The House That Jack Built
(Paperback)
Publishing Details
The House That Jack Built
By (Author) Gavin Bishop
Gecko Press
Gecko Press
2nd March 2012
New Zealand
Classifications
Children
Fiction
398.8
Winner of New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards: Picture Book 2011
Physical Properties
Paperback
Description
The House that Jack Built is a book with two strands. The main rhythmic text, based on the well-known rhyme, tells the story of Jack Bull, who travels to New Zealand from London as a new settler in 1798.
The illustrations tell the story from a Mori perspectivebeginning with the creation story of Papatnuku and Ranginui and showing the changing environment and cultural impact.
The juxtaposition tells a poignant and thought-provoking story of colonisation.
Reviews
"There is pleasure to be found at many levels in this splendid book"
-- Magpies (AU)"I feel that I can confidently predict that we wont ever find a more beautiful book that will keep their interest for years to come as they discover the different layers within the bookThis is a really important book with a very important story."
-- Radio Southland (NZ)"The old nursery rhyme is brought brilliantly to life in a colonial setting, based on Bishops own whakapapa, wrapping indigenous myth in both word and pattern around traditional English text, drawing parallels between animals of myth and those brought by the Pakeha"
-- The Listener (NZ)Author Bio
Gavin Bishop ONZM, Tainui, Ngti Awa, is a leading New Zealand illustrator. He has published over 70 books internationally and been translated into 12 languages. He has written for television and theatre, as well as a libretti for the Royal New Zealand Ballet. His awards include New Zealand Childrens Picture Book of the Year in 1982, 1994, 2000 and 2013. In 2019, he was named the winner of the Prime Minister's Award for Literary Achievement Non Fiction.
