Mr Whiskers
Mr Whiskers
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A lonely simple life, in times that were tough, a few handouts, few friends, sleeping rough. Eccentrics, recluses, or escaping war's hell, unlucky in love or in life, each had a story to tell. They were the Swaggies.
Mr Whiskers is a story about a swagman who passed by our family farm in North Canterbury in the 1950's. It has appealed to a large range of readers, full of nostalgia, with sayings and values from the 'Olden Days'.
This is my second story. Working with Mike Howell to illustrate, this has been one of his favorite books.
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The text - written in rhyme - describes life on the road back in the day - the 1950's -- the illustrations by Mike Howell are interesting as they are different.
The scenery paintings are really attractively appealing - the faces and figures are sometimes totally in a style that is sometime just right - the faces are sometimes quite different - I'm not saying that this is wrong - I'm just saying the artist has a style that is all his own - and that is a good thing and compliments the story well - The young will enjoy a read with a host of ideas about this particular part of New Zealand history.
I much appreciated the "Some Values and Sayings from the Olden Days" at the back of the book - this book gives added history to a life that no longer exists.
Though this book is aimed at children- it will I'm sure ring a few bells with a much older audience and sharing this book while reading the story with children will very likely be an enjoyable experience for both parties.