Charley Harper: An illustrated life is one of the best books for kids, because it allows them to look at an image and create their own story.
The illustrations are wonderful, and because they are real objects or subjects, it opens up a world of possible topics to talk to your kids about.
I love this illustration, although I’m sure some won’t. To me, this would be a great opportunity to talk to Reuben about the survival of the fittest in jungle life, predators and food chains. Do you agree?
Simple art work, talk about colours, what dog is doing what, why are they doing it etc etc. It goes on forever and older kids will be able to make up stories too.
This is not the usual kind of book that you would find featured in the what we read series, but I do think this book is stunning and well worth its place. I first came across it when my husband and I took a trip to Liverpool and when he was busy one afternoon, I took myself off for a stroll around the Tate Liverpool and came across this gem in the shop (along with so many other books!).
The book is perfect for children and adults alike as it is a complete anthology, if you like, of Charley Harper’s illustrations, but what I love is that I know my boys would spend hours pointing out all the different things in the illustrations, such as the mice around the elephant or the bones under neath the rabbit… and then they would use their imaginations to make up stories. All sorts of stories, but stories nonetheless, which I think makes it one of the most perfect books for kids!
You can check out this book in most great book stores, although it has become harder to find recently, so I found it here from smallable for a very reasonable fee!
Harriet x
