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Lesley Gibbes grew up in Sydney's Northern Beaches and Wagga Wagga in country NSW. After completing a Bachelor of Education at the University of Sydney she embarked on a successful sixteen-year teaching career in Primary Education specialising in dance, drama, debating and public speaking. She is now a multiple-award-winning, internationally published author of books for children. Nature Storybooks: Searching For Cicadas (illustrated by Judy Watson) is her first book with Walker. Judy Watson grew up in a house behind her father's veterinary clinic, and spent all her holidays on a farm near the beach. When she was not reading or drawing, she could be found lying in the long grass watching bugs and birds. Judy's first picture book won the Prime Minister's Literary Award for Children's Fiction. She has illustrated over 20 books for children. She particularly enjoyed drawing Australian plants for Searching For Cicadas (written by Lesley Gibbes).
The illustrations rendered first in pencil, brush and ink, use a monotype technique before all is transferred to Photoshop for assemblage and colour. And the finished product is stunning. Readers will pore over the pages looking at the incredible detail included on each page, the depiction of Australian plants producing a chorus of wows amongst the children, while the detailed cicada will draw entreaties to go out and see them for themselves. The relationship between grandpa and grandson is beautifully presented and the subtle layering of community gives an extra warm moment for the readers...Highly recommended * ReadPlus * Evocative illustrations perfectly depict the Australian bush. A fun way to learn about cicadas. * The Sunday Telegraph * Part nonfiction and part narrative, Searching for Cicadas is an inviting story of a boy and his grandfather and their summertime excursion to go cicada-watching and is part of the Nature Storybooks series. It's a lyrical tale warmly illustrated reflecting Aussie bush landscapes and close up encounters with one of the most intriguing of our bush insect characters. Prose is interspersed with detailed fact about a number of cicada species and their fascinating habits and lifecycles * Dim's Write Stuff * Do yourself and your kiddos a favour and seek this one in preparation for those long languid summer days and afternoon walks in the local park or bushland. Highly recommended for readers from around 8 years upwards. * Just So Stories *
