Jess McGeachin, Kind, Allen & Unwin, May 2022, 32 pp., RRP $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781761066047
Kind by Jess McGeachin was written during the first Melbourne COVID lockdown, a time of fear and uncertainty when people were longing to be outside and to be able to see more of the world than just their backyard. The book is a gentle call to be kind to the earth and kind to yourself.
This delightful picture book showcases McGeachin’s distinctive illustrative style. The hardcover edition of this book has a textured cover with glossy elements contributing to the visual feast. Each double-page spread showcases a different animal, there are an assortment of crabs, whales, snakes, owls and so much more. The text features four lines for each animal with the second- and fourth-lines rhyming. Each animal is labelled with its Western common name. The afterward includes a thoughtful note about names which recognises that many of the creatures have names in the languages of the First Peoples who shared this land with them. It would be nice to see a version of the book that includes the names given by First Peoples to the animals featured.
The selling points for this beautiful picture book include that it contributes to a child’s social-emotional toolbox and it ticks the Australian Curriculum’s ‘Biological Science for Primary Students’ box.
Recommended for animal lovers and preschool aged readers (3+ years).
Reviewed by Anne Varnes
