Rachel Tonkin 13th January 1945 - 27th October 2022

 

A colleague of mine has been reading books by Rachel Tonkin (Rachel Elizabeth Legge) to groups of students for many years especially Papa and the Olden days and Leaf Litter.  She happened to meet, by chance, someone who knew Rachel but before my friend could send a letter to this author explaining how much her books have meant to her, she heard that Rachel had died.

About Leaf Litter: In this exquisitely illustrated book, award-winning author/illustrator Rachel Tonkin explores a small patch of leaf litter beneath one tree, which contains a hidden world that changes day by day. The more you look, the you will find. Put simply, Leaf Litter is Stephen Beisty's Cross-Sections meets Where′s Wally with lift-the-flaps - from an ecological point of view!  In a time when respect for and understanding of our environment are paramount, Leaf Litter is an excellent introduction to the intricate and complex relationships that exist in our natural world. Leaves, twigs, branches and bark collect on the ground in forests all over the world. We call it leaf litter, but it isn′t really rubbish at all. If you look closely at leaf litter you will discover a world of animals and plants living side by side, a busy secret world we hardly ever see. 

Here is part of the funeral notice: Rachel attended Presbyterian Ladies College before following her passion to study Fine Arts at RMIT. Rachel had a highly distinguished and successful career as a children’s book illustrator and author, winning numerous awards for her work, including four separate short listings for The Children’s Book Council of Australia awards.

CBCA Awards

1990 Honour Book Papa and the Olden Days

1996 Short List What was the war like Grandma

1997 Short List Grandpa's stories

2007 Short List Leaf Litter

Rachel Tonkin's first book was Gems of the Australian Bush and other poems (1968) by RW Barclay.  Here are some book covers you might recognise or remember:

Here is an illustration from To the Goldfields: