The Rabbit's Magician by Shae Millward illustrated by Andy Fackrell

Ziggy’s beloved magician has performed an amazing disappearing trick. But just where is The Amazing Albertino? Ziggy waits. And waits some more. Has something gone wrong with the trick?

This book provides a quiet and comforting way to explain the great mystery of death especially the death of a loved one. The title is sure to generate some good discussions with children about magicians and rabbits and how they might relate to one another.

We do not need to know why or how Alby died – that is not the focus of this story but I imagine children will infer he had grown quite old.

"I really miss him. I'm worried something went wrong with the trick - he should have reappeared by now. 'No, dear Ziggy, it worked ... In fact his last magic trick was his greatest ever. But it wasn't a disappearing act. He is not gone. He's all around. You see his trick was changing from one form to another."

I love the slow build up as each of the animals invite rabbit to join them. Owls are always the wise characters in story so this is a recognisable trope. In story terms it feels very satisfying that the wise owl is the one to ask the all-important question – what are you waiting for? 

The low horizon line used in the early story scenes hints at the enormity of the subject matter - a story about love and loss. Turn the page and there are brighter colours and a change of energy.  Ziggy is allowed to grieve and cry but the wisdom offered by his friends is genuinely reassuring. There are quite a few books that feature magicians and rabbits but often the rabbit in a magician's act is seen to be abused or treated badly by his boss.  In this book I loved the tender relationship between Ziggy and Alby (implied by the carrots he offers his friend). Witnessing their relationship helps us understand the depth of Ziggy’s initial confusion and then grief over the loss of his dearest friend.  

See more pages from this book here. 

This book will engage and help readers understand more about emotional responses to the deepest type of loss. 

The publisher gives an age guide of 3-8 years for this book but to me it is way deeper than that and is better shared with readers aged 10+ which I why I put Senior Picture book as a label on this post.  Art teachers in high school could also use this book to study the way Andy Fackrell uses colour. He says: “Colour helped convey the emotional journey; the red earth implied rawness of emotion, the Prussian blue night reflected loneliness, but the time Alby and Ziggy spent together was brought to life with exuberant complimentary hues.” 

Here are some further notes about the art:

Because the book's locations change between exterior to interior – from the Aussie outback to a theatre stage, from outside to inside Alby's house – I needed to find common elements that smoothed the transition. The easiest way was to use a common colour throughout. The purple/blue night sky gave me a vibrant base. So the colour theory was basically 'What looks nice with deep, moody, purple?' Purple looks good with bright green, and also vibrant red. So these three colours are dominant. Some of the details also use complementary colours that sit well with purple; the bunch of carrots (red and green), the bouquet of flowers (pale purple and yellow). I was definitely influenced by Henri Matisse, especially the scene when Ziggy opens Alby's bedroom. Flame red walls, apple green door, pale plum carpet and bright purple bed. I felt Alby would be a vibrant character with an unrestrained taste in colour. The moon phases also provided a motif that I could repeat throughout the book. For instance, when Alby appears from his room, the door is slightly ajar – mirroring the slither of moon in the phase sequence at the top of the page. Other examples are the door frames being half-moons, the circular window being separated by four sections (phases) and Ziggy's most important animal friend, the owl, being perfectly round like the full moon. The most important aspect of illustrating The Rabbit's Magician was how to keep it bright and fun while telling a heartfelt story that happens in the dark of night. 

The pictures take us on a journey around the world, where we experience the moon phases and aspects of art and science, magic and invention, and ideas around taking care of yourself physically and emotionally. It shows the power of friendship as well and brings so much to life. I think it is the kind of book that will have different meaning for different ages, because everyone who reads this will see something different in it. The Book Muse

Here are some teachers notes for The Rabbit's Magician. And these notes by Shae Millward are very detailed and well worth exploring and you might also need the associated worksheets which are aimed at very young readers. Here is the trailer from the publisher Ford Street.

Companion books:

The Bear and the Wildcat

Waiting for Wolf