In the City, At the Beach and In the Bush

Review - Picture Books Exploring Australia by Roland Harvey

Feb 3, 2009

With amusingly detailed drawings, Roland Harvey picture books offer hours of fun while children read about a family on holidays in the city, at the beach and camping.

With Roland Harvey’s picture book In the City (Allen & Unwin, 2009) recently released in softcover, now is the perfect time for parents and children to explore this wonderful series of books celebrating Australian locations and lifestyles.

Follow a typical Aussie family as Dad, Mum, Penny, Harry and Frankie head off on three very different vacations to have fun in a big city, by the beach and camping in the bush.

As the family travels to the big city to spend some time with Uncle Kev, they explore the wonders of a city with 3,425,763 people “and us!” With visits to the museum, zoo, aquarium, shopping centre, plaza and an outer suburb, not to mention the sewer tour, In the City offers a fascinating snapshot of Australian urban life with details sure to bring a smile to the face of every reader.

Keep a close eye on shop and building notices to get the most from each page and pay special attention to which author and book feature at the book signing that has drawn a super-sized crowd at the bookstore.

With a group of families camped at Crabby Spit for the holidays At the Beach (Allen & Unwin, 2006) offers all that is tanned and relaxed about time spent in the waves and on the sand.

With a range of swimwear, sunglasses and sunhats, beach umbrellas, towels and various other beach paraphernalia, the crowd at Crabby Spit lazes on the beach on sunny days, tries to keep their gear together when the coastal winds blow, retreats to the local town when the rain showers come and celebrate the end of their fantastic holiday with a massive bonfire on the final night.

Penny, Harry and Frankie (with some assistance from Mum) record their holiday on postcards sent back to Grandma. With a worrying number of sharks and details that will have regular beachgoers smiling with fond memories, this is a wonderful celebration of the Australian fascination with sun, sand and surf.

Scenes of the Australian Bush seem to capture the underlying essence of the Australian landscape in a way that is unique and readily identifiable. Roland Harvey’s illustrations of the bush landscape and creatures are a wonderful tribute to the wide open spaces, colours and majesty of this iconic Australian setting.

In the Bush (Allen & Unwin, 2007) presents the muted colours of the eucalypts, the vast night sky and the hills and valleys as a rich background to humorous gatherings of families and couples. With a Saturday night bush dance, campfire, swimming in the billabong and even a brief trip to the snow fields, all the wonders of the Aussie bush are explored with great humour and a enthralling eye for the details of everyday life.

Ideal for Parent and Child Reading Times

While many of the situations featured in the dip pen and watercolour illustrations are humorous, Harvey also manages to capture the essence of the Australian way of life, whether in a bustling city, a coastal lifestyle or the back-to-basics bushland camping experiences.

The humour is evident not only in the people and creatures in each scene, but also in the background and props with numerous amusing details such as a garbage truck business “Greta Garbo” and the second hand camping equipment store “Past Tents”.

The text perfectly compliments the illustrations, encouraging children to seek out specific details and explore each page fully. These wonderful books offer hours of entertainment and laugh-out loud fun for young readers and are sure to bring more than a few smiles to the faces of adults reading along as well.

The copyright of the article In the City, At the Beach and In the Bush in Australian Literature is owned by Susan Whelan. Permission to republish In the City, At the Beach and In the Bush in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.