Terry Denton (1950-2026)

“Dad gave joy to millions of children around the world and after all those stories and all those lives he touched, he always came home to us. We are so grateful that his stories will continue to live on, bringing wonder, laughter and comfort to generations yet to come – and most especially to his beloved grandchildren, who will grow up knowing him through the magic he left behind.”

For this blog post tribute to Terry Denton I am going to focus on his older titles. I am sure others will talk about more recent ones such as Jandamarra; Moonwalkers; all those Treehouse stories written with Andy Griffiths and Can you teach a fish to climb a tree (2024). 

Make sure you take a look at paintings by Terry Denton from his web page - such an amazing talent. 

Think about some of the big names that had their work illustrated by Terry Denton - Mem Fox, Margaret Wild, Andy Griffiths, Paul Jennings, Gillian Rubinstein, Morris Lurie, Andrew Daddo, Ursula Duobsarsky, Michael Wagner, Mark Greenwood, Jane Godwin, Mike Dumbleton, Natalie Jane Prior, Richard Tulloch, Phillip Gwynne, Jenny Wagner, Margaret Clark, Justin D'Ath, Doug McLeod, Max Dann, Pamela Shrapnel, Victor Kelleher, Bill Condon, Robin Klein, Jackie French, Ted Greenwood, Dianne Bates, and Moya Simons. (source Trove)

My own favourite book illustrated by Terry Denton is Felix and Alexander - 1986 CBCA Picture Book of Year winner:

Felix and Alexander

The perfect book to share with your preschool or Kindergarten child is Ducky's Nest:

Here is my 2015 post about Ducky's Nest

About Night Noises Kirkus said: A compassionate portrait of old age, memorably extended in Denton's sharply observed pen and colored, pencil illustrations, which use frames for the three parallel stories of events in the past, outside, and by the fire.

I remember having this sweet anthology in one of my former school libraries:

You can see an original image from this book held by the NGV 

Meannie and the Min Min is a fabulous short chapter book - perfect to read aloud in a family or to a class of Grade Three children. If you can find it Max Gillies made a wonderful audio book recording of this story (on a cassette tape).

Meannie and the Min Min

Freddie the Frightened and the wondrous Ms Wardrobe

In one of my early school libraries I had a copy of The Story of Imelda who used to be small - this is the book I keep on my 'to find list' - it was such a charming story by Maurice Lurie.

Here are a couple of other picture books:

CBCA award mentions 

• Younger Readers 1995 short list Duck for Cover; 
• Younger Readers 2007 short list The Cat on the Mat is Flat; 
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• Early Childhood 2002 short list Passing On; 
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• Picture Book of the Year 1986 winner Felix and Alexander; 
• Picture Book of the Year 1994 Honour Book The Paw; 
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• Eve Pownall Award 2011 short list Wicked Warriors and Evil Emperors;
• Eve Pownall 2014 short list Jandamarra.

Can you teach a fish to climb a tree? by Jane Godwin illustrated by Terry Denton

 

Einstein did not say: "Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid."

This quote, by an unknown person, is the inspiration for this quirky book which celebrates difference and talent.

"Could a dog play the violin?"

"Could a baby bake a cake? Or a horse drive a car?"

"Do you think a lizard could ever learn to sail a boat?"

All of these propositions are preposterous but  then in the second half of this book Jane Godwin shines a spotlight on each animal and their own unique talent which, in an interesting twist, are mostly about survival such as the lizard camouflaging to avoid the kookaburra and the penguins huddling together to keep warm. Of course, the final focus is on all the wonderful things YOU can do. You almost need a magnifying glass to explore all the activities on this double page spread. 

The CBCA (Children's Book of the Year) Early Childhood judges said: Children will initially find the series of posed questions in this imaginative book, both preposterous and comical, a great device to engage them in reflections and discussions about self-acceptance, diversity and understanding others. Quirky, loose ink and watercolour illustrations, abounding in small humorous details, enhance the succinct narrative inviting children to follow the unfolding visual stories and create their own. The pace builds with the increasing silliness in the first half, which is followed by a more considered, thoughtful second half, cleverly incorporating fascinating facts about remarkable attributes of various animals (and human babies). Powerful yet with a light touch that feels fresh and unique, this interactive picture book will sit well in homes, libraries and educational settings.

Terry Denton’s iconic illustration style captures the humour of animals in ridiculous situations. His images are detailed, colourful and full of expression, inviting readers to take time to explore them, discovering new details with each read. Scholastic Australia ASO Teachers notes.

Other picture books that explore unique talents:

Best Test; and If Only

I like the debossed cover of Can you teach a fish to climb a tree? Children will enjoy running their fingers over the title. I am also happy to see Terry Denton returning to his earlier art style. Of course, he is famous for all the Storey Treehouse books but I am a huge fan of his early books such as Felix and Alexander and the little obscure book The Story of Imelda who used to be Small (two illustrations below) and also Night Noises by Margaret Wild, Ducky's Nest by Gillian Rubenstein and At the Cafe Splendid.

Felix and Alexander

Two pages from The Story of Imelda who used to be small by Morris Lurie (1984)

Here are some other books by Jane Godwin. I especially love Ivanhoe Swift left home at Six, Poor Fish, What do you wish for?  and The Best Hiding Place:

Felix and Alexander by Terry Denton

Children's Book Council past Winner  

this one is truly a TREASURE!

Image source: https://store.cbca.org.au/sheet-of-short-list-stickers

This is my fourth post about past CBCA winners and short list treasures. Click these to read the previous posts. Post one, post two and post three.

In 1986 Felix and Alexander won the Picture Book of the Year award and it has remained a firm favourite of mine. Sadly it is out of print. This is a book that needs to be reprinted so it can be shared with a new generation of children. Today Terry Denton is very famous for his collaboration with Andy Griffiths on the Treehouse books but earlier in his career Terry did scrumptious colour picture books like this one and another I long to find again - The story of Imelda, who was small - by Morris Lurie. He also illustrated Night Noises by Mem Fox.

I like to begin a discussion of Felix and Alexander with a discussion about the cover.  Can we predict - Who is Felix? Who is Alexander? Where are they? What time is it? How do you know?

"Alexander lived in a block of flats in the big city. Even though he was not allowed to have a real pet, he had Felix, a toy dog. Felix was Alexander's best friend and always laughed at Alexander's jokes"

Now compare our answers with what we discover here on the first page. Alexander is the boy, Felix is the dog and they live in a block of flats in the city. But have you noticed the twist - Felix laughs at Alexander's jokes! They must have a very special relationship.

By page five we reach the twist. Alexander sets off for his usual afternoon city walk (without Felix) but on this particular day Alexander does not come home. Felix packs "his torch into his suitcase" and sets off to find his friend. It is late afternoon and the night is not far away.  As climbs through the fence a nail catches his side.

"Tiny balls of stuffing like pale pink pearls fell from the tear. Clutching his side, Felix ran into the street."

Felix walks through the dark streets and the buildings begin to look quite sinister. There is a scream and Felix sees his friend in the grip of a monster. Resourceful Felix turns the monster to stone using his torch but now the two friends are totally lost.  How can they find their way home. Can you make a link with Hansel and Gretel?

I love the final page:

"After giving him some new extra stuffing, Alexander sewed up the little tear in Felix's side ... For a long time after, Felix would always feel a little stitch in his side when he laughed too hard at Alexander's jokes, and he would remember their adventure in the streets of the city."

Ducky's nest by Gillian Rubinstein illustrated by Terry Denton

In this blog I talk quite often about books that have long been out of print.  For today I have a good news story.  Ducky's nest was first published in 1999 and our old school copy is in a very poor state so I was excited to see a new copy in a bookshop recently. This book is a true gem. In fact Walker have reprinted a good selection of their past titles including the wonderful Murgatroyd's Garden by Judy Zavos and Louise builds a House and the partner book Louise builds a boat by Louise Pfanner.

As a special addition, the back of Ducky's nest has extra information about this book from the original publisher Mark MacLeod along with Gillian Rubinstein and Terry Denton. These will add to your understanding of the themes in this book and the creative process.

Ducky is a special toy loved by Claudie.  Ducky goes everywhere with Claudie during the day and is an essential companion at night.  Luckily mum knows all the hiding places and so Claudie never goes to bed without her precious friend.  Grandma, however, does not know that Ducky is regularly misplaced.  A new baby is coming and grandma has come to look after Claudie.  They enjoy a lovely outing to the park but Ducky is left behind. "She put Ducky in the reeds by the water's edge so he could watch the ducks as they paddled across the lake to eat the bread."

Living in the lake are a group of ducks.  Once they establish Ducky is a toy and not a tadpole they decide to help him find his way back home.  All through the night the new friends fly Ducky across the city.  Terry Denton gives the reader a splendid panorama of the surrounding fields and landmarks. Ducky's home cannot be found so the ducks go back to the park.

"Each of the birds took a feather of down and they made Ducky a cost nest and tucked him in it. The black duck told him stories about famous ducks of history until he fell asleep."

This is a simple sentence and yet it shows such deep love and comfort. There are many nests in this story including the one that will now be made for the new baby.

Here is a set of teaching notes.  This is a book to treasure and own.  I am including the original cover.  After reading this book make sure you look for one of my all time favourite books Felix and Alexander also illustrated by Terry Denton.  You might also enjoy Ruby by Alison Lester.

Meannie and the Min Min by Pamela illustrated by Terry Denton

Meannie is a fabulous witch. She's mean, ugly and with a most terrible diet of lizards. Having arrived in Australia during the gold rush she has now settled in the Australian Desert “where there is heaps of dust and plenty of hot sunshine.”

I love the description of Meannie “She wears the usual black raggy dress down to her prickly ankles, but it is coated with thick red dust that dribbles into mud pools when it rains, and makes stains like tomato sauce on her singlet. She also wears the usual witch’s hat. But it has corks tied around the brim to chase the blowflies away and a point that has wilted in the heat…. Meannie’s nose is always an ugly, red, peeling thing that glows in the dark and scares the bats silly.”

Bindii and Mike (names invented for a story written in 1987 long before the Steve Irwin and his famous daughter) also live the Australian desert. They have a pet lizard called Thorny. He is an Thorny Devil and very rare. Meannie has never tasted a Thorny Devil and so she hatches a plan to kidnap him and add him to her cooking pot. Thank heavens for the resourceful and quick thinking Bindii and Mike. Thorny is saved and justice triumphs.

This is a terrific Australian book. I am sure it would be out of print now but I plan to read it to my Second Grade students this year along with the tape I have read by Max Gillies which is delightful. If you like lots of adventure, fast fun and short chapter books with marvelous illustrations (Terry Denton) then look for this little book in your library.