“Wake Up, Jacob!”
By Neil Sawatzky
Published by Your Nickel’s Worth
Publishing
Review by Shelley A. Leedahl
$14.95
ISBN 9-781988-783451
I’m a huge fan of collaborating with family members on creative projects, thus was delighted to read that Neil Sawatzky—the author of the new illustrated children’s book Wake Up, Jacob!—is the father of Heather Nickel, who owns and operates Your Nickel’s Worth Publishing, and is responsible for bringing hundreds of books into the world. This father-daughter team has produced a heartfelt softcover that “parallel[s] the daily activities of a young boy and his grandfather,” and to even further extend the familial connection, Sawatzky’s dedicated the book to his own father, and a photograph of the author and his two grandchildren reading a book together appears inside the back cover.
Here's the truth: I
had a lump in my throat after reading just two pages of this brightly-sketched
story. On page one we find young Jacob’s mother rousting him from sleep in his bed,
and on the opposite page, a healthcare aide in a seniors’ facility is similarly
waking the same-named elder. Child Jacob—in green pajamas, and with his
wide-eyed teddy bear nearby—stretches simultaneously with his white-moustached
grandpa on the facing page. The story continues as the pair greet the day with
their own similar routines, ie: as Jacob and his teddy bear sit on the rug to
watch morning cartoons on TV, Jacob senior sits on a couch to watch the morning
news, and while little Jacob “Downward Dogs” on a yoga mat beside his mother,
Grandpa lifts hand-weights in a chair.
There’s little text
in this book, and little’s required. The colourful illustrations spread across
most of each page tell much of the story. Easy-to-read black print against a white
background appears at the bottom. As with poetry, less words are more here, ie:
beneath an illustration of young Jacob napping, the text reads simply “Nap
time.” On the corresponding page, Grandpa Jacob’s fallen asleep while reading
in his chair—did I mention the realism here?—and the text beneath this image
is: “Just resting your eyes?” Perfect.
Both the author and
publisher live in Regina, and there are hints of Saskatchewan here, ie: the
green S on the cap of the friend Grandpa’s playing checkers with is a nod to
the Roughriders. The younger Jacob paints an elevator on his easel while his grandfather
paints the finishing touches on an elevator-shaped birdhouse.
I appreciate
several things about this story, including the fact that Grandpa continues to live
a full and happy life while in care (a welcome contradiction re: the negative
stereoptypes often associated with longterm care facilities). The close
emotional bond between the two Jacobs melts my heart. As a bonus, at the book’s
conclusion Sawatzky’s included a list of ten items for young readers to find
within the story.
As someone who has
frequently worked in seniors’ facilities (providing musical entertainment for
residents), and as a daughter whose own father moved out of his own home and
into care just two weeks ago, this inter-generational, fact-of-life story
deeply resonated, wheelchair and all.
THIS BOOK IS AVAILABLE AT YOUR LOCAL
BOOKSTORE OR FROM WWW.SKBOOKS.COM
“Flowman and the Magic Mullet”
Written by Konn and Emily Hawkes,
Illustrated by Emily Hawkes
Published by Emily Hawkes
Review by Shelley A. Leedahl
$23.95 (Hardcover) ISBN 9-781777-641726
Flowman and the Magic Mullet: the title’s enough to signal readers that this is going to be a gas. Who doesn’t chuckle at the mention of a mullet? And the long-flowing locks, large eyes and toothy smile of the slapshot-shooting hockey player on the cover make me curious … what kind of hijinks is this mullet-rocking athlete going to get up to?
This illustrated children’s book is the
entertaining result of a team effort between Watrous, SK farmer and hockey player
Konn Hawkes and his artistic wife, Emily. The tale concerns superstar hockey
player Greg “The Hair” Flowman and his famous mullet—“His teammates loved it,
his fans adored it”—and what happens when “his magic mullet suddenly disappears
overnight.”
The story begins with our athletic,
comically-drawn protagonist “Scoring point after point” in his blue, #21 hockey
sweater and matching blue helmet. The text rhymes or off-rhymes, and I’m
pleased at the outset to read an original simile: “He moves on the ice like a
cheetah on skates.” As the story progresses, we learn that Flowman’s the
captain of his Calgary team, and the humour keeps building: “His lettuce is
fresh and the ladies they all stare. His name is Greg Flowman … they call him, “The
Hair.”” But one person is not a fan of Greg’s mullet: his mother. “She’s tried
to cut Greg’s hair countless times in the past. He always runs away. That kid
is shifty, and he’s fast.”
The illustrator shows Flowman primping
his long locks in the colourful bathroom, “with mousse and gel and other
products. He looked in the mirror and said, “What a fox!”” I look at the details
in the illustration: the yellow dots in the window that represent a starry
night; the brush with “Hockey Hair” inscribed on it; the mess of hair product
sliding over the bowl of the sink. Discovering these supplemental visual details
really adds to the pleasure of reading this comical story, ie: in the garage,
where Flowman shoots pucks against the wall “as he watched in the mirror,” we
also see tools nicely organized on a pegboard, and note that bowling, football
and basketball are also popular among this family. I see that one of Flowman’s
teammates is (realistically) missing an important tooth!
It's not giving away too much to say
that Flowman’s mother does manage to snip off his locks, and though he fears he’s
lost his scoring mojo because of this, he grows his hair back even longer than
before. Then, just when he’s at the top of his game—“His speed was supersonic;
his skills were so sick”—something unexpected happens. You’ll have to read the
book to find out what brings Flowman down, and who sets him straight on
his skates—and in his life—again.
This satisfying story follows the main
character from childhood through to adulthood, and there’s a hilarious,
hair-related twist on the last page. Readers—hockey fans or not—will get a kick
out of this high-scoring story.
THIS BOOK IS AVAILABLE AT YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORE OR FROM WWW.SKBOOKS.COM
