This story is in the form of a poem by the very talented Joy Cowley.
We start as five kids arise from their beds with rumpled sheets in their house by the beach. The moon is still in the sky as they head for the door. The joy of the sea by their door, the gentle waves ‘hush-hushing on the shore’.
Finding shells, taking them home and keeping one under your pillow. The ‘sea-washed glass with salty smell’. Sandy feet, seagulls stalking in the water. Looking among the rocks, the breeze in their hair.
The pleasure ends with pyjamas, getting ready for bed, tired little bodies wanting to curl up, looking forward to another day. Parents sitting in the kitchen, jigsaw puzzle on the table.
With the most minimal of words on each page combined with the soft watercolour illustrations Good Night, Good Beach oozes the gentle joy of spending a day on the beach exploring. This book takes me back to my own childhood. The simplicity of spending time on a beach holiday enjoying the world around you with no other care in the world. Beautifully done.
Reviewed by Jane Stephens
Age Guide 2+
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
ABOUT THE AUTHORFor almost three decades, Joy has travelled, attending conferences, visiting schools, and running writing workshops for people whose culture has not been adequately represented in their children’s books.
She believes that children need to see themselves and their own culture in their literature. Now, in her seventies, she needs to limit travel but she still enjoys contact with children through hundreds of letters each month. “The day I’m not longer in touch with young people, is the day I stop writing for them, because the energy flows from them and goes back to them.”
She also writes books of spiritual reflection and is a retreat facilitator.
When she’s not writing, Joy likes to spend time with her husband Terry, her four children, thirteen grandchildren and great-grandsons Mateo and Ethan. She also enjoys cooking, spinning wool and knitting, painting, playing the piano and any activity to do with the sea.
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