The Picture Books of Graeme Base

Books for Children by Talented Australian Author/Illustrator

Jan 16, 2009

Writer and illustrator Graeme Base has recently released another mystery-solving book for children with a wonderful message and beautifully detailed illustrations.

Enigma (Viking, 2008), the latest picture book by the multi-award winning Melbourne-based artist and author, will delight fans and newcomers. Offering an interactive reading experience, Enigma confirms Base’s position as one of Australia’s best-loved and most talented children’s picture book illustrators and authors.

Young Bertie Badger is visiting his grandfather, Gadzooks the Great, at the Retirement Home for Elderly Magicians. When all the magicians’ favourite tricks are stolen, only Bertie can solve the mystery in time for the magic show.

Children will love the animal illustrations, such as Miss Poodle the Mademoiselle of Mime and Mistress Hypnosis the camel. The pictures of the animals themselves are beautifully detailed artworks, creating very definite personalities for each character.

In Enigma, readers must also solve a code to unlock a special magical panel at the back of the book. The unlocked panel reveals a secret Enigma Code that decodes a list of the missing magic tricks as well as revealing other details about the retired magicians. Gadzooks the Great’s white rabbit Enigma and nine sets of his footprints are also hidden in each picture.

Interactive Picture Books

Graeme Base’s stunning picture book, Animalia (Viking Kestral, 1986) has become an international classic. An amazing collection of items has been incorporated into a detailed artwork for each letter of the alphabet. There are hours of enjoyment to be had trying to find as many objects as possible and a Base as a young boy is also hidden in each double page.

The Waterhole (Penguin, 2001) takes readers on a journey through a variety of landscapes where animals gather about a waterhole that decreases in size. In addition to the feature animal for each page and a group of frogs, there are ten animals native to each landscape hidden in the pictures for children to find. In the final picture, when the waterhole has dried up and before the rains come, there are ten extinct animals hidden.

Uno’s Garden (Penguin, 2006) brings a strong environmental message for children , highlighting man’s impact on the environment. Uno finds a beautiful wilderness and makes his home there, but as others join him and the number of people and buildings increase, the number and variety of animals and plants decrease.

Children can search for a fantasy animal such as Moopaloops and Lumpybums, different plant species and different types of buildings in each picture. The shy Snortlepig is also hidden on each page. As the book progresses, animals decrease from ten to one, plants from 10 x 10 species to 1 x 1 and buildings numbers and types increase exponentially. Eventually, Uno’s children nurture the small area of wildness that Uno was able to protect, bringing back the animals and restoring balance between man and nature.

In The Eleventh Hour (Viking Kestral, 1988) the feast has been stolen and the animals are accusing each other of the crime. There are clues hidden in the pictures and instructions for using these clues to solve the code at the end of the book revealing the thief and how the crime was committed.

Graeme Base Story Books with a Message about Character

Base has also published picture books offering a strong message about positive character traits. These beautifully illustrated books, often featuring enjoyable rhyming text, include:

Fun, Entertaining and Encouraging Books for Children of All Ages

With younger children able to enjoy the books for their beautiful wildlife illustrations and engaging text and older children often able to interact with the books in a more active way through solving puzzles and codes and finding hidden clues and animals, Graeme Base picture books appeal to children of all ages. They are also highly recommended for reading and engaging class discussions for infants and primary/elementary school aged students.

The copyright of the article The Picture Books of Graeme Base in Australian Literature is owned by Susan Whelan. Permission to republish The Picture Books of Graeme Base in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.