The Fair Dinkum War from the talented David Cox captures the experience of Word War II from the eyes of a young child.
David’s narrative always has a quiet, controlled and oh so enjoyable tone which sweeps up young readers.
The Fair Dinkum War recreates David’s own memories as a young boy with the war creeping closer and closer.
‘It began with a great rumble that came in through our classroom window and rumbled on and on.’
‘The American army had come to take part in the war!’
The details included make it easy to imagine what it must have been like. Playground games changed to be ones of army generals, soldiers and battles. Chocolate biscuits and ice-cream became food of dreams rather than reality as rationing was introduced.
Cox has the ability to explain these events in a clear and interesting manner, this really is a great picture book to learn from.
I love how David includes snippets of stories from his memories such as playing chess with grandmother, the circus coming to town and even about his teacher Miss Walker, who inspired David to draw.
Of course this is all accompanied by Cox’s modern illustrations. Quirky and full of character, they have an almost Quentin Blake-esq feel to them, with a wonderful Australian flavour.
You must also take a peek at David’s earlier book – the award winning The Road to Goonong, then have a read of our interview with David Cox here.
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