The duck in the gun by Joy Cowley, illustrated by Robyn Belton

The duck in the gun by Joy Cowley, illustrated by Robyn Belton (Walker Books, 2009; first published 1969)

32 pages with delightful colour illustrations

Subjects: peace, ducks, animals, picture books (Year 2-6)

Synopsis

For the last post of the year, it seems appropriate to feature a book about peace -

“The General and his men are about to fire on a town they are at war with. But the Gunner has bad news for the General – they can’t load the gun as there is a duck nesting inside it! Determined to not let a single duck stop an army, the General visits the Prime Minister of the town he is preparing to fight to resolve the situation. Can one duck put an end to the war?” (Outline from Walker Books)

This book won the NZLA Russell Clark Award and was also one of ten children’s books selected for the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. You can see the 1984 Shortland Educational Publications edition online at the International Children’s Digital Library.

Activities

Lots of good classroom ideas here.

Questions

There are some very good questions in Walker Books’ list of classroom ideas (shown above), including these ones:

“What does ‘peace’ mean to you? 

Do you have a favourite place that makes you feel at peace, or a person that makes you feel peaceful? 

Draw a place, person (this can be imaginary or real) that makes you feel this way.”

About the author

One of New Zealand's best-loved writers, Joy Cowley needs little introduction. 

About the illustrator

RobynBelton is also well known for her many prize-winning children’s books. 

I love the illustrations in this book. One of my favourites is the picture of the General  relaxing over his newspaper while his men are painting houses in the town (that's the town they are supposed to be at war with!)

Other books you might like:

Other anti-war books for children include The story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf, The general by Janet Charters, illustrated by Michael Foreman, Bravo! by Philip Waechter and Moni Port and Thebutter battle book by Dr Seuss.

Things I didn’t know

In the brief bios at the back, Robyn Belton says she added a dog that wasn’t in Joy’s text, to act as a “mirror” - “amplifying the gestures and expressions of the girl”. 

Joy says that the book grew out of her “feelings of distress” about the Vietnam War in the late 1960s, combined with a heart-warming news story about a duck that made its nest on a building site in Chicago and halted construction for three weeks.   

Have you read it?

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

Bravo! by Philip Waechter and Moni Port

Bravo! by Philip Waechter and Moni Port, translated by Sally-Ann Spencer (Gecko Press, 2011; original title Der Krakeeler)

32 pages with colour illustrations

Subjects:  anger management, anti-war books, peace, animals, fable, picture books (Year 3-6)

Synopsis

I wouldn’t have thought to review this book, if not for finding it on Raymond Huber’s excellent list of Anti-war books for children.

It tells the story of Helena, “a little girl” who “lived in a crooked house, deep in a valley, beside a turquoise stream”. (I love the hint of fairytale in the word “crooked”, and the exactness of “turquoise”.)

Helena’s life is almost perfect, apart from her loud shouting father, and the book follows the decisions she makes, and the outcome of those decisions.  (As Raymond says, “Children have to find peace within themselves before they can change the world".)

Raymond also provides teaching notes – on words, characters, story structure and illustrations - here.

Reviews:

Publishers Weekly calls it a “spare, delicately drawn offering” in which “Helena’s decisive act allows her to find her own voice and to mend her relationship with her father, too.” 

Curled up with a good kid's book says it "delivers a thought provoking message about positive behaviour and making socially acceptable and positive choices". 

Questions:

Raymond Huber poses some excellent questions in his teaching notes:

• What does Helena think of her father? 
• Is she scared of him? 
• Is it his loudness she hates or something else? (Remember she plays the trumpet).

About the author and illustrator

This book was originally published as Der Krakeeler, which means “rowdy type”, “brawler” or “roisterer”. It’s interesting that the translator and publishers (the wonderful Gecko Press) have chosen a different sort of title for the English version, focusing more on Helena and her actions than on her father.

It’s also interesting that the cover gives both names equal weight, with no clues as to which is the author and which the illustrator. A bit of sleuthing reveals that it is written by Moni Port and illustrated by Philip Waechter (so the names on the cover are in the opposite order to how you would usually find them displayed on a NZ picture book). 

According to Gecko Press, Moni Port was born in 1968 in Germany. She has worked as a bookseller, then studied communication design, focussing on illustration and book design. 

Philip Waechter was born in 1968 in Germany. He now lives as a freelance graphic designer and illustrator in Frankfurt am Main. In 1999, Philip and Moni co-founded the community studio LABOR. You can read more about Philip here.

Other books you might like:

Other anti-war books for children include The story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf and The general by Janet Charters, illustrated by Michael Foreman.

The year it all ended by Kirsty Murray

The year it all ended by Kirsty Murray (Allen & Unwin, 2014)

30 chapters; 243 pages

Subjects: World War One, Australia, France, Belgium, Germany, enemy aliens, white feathers, family, influenza, armistice, peace, Peace Day, war graves, Cheer Up Society, young adult fiction (Year 9-12)

Synopsis

This book starts with a poignant vignette of a pre-war scene, when 11-year-old Tiney – short for Martina - is allowed to join her big brother Louis and older cousin Will on their early morning expedition to Glenelg Beach. Six years later, everything has changed. Louis has gone to war and now the bells are ringing on Tiney’s 17^th birthday to signal the armistice on 11 November 1918. 

As well as Louis, the family includes Tiney’s three older sisters: Dorothea (or Thea) the artist, Minna and Nette. Their family ancestry is German and Will (or Wilhelm) went to Heidelberg to study and was caught in Germany when the war started. As a result he was conscripted to fight on the German side. Will’s brother Paul, their other cousin, was interned as an enemy alien on Torrens Island.

As the cover suggests, “the year it all ended” was the year that things started to change, and the sub title (“War ends, the Jazz Age dawns. What will destiny bring Tiney Flynn?”) underlines this theme. Although the war is over, its effects continue and there will be many changes in Tiney’s life, both good and bad. Tiney is obsessed with what seems like an impossible dream, to go to Europe, but she manages to achieve it and sails across the world with her friend Ida and Ida’s mother, to visit the battlefields of France and Belgium.

I found this a very interesting viewpoint – not just Tiney’s, but that of a German-Australian family and the attitudes they faced in the war. 

Reviews:

I’ve tried to look for reviews that don’t give away too much of the plot, which is tricky as this reviewer acknowledges (but succeeds in doing - or not doing!) The reviewer loved "the vivid way in which Kirsty Murray has bought a period of history to life."

This review does contain more plot descriptions but I’ve included it as it has an author interview, I liked the answers to questions 4 and 6 in particular.

Here is a review from the Kids’ Bookshop (having given up by now on trying to avoid spoilers).

And there are more excerpts from reviews on Kirsty Murray's website here. 

About the author:

Kirsty Murray grew up in a family of seven children, in Melbourne and then Canada, has travelled widely, loves reading and says her most important job “and the one that took up most of my time was being a mother”, but has still produced a string of prize winning books. Lots of other info about her on her bio and FAQ pages.

I like her answers to What were your favourite books when you were a kid? and What’s the hardest part of writing for you?

Teachers’ notes are also available on her website here.

Other books you might like:

Remembrance by Theresa Breslin and Flora’s war by Pamela Rushby both tell the story of WW1 from the viewpoint of girls about Tiney's age. 

Things I didn’t know

The Cheer Up Society really did exist. “Its object was to support the soldiers in the First and Second World Wars as well as to bring them into contact with the 'highest type of womanhood'. “

You can see some wonderful photos here and here. 

The general by Janet Charters, illustrated by Michael Foreman

The general  by Janet Charters, illustrated by Michael Foreman (first pub 1961; Templar Pub., 2010)

ISBN 978-1-84877-153-6

38 pages

Subjects: war, peace, flowers, animals, picture books (Year 1-8)

Synopsis

Having finished 2014 with a book about peace, it seems like a good - and hopeful - idea to include another one on the same theme at the start of 2015. 

On the cover is a badge marking this as the 50^th anniversary edition, with the words “A celebration of peace and beauty”.

This is Michael Foreman’s first book:  an anti-war story (written in 1961 during the Cold War) about General Jodhpur who wants to be the most famous general in the world.  One day he falls off his horse and, lying in the grass, suddenly notices the beauty of flowers and nature. He decides to concentrate on peace, not war, from then on.

Reviews:

This insightful review on The bookbag makes so many good points (about both text and illustration)  that it’s hard not to quote it in full. The reviewer points out that the book “was written in 1961 and it shows. It has a naivety (even for a picture book) that screams of the early 60s - all soldiers need is a flower and they'll toss aside their guns. I wish dearly it were true, but fifty years on, it seems almost too simple. The book isn't dated, but it is very much of its time. ..but the quality of the writing is great. The vocabulary is clear and direct, making it suitable for the youngest readers.

This was one of the books that began Michael Foreman's illustrious career, and you can see exactly why he's become one of the best-loved illustrators. His pen and ink drawings look stunning, perfectly capturing the rigidity of military life, then blossoming into the bright and varied colours of nature. His mosaic-like overhead view of a city is such a unique approach that you'll love seeing the moment of realisation on a child's face. Every page is a joy to pore over.”

There's another review here on the blog Seven impossible things before breakfast. 

About the illustrator

Michael Foreman was born in 1938, so he was only 22 or 23 when this book was first published. The Guardian published a lovely article in 2011 to mark his 50 years in print; it describes his childhood, how he became an artist, why he believes that that “each day is precious” and  why “so many of his books focus on matters of conflict and injustice “ – fascinating stuff.  

 Trooping the colours ... from The General by Michael Foreman Templar

You can see more lovely images online from his 50 years of picture books.

About the author

Janet Charters (now Abis) was also born in 1938 but I can’t find out much information either about her, or about any other books she has written.  

Other books you might like:

War game by Michael Foreman also conveys a message of peace. The story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf and The duck in the gun by Joy Cowley have a similar anti-war message to The General.

The story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf

The story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf, illustrated by Robert Lawson (first published by Viking Press in 1936; published Picture Puffins 1977; reprinted numerous times)

About 70 pgs with large print on one side and charming, full page black and white illustrations on the facing page

Subjects: peace, pacifism, Spain, animals, fable, picture books (Year 2-6)

 

Synopsis

I've included this title because I think that the topic of children’s war books should also include children’s books about peace – and the story of Ferdinand is one of the most famous, as well as the most charming!  

(From the Wellington City Libraries catalogue record)

“A true classic with a timeless message, The Story of Ferdinand has enchanted readers since it was first published in 1936. All the other bulls would run and jump and butt their heads together. But Ferdinand would rather sit and smell the flowers. So what will happen when our pacifist hero is picked for the bullfights in Madrid?”

Reviews:

This School Library Journal review lists it amongst the top 100 picture books and includes a number of the illustrations, as well as a clip from an Oscar-winning Disney cartoon short (1938). 

It is also listed in 100bookseverychildshouldreadbeforegrowingup. (Pause here while you count how many of the 100 you have read.) 

The Story Philosophy site uses it as a starter for discussion on animal rights, violence, conformity and obedience to authority. 

About the author

Munro Leaf (1905-1976) was an American teacher, football coach and author of over 30 books for children. The story of Ferdinand was his most well-known and has been translated into over sixty languages.

This author profile contains a lovely description of how the book came to be written:

“Munro Leaf and his friend, award-winning artist and writer Robert Lawson, had been talking about the kind of book they would want to write if they could get past the publisher’s ideas of what made a good book. It took him less than an hour - “25 minutes on a rainy Saturday” - to scribble down the story on a yellow pad of paper. With Lawson’s illustrations, the beatific bull was on his way to becoming internationally famous for his peaceful message in 1936--a time when the world was coming apart in war.”

About the illustrator

Robert Lawson (1892-1957) studied at the New York School of Fine and Applied Arts, served in WW1 designing camouflage and illustrated for books as well as magazines. He once said: "I have never, as far as I can remember, given one moment's thought as to whether any drawing that I was doing was for adults or children. I have never changed one conception or line or detail to suit the supposed age of the readers." (Hornbook, 1940)

Other books you might like:

My brother’s war by David Hill is a fictional treatment of pacifism, seen through the eyes of two brothers who sign up and refuse to sign up for WW1 at the same time.

Other fables about war and peace include The duck and the gun by Joy Cowley, illustrated by Robyn Belton and The general by Michael Foreman.

What was happening in 1936

• George VI was crowned king of England after his brother Edward’s abdication.
• The Spanish Civil War was being fought.
• It was 18 years since the end of WW1, and the start of WW2 was only three years away.
• Hitler had become Chancellor of Germany in 1933

Despite these events, and the looming threat of war, Munro Leaf always denied any political intentions; he said, "it’s 'a happy-ending story about being yourself.'”(Source: School Library Journal)