-
Inky Illustrations of Cats
There are many ways of rendering cats in illustration. By letting ink run into the paper, cats can look beautifully soft and furry. Header image was done with Midjourney using prompt: cat, kitten, inky watercolor
-
Women and Cats in Art
There is a strong link between women, girls and cats. In fiction, for instance, women are frequently described as cats (and also as birds).
-
Fully Anthropomorphised Cats In Art
Animals in picture books exist on a continuum between fully animal and fully human. To sit at the anthropomorphised end of that spectrum, the animal in question: wears clothes walks around on its hind legs talks displays human-like emotions lives in a house Beatrix Potter had a massive influence on illustrators all through the 20th […]
-
Balinese, Birman, Burmese and Siamese Cats In Art
Header image made with Midjourney AI.
-
The Wind In The Willows by Kenneth Grahame Analysis
A man in the shape of a Mole’s body feels a yearning which can only be fulfilled by entering the most transgressive parts of his own psychology, externally represented by the Wild Wood. On his journey, he meets other men, each driven by their own secret (and not so secret) passions.
-
Fish Bowls In Art
The fishbowl is a common symbol of surveillance, as is a glass house. For house cats, the fish bowl is a miniature version of the pond or lake — domestic version.
-
What do birds symbolize in literature?
Birds are much older than we are — living dinosaurs. Across cultures, birds function as smart collaborators with humans. We now know how smart (some) birds really are, but we have long had a sense of their canniness. The smartest bird in the world is currently thought to be the New Zealand Kea, which isn’t so great if you live…
-
Owl At Home by Arnold Lobel Analysis
Owl At Home is a 1975 picture book written and illustrated by Arnold Lobel. The book comprises five very short early reader stories about a kind, anxious and lonely owl. These owl stories, along with the frog and toad stories come from the second phase of Lobel’s creative career, in which he tapped into his […]
-
Amos and Boris by William Steig Analysis
Some picture books have an Aesop fable at their base. Amos and Boris is one such picture book, written and illustrated by William Steig (1971).
-
Foxes In Children’s Literature
A fox is a wolf who sends flowers. Ruth Weston FOXES IN FOLKTALES These summaries are from Baughman’s Type and Motif Index of the Folktales of England and North America by Ernest Warren Baughman, 1966. Read through these story summaries and you’ll get a good idea of how coats have been used throughout history. Can you see patterns? Arthur […]
-
The Story Of The Kind Wolf by Wilkon and Nickl Analysis
“The Story Of The Kind Wolf” is a 1982 picture book by Jozef Wilkon, illustrated by Peter Nickl and translated into English by Marion Koenig. The story is now out of print and hard to find. This is a Tawny Scrawny Lion plot, and very much of its time. This was the era of the […]
-
Blueberries For Sal by Robert McCloskey (1948)
Blueberries For Sal (1948) is a picture book written and illustrated by Robert McCloskey, also well-known for Make Way For Ducklings. Both stories are thrillers for the preschool set, especially this one. In fact, I’m about to try and convince you that Blueberries For Sal is the inspiration behind Cormac McCarthy’s No Country For Old […]
-
I Am Not A Fox by Wolf and Groenink Analysis
I Am Not A Fox is a picture book written by Karina Wolf and illustrated by Chuck Groenink. If you’ve ever read “The Ugly Duckling” and thought, “hmm, that message has problems”, then this one might be for you.
-
Scaredy Squirrel At The Beach by Melanie Watt Analysis
Scaredy Squirrel At The Beach (2008) by Mélanie Watt is the third picture book in a series starring an anxious squirrel who deals with his fears.
-
Frog Goes to Dinner by Mercer Mayer 1974 Analysis
Frog Goes To Dinner (1974) is a wordless carnivalesque picture book by American author/illustrator Mercer Mayer, and the fifth in a series about a boy and his beloved frog. Wordless picture books are perhaps the most emotionally affecting, because they work with us at a deeper level. Frog Goes To Dinner works on an emotional […]