Judith Caseley

Author/illustrator Judith Caseley delivers another 'slice of life' story here, but rather than it being a story of a child's school life, or a family's home life, it is the life of a community that she explores. When Charlie is given a homework assignment to visit the places in his community and record what he finds, he and his mother take a walk around town, observing all the different places and workers that together make up their world. From librarians to police officers, firemen to diner show more waitresses, everyone has a role to play...

I really appreciated On the Town: A Community Adventure, even though there was nothing about it, from a textual or artistic standpoint, that particularly stood out to me. It offers a comforting and affirming vision of what community is, and shows that while everybody has a different job to do, together they all benefit from the efforts of other individuals, and of the whole. I particularly liked that Charlie himself, when he finds a lost wallet, does the honest and civic-minded thing, in turning it in to the police, as this shows young readers that they too have a part to play, in the wider community. Given the unrest here in the states right now, and the way in which violence is being condoned by many in the media and in positions of political power, it is easy to get discouraged, and to think our culture is being irretrievably damaged. Now more than ever, we need the vision of community put forward here, in which every person has a contribution to make to the welfare of the whole. Now more than ever, we need to be asking if our actions are contributing to that welfare, or harming it. I'd recommend this book to parents and educators looking to have healthy conversations with their children about the issue of community, civic-mindedness, and playing our part. show less

Born without a left hand, Harry grew up like any other child, learning to run and walk, enjoying making art, letting his parents know he had his own mind. When he first went to school the other children asked about his prosthetic arm, but his matter-of-fact answers and participation in all activities soon set everyone at their ease. Harry became good friends with Oscar, nicknamed 'Carrothead' because of his flaming red hair, and he stood up for this new friend when Willy teased him. Soon, show more the trio of boys were all good friends...

Published in 1991, Harry and Willy and Carrothead addresses issues of disability, difference and friendship in a friendly, matter-of-fact way. I greatly appreciated the fact that author/artist Judith Caseley created a story in which the disabled child's physical difference is not the only area of concern. So many children's books in this vein end up highlighting the way in which such children are different, even when the intended message is that such differences should be treated with compassion and respect. Here however, both Harry and Oscar are different - the one has a prosthetic hand, the other red hair - and both differences are commented upon in potentially problematic ways by the boys' peers. Caseley isn't equating a physical disability with having red hair (nor am I), but she is subtly pointing out that many people have something that could set them apart, not just the disabled. Therefore, treating difference with tolerance and respect isn't simply a question of the abled treating the disabled with kindness, but of everyone being tolerant of others and of themselves. This message is driven home by the fact that it is Harry, the ostensibly disabled boy, who sticks up for Oscar, who hates being called 'Carrothead' because of his red hair. In the end, I think this is a far more empowering message than many I have seen in other children's stories with these themes.

All in all, definitely a picture-book worth picking up! Recommended to anyone looking for good children's stories about the themes of difference, disability and friendship. show less

Although Mickey and Jack had once been friends, Jack's bullying behavior - stealing his cookies at lunch, tripping him up, stealing his baseball cap - had driven a wedge between the two boys. Mickey's father advised him to use his brave words, because bullies were cowards, and his mother advised kindness, in light of Jack's possible feelings about having a new baby sister. Mickey himself wasn't sure what to do, until he saw the other kids begin to bully Jack for his new braces...

The fifth show more and final picture-book about Mickey, his family and his friends, Bully address an all-too-common childhood problem. Author/illustrator Judith Caseley sensitively depicts how a friendship can deteriorate, and how a child being bullied may feel helpless and unsure of how to protect themselves. I have seen some online reviews criticizing this one, because of the way it handles the central issue. It is certainly true that adults often times underestimate how harmful bullying can be, and mistakenly put the onus on the bullied child to find a solution. What I found interesting myself was the variety of strategies offered by the adults, and how each of these failed. When Jack's mother sees him pushing Mickey at the beginning of the book, she takes him home. This fails to solve the problem, and Jack continues to bully Mickey at school, demonstrating how adult intervention and punishment often doesn't change childhood social behaviors, when adults are absent. Mickey's father's advice, to use his "brave words" and stand up for himself, is something Mickey had already done, in calling Jack a "rat" at the beginning of the story, when he (Jack) stepped on his fingers. This too failed to solve the problem, but rather worsened it, demonstrating that sometimes confrontation can deepen the underlying problems that cause bullying. Mickey's mother's advice, to love one's enemy, is something the young boy attempts to put into practice, by providing extra cookies for Jack, but it too fails, and could even be read as pacifying the bully. In the end, it is Mickey's sympathy for Jack, when the latter boy is called names because of his new braces, that heals the wound between them, and solves the problem.

A part of me finds this solution far too pat, and thinks it unlikely, in most situations. Few bullied children would be able to use this strategy, unless the bully were to become the target. On the other hand, childhood friendships do often follow these trajectories, going from friendship to hostility and back to friendship again, so the story here is not impossible. In the end, I was impressed that Caseley showcased how complex this issue is, even if there isn't a perfect solution provided. I would recommend this one to those seeking picture-books about bullying, and about arguments between friends, with the proviso that they read it through before sharing with children, to see if it might be helpful. show less

When Priscilla discovers that her parents are getting a divorce, and that her father is moving away to live in an apartment nearby, she is at first convinced that she can prevent the separation by behaving perfectly. After that fails, she acts out on her resentment toward both parents, before eventually being reconciled to her new family circumstances by her father and mother's patience and love. In the end she realizes that the divorce is not her fault, and that there are all kinds of show more families...

Although I read a great many picture-books, many of them family stories, I can't think of that many, other than those explicitly intended for use as bibliotherapy, that address divorce. Patricia Polacco has written a few, based upon her own childhood, and Mindy Avra Portnoy's A Tale of Two Seders addresses a girl's first Passover after her parents' divorce, but that's about it. Given this dearth of such stories in my picture-book reading, I was glad to encounter author/illustrator Judith Caseley's Priscilla Twice. The story is engaging, addressing the feelings of grief and anger that a child of divorced parents might feel, and offering a hopeful vision of how things might be. Recommended to picture-book readers looking for stories addressing divorce, and to fans of Judith Caseley. show less