Review
The cover of this book is very telling. It's the story of a lonely and serious little girl who had a privileged, sheltered and somewhat neglected childhood. As a result she developed a passion for solitary occupations - enjoying nature and drawing. This girl grew up to become one of the most famous and successful picture book authors of all time – Beatrix Potter.
Her story is told from a first person point of view – much like a journal – with the inclusion of real quotes from Ms. Potter herself (identifiable by italicization). I love that the book is small – a nod to the consciously child friendly format of the original Potter Tales. I also really enjoyed the illustrations – which wisely do not mimic Potter’s style at all. I think children who are familiar with Potter’s work will enjoy learning about her childhood, but there’s no getting around the fact that it’s a bit of a dreary story – until the very end. I highly recommend following this one up with the much more uplifting My Dear Noel: The Story of a Letter From Beatrix Potter. It dovetails almost perfectly with this one as it virtually picks up where Beatrix leaves off and explores more fully how The Tale of Peter Rabbit came to be.
Her story is told from a first person point of view – much like a journal – with the inclusion of real quotes from Ms. Potter herself (identifiable by italicization). I love that the book is small – a nod to the consciously child friendly format of the original Potter Tales. I also really enjoyed the illustrations – which wisely do not mimic Potter’s style at all. I think children who are familiar with Potter’s work will enjoy learning about her childhood, but there’s no getting around the fact that it’s a bit of a dreary story – until the very end. I highly recommend following this one up with the much more uplifting My Dear Noel: The Story of a Letter From Beatrix Potter. It dovetails almost perfectly with this one as it virtually picks up where Beatrix leaves off and explores more fully how The Tale of Peter Rabbit came to be.
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