Se7en’s Picture Book of the Week: Tug of War by Naomi Howarth…

Sometimes a book crosses my desk and inspires my kids to create great artworks, before I even get to look at it myself.

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Tug of War by Naomi Howarth is such a book…

This is the story of a tortoise, who lives on the banks of the great African river. It is a classic fable about friendship.

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Tortoise seeks friendship from his animal neighbours, first a very haughty elephant and then a supercilious hippopotamus. They are both disdaining and frankly rude to tortoise. Despite his generous offer of friendship, they hurt his feelings, and he is miserable…

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Bird suggests that despite his apparent failings, he should use his brainy brain to figure out a way to resolve his troubles. He decides to trick the two big bullies into a challenge they cannot refuse… competition is fierce and then they realise how silly they have been and everyone lives happily forever after.

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This is a delightful story book, and a perfect bedtime or anytime story for youngsters who love animals, especially clever animals. What makes this book absolutely delightful are the illustrations… beautiful watercolours and then on almost every page an animal or insect with incredible detail… and this is what inspired my little guys to create works of art…

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Watercolours and collage…

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The Gallery

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You can visit the author, Naomi Howarth, at her website here… and the book is available in English, Afrikaans, IsiXhosa and IsiZulu.

Thank you Jacana Media for a copy of Tug of War for review purposes. This is not a sponsored post and all opinions expressed are entirely our own.

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