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I was fortunate enough to spend most of my childhood in the countryside - specifically the Essex coast, with its big skies, arable farms and mudflats. The fields and skies were close and familiar, but the coast was something altogether different. I remember a sponsored walk along the seawall between Heybridge and Tollesbury with the local cub scouts (one of the only good things about being a member). Our party had become separated and strung out, and I found myself pretty much on my own. It was getting late, and across the salt marshes I could hear the melancholy calls of wading birds. The evening, and the landscape, had become isolated, desolate and unfamiliar.
When I read 'What to look for in summer' by E.L. Grant Watson, I felt much the same sensations. The 25 watercolour illustrations by C.F. Tunnicliffe R.A. opened up the possibilities of other, stranger landscapes somewhere in Britain waiting to be discovered. All of a sudden the Essex countryside seemed commonplace. Beyond its borders lay wonders, and Tunnicliffe's pictures helped me explore them - redshanks nesting among rare orchids, moorland streams gushing through heather, treasures of crab and razor shell washed in the tide. We had no orchids, heather or razor shells where I lived. But through Tunnicliffe I could imagine them, and through imagining, learn more about them.
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In the age of the film clip and the selfie, it is easy to forget how a piece of art can make a genuine connection with the viewer, how it can stir the imagination and evoke memories. My favourite illustration, on page 6 of 'What to look for in summer' shows a family of mallards half-hidden among willow trees. Water has always been a fascination of mine, and in this image of a flooded pool Tunnicliffe has managed to evoke a sense of darkness and secrecy. Today, I live in a flat on the other side of London. But I am lucky enough to cross a river on the way to work every day. On the river are mallards, and willows that cast deep shadows across the water's surface. Each time I cross it I think of Tunnicliffe.
I cannot speak highly enough of the 'What to look for' series. Not only does it beautifully illustrate the changing sights and moods of the British countryside; but, for a young boy growing up in Essex, they made nature into an adventure - an adventure which continues to fascinate me to this day. Thank you, Ladybird Books, and thank you Tunnicliffe!
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Paavo Shaman
(BooksChatter contributor)
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