11 NOVEMBER 1966, Page 25

Worlds Apart

WRITING for children is always a hazardous affair; so many extra-literary factors enter into it. There is, first of all, the fear of talking or writing 'down,' of explaining what can be assumed, of simply being obvious and also rather silly. Then there is the opposite danger —that of being too esoteric. At a guess, I would say that the second hazard is less likely to put a child off than the first; for children love the mysterious, what they do not quite understand and what they can turn to their own purposes.

The first problem scarcely arises with these children's books under review, since most of them are fairy stories for children under eight and so enter the child's world from his own point of view as it were. Greek Fairy Tales, by Barbara Ker Wilson Muller, 16s.), and Indonesian Fairy Tales, by Adele de Leeuw (Muller, 15s.), are both fascinating, but the former is more successful han the latter, largely, I think, because children are more familiar with Greek culture than with ndonesian. The Indonesian book explains a lot, but not, perhaps, quite enough. A trio of books C another series, all from Bodley Head at 16s., are all about foreign parts and all exceptionally beautifully illustrated. The series is entitled avourite Fairy Tales, and the books are old in Italy, by Virginia Haviland, illustrated Evaline Ness, Told in Spain, by the same uthor, illustrated by Barbara Cooney, and Told Scotland, by yet again the same author, lustrated by Adrienne Adams. Miss Haviland as really succeeded in going back to the sources f her tales and they have a fine authenticity. Old World and New World Fairy Tales Blackie, 25s.) tends to be rather slick and glossy C comparison and it really does have a slightly °Y way of talking down to the child. Ruth lanning-Sanders, in A Book of Wizards Methuen, 21s.), shows her old sleight of hand, nd.she is splendidly assisted by Robin Jacques S illustrator. Her wizards come from many arts and aft are truly magical. Eileen Colwell's

A Hallowe'en Acorn (Bodley Head, 10s. 6d.) takes us into the world of witches, wild animals, and, at last, real children. I imagine this book would have a strong appeal to the eight- to ten-year-old. It is certainly spooky.

Most of the rest of the books under review are about children and/or animals. The Tale of the Bookmouse (Warne, 10s. 6d.) is also illus- trated by the author and certainly this en- trancing mouse appears as vividly in the illustrations as he does in the text. Tam, the bookmouse, is very nearly as good as one of Beatrix Potter's characters. Audrey Erskine L in dop's The Adventures of the Wuffle (Methuen, 15s.) concerns an endearing animal who is eager to prove that he is not just a rabbit. His life is made even more of a problem because he wishes passionately that his grand- mother should be proud of him.

In The Pepperpot Omnibus, by Alf Proysen (Hutchinson, 25s.), we have in one volume all the strange adventures of Mrs Pepperpot, who has the unique habit of being able to shrink. This habit leads to odd and both convenient and inconvenient occurrences. The book is illustrated by the author in an imaginative way and will surely appeal to a wide age-group. The next book moves into the books about real children doing real things. It is called Takao and Grandfather's Sword (Oliver and Boyd, 12s. 6d.) and in it, the author. Yoshiko Uchida, tells us about Takao and his beautiful samurai sword. I thought the book rather sparsely illus- trated and would have been happier with more pictures. On the contrary, The Bull Beneath the Walnut Tree and Other Stories. by Anita Hewett (Bodley Head, 16s.), is enchantingly illustrated with line drawings. The stories deal with children, animals and witches and all maintain a high level of good sense and probability.

Margaret Storey's The Smallest Doll was a delicious book and the follow-up. The Smallest Bridesmaid (Faber, 12s. 6d.), is equally good. The book concerns the same small girl as The Smallest Doll and explains just what happens when Molly goes up to Manchester to be a bridesmaid. She is a year or two older now, but no less convincing. The drawings by Shirley Hughes are exceptionally good. The Three Stanislaus Voyagers, by Vera Ferra-Mikura (Richard Sadler and Brown, 12s. 6d.), is a mix- ture of the fantastic and the realistic. It tells of the Stanislaus grandfather, father and son, who sail about in a paper boat, render time non- existent by visiting the Middle Ages and alto- gether carry on the most remarkable activities. So plausible is the prose, however, that one con- tinually suspends disbelief. The pictures by Romulus Candea are wonderful

The final books are much more matter-of- fact and were, I suppose, easier to write as a consequence. The dangers, however, of 'writing- down' are probably even more prevalent in stories about real children than in ones about fairies or animals. The child has himself to judge from, after all. Ash Dry, Ash Green, by Mary Cockett (Oliver and Boyd, 9s. 6d.), is the story of a tree and of a child, John, who planted it. The story rings absolutely true and has a wonderful feeling for nature without being in the least coy or sentimental. It is gently illustrated by Diana Stanbey. Garden Railway, a Pied Piper Book, by Kathleen Mackenzie (Methuen, 12s. 6d.), is more humdrum. It tells of Peter and an old toy railway and, from a minimum of material, manages to extract an engaging story. Gunvor Edwards's illustrations certainly have much to do with the book's attraction.

ELIZABETH JENN ING S