★ 07/20/2015
Mattick is the great-granddaughter of Capt. Harry Colebourn, the Canadian veterinarian who set all things Winnie-the-Pooh in motion: while en route to join his unit during WWI, Harry rescued an orphaned bear cub from a trapper (it cost him $20) and named her Winnipeg (Winnie for short), after his hometown. She accompanied Harry to England and became the mascot of the Second Canadian Infantry Brigade. Knowing Winnie couldn’t follow him to France, Harry arranged for a new home for her at London Zoo, where a boy named Christopher Robin discovered her, and the rest is literary history. Framed as a bedtime story that Mattick tells her toddler son, Cole (who interjects questions such as “Is twenty dollars a lot?”), the book strikes a lovely, understated tone of wonder and family pride. It also suits Blackall (A Fine Dessert) to a T. While her work usually has a strong streak of fantasy, or at least ethereal otherworldliness, she proves that she’s equally imaginative at chronicling straight-on reality, too. Ages 3–6. Author’s agent: Jackie Kaiser, Westwood Creative Artists. Illustrator’s agent: Nancy Gallt, Nancy Gallt Literary Agency. (Oct.)
A New York Times Notable Children's Book of the Year Winner of the 2015 Caldecott Medal
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NYPL 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing
Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year
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Bookpage Best Book of the Year
* "The sum total is as captivating as it is informative, transforming a personal family story into something universally resonant."—Horn Book, starred review
* "Little ones who love Milne's classic stories will be enchanted by this heartening account of the bear's real-life origins."—Booklist, starred review
* "A perfect melding of beautiful art with soulful, imaginative writing, this lovely story, penned by Colebourn's great-great granddaughter, is ideal for sharing aloud or poring over individually."—School Library Journal, starred review
* "The book strikes a lovely, understated tone of wonder and family pride...[Sophie Blackall] proves that she's equally imaginative at chronicling straight-on reality too."
—Publishers Weekly, starred review
"Gorgeously illustrated...[a] delightful telling"—New York Times Book Review
"[An] inspiring text...Blackall's breathtaking watercolor illustrations demand to be examined up close, and Winnie's face is as expressive as the humans'."—School Library Connection
"This tender tribute will inspire a new generation of Winnie fans—for the books and the historic bear."—BookPage
Praise for Farmhouse: A 2022 KIRKUS BEST CHILDREN’S BOOK A 2022 SLJ BEST BOOK A HORN BOOK FANFARE A 2022 PUBLISHERS WEEKLY BEST BOOK A 2022 BOOKPAGE BEST BOOK A 2022 WASHINGTON POST BEST BOOK A 2022 NYTIMES BEST ILLUSTRATED BOOK AN NPR BEST BOOK OF 2022 A 2022 BOOKLIST EDITORS’ CHOICE GOOD HOUSEKEEPING BEST KIDS’ BOOKS OF 2022 2023 ALSC NOTABLE BOOKS FOR CHILDREN 2023 CCBC CHILDREN’S CHOICES LIST 2023 BANK ST COLLEGE BEST BOOKS
*"A lovely, tender reimagination of people in a long-past time and place."—Kirkus, starred review
*"A love letter to the joys of country living and family life as well as the importance of treasuring the past and all its stories."—School Library Journal, starred review
*"The tale’s strong sense of place undergirds Blackall’s witness to the way environments change over time and stories survive long after material objects disappear, in a thoughtful, expertly executed work that looks simultaneously forward and back."—Publishers Weekly, starred review
*"Blackall’s illustrations are everything here, incorporating wallpaper, fabrics, and other items scavenged from the house melded together with ink, watercolor, gouache, and colored pencil to create vibrantly layered compositions with a tactile quality."—Horn Book, starred review
* "Genuinely captivating...A meditation on the creative process...Multifaceted and arresting...Irresistible."—Booklist, starred review
“a tender, layered masterpiece that itself deserves to be passed along for generations.”—New York Times
*"A sophisticated, openhearted ode to what truly makes a house a home...Vividly realized...."—BookPage, starred review
Praise for Hello Lighthouse: A New York Times Bestseller and Caldecott Winner * "Blackall's charmingly old-fashioned art style is beautifully matched to this nostalgia-rich story, which imbues an antiquated place with warmth and wonder."L—Booklist, starred review
* "A delightful bedtime read perfect for one on one sharing."
—School Library Journal, starred review
* "It's a jewel of a creation and a gift to those who dream of retreat."
—Publishers Weekly, starred review
"I will be surprised if a more exquisite picture book will be published this year...Children will be fascinated..."
—New York Times Book Review
2015-06-23
A mother tells a true bedtime story about the bear that inspired Winnie-the-Pooh's name. Mom tells little Cole about Harry, a veterinarian in Winnipeg "about a hundred years before you were born." En route to his World War I muster, Harry buys a bear cub from a trapper and names her Winnipeg "so we'll never be far from home." Winnie travels overseas with the Canadian soldiers to training in England, but when they ship out to France for actual combat, Harry leaves her at the London Zoo. "That's the end of Harry and Winnie's story," but another section begins, about a boy named Christopher Robin Milne who plays with Winnie at the London Zoo. Christopher Robin names his stuffed bear Winnie-the-Pooh after her, and his father—A.A. Milne, of course—takes the name and runs with it. Mattick's prose has a storyteller's rhythm and features the occasional flourish (repeating "his heart made up his mind"); Blackall's watercolor-and-ink illustrations have a peaceful stillness that's welcome in a book that, though not about combat, concerns the trappings of war. A photo album includes snapshots of Winnie with her soldiers and with Christopher Robin. The piece has something of a split personality, and the Winnie-the-Pooh angle comes so late it seems almost an afterthought. Beautiful but bifurcated, with the two stories in one making it a challenge to determine the audience. (photo album) (Picture book. 5-8)
