A touching sequence of pictures which delight in the pleasures of giving as Ivy hands out presents of all kinds. The jokes of the contrasts in the gifts and their recipients are nicely made in the cleverly designed pages and the resolution is charming.
Lovereading comment:
Ivy Loves to Give captures the generosity and spiritedness of a toddler. The generosity and spiritedness that grown-ups sometimes forget. Let this picture book be a warm reminder of the gift of giving. Ivy's gifts are sometimes a bit muddly but they are always from the heart. Internationally acclaimed illustrator Freya Blackwood explores the essence of generosity both in terms of giving and of receiving.
Ivy is very generous with her giving. She offers a cup of tea to the chook, a flip-flop to a snail and a dummy to the cat. The presents aren't always perfect but they are always perfectly given.
Julia Eccleshare has recently interviewed Freya Blackwood, for Books For Keeps, to download and read the article click here.
Freya Blackwood is an illustrator of children’s books. She was born in Edinburgh and grew up in Orange in NSW, Australia. The daughter of a painter and an architect, she was encouraged to draw and paint from a young age. Freya completed a degree in Design (Visual Communications) at the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS) where she became interested in filmmaking. She worked for several years in the special effects industry in Sydney and then in Wellington, New Zealand, where she worked for Weta Workshop on The Lord of the Rings Trilogy.
In 2002 she began illustrating books and has illustrated about ten picture books, several of which have been published in numerous countries. Her books have won awards in the Children’s Book Council of Australia awards, including the Crichton Award in 2003 for TWO SUMMERS and Early Childhood Book of the Year in 2006 for AMY AND LOUIS.
Freya currently lives back in Australia, in the town where she grew up. She has a studio out in the backyard where she draws and paints. She has a young daughter who is a fabulous inspiration.
