Libby Hathorn (text), Gaye Chapman (illus), Incredibilia, Little Hare, May 2016, $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781760125257
Georgie is the youngest and is always ignored by Max and Harriet who don’t include her in their games. But Georgie is inventive and resilient – a leaf becomes a message from a tree, a flower tells her something, there is hidden meaning in the patterns of rain on the windowpane and in the shape of the clouds. When she decides to play her game by herself she finally catches the attention of Max and Harriet but now it is Georgie who sets the rules. ‘You have to do what I say,’ she says.
This gentle story celebrating the power of the imagination also contains some understated messages about playing together, perseverance and patience. The mood is enhanced by the delicate illustrations of Gaye Chapman. Each page is full of movement of wind and clouds, of children, leaves, hair, not to mention all the delightfully drawn figments of Georgie’s imagination. Georgie, Max and Harriet are carefully realised, each face a little microcosm of enquiry. The whole is coloured in soft colours, nothing wishy-washy though, all of which makes Georgie’s bright red unruly hair and red dress really stand out. The endpapers are a gorgeous soup of Georgie’s imaginings. Looking at it is like diving into a young child’s fertile brain – amazing.
Reviewed by Mia Macrossan
- Read Chris Dayman’s review of Incredibilia