This sublime picture book is written and illustrated by Paula White, set in the beach village that once stood where she grew up in Lowestoft, a port with a rich fishing heritage, on the East Coast of Suffolk. The village housed the working community along with the Scottish fisher girls and men, who followed the fish along the east coast, arriving to help pack and preserve the catch.
Accompanying a lyrical text, the atmospheric illustrations in pen and ink, using a muted palette of blue and grey, with yellow highlights, depicts a traditional way of life. The young boy at the heart of the story takes the reader on a walk around the wooden buildings and small shops, introducing the grown-ups of the village going about their work, including the fishermen, the blacksmith and the boat-builders. The boy’s father is the baker, but the boy wants to be a fisherman when he grows up, braving the stormy seas, catching the fish to feed the community and provide an income for the village. While helping out in the bakery, the boy’s father explains that without his bread, buns and biscuits, many of the others wouldn’t be able to do their jobs.
The bread is used by the café to make bacon butties for the boat builders, the fresh, hot buns warm the fingers of Scottish girls as they pack the barrels while the fisherman out at sea dunk their savoury biscuits in hot broth to stave off cold and hunger. The baker is proud of his place in the community and the boy realises that everyone has their part to play.
Suffused with warmth and nostalgia, this evocation of bygone times should help to inspire discussion and exploration of community, local and family history. Paula White dedicates the book to her grandfather, who, she explains, was a baker but sometimes felt guilty for not being a fisherman. It also includes his recipe for hot coconut buns.
