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Find out moreSydney Smith has illustrated multiple children’s books, including The White Cat and the Monk, written by Jo Ellen Bogart, and the highly acclaimed Footpath Flowers, which was a New York Times Children’s Book of the Year, a winner of the Governor General Award for Illustration and shortlisted for the Kate Greenaway Medal. Born in Nova Scotia in Canada, Sydney now lives in Toronto.
From the winner of the 2017 Kate Greenaway Medal. | This is the first time that Sydney Smith has written his own text for a picturebook and he demonstrates as much skill with words as with the art which has won so many accolades and reaches even greater heights of excellence in this stunning book. From the unusual thin skyscraper shape of the book to wordless passages of comic panel-style vignettes and full spreads of gridded streets and buildings, traffic lights and crowds, everything sets the tone of a chaotic city in winter. The moody art, mostly inky line and subdued watercolor with some gouache for thicker textures in the snow is intensely atmospheric. Masterful use of scale and perspective shows how terrifyingly small the gender unspecified, all-wrapped-up-for-winter, little protagonist is. “I know what it’s like to be small in the city” the story starts and only gradually do we realise that it is Small who is speaking and only slowly do we realise who is being addressed as advice is given on finding warmth and shelter and dark alleys and dangerous dogs to avoid. There is a wonderful narrative twist which is best left to a first reading so you can fully appreciate the powerful emotional journey, but I can guarantee an immediate re-reading will be demanded so that you can spot all the clues. A truly exceptional picturebook.
Winner of the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal 2018 | Shortlisted for the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal 2018 | This haunting book, beautifully illustrated in ink and watercolour, bears record to a long-gone way of life. A young boy describes his day, from first thing in the morning when his father leaves for work, though playtime, lunch, shopping and his father’s return as evening falls. His descriptions are matter of fact, events presented as they happen, and the sea is a constant. It’s always there, visible from the house and playground, and the boy thinks of his father under the sea at work in the mines. Scenes underground are black and oppressive, forming a sharp contrast with the other pages, bathed in sunlight, the sea sparkling in the background. The boy accepts he’ll follow his father and grandfather into the mines: ‘I’m a miner’s son,’ he says, ‘In my town, that’s the way it goes.’ A book that demands to be studied and thought about. ~ Andrea Reece
Winner of the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal 2018 | This haunting book, beautifully illustrated in ink and watercolour, bears record to a long-gone way of life. A young boy describes his day, from first thing in the morning when his father leaves for work, though playtime, lunch, shopping and his father’s return as evening falls. His descriptions are matter of fact, events presented as they happen, and the sea is a constant. It’s always there, visible from the house and playground, and the boy thinks of his father under the sea at work in the mines. Scenes underground are black and oppressive, forming a sharp contrast with the other pages, bathed in sunlight, the sea sparkling in the background. The boy accepts he’ll follow his father and grandfather into the mines: ‘I’m a miner’s son,’ he says, ‘In my town, that’s the way it goes.’ A book that demands to be studied and thought about.
Shortlisted for the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal 2018 | This haunting book, beautifully illustrated in ink and watercolour, bears record to a long-gone way of life. A young boy describes his day, from first thing in the morning when his father leaves for work, though playtime, lunch, shopping and his father’s return as evening falls. His descriptions are matter of fact, events presented as they happen, and the sea is a constant. It’s always there, visible from the house and playground, and the boy thinks of his father under the sea at work in the mines. Scenes underground are black and oppressive, forming a sharp contrast with the other pages, bathed in sunlight, the sea sparkling in the background. The boy accepts he’ll follow his father and grandfather into the mines: ‘I’m a miner’s son,’ he says, ‘In my town, that’s the way it goes.’ A book that demands to be studied and thought about. ~ Andrea Reece
This haunting book, beautifully illustrated in ink and watercolour, bears record to a long-gone way of life. A young boy describes his day, from first thing in the morning when his father leaves for work, though playtime, lunch, shopping and his father’s return as evening falls. His descriptions are matter of fact, events presented as they happen, and the sea is a constant. It’s always there, visible from the house and playground, and the boy thinks of his father under the sea at work in the mines. Scenes underground are black and oppressive, forming a sharp contrast with the other pages, bathed in sunlight, the sea sparkling in the background. The boy accepts he’ll follow his father and grandfather into the mines: ‘I’m a miner’s son,’ he says, ‘In my town, that’s the way it goes.’ A book that demands to be studied and thought about.
Shortlisted for the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal 2016. Words would be completely superfluous to this beautiful and poignant picture book. A little girl in a red coat walks though the city hand and hand with her father. As he shops, chats to friends and navigates the route home, her eye is caught by flowers, flashes of colour amongst streets and scenes generally depicted in monotone. She collects a bouquet, then presents her flowers to people and creatures they pass – a sleeping man, a mother and her children, a dog and a dead sparrow are all given a flower, until she has just one left. Rich in visual detail, this will open readers’ eyes to the beauty of the world we take for granted, to the delight children find in small things, and to the love between child and parent. ~ Andrea Reece
What if words got stuck in the back of your mouth whenever you tried to speak? After a day of being unable to speak when asked, and of being stared at, a boy and his father go to the river for some quiet time. It's just a bad speech day, says Dad. But the boy can't stop thinking about all the eyes watching his lips twisting and twirling. When his father points to the river bubbling, churning, whirling and crashing, the boy finds a way to think about how he speaks. Even the river stutters. Like him. I talk like a river, he says. An incredibly moving picture book that offers understanding rather than a solution, and which will resonate with all readers, young and old. Masterfully illustrated by Sydney Smith, winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal.
I know what it's like to be small in the city... Being small can be overwhelming in a city. People don't see you. The loud sounds of the sirens and cyclists can be scary. And the streets are so busy it can make your brain feel like there's too much stuff in it. But if you know where to find good hiding places, warm dryer vents that blow out hot steam that smells like summer, music to listen to or friends to say hi to, there can be comfort in the city, too. We follow our little protagonist, who knows all about what its like to be small in the city, as he gives his best advice for surviving there. As we turn the pages, Sydney Smith's masterful storytelling allows us to glimpse exactly who this advice is for, leading us to a powerful, heart-rending realization...
What if there was a purple planet with purple people on it? Sheree Fitch answers this question with a zany tongue-twister of a poem featuring Mabel Murple, a daredevil who rides a purple motorbike through purple puddles, skis on purple snow, and on her pancakes pours maple syrup. With a rich and vivid purple palette, Kate Greenaway Medal recipient Sydney Smith's illustrations reflect the wild joy in this classic poem. Mabel Murple won the Ann Connor Brimer award for children's literature.
An enchanting retelling of a classic Old Irish poem, brought beautifully to life by the award-winning Sydney Smith, illustrator of Footpath Flowers. From the illustrator of Footpath Flowers, Sydney Smith, and award-winning author, Jo Ellen Bogart, comes a retelling of the classic Old Irish poem, 'Pangur Ban' - the poem that inspired the character of Pangur Ban in the Academy Award nominated animation, The Secret of Kells. The monk in the poem leads a simple life - he studies his books late into the evening, searching for meaning. His cat, Pangur, leads a simple life, too, chasing his prey in the darkness. But as night turns to dawn, can each find what he seeks? Thoughtful readers will be enchanted by this elegant, classically-inspired story which pays tribute to the wisdom of animals and the wonders of the natural world.
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