The Colt from Old Regret by Dianne Wolfer illustrated by Erica Wagner

"The Colt from Old Regret" is part of the larger narrative poem "The Man from Snowy River," written by Australian poet Banjo Paterson in 1890. The poem captures the spirit of the Australian bush and the culture of horse riding. It begins with the news that a valuable colt has escaped and joined the wild bush horses, prompting a gathering of expert riders to recapture it. The poem highlights themes of bravery, skill, and the bond between horse and rider.

Dianne Wolfer has based her book on this famous Australian poem. Every part of the book design is so special - the cover will catch your eye, the end papers are perfect, the collage illustrations are rich and full of movement. 

Think about these sentences: "Alpine mint scents the air." "Birds startle. He trembles. The sky is a flurry of wings."  The mountain's craggy brow is close."  "A branding iron sears the air."

Along with the narrative created by Dianne Wolfer the full poem is included at the back of the book over several pages along with details about Banjo Paterson, bush poetry, brumbies, who was the man from snowy river and an author's note.

There was movement at the station, for the word has passed around
That the colt from old Regret had got away,
And had joined the wild bush horses—he was worth a thousand pound,
So all the cracks had gathered to the fray.
All the tried and noted riders from the stations near and far
Had mustered at the homestead overnight,
For the bushmen love hard riding where the wild bush horses are,
And the stock-horse snuffs the battle with delight.

The book is sumptuously illustrated with Wagner’s water colour painting and collage. The colours beautifully capture the light of the Australian bush and movement of the brumbies. Reading Time

An engrossing and suspenseful story that has the added bonus of connecting a young child with an iconic Australian poem. Storylinks

It doesn’t rewrite the poem, but allows Colt’s voice to be heard, and merely shows a different perspective of the event. It’s written in prose or free verse, so it can be read as a story or a poem, and feels like it has the same rhythm as the original poem. The Book Muse

The Colt from Old Regret would be a beautiful present to gift to a friend living away from Australia or as a keep-sake gift for a student graduating from High School. Here are the teachers notes. I am certain this book will be a CBCA 2026 notable title.

All of us in the children's literature community loved the illustrations in this first book by Erica Wagner. 

Hope is the Thing

Dianne Wolfer is an award-winning author of 25 books, including the acclaimed Light series, The Dog with Seven Names and The Last Light Horse. Most recently, Diane’s book Scout and the Rescue Dogs won the Children’s Book of the Year at the Western Australian Premier’s Literary Awards. Dianne completed PhD research into anthropomorphism at UWA and loves talking about animal characters in children’s literature.

One Poem in a Picture Book IBBY Video sneak peek

Poetry can bring delight and insights to children from a very young age. 

But some adults lack confidence in introducing poems at home or in the classroom. 

Today we’ll show you some picture books based on one complete poem. 

We hope they’ll inspire you to seek out more.  Dr Robin Morrow

Over the last few months Dr Robin Morrow and I have been preparing a presentation on the topic One Poem in a Picture book. This post is a sneak peek of our newest IBBY presentation. Members will be sent the video link over the coming weeks. Our video has a wealth of book titles for you to explore. The book above - Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost with spectacular illustrations by PJ Lynch - was one of the titles that inspired this talk. Many years ago, I also started a Pinterest on this topic (80+ titles) after a question was posed in a Facebook group. If you join IBBY Australia (only AUS$45) you will be able to access our full video over the coming weeks. 

In our presentation we talk about Australian bush ballads, famous poems from people such as Emily Dickinson and Christina Rossetti, lyrical poems, funny and nonsense poems and we share books by many famous illustrators such as Charles Keeping, Andrew McLean, Freya Blackwood, Tom Hopgood, Helen Oxenbury, Jan Brett, Charlotte Voake, Susan Jeffers and Julie Morstad.

Senior Primary (Elementary school) and High School teachers and Teacher-Librarians could use these resources as for lessons in visual literacy and also in an art class to talk about the way illustrations have interpreted these famous poems. You are sure to be able to find examples of one poem in a picture book in your school or local library. 

Here are a few of the books we feature in our presentation and script excerpts by Dr Robin Morrow:

Hist! is an Australian poem that is not a bush ballad, but it is a narrative poem, written by the popular poet C J Dennis. It is a simple tale of a group of children making their way home in darkness, with a build-up of tension. Peter Gouldthorpe’s skillful design and technique result in an elegant book. 

There is a rich array of nonsense poems from the major Anglophone countries. The master of nonsense, Edward Lear, was an artist and added witty drawings to his poems. The Quangle Wangle’s Hat cries out to be read aloud and also offers scope for a variety of visual interpretations. It is interesting to note that Helen Oxenbury’s earliest picture books included this nonsense rhyme. The original cover shows the small Olympian bear. Of course, she never reveals the face of the Quangle Wangle himself, a special challenge of this poem, because the verse states his face you could not see because of his huge hat.

Another great favourite Edward Lear poem is The Owl and the Pussycat. A number of illustrators have worked on this rollicking but poignant verse. The US illustrator Jan Brett sets her many picture books in exotic locations. I think Edward Lear would be surprised to find his fantasy couple in the seascape and landscape of the island of Martinique, with its radiant colours.

Another English writer, Walter de la Mare, created many poems that have become beloved by children. ... perhaps the best-known, Silver, in which on a spring evening, two sleepy children join a parade to a wonderful, dream-like fairy party in the woods.

Slowly, silently, now the moon

Walks the night in her silver shoon;

This way, and that, she peers, and sees

Silver fruit upon silver trees;

Canadian illustrator Julie Morstad uses bright colours, strong brush strokes, and simple but skillful composition in this book. And the appeal of swinging is such a universal joy of childhood that it is good to see this, another favourite Robert Louis Stevenson poem, presented for a very young readership.

Langston Hughes, a most influential African-American poet, wrote An Earth Song, a simple, exuberant poem about welcoming spring. The illustrator Tequitia Andrews has made clear, strong illustrations of children enjoying the seasonal change, reminiscent of the work of Ezra Jack Keats. 

An Earth Song is from a series called Petite Poems (Abrams Appleseed).