Kell Woods’ After the Forest is a monumental piece of richly embroidered fantasy writing. Image: Supplied.
The vastly different books in this month’s selection all centre on human kindness, courage and the human capacity to deal with change and adversity.
Milena Cifali’s One Foot Forward (Echo Books) follows her Mallacoota Time, in which she wrote her way through the loss and grief she experienced in the New Year’s Eve fires that destroyed much of Mallacoota and her home there.
Again, facing adversity and her contemplation on how we recover from it are at the heart of this work. In it she simply describes what she did in the aftermath of a serious accident when her rental car rolled over her, severely injuring her and sending her into hospital.
She’s not a preachy writer but gives examples from her own life of what brought her cheer and encouraged her to push on through adversity and pain – the book is written in order to help others. It also contains examples of the artwork, which along with music, cats and birds, brought comfort and a sense of purpose.
Milena Cifali’s One Step Forward continues her reflections on recovery from disaster. Image: Supplied.
Cate Whittle and Nicky Johnston have produced a charming junior fiction in Millie the Cutest Puppy in the World (Scholastic). Millie is an orphaned puppy of enormous charm but petite size, who has been left at St Bernard’s Home for Little Lost Dogs.
She awaits a permanent home, watching as her friends go off to become a sheepdog, police dog, carer or hospital visitor. It’s not that the home is a bad place to be – it’s happy, bright and full of activity. But – it’s not her own special home and family and that’s what we all want, somewhere to call home.
The lessons neatly laced into this story are clear for young and old and apply equally to both – we all need to feel loved and to live in a kind and gentle world where we can do and be our most contented selves. We will face change and challenge and will need to find courage to step out into the wider world.
What a beautiful book this is! The gently coloured illustrations perfectly convey the emotions of the characters and the homeliness of the settings. The author’s text tells a story that immediately feels familiar and with which children will identify – who has not felt nervous starting something new or meeting new people?
Millie is a lovable wee thing and Nanny Birdwhistle a sage and caring adult.
Many children, parents, grandparents and teachers have a new book to share, in which a gentler world is possible, an escape perhaps from the bright speed of much of modernity into a place of pinkness and calm.
Whittle and Johnston’s charming book Millie the cutest puppy in the World has larger life lessons. Image: Supplied.
The monumental historical fantasy by Kell Woods, After the Forest (Harper Voyager) draws us deeply into the 17th century world of the Black Forest, at a time of socio-political upheaval when witch trials proliferated.
The story is a richly imagined leap from the Hansel and Gretel fairy story with the children now adults facing their own post-trauma demons.
Students of Jungian fairy tale theory will find much to chew on in this superbly spun yarn. Indeed we are ever conscious of the archetypal struggle between good and evil.
There is the big evil of cruel and powerful rulers but then there is the creeping evil of mob mentality and of the temptation to use one’s special powers for self-interest, the lurking evil within us all. Here is the big moral question that hangs over the whole story.
Underlaid in this tale are references to the Snow White and Rose Red tale, harking back to the gruesome and dark originals of jealousy, cruelty, murder and magic. There’s shape shifting with wolves and a bear, the questionable magic of the Gingerbread House Witch’s grimoire and the archetypal struggle between good and evil.
It’s delicious writing, ripe with the feminine, brimming with the dark greenness of the Schwarzwald and peopled with larger-than-life characters. So much more than a simple exploration of the fairy tale which is its source! It’s also a love story, and, like the other books this month, an ode to kindness, gentleness, courage and goodness.
Barbie Robinson is co-founder and a content creator for Living Arts Canberra, a not-for-profit media outfit supporting arts and community in the Canberra region and books worldwide through its website, podcast interviews and a 24/7 internet radio station at livingartscanberra.com.au.
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