Sacrifice by Joanna Orwin and will get to my review soon. In the meantime I wanted to tell you about a writing festival being held in Whangarei in September. NorthWrite2012 is being organised by the Northland branch of NZ Authors. The topic is The Business of Writing and we have a full programme planned from illustration to historical fiction to social media for writers. Our presenters include Fifi Colston, David Hill and Deborah Challinor. We are still in the planning stages but places are limited so stay tuned to the NorthWrite website here.

NZ Children’s Book Reviews Interviews Janice Marriott

 Janice Marriott

How did Thor’s Tale come about?
I have always been interested in the Shackleton story, and sceptical about the claims made for Shackleton’s leadershp.  When I found the ship’s carpenter’s grave in Wellington cemetary I thought it was time to write something.

What did you do to ensure you captured the time and events in Thor’s Tale as accurately as possible?
Lots of research.  I’m meticulous about detail and read widely.  People who live on South Georgia during the summer (tourist boat) season assumed I had visited the place. I felt pleased about that.  All the research was done in Wellington Public Library.  I am a big fan of libraries.

Have you ever been, even remotely, in similar harsh conditions to the ones Thor would have experienced? If not what techniques did you use to help create the feelings of intense cold, wild oceans and back breaking work, not to mention the horror of whale slaughter?
No. Only my attic where I write. No heating. Very cold.  Also, re the whales, it just takes empathy and imagination, things writers have a lot of.

What other experiences of your own, if any, were you able to draw on when writing the book?
Just the emotional experiences of the characters.

What would be your top tip for writing students?
Write with plenty of detail.  Be accurate and specifc. Never be vague. Never write lots of generalisations.  Good writing is vivid and memorable because it is precise.

What writing project are you working on in 2012?
I’m taking time off to be a grandma.

For more information on Janice Marriott:
http://www.janicemarriott.com/childrens_books.htm
http://christchurchcitylibraries.com/Kids/ChildrensAuthors/JaniceMarriott.asp
http://www.bookcouncil.org.nz/writers/marriott.html

 

Student’s stories

Does anyone have any students’ stories they would like to see published here before the end of May. If you do please submit them using the form on the Competition Page.

NZ Children’s Book Reviews reviews “Thor’s Tale”

Thor’s Tale
by Janice Marriott
Reviewed by Katharine Derrick

Teaching notes available at: http://harpercollins.co.nz/docs/teachernotes/9781869505721.pdf

I love Thor’s Tale! It was sitting on my bookshelf for a long time before I read it because of two unfortunate conclusions 1) it’s for boys and 2) the cover is off-putting (my version has a dull and muted cover)! As an author I should know not to be so judgmental but as a reader with a bookshelf full of books reading selections can be arbitrary. If you’re thinking along the same lines – get over it and read this book!

Thor’s Tale is about a Norwegian boy, Thor, working at the whaling station, Grytviken, on St George Island in the Southern Ocean. He is there at the time Ernest Shackleton stops for supplies, and longs to be an explorer, planning to stowaway on Endurance to fulfill his dream. Luckily for Thor his dream is thwarted and he isn’t on board when the Endurance is shipwrecked in the Weddell Sea. It takes five months for its survivors to claw their way back to St George Island and Thor is the first person to see their bedraggled forms return.

Marriott skillfully weaves an unforgettable tale based around the gruesome business of whale slaughter, and it is a fascinating and horrifying read. As with Menefy (see my review of Shadow of the Boyd) she is direct in her description of events, which adds to the sense of cruelty inflicted on such incredible animals. Thankfully, Thor is as horrified as the reader that he could be involved in such a distasteful industry.

Masterful and unexpected imagery adds to the tension as does Thor’s plan on how he will stowaway – will he make it or not is a question the reader asks themselves over and over again. It’s not often a story focuses on an unrealised dream and this gives a refreshingly different take on dreams and goals – sometimes failure is as important as success, and in Thor’s case probably lifesaving.

Even though this book is classified as junior fiction it is more than appropriate for teenagers as well. This fast paced adventure will be hard for any reader to put down.

Marriott, Janice. Thor’s Tale, HarperCollinsPublishers Limited, Auckland, 2006.

(Thor’s Tale was the 2007 winner of the Junior Fiction category of the New Zealand Post Book Awards for Children and Young Adults, an award well deserved.)

For more information on Grytviken Whaling Station:
http://www.mclaren.gs/grytviken.htm

For more information on Ernest Shackleton and Endurance:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/shackleton_ernest.shtml
http://www.kodak.com/US/en/corp/features/endurance/

For more information on the history of whaling:
http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/whaling/1

There are more websites listed in the HarperCollins teaching notes.

NZ Children’s Book Review Update

Yes, I’m here! Working on my review and interview for May, and it’s a goodie. This month I’ll be reviewing Thor’s Tale by Janice Marriott. Thor’s Tale is older than the books I have been reviewing but is too good not to include here. Last time I looked it was still in print so should still be available in bookshops and libraries. Following on from Shadow of the Boyd, Dirt Bomb and The Red Poppy, once again I seem to reviewing a “boys” book but there’s no reason why these books should be read by only boys. The stories, the history, the action, the emotion all make them perfectly suitable for girls too. In June I intend reviewing Sacrifice by Joanna Orwin – another “boys” book if the first few chapters are anything to go by – so I have given myself a challenge for July: review a “girls” book that boys might enjoy too. If anyone has any suggestions I’d be pleased to receive them.

I have also added to my writing tips page. David Hill’s suggestions are now up as are the illustration tips from Fifi Colston.

I am still waiting on stories from students. Are there really no students out there who would like me to publish their stories on this blog? I am getting around 8-10 hits a day so their story would be read by a lot of people! I know stories are being written in class and it’s very easy to submit. Go to my competitions page and complete the form – easy! Remember I have a word limit of 750 words. Ignore the close-off date for the moment – JUST GET THOSE STORIES IN TO ME!

That’s it for now. Keep an eye out next week for my review of Thor’s Tale by Janice Marriott.

NZ Children’s Book Reviews Interviews Fifi Colston

  Fifi Colston

How did The Red Poppy come about for you as an illustrator?

Penny Scown from Scholastic, with whom I have had a long and happy editor/author/illustrator relationship, emailed me 2 manuscripts for consideration. She must have heard me say to myself, ‘About time I illustrated another book.’ They were both lovely stories but David’s manuscript was the one that hit all the right chords for me.

The illustrations in The Red Poppyplay a large part in conveying the emotion of the story. How did you go about researching content for the illustrations you created?

I visited the Army Museum in Waiouru to look at their displays, bought a useful book about ANZACs from there (and a pot of grow your own Flanders poppies!), I borrowed books on WW1 from friends, trawled the internet for photos of trenches and messenger dogs and talked to 3 military uniform experts. They generously lent me their time, books and uniforms (to photograph). It’s very easy as an illustrator to make up bits you can’t find, but in a book like this, the details are crucially important. The wrong kind of helmet can suddenly place the story in another war period! I didn’t want that to happen at all. I was as careful as I could possibly be in my research.

At the back of The Red Poppyyou mention your husband’s grandfather and how you took a journey through his time as you created the illustrations. How much influence did his story have in the creation of the illustrations?

It set the tone for me. I could relate the character Jim to (Grandfather) Rothwell. They would have been the same kind of age; young men with their future ahead of them but not knowing if they would see their families again. I was blogging his postcards to his fiancé, Hilda when Penny sent me the manuscript. It seemed serendipitous somehow.

You also mention that the illustrations are done in chalk pastel. Why did you choose this medium over any other?

I do all my life drawing in chalk pastel; it’s such an immediate material- you can get into it with your fingers and work away until you are filthy with chalk. I’d never used it for illustration work before though and I knew with this book that I wanted to convey immediacy in the battle scenes. I know myself well enough that I end up getting too meticulous with book illustration (size 000 brushes) and this would make the work stilted and wooden. Every illustrator I know loves their rough working drawings much more than the finished result. I wanted to retain some of that roughness, that spontaneity and dirt. I took myself off to a pastel workshop by Julie Greig in Wanganui to learn how to use them properly. That was gold!

I hear you may have done a popup version of The Red Poppy, and that you may be able to tell students how to create their own popup. Would you be willing to share that here?

Sure- go to this link on my blog http://fificolston.blogspot.co.nz/2012/03/nz-book-month-pop-ups.html and all the instructions are there. You can print it off and colour it in with your own battlefield colours. Lots of mud and a patch of red poppies!

I normally ask authors for writing tips for students. I know you write as well as illustrate but my readers might like a change of question. So, what tips would you give students who are interested in pursuing a career in illustration?

Don’t do it if you are hoping to make a lot of money. There are times in my illustration life where this happens, but illustrating a book isn’t one of them! Don’t do it if you think it will be ‘cool career’ and you will be cool as a result. Do it only if you are passionate about drawing and painting, colour, texture, observation and mastery of form. If you’ve always loved these things then do your apprenticeship; go to design school, soak up everything your tutors can offer. Research, experiment, look and listen. Talk to people in the industry. I spent 3 years in tertiary study and 30 in practice to do what I do now- and I’m still learning! Try all kinds of media, both traditional and digital to bring your ideas to life. Be able to take criticism and a brief. You have to be o.k with other people directing you. This is not fine art. Illustration is a career for creatively determined, amenable people who can draw. If you are one of them then the other tip I’d offer is use really good art materials and digital tools. Makes a huge difference to the quality of your output.

What creative project(s) are you working on in 2012?

Currently I’m illustrating another Scholastic picture book called ‘Far Far From Home’ by Elizabeth Pulford about a cute little bug. It’s quite a different book to The Red Poppy! I also have another Wearable Art entry on the go and sometime I’ll finish writing my next novel!

For more information on Fifi Colston:
http://www.bookcouncil.org.nz/writers/colstonfifi.html
http://www.storylines.org.nz/Profiles/Profiles+A-C/Fifi_Colston.html
http://christchurchcitylibraries.com/kids/childrensauthors/fificolston.asp

NZ Children’s Book Reviews Interviews David Hill

 David Hill

How did The Red Poppy come about?

I was actually semi-commissioned by the publisher to write THE RP. Scholastic NZ had heard of Rob Kennedy’s song, and felt it could be the kernel of a picture book. Since I’d never done a picture book before, they naturally asked me! (Actually, Penny Scown was aware of my interest in WW1). Luckily, they liked my story enough to go ahead. Then in came Fifi and her brilliant illustrations.

It is books like The Red Poppy that help us understand what it was like for our ancestors fighting in Europe during World War I and II. How did you go about researching the book?

I’ve read a great deal re WW1 in the past. For this, I didn’t so much read more as look at photos, especially battlefield photos. I wanted to render the landscape accurately. But usually for a project, I do A LOT of reading and note-taking beforehand.

Were you able to draw on any experiences of your own when telling this story?

Older relatives of mine had talked to me in varying degrees re their involvement in WW1, WW2, Korea and Malaysia. That all affected my treatment of the two soldiers’ feelings and relationship. And I did spend 2 years in our Territorial Army, after National Service, so I did know certain things re military structure and terminology, etc.

At the back of The Red Poppy you mention honouring your great-uncle. How much of Jim’s story is his story?

I did have my great-uncle Fred in mind a lot as I wrote the story. It was his (imagined) youthful voice I heard. But I also kept thinking of all the young men exposed to such terrors. I’d like to think that both Jim and Karl are a form of Everyman, in a very small way.

This is your first picture book. How hard was it to move from writing novels to writing a picture book?

Economy is the great demand of a picture book – trying to convey as much as possible in a restricted number of words. Usually I take 40,000 words or so to tell a story; here I had 1200! I also needed to strip down my style a lot, keep the language straightforward but non-patronising, since I was writing for a younger audience than usual.

What would be your top tip for writing students?

Tips for young writers? Read, read, READ! Keep all your writing – you never know when you may be able to develop / reshape it in a different way. And do write about moments of change in your life or someone else’s: moments when things became different, moments you wish to go back to for any reason.

What writing project are you working on in 2012?

I’m partway though a novel for teenagers. And I hope to write a series of adult short stories for Radio NZ. I’ve done a number of such series, and enjoyed them hugely.

For more information on David Hill:
http://www.bookcouncil.org.nz/writers/hilldavid.html
http://christchurchcitylibraries.com/kids/childrensauthors/davidhill.asp
http://www.storylines.org.nz/Profiles/Profiles+D-H/David+Hill.html
http://www.listener.co.nz/author/david-hill/

NZ Children’s Book Reviews reviews The Red Poppy

The Red Poppy
Written by David Hill
Illustrated by Fifi Colston
Reviewed by Katharine Derrick

Teaching notes available at:
http://www.scholastic.co.nz/Resources/Notes/The-Red-Poppy.pdf

New Zealand soldier, Jim McLeod waits in the trenches on the Western Front, France. Soon the battle will begin and he’s scared. The guns roar and Jim and the other soldiers engage with the enemy. Jim is injured and takes refuge in a shell crater only to find he is sharing it with an enemy soldier. Pooling their resources, and with the help of Nipper the messenger dog and a red poppy, they send for help.

Hill uses a number of techniques to capture the horror and fear of the soldiers involved in the battle. Our first introduction to Jim is him writing a letter to his mother and sister. He mentions nothing of the war or his feelings, a subtle indication that these are too horrific to burden his family with. Hill then uses a ticking clock scenario in the countdown to battle, a change in font to emphasise tension, and the red poppies – a symbol of war definitely but also a symbol of hope, courage and acceptance.

Colston’s illustrations are the perfect accompaniment to the text. Before the book was out I got a sneak preview of the cover and the image of the stark landscape, the men in the trenches and the expression in the dog’s eyes evoked an emotional response and I had to read the book. Colston maintains the starkness and emotion throughout; in the men’s eyes, in their slumped shoulders, in the splashes of red on a sombre background.

Even though The Red Poppy is a picture book, I have included it in my reviews because the themes covered make it a great resource for students in Years 7-10 studying our involvement in the World Wars, especially from a more personal level.

Hill, David and Colston, Fifi (ill). The Red Poppy, Scholastic New Zealand Ltd, Auckland, 2012.

For more information on New Zealand’s involvement in World War I go to:
http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/war/ww1-overview
http://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/theme.aspx?irn=647
http://www.anzac-france.com/anzac/history/the_new_zealanders_in_the_somme
http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/war/maori-in-first-world-war/on-the-western-front

NZ Children’s Book Reviews presents a book review by Cate Denner

As promised, here is the winning entry for the Year 10-13 book review competition held in the Bay of Islands during March 2011.

Kaimanawa Princess
by Dianne Haworth
Review by Cate Denner, Kerikeri

Do you like horses? Kaimanawa Princess by Dianne Haworth is based on the true story of a thirteen year old girl, Rochelle Purcell and her pony.

This inspiring adventure story set in New Zealand is about a determined girl named Becky and her horse Kaimanawa Princess. The story tells about their part in saving the Kaimanawa horses.

In this book you will also read about “the amazing, but sad contribution of the Kaimanawa horses to the war effort…About 8000 horses accompanied New Zealand soldiers to the Boar war, another 10,000 landing at Gallipoli alone. … And of those many thousands of horses, only four were brought back to New Zealand.”

Dianne’s style is informal and conversational. I found that conversations between different council members got slow at times, but the rest of the book made up for them! It gave me excellent insight about what is really happening to these beautiful animals.

When I finished reading Kaimanawa Princess, I felt I wanted to help save the horses too! Kaimanawa Princess is an enjoyable read for 8-14 year olds about the bond between a girl and her horse as they try to save the Kaimanawa horses.

“She was just a kid and didn’t understand the rights and wrongs of saving plants or the ecology of New Zealand, but she did understand that she wanted to do whatever she could to save 1000 beautiful horses like Princess and Queenie from a horrible death.”

 

NZ Book Reviews Student Work

I know many schools/parents are encouraging their students to submit stories to this blog. Even so, we had no submissions for March so I have dug deep into my archives and this afternoon will be posting a book review written last year by a Year 10 student as part of the Bay of Islands NZ Book Month Book Review competition. Please keep encouraging your students to submit their stories. I will be keeping this site going over the holidays so they can enter if they wish to. Submissions by 25 April please otherwise I will have to retreat to my archives again! Submissions can be made on the Competition Page.