Dorrie, the family’s name for Dorothy Wall, moved to Australia from New Zealand in 1914 to work as a graphic designer and freelance illustrator in Sydney. She arrived with her art and craft gear and her trusty sewing machine and set up house on the Harbour. But her favourite hand made koala, was stolen by a real koala after she found some of her things were in a mess from the intruder. But she opined that perhaps the koala was lonely and attempted to befriend it. It blinked a lot at her and so she named it Blinky Bill. Often moving she gathered a group of animals that she also named and wrote short stories about them all. Eventually these were published by Angus & Robertson.
The picture book gives a warm and affectionate look at Dorrie’s life as an artist: sketching, sewing and writing in New Zealand and Australia.
The charming digital illustrations will inspire all readers to look at the Blinky Bill books afresh, reading them with her life in mind. The illustrations show us a determined young woman, making use of her surroundings, working with the koala to develop her stories. That she was ultimately successful is wonderful, but as the short biography at the end of the book tells us, success was not enough to keep her solvent and well, and she died in 1942, leaving behind characters and stories that are read by successive generations of admirers.
Readers will look at the detail on each page: the range of Australian native flora and fauna, the things she made, the damage Blinky Bill caused in her home, the differences between the views of Australia and New Zealand. I loved looking closely at the small details included by McCartney, giving this story a richness, adding to its authenticity.
Wikipedia has a short biography of Wall, not to be confused with the rugby player of the same name. But the best thing kids can do is borrow a Blinky Bill book from the library and read them for themselves or share them with the class. There will be many adults volunteering to read them aloud.
Dorrie’s short life is celebrated in this book and her tenacity is worth recalling and applauding.
The Blinky Bill stories will be familiar to many of the older generation of readers. Dorrie is an ingeniously written and strikingly illustrated picture book by Tania McCartney that will reintroduce Dorothy Wall to a new generation of readers.
The story of Dorothy, or Dorrie as she was known, begins in New Zealand in 1894. Dorrie had an idyllic childhood where she was free to dance, sing, play the piano and create with paint, metal, fabric, paper, and a little bit of stardust. In 1914 Dorrie moved to Australia where she worked as a book cover designer and freelance artist. It was here that she began to write about a mischievous koala she named Blinky Bill.
Tania McCartney has created a beautiful tribute to Dorothy Wall who found her circumstances later in life very challenging. Dorrie is full of gorgeous and engaging illustrations with the text cleverly spread throughout the pages. At the end of the book there is more information about Dorothy Wall which may encourage readers to research further and seek out the Blinky Bill books.
This is a very special book and one to be treasured.
Egmont, 2015. ISBN 9781405277679
(Age: 5-7) Recommended. Witches. Magic. Cats. Witchcraft.
This is Dorrie. She is a witch. A little witch. Her hat is always on
crooked and her stockings never match. It's time for a new
generation to meet Dorrie the original worst witch, her cat, Gink
and read about all the magic and mayhem in her life.
When her mother leaves for a witches' meeting, Dorrie is left by
herself, but Cook should be back shortly. Dorrie is warned to be
careful as Mildred the bad Blue Witch is back in town. Unfortunately
Dorrie answers a knock at the door, it's not Cook with her borrowed
cup of sugar and Mildred enters ready to cause problems.
Dorrie is in big trouble; she needs to think creatively and finds
the perfect solution in a kitchen cupboard - shrinking powder. The
fun begins with Mildred drinking the milk and quickly changing to a
very cross bee-sized witch. When her mother arrives home, she's
happy that her daughter has solved the problem and saved the day.
Patricia Coombs' ink and pencil illustrations are mostly black with
some splashes of blue and yellow, and occasional splashes of colour.
Each character has a unique shape and the mood and tone of the story
is told through the drawings. The blue and yellow sparks caused by
the cross blue witch fill the air and follow Dorrie into the kitchen
showing just how angry Mildred is becoming. The Dorrie books
are a welcome release for young readers who enjoy magic, witches and
fantasy stories.
Rhyllis Bignell
The ghost at the point by Charlotte Calder
Walker Books Australia, 2012. ISBN 1 921977 73 3
(Ages: 9+) Recommended. Australian historical novel. Sorrie lives
with her grandfather at the point near Jasper's Cove on the island
just a few miles from the mainland. Since the Depression Gah has
left his job in the town to fish for a living, and he hopes to save
enough money to buy Dorrie some new shoes. While walking the streets
selling their fish one evening, a pair of tourists stop them asking
questions about Gah's sister's stories about a treasure buried on
the island. Gah is dismissive and walks off home but Dorrie is
intrigued and wants to ask further questions. On her return she
spots the image of a boy about her age in the trees along the road
and so becomes more intrigued with her aunt's stories about a ghost
in the house.
The point has seen many wrecks and one night a small steamer is
hurled on the rocks with four bodies found the next morning. The
next time Dorrie sees him, she realises that this is no ghost, but a
boy, and trying to speak to him, finds he has no English. But Gah is
in hospital so the two find themselves surviving in the house alone.
Things hot up when intruders invade their solitary lives.
This is a gentle, involving story of Dorrie and her grandfather
finding something more than they bargained for in their isolated
outpost. Linked firmly with the stormy seas, the remoteness of the
island and its inhabitants all create a tightly controlled setting
in which events such as these could credibly occur. Dorrie is an
inviting character, one whom readers will take to heart as she tries
to hide the boy and survive, hiding from the authorities and her
relatives when they come searching and later wards off the
intruders. An adventure story with heart.
Fran Knight
The Ghost at the Point by Charlotte Calder
Walker Books, 2012. ISBN 978-1-921977-73-2.
(Age: Upper primary) Highly recommended. Dorrie lives with her
beloved
grandfather, known as Gah. Everything is going well until Gah falls
from a ladder and is hospitalized. Dorrie decides she doesn't want
to
stay with other relatives or friends and through some story telling
manages to stay alone in their semi isolated home near the sea.
This story is set in the 1930's so modern telephones or any outside
contact is non-existent.
Plucky 12 year old Dorrie manages to look after the farm and the
animals but she can't help thinking about the ghost stories she has
heard earlier and some unusual things have been occurring around the
house to keep her on edge.
The 'ghost' turns out to be a young shipwreck survivor who becomes
important in helping Dorrie with less spectral problems, the
suspicious
Mr. and Mrs. Crickle who are supposedly researching local history.
Add some buried treasure and an exciting ending with lots of twists
and
you have a great read.
The plot, the believable characters and the depression years in
which
it was set captivated me. A great piece of writing and I would
highly
recommend this book to upper primary students.
Jane Moore
