Orana : journal of school and children’s librarianship. Australia : Library Association of Australia, School & Children’s Libraries Sections 1977 – 2005 includes information about this picture book. The animal depictions also force readers to focus on other artistic elements that imply socioeconomic status and gender roles. The depiction of the mother character implies wealth, and stereotypical attitudes of wealthy women. The depiction of the father character implies poverty, and stereotypical (or perhaps not-so stereotypical) attitudes of poor men. The children seem to transcend gender stereotypes, as the boy takes on more of a female gender role. He is reluctant to play with the girl, and less outgoing. The girl wants to play with the boy, and is much more outgoing. She seems to convince the boy to play, which is not very characteristic of girls in most stories. Everyone in this story is each other’s opponent, except for the dogs, whose easy friendliness juxtaposes against the reserve of the human characters — each at a different point on the ‘reserved’ spectrum.

Although the parallactic plot structure combined with surrealist illustrations are unusual in picture books, the message of this story is not unusual for the category: Don’t suppress children’s natural inclination to have fun. Don’t pass on your own class prejudices because we really need to stop perpetuating the idea that some people are more worthy than others. This story appears to be set in England, though I’ve never seen a big English park as deserted as this one. This park is a representation of the characters’ inner states, in which no one is truly connected to the others. (See also: Loneliness in Art and Storytelling.) Look at the illustrations of nighttime scenes. Could you create your own pictures which feature silhouettes of people / objects? Importantly, the story is atemporal by design. Is this sky one of the evening, morning? We don’t know. Once the characters assemble at the park, the seasons keep changing according to whose story it is. This makes use of the symbolism of seasons, of course, but also lends a universality to this story of humanity and hierarchy.

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The text can be a very useful example for children to look at, as a model for writing in different perspectives and as a model for how to effectively create links between the text and illustrations.

For Smudge's father, the type is a less formal type of font that is bolded. There is just more of a noticble rounding of the letters, not as rigid as the ones for the font listed above. The informal bold text, along with the type of grammar of the sentences, leads one to conclude he is a working class person. The fact of it being in bold makes one envision he has a deep, rough voice.Mrs Smythe intends to go to the park to give her dog and son some fresh air and exercise. Mr Smith seems to be at the park because it is a pleasant place to sit and read the classifieds, quite possibly nicer than his own kitchen. THE BIG STRUGGLE Anthony Browne has avoided making commentary on race by giving the humans the bodies of gorillas. This is one reason ( among many) why illustrators/storytellers utilise animal bodies when telling stories about humans. This illustration is from the eye-level of a child. Smudge sees the park as her personal carnivalesque playground, hence the fruit in the distance. Einari Wehmas (Finnish, 1898-1955) In The Park 1920-1. Note the similar palette of yellow and orange juxtaposed against green. MRS SMYTHE

The story starts with an upper-class mother and son who walk their dog to the park and meet other people who are depicted as coming from a lower class status. What I found interesting within the story is that this can be a realistic occurrence that can happen daily. I consider the characters can also relate to the reader quite accessibly. In my opinion this is done through a good use of language and wonderful illustrations that pose extraordinary features. Although many may find these as unusual, I believe the use of these types of pictures as appealing. For Charles, the battle is against his oppressive mother and her expectations that he become a ‘real man’. The mother wants to retain her position as a privileged white woman. (Yes, animals can still be white women.) Her son is going the same way, but for now he wants to enjoy the freedom of being a kid without the heavy weight of responsibility. He wants a playmate.Even the trees in the illustration below reflect the hunched posture of this father and daughter on the way to the park. A walk in the park can bring joy and peacefulness to your day. Join four different perspectives of voices that take a stroll through their local park as they reflect on the lives. student exemplars - modelled writing resources used for the “fifth voice” assessment task to guide students as to what their final product should look like. The children are most likely to say we are missing the little boy’s voice. They may also say the dog. You can ask the kids what you think those voices would say. Read The Second Voice