A reissue to mark the 10th Anniversary of this absolutely delightful picture book. The opposing emotions of happiness and sadness are conveyed quite beautifully throughout Augustus’s story until at last his smile returns because he starts looking at the wonderful world around him.
Augustus and His Smile was the well-deserved winner of the ‘Early Years – Best New Illustrator Award’ and was shortlisted for the 2007 Greenaway Medal.
The Greenaway Judges' comment:A very fresh and appealing book which makes good use of mixed media to convey the feel of a real tiger. Rayner’s broad loose strokes reflect the beauty of the animal, and give him real expression and emotion: so much is conveyed in the flick of his tail. The whole has a Zen-like simplicity but it is also a very physical book which draws you in. There is real artistic skill here and great maturity of style.
Augustus the tiger is sad. He has lost his smile. So he does a HUGE tigery stretch and sets off to find it. As he climbs mountain crests patterned with frost and swims to the bottom of inky blue oceans, Augustus soon realises that his smile will be there whenever he is happy. He just needs to open his eyes to the beauty of the natural world around him.
Rediscover the magic of Catherine Rayner's illustrations with this stunning 10th anniversary edition. With a gorgeous jacketed cover with gold foiling, this picture book would make a perfect gift for a baby shower, christening or birthday.
Augustus and his Smile was Catherine Rayner's first book. It was nominated for the Kate Greenaway Award and won the 2006 Booktrust Early Years Award.
Catherine Rayner was born in Harrogate and now lives in Edinburgh. She has a BA Hons in Visual Communication and Illustration from Leeds College of Art and Edinburgh College of Art. Much of her inspiration – and occasionally modelling! – for her illustration comes from her pets: her horse Shannon, guinea pig Marvin, dog Ellie, cat Emma and two goldfish, Bruce and Sheila. Catherine was shortlisted for the Booktrust Early Years Award Best New Illustrator in 2006, and she won the prestigious Kate Greenaway Medal in 2009.
Julia Eccleshare, the editorial expert on Lovereading4kids says, Prize winning illustrator Catherine Rayner has created stunning picture books introducing delightful characters including Harris, a hare with exceptionally large feet and Ernest, a moose who is determined to get himself into a book – no mean feat when you are too big to fit in the pages. Gorgeous, warmly coloured large scale pictures lie at the heart of Catherine’s work.
