Heather Haylock

From the cover illustration it doesn’t take much to see that this book, whilst beautifully rhythmically written and with lovely illustrations, is based on the Rena Disaster of 2011 (with the ship on the cover & inside drawings clearly labelled ‘RENA’) and the resulting oil spill and penguins caught up in that catastrophe here in Tauranga Moana. And this is where I have a problem, when a story is based on an actual event, and the details are not correct. The penguins depicted in this story are black and white (even when cleaned and celebrating afterwards?), when the actual penguins affected were little blue penguins – so wrong colour. Also, being a local, and being deeply affected by this disaster, and knowing dedicated people who worked to rehabilitate the little blue penguins, I can safely say that they these ‘penguin jersey’s’ are nothing but dangerous to the little guys. Shoving an already stressed wild bird into a constricting woollen ‘straight jacket’ is just going to stress it out even more. To give the birds any chance of survival, minimal handling whilst cleaning off the oil, good food, and housing under heat lamps in a warm, ventilated area to recover until they can return to return to the wild is best. Knitting jerseys for these seabirds is a symptom of our selfish human need to tame the wild and bring it under our control or make it look ‘cute’ for our own purposes, and not at all what is best for these wild creatures. This is not an environmentally friendly book, more a slap in the face for those working so hard to educate the public on how to care and protect the wildlife in Tauranga. So, great potential, but a lack of proper research has rendered it disappointing as it perpetuates a myth which can actually cause harm to these beautiful birds.… (mehr)

Granny McFlitter loves knitting but her family is unappreciative - they have had had enough. However, Granny keeps right on knitting
"Who would have thought
she could knit up a squid
or a polka-dot stingray?
But that's what she did!"
Eventually, Granny finds appreciative recipients for her knitting – first, penguins caught in an oil spill and then many zoo animals.
This is a rollicking read-aloud with delicious rhymes and an almost perfect rhythm. The introduction of a repeated refrain:
"BUT did Granny stop knitting?
Oh no, she did not!
She kept right on knitting . . .
LIKE IT OR NOT!"
will see children enthusiastically joining in by the end of the book. Lael's quirky illustrations match the quirkiness of Granny's creation with plenty of bright colour and movement. As a grandmother myself, I would have preferred Granny McFlitter's appearance to be a bit less stereotypical but this grandmother, with her grey bun and glasses, has enough energy and creativity to put many grandparents to shame. The story is quite fantastic so it would have been useful to add an information page telling the real story of knitting for penguins. Granny McFlitter is Heather’s first picture book and it is a very promising start. This book will make a great read aloud and is sure to be a hit.… (mehr)