Eric and Terry Fan will be at the 2017 Toronto Word on the Street Festival
Front cover of “The Night Gardener” by Eric and Terry Fan. Image linked off of the publisher’s website
I allowed myself to be absorbed into the magic of the world of books this past weekend, amid the hurry-burly of the modern adult world. I turned off the ringer on all the phones, I shut-down the computer. I even pull the batteries from the remote control for the television set. And I allowed myself the luxury of child-wonderment of entering the world of The Night Gardener by the Fan Brothers. And, boy was I pleasantly amused.
(Excerpt)
William looked out his window
to find a commotion on the street.
He quicly dressed, ran downstairs,
and raced out the door to discover . . .
The wise owl had appeared overnight, as if by magic.
William spent the whole day staring at it in wonder,
and he continued to stare until it
became too dark to see.
I am often asked my opinions by parents looking for items for their children to read which allows me to look at wonderful things like this book. The Fan Brothers (Eric and Terry) have carefully crafted a wonderful item here which is lyrical in both in the story and its images. Readers easily witness the main character William trying to figure out how large topairies appear in his neighbourhood every morning and gain his curiosity through the story.
Pages from “The Night Gardener” by Terry & Eric Fan. Image linked from the publisher’s website.
The images are detailed and exciting even on their own to look at. One – no matter what age the person may be – can almost spend hours alone admiring the small elements of shading, the use of lines and the sparing use of colour on each page.
Pages from “The Night Gardener” by Terry & Eric Fan. Image linked from the publisher’s website.
The Night Gardener by Terry and Eric Fan was certainly a wonderfully crafted book to escape the hurry-burly of the modern world for a while. The words and images come together to tell a lyrical story which would enlighten and engage any reader of any age.
*****
Link to Simon & Schuster Canada’s website for The Night Gardener
Link to the Fan Brothers’ website
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