Monet Chases the Light (Jenny Gahan, illus Patricia Ward, Little Pink Dog Books)

There is a particular aesthetic challenge to nonfiction picture books about artists: they must do more than simply emulate the artist’s style, yet they risk alienating readers if the illustrations are too inconsistent with the original art. In Monet Chases the Light, illustrator Patricia Ward generally navigates this tension well, supporting Jenny Gahan’s spirited word portrait of Claude Monet. Occasionally the look leans towards a brassier palette and cartoony style than might be expected or swings the other way with slightly pedestrian near-replicas of familiar Monet works, but on the whole, it captures an appropriate spirit and tone while retaining enough of its own character to function as a confident narrative. Ward’s bare-bones yet poetic story constructs a youthful Monet who dashes across landscapes in a perpetual motion of inspiration, only gradually slowing down until, as an old man, the light gently comes to find him where he rests in his garden. The book doesn’t chronicle the French impressionist artist’s life but offers a whimsical snapshot of his obsession with capturing light. It’s an appealing lens through which to introduce young readers (middle primary school age) to his work.

Books+Publishing reviewer: Anica Boulanger-Mashberg, an editor and writer, is a bookseller at The Hobart Bookshop. Books+Publishing is Australia’s number-one source of pre-publication book reviews.

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Category: Reviews