Rebecca Bond (1) (–2017)

Brothers Richard and Cherry Kearton were raised on a farm in Yorkshire, and grew up attuned to the natural world around them. From birds' nests to spiders' webs, they "marveled at the architecture of living things," and sought to unravel the puzzle of the world around them. When necessity forced them to London, where they both went to work for Cassell Publishing House, they took to spending all of their weekends in the country, indulging in a new hobby: the photography of birds and their show more nests. Building incredible disguises for themselves - a "tree trunk" made with poles and cloth, and decorated with leaves, a hollow ox made from a wooden frame draped with ox-hide - they captured photographic images of scenes that few had had the opportunity to see. Their British Birds' Nests, published in 1895, was the first work of natural history to be entirely illustrated with photographs, and was unlike anything that had been printed before. It also launched both brothers into careers as naturalists and photographers...

I had never heard of either Richard or Cherry Kearten, prior to picking up this charming picture-book biography by Rebecca Bond, and I'm glad to have that omission rectified, as they seem to have had a great influence on the development of nature photography. In addition to the historical and scientific interest of the story, as well as the appealing watercolor and ink illustrations, I particularly appreciated that In the Belly of an Ox presents the idea that sometimes, even if our working life is taking us in a different direction, we can still pursue our passions, and possibly, with lots of hard work and a little luck, eventually combine the two. show less

I love My Bed! I mean this new book for children, although I do also love my own bed. I have an extra deep mattress and sleep snuggled under my handmade quilts. But not everyone in the world has a bed like mine. Rebecca Bond and Salley Mavor have created a marvelous book about the many ways children across the world go to bed. As a girl I loved learning about costumes and flags of the world. The brilliance of My Bed is how it illustrates material and cultural differences through how children show more go to sleep. Mavor has created handmade embellished fiber scenes, exquisite in detail. It took her several years to create the art for this book. You will study each one for a long time. I know my son loved to talk about the details of the art in his children's books. I can imagine the discussions that will arise from My Bed. "My bed rocks on the water," we are told about the Netherlands where some children live on houseboats. (I am jealous!) "My bed sways in the breeze," we are told about South and Central American children who sleep in hammocks. We see an Indian child with their nets to protect against mosquitos, the alcove beds of Norway, the open air beds of Ghana, Russian beds on the large stoves. Children sleep in yurts and in courtyards and on rooftops. The Afghan carpet these children sleep on is amazing In detail. Children will learn how houses and beds across the world are constructed, and about the flora and animals around them. Each child's house is unique to its culture, and shown in context to its environment. The Japanese house shows a flowering cherry tree. On her blog Wee Folk Studio, Mavor shares how she made her art for My Bed. I am stunned by her art. I received a free ebook from the publisher through Edelweiss. My review is fair and unbiased. show less

I received the ARC from NetGalley but had problems with my computer, so I had to wait for my library’s copy to be returned – and to catch it before another patron checked it out! The kids are liking this one. It’s a charming tale of friendship/family-ship, hope, and the strength in cooperation. Reading it over the weekend, I also couldn’t help but see parallels to the current refugee crisis. Not sure if this is intentional or not but might be something to consider.

There is a certain quiet delight to this book, even though it tells a story about forest fire -- spoiler alert -- I love the wonderful historic details of the frontier hotel in the Canadian wilderness, and the thoughtful child's-eye view.