Author: Armin Greder
Publisher:
Allen & Unwin
Year of
publications: 2007
First
published 2002 as Die Insel
Hard
cover
Juvenile Fiction
Themes:
isolation, racism, fear, human rights, xenophobia, refugee
illustrations : Dark, Bleak, loose. Charcoal predominantly.
The illustrations clearly depict the emotional content of this story
Overview
A man arrives on the island. He is different and
the islanders are all afraid of him. Only the fisherman speaks up for
understanding and empathy. The consequences of their fear strangled attitudes
lead to isolation and destruction. A very bleak work about a devastating human
practice; ignorance. I would highly recommend this as a discussion piece with
teen readers and adults. It would be an excellent catalyst for class
discussions. In the reviews John Marsden claims this is on his top ten picture book list and I understand why, it is very reminiscent of his own The
Rabbits (illustrated by Shaun Tan) which also deals with the difficult concepts of
invasion and destruction and xenophobia.
I am glad I found the two Greder books. They are very thought provoking.
On to art. Week 8 Cross Hatch. This time I tried some white charcoal crosshatch on a black back ground using thick poster card.
These were fun to do but I need to take a lot more time in the planning and production stage to achieve a better standard of final product. I am also trying to get a water droplet to look like a water droplet and am enjoying the online tutorials.
I have not finished my PB drafts yet.
I have been accepted to the critique selection group so that should help if I find a match.
I have another two stories to critique for PB writers.
It is interesting seeing work in different stages of development.
I took some photographs of the beautiful blue sky today and some of trees ready for next weeks art theme.
Good on you Cecilia, not just for finishing your editing of the teenage books but for so very quickly evolving in the crosshatching genre, you're a powerhouse.
ReplyDelete