Charlotte in London by Joan MacPhail Knight illustrated by Melissa Sweet

This book is so charming but it was published in 2008 and so now it is sadly out of print. Charlotte in London one title from the series which includes Charlotte in Givernay, Charlotte in Paris and Charlotte in New York. Charlotte in London is the fourth book in the series. It would be lovely to have a full set of these on your home books shelves. There is quite a bit of text on each page but I think you could share these books each night as a family read aloud especially if you have some travel plans or you are going to an art gallery. 

In this book Melissa Sweet incorporates the art of fifteen famous artists and at the back of the book there is a brief biography of each. Artists such as Claude Monet; John Singer Sargent; and Joseph Turner.  This book is a lovely introduction to art and to the city of London and also into the personal diary of a little girl named Charlotte. 

Bookseller blurb: It’s 1895. Charlotte and her American family came to France three years ago so her father could learn to paint in the French Impressionist style. Now Charlotte and her parents are traveling to London to see if the famous—and very busy—artist John Singer Sargeant will paint Charlotte’s mother’s portrait. In London, Charlotte and her best friend, Lizzy, share a room at the Savoy Hotel, Charlotte decides to help track down Mr. Sargeant and records her many adventures with Lizzy: They watch fireworks on the banks of the Thames, keep an eye out for London’s legendary ghosts, find out why ravens are kept in the Tower of London, and visit Madame Tussaud’s waxworks. Illustrated with stunning museum reproductions and exquisite watercolor paintings, Charlotte in London also includes biographical sketches of the featured painters. This vibrant journal of Charlotte’s exciting journey will make any reader long for lovely, lively London.

Here is the illustration from the title page:

Charlotte’s witty voice, peppered with French phrases, resonates brightly as she relates her tour of England from the Tower of London to the Cotswold countryside and includes interesting tidbits of historical detail for readers to savor. A terrific choice for readers with an interest in art history, this is a strong, appealing story on its own. Kirkus

In this trip to London, Charlotte keeps a diary from April to September of 1895. Opening with a visit to Monet's garden at Giverny, she tells Monsieur Claude her art-loving family are off to Londres with their friends the Fosters. Lizzy Foster is Charlotte's best friend and together they can't wait to explore the British capital. Dotted with photos, illustrations, diagrams and real life paintings from the masters, Charlotte describes her journey with a true artist's eye, pointing out the colours and forms and beauty she sees as she explores the streets and River Thames. Kids' Book Review

As you read this I am about to head into London. Perhaps I will be able to enjoy a delicious meal at The savoy hotel just like Charlotte:

"I love lobster, so I ordered 'Homard Thermidor' and Lizzy had her favourite 'Supremes de Volaille' - chicken with cream sauce. And since we both like potatoes, we shared 'Pommes Anna' - a yummy French potato cake. Then out came dessert - 'crepes Suzette' - thin pancakes with orange sauce. Monsieur Ecoffier served it himself. 'Bon appetit!' he said. Enjoy your dessert! And we did!"

You can see inside this book here and read an interview with Melissa Sweet where she talks about the research she conducted for this book. 

Here are the other three books from this series:

Clever Katya retold by Mary Hoffman illustrated by Marie Cameron

This tale begins with two brothers. Dimitri is rich while Ivan is poor. Each has a horse. One is a stallion and one is a mare. They graze in the same field and of course in time a new foal is born. This birth is the essence of their dispute. Who owns the foal? The brothers decide to ask the Tsar. 

"The Tsar knew perfectly well that Dimitri had no claim on the foal but he decided to have a bit of fun at the brothers' expense while indulging his fondness for riddles at the same time."

He sets four riddles:

What is the fastest thing in the world; what is the fattest; what is the softest; and what is the most precious. He tells the brothers they have one week to present their answer. 

Dimitri asks his neighbour and her answers are fastest - her husband's horse, fattest is their pig, softest is the quilt she has just made and the most precious is her baby grandson.

Ivan asks his seven-year-old daughter Katya - fastest is the wind, fattest is the earth that gives us food, softest is a child's caress, and the most precious thing is honesty.

The Tsar appreciates the wise answers from Katya but he also knows he has not been especially honest himself. He sets another challenge. He wants to meet this young girl but she cannot come on horseback or on foot, she must not be dressed or naked and she cannot bring a present but she must not be empty handed. Katya solves in this in a very ingenious way using a hare, a fishing net and a partridge. And yes there is that all important 'and they all lived happily ever after' ending. 

The subtitle of this book is "A Fairy Tale of Old Russia". The original title was The Wise Little Girl. This is one of those delicious stories which you might have encountered before where a powerful ruler sets a series of riddles and a very clever young child is able to solve each one and save a life. These stories are always so satisfying. You might find a couple of old junior novels in your local or school library called Smart Girls and Smart Girls forever by Robert Leeson. 

The first thing you will notice when you open up this book is the way every page is framed with a rich pattern rather like a magic carpet. You might also notice each page begins with an illuminated letter which echoes the framing. Sadly, this beautiful book is now very old (1998) and so it is out of print. I picked it up in a library partly because I saw the author name and partly because the cover looked very inviting. 

You do need to know I am a huge fan of Mary Hoffman. I read her book The Colour of Home to groups of Grade Six students in my school library for decades and every time I was moved to tears and the students were silent as the story unfolded.

The Colour of Home

Brian Wildsmith exhibition South Yorkshire

For the first time Brian’s personal collection of over 40 colourful original illustrations, early works, drawings and paintings will be on display in the beautiful setting of the Cooper Gallery. The walls will be filled with colour and vivid characters. It’s a perfect destination for art lovers of all ages and our younger visitors can enjoy our specially created forest activity area ‘Brian’s Wild Wood’, upstairs in the Sadler Room.

Read more about this exhibition here. And also here on the Brian Wildsmith web page. I hope to visit later this month. He illustrated well over 100 books and also did many book covers early early in his career. He illustrated the cover of our Australian book Tangara by Nan Chauncy in 1960. 

Liberty fabrics have made a range of material to celebrate his work and in the video you can hear Brian Wildsmith's voice. 

Brian Lawrence Wildsmith was born on 22 January 1930 in Penistone. In 1946 he enrolled at the Barnsley School of Art. In 1962 he was Awarded the Kate Greenaway medal for his work on the book, ‘ABC’. His vibrant use of colour and depictions of animals became his trademark. In the 1970s Brian and his family moved permanently to France. In 1994 a Brian Wildsmith Art Museum was opened in Izu-kogen, in the south of Tokyo in Japan, closing the year he died in 2016. (source Barnsley Museums Blog) Read more here. 

Here are some Kirkus review comments:

• As usual with Wildsmith's work, the animals and birds are superb ...
• ... no one should forgo Wildsmith's delectable art with its delicately glowing colors and wonderfully imaginative juxtapositions of harmonious images.
• Wildsmith has outdone himself in splendid paintings of a lush tropical isle aglow between a richly luminous sky and a gloriously beautiful sea.

This gorgeous budgie illustration comes from his book Circus:

This sweet little hedgehog is from his book Wild Animals

You can see cover images of all books by Brian Wildsmith here. My own favourites are:

Daisy

I used to own these glorious alphabet cards and animal cards (hope the person who has them now loves them as much as I did).

Animal Gallery the cover at the top of this post is a book about collective nouns - a pride of lions; a corps of giraffes; a wedge of swans; a party of rainbow fish; a stare of owls; and more.

Awards:

1963 Kate Greenaway Medal: The Lion and the Rat.

Kate Greenaway Medal: The Oxford Book of Poetry for Children.

1964 Horn Book Honor List. 

New York Times Book Review List of Outstanding Books.

1965 The Brooklyn Art Books for Children Citation: 1 2 3.

New York Times Book Review List of Outstanding Books.

1966 Hans Christian Andersen Award: runner-up.

New York Times Book Review List of Outstanding Books. 

1967 The Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medal: Birds.

New York Times: Best illustrated book of the year: Birds.

New York Times Book Review List of Outstanding Books.

1968 Hans Christian Andersen Award: runner up.

1971 Kate Greenaway Medal: The Owl and the Woodpecker.

1982 Kurt Maschler Award short-listed: Pelican.

1991 Ushio Publication Culture Award: In recognition of his distinguished achievements.

1994 Selected as one of The Children’s Books of the Year: The Easter Story.

1995 The CD Rom of: The Christmas Story, won the Grand Prix of European Multi-Media.

1998 National Jewish Book Awards, Finalist: Exodus/Moses.

2000 Parent Council Ltd, Selected as outstanding: The Easter Story.

Children’s Literature, Choice List: Moses.

2001 - 2002 Children’s Crown Award reading Programs, Nominee List: Moses.

2005 Book Sense, Easter/Passover, Top Ten Picks List: Moses.