Australian Picture Book Authors and Illustrators Graeme Base - The Discovery of Dragons

Title:  

The Discovery of Dragons

Published: 

1996

Awards: 
none

When Graeme Base first met his publisher, he had an idea for a book about Dragons. In fact, a field guide to dragons. His publisher suggested an book based on something Australian would be a better idea and so My Grandma lived in Gooligulch was born and the dragons were shelved. Fast forward to 1995 and several books later and the publisher was interested in revisiting the dragon idea. The end result was The Discovery of Dragons.

The Discovery of Dragons is a series of letters from 3 explorers who discover dragons. Bjorn of Bromme writes to his cousin Olaf of several dragons discovered in Europe, Soong Mei Ying writes to her father in regards to several Asiatic Dragons and Dr E. F. Leibermann writes to his fiancée, Prunella Hapsburgernfries about the tropical dragons he finds.

In true Base style, the illustrations in this book are incredible. Along with the letters, there is a full colour illustration of each dragon, along with a map of where they are found and a size comparison. Along the bottom of each page is a cartoon style summary of the letter which is quite hilarious. The letters play for laughs as well. For example, Bjorn writes to Olaf:

I know you're not going to be too pleased about this, Olaf, but me and Sigurd thought we might just pop down to Portugal or Spain since we're over this way - catch some rays, then head across to the south of Gaul for the summer. Good luck with the Rampage. I'll be thinking of you.

Soong Mei Ying writes:

But I soothed it by softly playing my lute. (How thankful I was that my clever father had insisted I persevere with music practice, despite continual objections from myself, the neighbours and most of the local dogs.)

The Discovery of Dragons is a beautiful book, as you would expect from Base. At no point during the whole thing do you break from the idea that this is real. Real people wrote these letters and out there somewhere, there are dragons just waiting to be discovered.

Links to other Graeme Base books I am looking at can be found here.

The official Graeme Base website can be found here.

Australian Picture Book Authors and Illustrators Graeme Base - The Sign of the Seahorse

Title:  

The Sign of the Seahorse

Published: 

1992

Awards: 

None

 The front cover of this says A Tale of Greed and High Adventure in Two Acts and it's not lying!  I was not surprised to read that he planned for it to become a musical as the story, the verse and the characters just lend themselves to it. In 1998 Melbourne's Playbox Theatre Company and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra did a concert version of the book. There were plans for a movie as well, but that has yet to come to fruition. I hope it does, it would be spectacular!

Sign of the Seahorse tells the story of the residents of Reeftown. All the seahorses have disappeared, but there are still plenty of fish and crustaceans to frequent The Seahorse Cafe.  It's here that Pearl Trout and Bert, a corporal in the Soldiercrab Army fall in love. Pearl's father owns the Seahorse Cafe and her brother, Finneus has taken up with the Catfish Gang. Unfortunately Gropmund G Groper, a local thief, con artist and all-round baddie, strong arm's Mr Trout into selling him the Cafe, leaving the Trout's out on the street.

In the meantime, something is killing the coral and the Soldiercrab Army are tasked with finding and stopping the poison. the Catfish Gang stumble upon Groper's evil plans for the reef and it's up to Finneus to find the Soldiercrab Army and let them in on the plot. Can Pearl find a new, clean reef for them to live on, will Finneus find the Soldiercrab Army in time and will they be able to stop the poison that is killing the reef.

In true Base style, there are things hidden in the pictures of this book. Apparently somewhere in the book, the number 42 appears twice. This is the clue to find 42 hidden, stylised seahorses in the picture. All the hidden seahorses look like the one on the front cover, under the title. Some are rather obvious, like on the sign of the Seahorse Cafe, others are more hidden.

While once again, I found Sign of the Seahorse a captivating and original book, I did feel that at times the verse did not flow and was forced to fit the story. This however is a minor detail and may have to do with how I read it! For me, Sign of the Seahorse was the first of Base's books where he attempted to make the story as complicated as the pictures and it worked well.

Links to other Graeme Base books I am looking at can be found here.

The official Graeme Base website can be found here.

Australian Picture Book Authors and Illustrators Graeme Base - The Eleventh Hour

Title:  

The Eleventh Hour: A Curious Mystery

Published: 

1988

Awards: 

  CBC Book of the Year, Picture Book 1989

Kids Own Australian Literature Award Winner 1989

Young Australian Best Book Award, Picture Book Winner 1989

COOL Award, Runner Up 1992

Kids Own Australian Literature Award Shortlist 1993

New York Times Best Seller

When you look at the detail of Base’s illustrations, it doesn’t surprise you that there was two years between books. The Eleventh Hour provides another sumptuous visual feast. At the beginning of the book we are told,

A book is read, a story ends, a telling tale is told.

But who can say what mysteries a single page may hold?

A maze of hidden codes and clues, a clock at every turn

And only time will tell what other secrets you may learn...

 

And once again you are off on a magical journey through a Graeme Base book where there is always more to see than you first thought.

On the occasion of his eleventh birthday, Horace decides there is need for a great party. A feast is prepared, games are organised and friends are invited. Before they are allowed to eat, the guests take part in a variety of party games, all looking forward to the feast they know is to come. But in the end, the feast is gone, eaten in its entirety. The question is – who did it?

The clues to solve the puzzle are in the hidden messages and pictures on each page, once again inviting the reader to spend hours poring over the book, trying to solve the mystery. Each page has a hidden message. Some are easy to find, but provide useful information.

 

Drawing conclusions from sketchy clues may lead you astray – so sharpen your eyes and your wits – get the point? 

(This is written in the pencils around the edge of the picture. There is another clue hidden in them as well.)

While others are easy to miss, especially when there are two on a page! At times Base uses codes such as mirror writing, substitution codes and morse code. All challenge the reader to work out what is worth noting, and what is a red herring. Don’t worry, if you can’t work it out (and I couldn’t!) there is a sealed section that reveals all the secrets!

However for me, the joy of this book doesn’t end there. The story is written in rhyme, which lends to the whole atmosphere of the book.

A Cricket Match was organised for those who knew the game - 
The twin Giraffes had no idea, but fielded just the same.
But Oliver, a Boastful Pig, had made it understood
That when it came to batting he was really rather good.

The Tiger donned the keeper’s gloves and crouched behind the stumps,
And waited for a chance to show his skill at leaps and jumps.
The Pig went for a mighty swing, but only clipped the ball,
And Maxwell leapt, and caught him out. Pride comes before a fall.

The Eleventh Hour cemented Base's place as one of greatest author/ illustrators in Australia and he continues to produce excellent, exciting books.

Links to other Graeme Base books I am looking at can be found here.

The official Graeme Base website can be found here.

 

Australian Picture Book Authors and Illustrators: Graeme Base -Animalia

Title: Animalia

Published: 1986

Awards: None

An alphabet book with a difference! Graeme Base’s second book is a feast for your eyes and your brain. On the title page, there is a poem which says:

Each page is a gorgeously detailed illustration where you can hunt not only for the little boy, but for as many things starting with that letter. The text is alliteration with some really fantastic sentences coming out.

Craft Crimson Cats carefully catching Crusty Crayfish.

Ingenious Iguanas improvising an intricate impromptu on impossibly impractical instruments.

Lazy Lions lounging in the local library.

Proud Peacocks preening perfect plumage.

Animalia was Base’s first big break. The book captured the imagination of readers and the detailed illustrations made it a delight to share. It’s a book that works for a variety of age groups – from those who love a good read aloud, to the older kids who love to scour the pages looking for as many things as possible. It also marked the beginning of providing hidden messages and pictures which occurs in many of his books.

Links to other Graeme Base books I am looking at can be found here.

The official Graeme Base website can be found here.

Australian Picture Book Authors and Illustrators: Graeme Base - My Grandma Lived in Gooligulch

Title: My Grandma Lived In Gooligulch

Published: 1983

Awards: None

This was Base's first book and introduced the world to his wonder detailed illustrations.

Told in verse, Gooligulch tells the story of Grandma's idyllic life with a variety of native wildlife and their antics around her house. One day Grandma and wombat head off for a seaside holiday, flying pelican class of course! At the beach, Grandma gets swept out to sea and has never been seen again, yet the writer is sure she is alive. 

And yet, I have a feeling

That my Grandma's still alive

Having drifted to an island,
Where she'd manage to survive.

From there prehaps she made her way

To England or to Spain,

Or maybe San Francisco,

On a Western Railway train.

She could be taming tigers

In the jungles of Tingoor...

...But I think she's back in Gooligulch,

Just like before.

The pages of Gooligulch alternate between brown and while pencil drawings with the verses on them and luxurious double spread coloured pictures.

And from a window out the back,

She'd sit and watch galahs

Fly down beside the pool and drink, 

Beneath the evening stars

Now Gooligluch has got a pub,

A mainstreet with a hall,

A petrol pump that doesn't work-

And not much else at all.

 This first book hints at the brilliance of Base to come. Already the illustrations are wonderfully detailed, with something new to be found at every turn.

Links to other Graeme Base books I am looking at can be found here.

The official Graeme Base website can be found here.