I go into WordsWorth Books in Waterloo ( Ontario ) often. It is an independent bookstore, and I want to support these kinds of bookstores. I like the owners and their staff, and I almost always buy a book when I drop in. I really do not need more books, but I cannot stop buying, especially when I put my feet inside WordsWorth. My name is Fred Redekop, and I am a bookaholic !
So, why do adult books, novels, non-fiction and political ones not have pictures and illustrations ? Some adult books have the odd picture, and some kind of artwork at the front or back of the book.. But, we call children’s books children’s books because they have less text and more illustration. Illustrated books are written for adults to buy for their children anyway. If we would not have bought the book, I’ll Love You forever by Robert Munsch, our kids would not have heard about it. So, all children’s book authors really have to get the attention of adults with their texts and artwork. Is this true ? Are books for children really for us older people ? Some of the jokes in these books can only be understood by adults.
“I’ll love you forever and like you for always, as long as I am living my baby you’ll be “ is the refrain that you will find in Munsch’s book. Jesus of Nazareth used this repetitious technique in the parables that he told to the communities where he lived. This way of writing helps us to remember. As the baby, in the book, gets older and grows into an adult the same refrain is said. Each parent who reads it must sing it to a different tune because there is no music to it. The pictures also make the book memorable.
There is also a kid’s book called, The Story of Ferdinand. A little text with great illustrations of the bull that sits under a tree on top of a hill. These illustrations are not complex ( from my point of view ) but it is a great book for non-violence. At least that is how I have heard it , as I read it over and over to our children
Then there is Potatoes, Potatoes , a kid’s book about war, farming and mothering. The pictures are wonderful, and the text is inspiring. But, it is not a kid’s book. It is marketed it as that kind of book, but it is for us adults first. We want our children to work for peace in the world when they grow. The book has an adult theme,but the text is simpler with complex drawings with great colour.
So, why do serious books written for adults do not have good illustrations of art ? This is with my tongue firmly in the my cheek, but we do learn so much from “children’s” books. We should commit ourselves to reading kid’s books every year, whether we have children or grandchildren or not. Let us see the world from another set of eyes and ears. Take it as across-cultural experience ? What do you think ?
Fred Redekop
Ponder Anew 