Author & Illustrators

Clara Anganuzzi Books

Shy Girl

Picturebook

There is a thoughtfulness and beauty to the story ‘Shy Girl’. The story revolves around a nameless ‘shy girl’, so it is easy to put yourself in her shoes. She loves to sing and also the sound of music; however, when others were looking at her, she would become nervous and was scared that she would be laughed at.

This is a truly lovely story about self-belief and confidence in oneself, after having self-doubt and worries about not being special like everyone else. The key message of everyone being special and unique is a strong theme throughout. The illustrations are amazing, and when the girl sings, the colours swirl and burst around her, often full of musical notes. There is not a lot of text on each page, so this story would be suitable for an early reader or for a child who enjoys a story with lots of pictures.

It is an excellent book to share with a class where most children can think of a time when they feel nervous to do something, but with courage and encouragement, they too can ‘find your voice and shine bright’. It is a book that could be used within class to support confidence-building and celebrating who you are.

The Ocean Gardener

Clara Anganuzzi

Picturebook

From its tactile front cover to its inspiring story and vivid illustrations, Ocean Gardener is a book to treasure.

The book has a hard cover impressed with water bubbles which will intrigue curious little fingers. The author’s glorious illustrations of seabed, sunsets and seascapes set the scene for an uplifting story with an all-female cast! Clara Anganuzzi teaches us about the coral reefs of her island home. Her super-mum character is pro-active and positive. As mother and daughter complete their daily rounds checking on the coral reef that surrounds their island, they realise that the reef is changing. The immortal words, ‘Mum had a plan’, lead to pragmatic and innovative actions to help solve the problem.The last part of the book includes information about real life marine biologist, Chloe, who works in the Seychelles, as well as an information page about coral reefs; how to protect coral; and ways to find out more.

Fly Boy

Clara Anganuzzi & Mr. JJ Bola

Picturebook

Fly Boy is a powerful picture book that provides teachers, parents and children with a story from which to explore how anger can impact on the opportunities to engage with and fully experience the joy and possibilities of life.

Fly Boy’s anger at home and school is shown through simple but vibrant illustrations. He is depicted as being weighed down by two, huge red wings. Exploring the way the wings are shown in each illustration is a fabulous starting point for discussing anger – how it consumes, burns, weighs down and takes over a person’s very being. Fly Boy is jealous of Thomas, who also has wings – but blue, swirling wings that allow him to fly and to embrace life.

What this book does is present quite a complex set of ideas about how anger can limit us but also does not reach for the easy solution – a hug won’t instantly get rid of deep-seated hurt and pain, but it can help. A person can be supported by others but the story makes it clear that it is Fly Boy who has to understand his own anger, sadness and jealousy before being able to fly.

This is an accessible and beautiful picture book that will support children to begin to understand their feelings of anger and how it might impact on their view of the world.

Violet’s Tempest

Clara Anganuzzi & Ian Eagleton

Picturebook

This is a story that depicts one aspect of childhood anxiety in such a gentle way – weaving a variety of themes, including shyness, family and even an introduction to Shakespeare into one tale. The story is engaging and describes a range of emotions in an accessible and intelligent way.

The story centres on Violet, a shy child riddled with self-doubt and confidence issues when she is cast as the main lead in a Shakespeare production. Her family, including her nan and uncles, try to help Violet’s self-esteem. The story has an excellent approach to explaining the physical and emotional feelings related to anxiety, but more importantly, how to overcome them. Eagleton also embraces diversity in Violet’s support network of her family.

Clara Anganuzzi enhances the story with wonderful illustrations that perfectly portray the emotions at play. The illustrations feature intricate details in places, including photographs on the wall in the background of scenes. All these details add to the rich family diversity explored in the story.

Dear Earth

Clara Anganuzzi & Isabel Otter

Picturebook

Inspired by her Grandpa’s tales of global exploration, a little girl chooses to pen a love letter to the Earth, gently exploring both the diverse beauty and the fragility of our planet.

As Tessa walks with her Grandpa, she listens to his tales of adventures from his days as an explorer. As Grandpa describes different places he has visited, he paints in Tessa’s mind vivid images of the Earth’s diverse natural wonders. Inspired by what she has heard, Tessa decides to write a letter to the planet, letting her imagination flow as she dreams of global explorations of her own. Through Tessa’s imaginative lines, coupled with Clara Anganuzzi’s gently flowing illustrations, the book addresses the aspects of nature that capture a child’s heart and imagination: Tessa imagines sliding down desert dunes, floating in lagoons, gliding like a turtle, flitting with butterflies, sliding and soaring with birds. Tessa wants to revel in the Earth’s natural beauty – to play gleefully in it, to partake, to sense it, to fully experience it, but not for a second spoil it. At the end of her letter, Tessa’s mind falls to thoughts of the Earth’s need for love, care and healing from the damage caused by humans.

Finishing her letter with ‘Love from Tessa’, she holds Grandpa’s hand and together they wander along the beach and discuss what might cause more people to be better at treasuring the Earth instead of harming it. The pair agree that sharing a message of the planet’s wondrous beauty might be the best way to help people to realise how special the Earth is and to begin to take more care of it.

This is a beautifully illustrated picture book that is perfectly gentle and encouraging in its message of appreciation and environmental care. There’s nothing to scare young children here – instead, it simply moves readers towards reflecting on the diversity of the planet’s natural wonders, as the additional facts and tips at the end of the book gently move readers onto positive and achievable steps to help to care for the planet.