A present from the past by Jennifer Beck; illustrated by Lindy Fisher

A present from the past by Jennifer Beck; illustrated by Lindy Fisher (Scholastic, 2006)

32 pages with colour illustrations

Subjects: World War One, France, Christmas, nurses, women in war, grandparents, family, picture books (Year 1-4)

Synopsis

It’s nearly Christmas time. Emily is waiting with her parents at the airport for her Aunt Mary whom she’s never met before. Aunt Mary has come all the way from England, bringing a special gift: a small oblong parcel, with a note saying “Best wishes from Princess Mary”. Inside, to Emily’s disappointment, is nothing but a small brass box with a damaged lid. But as Aunt Mary tells the story behind the box, Emily comes to realise that it is indeed a precious family heirloom.

These boxes, containing items such as sweets and tobacco, were the idea of Princess Mary, the 17-year-old daughter of King George V and Queen Mary, who wanted to give every serving soldier, sailor and nurse a Christmas present in December 1914 as a personal thank you for their sacrifices and hard work. You can read more about them here and here.

These Christmas boxes make a lovely story on their own, but the box in this book played an even more important role.

Don’t miss the dedication: “In memory of women in wartime”. There is also a fact sheet at the end.

Reviews:

A review on Perfect Picture Book Friday says the book "would be a great resource in History classes enticing conversations about war, troops overseas, and families dealing with loved ones during war time in the past."

There's another review on Momo celebrating time to read (great title for a blog!) 

About the author

You can read an interview with Jennifer Beck on the Christchurch City Libraries website, or learn more about her on the Book Council Writers files. 

About the illustrator

Lindy Fisher is profiled on the Book Council and Storylines sites. She has also had over 75 stamps published by New Zealand Post! You can see some of her artwork on her website.

Other books you might like:

Jennifer Beck is the author of the much-loved picture book The bantam and the soldier. She and Lindy Fisher have worked together on other books, including Stefania’s dancing slippers and Remember that November (about Parihaka).

NZ connections:

When I was researching for my Anzac Day book, I got to see one of these tins. It belonged to Hami Grace, an old boy of Wellington College, and is now held in the College Archives.

Things I didn’t know

I didn’t know that Princess Mary was born on 25 April (1897) – the day that later became Anzac Day! What a lovely connection!

Have you read it?

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

Stefania’s dancing slippers by Jennifer Beck, illustrated by Lindy Fisher

Stefania’s dancing slippers by Jennifer Beck, illustrated by Lindy Fisher (Scholastic, 2007)

32 pages

Subjects: World War Two, Poland, Russia, Siberia, Persia, New Zealand, Pahiatua, refugees, picture book (Year 5-8)

Synopsis

This book won a silver medal for Best Picture Book of all Ages at the Moonbeams Children’s Book Awards in the United States.

Stefania is a young girl who loves to dress up and dance, but her life changes forever when war comes to Poland in December 1939 and her father leaves to join the army. When Stefania and her mother are ousted from their house by Russian soldiers, she slips into her pocket her most treasured possession: her dancing slippers.

Along with many other Polish families, they are put on a crowded train and taken to a camp in Siberia. Later they have a long, difficult journey south to Persia.  Finally, in 1944, Stefania – but not her mother – arrives by ship in Wellington, where, along with other children, she finds a new home in the Polish camp in Pahiatua.

The book includes a map of Stefania’s travels at the front, and a historical note at the back about the Polish children of Pahiatua.

Reviews:

This review calls it a “moving tender historical fiction” which has depth, feeling, sadness and joy. 

Questions:

If you were given only 30 minutes to leave your house, like Stefania, what would be your most treasured possession that you would take with you?

About the author:

You can read an interview with Jennifer Beck on the Christchurch City Libraries website, and another one on the NZ Book Council site. 

About the illustrator

You can read about Lindy Fisher on the Storylines website, and also on the NZ Book Council site. She also has her own website (interesting fact: Lindy has had over 75 stamps published by New Zealand Post!)

Other books you might like:

Jennifer Beck is the author of the much-loved picture book The bantam and the soldier (illustrated by Robyn Belton). She and Lindy Fisher have worked together on other books, including A present from the past (about the Christmas boxes given to the soldiers by Princess Mary in World War One) and Remember that November (about Parihaka).

A Winter’s Day in 1939 (Scholastic, 2013) by Melinda Szymanik tells the story of 13-year-old Adam, who lives with his family on a small farm in rural Poland. In 1939, war breaks out and the Russians invade Poland and confiscate Adam’s family’s house and farm. They are sent to live with another family nearby, but are then moved on and put on a train for a Russian labour camp as refugees, prisoners of Russia. 

NZ connections:

The 70^th anniversary of the arrival of the Polish children was marked by a reunion in Wellington in October-November 2014. The reunion's facebook page gives more information. 

NZ on screen also shows a 1966 documentary on The story of Seven Hundred Polish children.

You can find out more about the Polish children who came to Pahiatua on Te ara and also on the Polish Heritage Trust Museum website. 

Polish refugee children arriving at Pahiatua Railway Station (Taken by John Pascoe)  Ref: 1/2-003646-F. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington.http://natlib.govt.nz/records/32195274

The bantam and the soldier by Jennifer Beck and Robyn Belton

The bantam and the soldier by Jennifer Beck and Robyn Belton  (Scholastic, 2014; first published 1996)

ISBN 978 1 77543 207 4

32 pages with extra illustrations at front and back

Subjects: World War One, France, animals, hens, mascots, picture books (Year 3-8)

Synopsis

This is a redesigned and rejacketed edition of a book which many people will already know and love, and which won New Zealand Children’s Book of the Year in 1997. 

It tells the story of “the smallest bantam” on a French farm, abandoned as the war gets closer, and a shy, homesick farmer’s son called Arthur “from a country on the other side of the world”. Arthur saves the starving bantam, feeds it and looks after it and names it Bertha after his niece back home. At first the other soldiers make fun of him, but then they adopt Bertha as a mascot too and start to hunt out grubs and worms for her. Bertha rewards them each day with “a warm, brown egg” and her resilience gives them courage and hope.

Look out for the names “In memory of” on the front flap (Jennifer Beck’s great uncle, killed in action in WW1; Robyn Belton’s grandfathers who served in WW1 and her uncles who died in active service in WW2.) The additional illustrations at front and back include soldiers’ photographs, sketches and war posters and postcards.

The Acknowledgements show the research that went into this book, and the Author’s note reveals some of the true history behind it. 

This was the original cover:

Reviews:

"Among a number of fine New Zealand stories about the First World War, The Bantam and the Soldier stands out because of its superb illustrations. The picture book for older readers is a growing genre in children’s literature, and is an excellent development. Pictures, especially about an historical setting, often convey so much more than words. Belton’s sensitive drawings show something of what it was like to be in the front line in 1917. In the trenches Arthur managed to keep his sanity by caring for a bantam hen he found trapped in a hedge after an explosion. When Arthur returned to New Zealand he (like so many soldiers) did not want to talk about his war experiences, but he found he could tell the story of Bertha the bantam…and that, too, was therapeutic."

(Susan Price)

Author’s website

You can read about Jennifer Beck on the NZ Book Council website and on Christchurch City Libraries Interviews with NZ children's authors. 

Info about the illustrator

You can read about Robyn Belton on the NZ Book Council website and on her Storylines profile. Interestingly, her first storybook was The Duck in the Gun, written by Joy Cowley, which won the Russell Clark Award in 1985. This book, with its powerful anti-war message, soon established an international following and was one of ten children’s books selected for the Hiroshima Peace Museum. 

Other books you might like

The Anzac puppy by Peter Millett and Trish Bowles also tells the story of a soldier who is helped to survive the war by a pet that he has saved.