Firebird by Saviour Pirotta with paintings by Catherine Hyde

Stunningly Illustrated Folk Tale
review by Maryom

The Firebird is a traditional Russian folk-tale, the inspiration behind Stravinsky's ballet of the same name, retold here by renowned children's author, Saviour Pirotta, and complimented by a series of stunningly atmospheric paintings by artist, Catherine Hyde.
The story tells of King Vaslav who finds his golden apples are being stolen, one by one, and he wants the culprit caught. His three sons set about trying to catch the thief but it's only his third, and "useless", son, Ivan, that has any success. Befriended by a grey wolf, Ivan sets out on a quest to find the Firebird and, as in all good tales, rescue a princess. But can he resist the temptations that lie in his way?

Saviour Pirotta's prose is clear and traditional, while maintaining the necessary poetry of a folk tale. Catherine Hyde's beautiful, moody paintings capture the ethereal, shadowy half-world of magical, talking, shape-shifting beasts complimenting but not detracting from the spell-binding story. The two aspects combine to create a very special book, likely to appeal to both children and adults but if you're looking for bright primary coloured, cartoon style illustrations then this is NOT the book for you!


Maryom's review - 5 stars
Publisher - Templar
Genre - Folk tale, Children's

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You might also like The Princess' Blankets with words by Carol Anne Duffy and illustrations by Catherine Hyde

Zoo Girl - Rebecca Elliott

Few Words - Big Message
Review By The Mole

Zoo Girl is lonely and friendless until she is left behind at the zoo. She strikes up friendships with the animals and wins the hearts of the zoo keepers and is duly adopted.

The description of the story doesn't do this book justice. Although the illustrations are striking, they are also powerful enough to tell Zoo Girls story with the addition of less than 20 words. Clearly the words sort of 'hang' with so few and this is clearly not an early reader, although it is aimed at the 5+ age group. It is a book with a message and a message it tells very powerfully.

An excellent book to illustrate adoption to the very young.

Publisher - Lion Children's
Genre - Children's 5+


Buy Zoo Girl from Amazon