A Pet for Mrs Arbuckle by Gwenda Smyth illustrated by Ann James

In 2018 I wrote about A Pet for Mrs Arbuckle by Gwenda Smyth illustrated by Ann James from 1981 (Shortlisted CBCA 1982)

"Mrs Emmeline Arbuckle needed a pet. ... 'Well of course,' said the gingernut cat. 'You must advertise."  

WANTED - A PET FOR A SWEET OLD LADY. VERY GOOD HOME.

Mrs Arbuckle receives seven letters and sets off around the world to interview the applicants. The gingernut cat goes along too, in case she needs a second opinion.  It is these 'opinions' that add delicious touches of humour to the story. Here are some examples.  

• The armadillo - do you want a ball or a pet? 
• The llama (and her family) - a pet is a pet, and a herd is a herd. 
• Aardvark - Are you going to spend your days finding ants to feed an aardvark? 
• A bear - Take it from me - bear hugs can be very nasty in hot weather.

So what are the qualities of the perfect pet? 

"A pet should go on and on, day after day. A pet should have regular meals and sleep in the same old corner night after night. A pet should be something you can stroke."  

Of course, this perfect pet has been with Mrs Arbuckle all along. It is all very satisfying for the book characters and the reader.  Perhaps one day someone will republish this wonderful story which contains vibrant illustrations by Ann James depicting a range of world settings and emotions. If you have a copy at home or in your library hold it close.  I always include this book in my library program and it is a winner every time.  There are so many little details to discover and discuss. We usually begin by talking about Mrs Arbuckle's husband who she fondly calls Mr A. 

Last month I was so privileged to visit the home of Ann James. It is filled to the brim with fabulous art from so many famous children's book illustrators (Andrew McLean; Bob Graham; Emma Quay and lots more). While I was there, I mentioned that I love A Pet for Mrs Arbuckle but that I did not have a copy. It was a fantastic surprise when Ann James offered to gift me a copy, and she signed it AND she showed me a photo of the real gingernut cat himself! I also learned that this is the first book illustrated by Ann and it came about because a Melbourne bookseller back in about 1980 invited local authors and illustrators to display dummy books and pages from books that they were hoping would be published - and this led to the discovery and publishing of A Pet for Mrs Arbuckle and from there so many more wonderful books. 

You could follow or compare A Pet for Mrs Arbuckle book A Pet for Miss Wright and Wanted: The Perfect pet.

I am celebrating Momotimetoread post 4000! 

And I have selected A pet for Mrs Arbuckle. This book was published in 1981 and that is about the time my journey into the world of children's literature began. I now own two art works by Ann James from It's a Miroocool and Bird and Bear and the Special Day (I talk about this here). I realise now I should have told Ann James how much I adored reading Little Humpty and Lucy Goosey to hundreds of children in my school library. This also seems like a good way to thank the wonderful Ann James (Hans Christian Andersen Award nominee 2019) for her wonderful books and more importantly for her generous contribution to IBBY Australia including these pieces you will find in our Mini Masterpiece art auction which begins on 14th November. 

These are three of the postcard sized art works - there are two more for you to explore. 

Ann contributed pieces to our first Mini Masterpiece auction and our IBBY promotional flyer also features her work. 

I am happy that my milestone post features a picture book and a book by an Australian author/illustrator. Here is a statement about picture books that resonates with me:

Picture books help to build young readers one glossy page at a time, and a good picture book is a work of art combining just the right illustrations with just the right words and placing them all together for an enjoyable reading experience. 

There is nothing simple about the benefits of reading picture books with young (and not so young) children. Picture books cultivate an appreciation for art while strengthening a child's visual skills. Before a child can read the words they learn to read the pictures to understand the story. Picture books help children learn about the structure of a story while building their vocabulary and comprehension. Picture books can tell simple and familiar stories or very complex and serious stories, and children are exposed to the big world around them. 

The most important aspect of picture books is how they are shared. They are meant to be a shared experience between a child, or a group of children, and a trusted adult. Reading books together builds a bond that is very special and unique. Contra Costa County Library, CA, USA