A day to remember: the story of Anzac Day by Jackie French, illustrated by Mark Wilson

A day to remember: the story of Anzac Day by Jackie French, illustrated by Mark Wilson (Angus & Robertson, 2012)

32 pages with Mark Wilson’s colour and black and white illustrations

Subjects: World War One, Gallipoli, World War Two, Korean War, Vietnam War, protest movement, Anzac Day, picture books, non fiction (Year 5-8)

Synopsis

This book tells the story of Anzac Day by tying the date of 25 April to specific events in particular years, starting with the first landings at Gallipoli on 25 April 1915. The first Anzac Day parades and services are held in 1916; in 1918, the war still continues, but it is over by 25 April 1919. In the late 1920s, the tradition of the dawn service begins; in the 1930s, many returned soldiers are suffering through the Depression. Anzac Day continues to be marked through World War Two, the Korean War and the protest years of the Vietnam War.

The book continues up to the present day through Australian involvement (again often controversial) in other wars, such as in Iraq and Afghanistan, and traces the increased interest in visiting Gallipoli for the dawn service at Anzac Cove.

Teacher’s notes include Jackie French talking about her inspiration for the book, and Mark Wilson talking about his technique and how he interpreted his task. The figures on the cover are his son and granddaughter – how lovely is that?

Reviews:
Kids Book Review recommends it highly, saying that "You know a book by Jackie French is going to be researched to the nth degree, and presented with clarity, emotion and fascination - and A Day to Remember is no exception."

The never-ending bookshelf says is it is a picture book that adults would enjoy and learn from as well; "What I found particularly interesting with this book was the way that Jackie French focused on the concept and meaning of Anzac day through various generations and the way that it was developed, shaped and then lessened in meaning before reaching height again today." This reviewer suggests it is not for young children under 8, "as it is very heavy on the history and less narrative based". 

Author’s website

Jackie French is an amazing writer with a brilliant website which features a page on this book. Her other war-related books include The beach they Called Gallipoli, Pennies for Hitler and A rose for the Anzac boys.

Illustrator’s website

Also by Mark Wilson on this blog is My Mother's Eyes: The Story of an Australian Boy Soldier.

NZ connections:

Are we mentioned? Yes, often (thanks, Jackie French!) Sometimes the New Zealanders are left out of (Australian) books on Anzac, so it’s good to see their contribution recognised.

I also appreciated seeing the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander soldiers acknowledged, men who “fought long ago in the service of a land where many were not even allowed to vote”.

Have you read it?

Have you read this book? Let me know what you think!

Grandad’s medals by Tracy Duncan, illustrated by Bruce Potter

Grandad’s medals by Tracy Duncan, illustrated by Bruce Potter (Reed, 2005)

32 pages with colour illustrations

Subjects: grandparents, Anzac Day, picture books (Year 1-4)

Synopsis

The first half of this picture book shows a young boy’s relationship with his grandfather. They go fishing together, fly kites and gather pinecones (accompanied by the dog). They stack wood for fires on winter nights when Grandad tells stories “about the old days”, and sometimes the boy plays with the medals he got when he was a soldier in an (unnamed) war, “a long time ago”.

All this leads up to Anzac Day, when the boy and his mother (and the dog!) get up early and go down to the RSA hall to watch his Grandad – wearing his medals - march in the dawn parade. There is a simple description of the service, seen from the boy’s point of view: songs, speeches, the Last Post, the silence, the national anthem, laying of wreaths and a cup of tea and a biscuit afterwards. The boy notices that some familiar faces are missing this year, including Grandad’s best friend, and how all the soldiers are getting older.

At the end, the boy and his grandfather sit and look at the medals for a while, until Grandad puts them away, and then they go fishing again - which is a nice ending. 

As a writer, I was intrigued by the way in which the medals of the title act as a focus or a symbol through which to tell the story, even though they are only mentioned on three pages in the text (but appear more often in the illustrations). You can tell by the cover illustration that the young boy is fascinated by their “shiny silver faces”.

Questions:

Have you ever been to an Anzac Day dawn service? Was it like this one?

About the author

Tracy Duncan is an artist and writer who lives near Nelson. She has written and illustrated many books in both te reo Māori and in English.

About the illustrator

Bruce Potter has also illustrated The Donkey Man by Glyn Harper, Grandad's Medals text by Tracy Duncan, Soldier in the Yellow socks: Charles Upham: Our Finest Fighting Soldier text by Janice Marriott and My Grandfather's War text by Glyn Harper. 

Have you read it?

Have you read this book? Let me know what you think!

Lest we forget by Feana Tu’akoi

A book for Anzac Day:

Lest we forget by Feana Tu’akoi, illustrated by Elspeth Alix Batt (Scholastic, 2011)

32 pages with pen and wash illustrations

Subjects: World War Two, Vietnam, Anzac Day, dawn parade, family, picture books (Year 2-5)

Synopsis

This story is unusual for a picture book about war, in that it spends a lot of time focusing on women and giving them a voice. Tyson doesn’t want to go along to the Anzac Day dawn parade because he thinks it’s all about glorifying war. But after talking with his mother, Nana and Great-gran, he starts to see another side of the story. On Anzac morning he gets up early after all and goes to the dawn parade with his mother and Koro, who was wounded in Vietnam, and together they recognise the importance of the day and remember those who have died in war.

The te reo Māori version was shortlisted in the SLANZA Te Kura Pounamu awards 2012 and the late Katerina Mataira won the Te Rōpū Whakahau award Te Tohu Pounamu 2012 for her translation.

There’s a family tree at the beginning, which is useful to flip back to until you have the family connections straight in your mind.

Reviews

Here's a review on the National Library Create readers site. 

You can also listen to the story on the RNZ Storytime treasure chest.

About the author

Feana Tu’akoi has written many stories and article for the educational market, as well as the What is a ///? non-fiction series.  She lives in Hamilton with her Tongan husband and their children. amiloton with her Tongan husband and their chidlrne. You can read more about her on the Book Council and Storylines sites.

Here’s an interesting interview with her on Paula Green’s Poetry Box website:

“I wrote Lest We Forget very quickly – in one sitting, in fact – although I did spend a lot of time editing and re-editing, until I was happy with it. I didn’t need to do any research, as it was a mixture of all the thoughts I’d ever had about ANZAC Day parades. The understanding that Tyson comes to during afternoon tea is the understanding I came to, after studying NZ history at university.”

There’s another interview, talking about why she wrote this book, on the My best friends arebooks blog: "We need to remember the past, so we can make better decisions in the future. I think that the next generation is smart enough to do just that. And that’s why I dedicated this book to my kids.”

About the illustrator

Elspeth Alix Batt has also done a lot of illustration work for the educational market, especially the School Journal

Other books you might like:

Grandad’s medals by Tracy Duncan, illustrated by Bruce Potter, My Grandad marches on Anzac Day by Catriona Hoy, Anzac Day parade by Glenda Kane

Have you read it?

Have you read this book? Let me know what you think!

Harry and the Anzac poppy by John Lockyer

Harry and the Anzac poppy by John Lockyer, illustrated by Raewyn Whaley (Reed, 1997)

New Zealand author and illustrator. 

Picturebook; 24 pgs, with text facing full page illustrations

Subjects: World War One, France, Anzac Day, poppy, letters, New Zealand, grandparents, junior fiction (Year 3-6)

Synopsis:

Harry and his Great-Grandma Kate go through her special box of letters, sent to her as a child by her father (Harry’s great-great-grandad) when he was away at World War One in 1917 and 1918.

Reviews:

TKI notes are available here. 

Questions:

How many generations away is a great-great-grandfather? How many great-great-grandfathers are on your family tree? Do you know any of their names?

Harry is named after his great-great-grandfather. Are you or anyone else in your family named after another family member? Do you know why?

In his letters, Harry’s great-great-grandfather compares himself to different animals: a pack horse, a rat, a rabbit in a hole, a crayfish. What does he mean in each case?

What do the letters tell you about conditions at the Front: the weather, the food, the sleeping arrangements and other living conditions?

What was happening in World War One in 1917 and 1918?

Where does the poppy first appear in the story? What significance does it have for us now?

Info on the author:

New Zealand Book Council biography. 
Christchurch City Libraries interview. 

John Lockyer’s other titles include Lottie Gallipoli Nurse (1998) and The Anzacs at Gallipoli (1999). Willie Apiata VC (2009, Puffin), written with Paul Little, was a finalist in the Non-Fiction category of the 2010 NZ Post Children’s Book Awards.

Info on the illustrator:

You can read a short bio of Raewyn Whaley here. 

  

Other books you might like:

War game by Michael Foreman also talks about Christmas in the trenches.

New Zealand connection:

Letters were very important to the soldiers at the front, and to their families back home.  On pg 14 of Anzac Day: the New Zealand story is a section called “How do we know about the war?” This explains how the soldiers’ diaries and letters home tell us a lot of what we know about  the war. “Word from the front” on pg 15 explains how the Turkish soldiers, many of whom could not read or write, got their news from home. 

Delivery of mail to New Zealand soldiers, Etaples. World War 1914-1918 albums. Ref: PA1-f-102-0416. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/23164376

Sorting letters for troops at the NZ Army Post Office in Cairo, Egypt, about 1941. NZ Dpt of Internal Affairs. War History Branch : Ref: DA-01414-F. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand.http://natlib.govt.nz/records/22903066

Sometimes the mail arrived back home with black marks where the censors (usually officers)  had crossed out anything that they thought might be secret information. The soldiers would often censor what they wrote themselves, not wanting their families to know the worst of what they were going through. 

Lieutenant A R Martin censoring mail outside his bivy near Sora, Italy, World War II , June 1944- Photograph taken by George Kaye. NZ Dpt of Internal Affairs. War History Branch : Ref: DA-06115-F. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/22770800

You can read an interesting account here about New Zealand prisoner of war mail in World War Two. 

War books for children

I am a New Zealand writer of fiction and non-fiction for children and adults. My most recent book, published in April 2013, is called Anzac Day: the New Zealand story.

Anzac Day, celebrated every year on April 25th, is a very special day for New Zealanders and Australians, although it is marked in other countries around the world too. What does Anzac stand for? Why do we mark Anzac Day on that particular day? When did the tradition of the dawn service start? Why do we wear the red poppy and play the Last Post? This book will tell you all these things and more, and it's crammed full of fascinating pictures and illustrations as well. You can read more about it here.

While I was researching for the Anzac Day book, and also for my next book which is a children's novel set in World War Two, I became interested in the whole subject of books on war written for children. Many of these are classics:

But there were others that I had never even heard of:

War is a subject of enduring fascination, horror and mystery. We are lucky that our children haven't had to live through a war, although many children around the world are not so fortunate. But the best of these books can help children (and grown-ups!) understand the nature of war: how things are not always black and white, how there can be different definitions of heroism and cowardice. Books about war can highlight acts of bravery, courage and loyalty, amongst those who served and fought in wars, as well as those who were caught up in them through no choice of their own.

I decided that I'd like to read more children's war books and post reviews of them online. Each review will contain a summary of the plot, relating it where possible to the New Zealand experience of war. I will also include information about the author, questions to think about, photographs or illustrations, and links to relevant websites and to other books that deal with similar aspects of war.

I hope you find these reviews interesting and helpful. If you're a teacher, you might find an idea for a book to read to your class. If you're a reader - child or adult - I hope they inspire you to hunt down a copy from a library or bookshop.

As George Santayana famously said: "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." These books contain stories that we need to remember, and should never forget.