I am fortunate to have a friend from ‘across the pond’ who has provided me with much needed sources of artistic inspiration over the years beginning with a shared admiration for the artist Paul Hogarth. This book by Edward Ardizzone is thanks to that friendship.

This blog is peppered with reviews on books which contain illustrations such as these. I make no apology for preferring a sketch or painting to illustrate a story than a 4K photograph which will invariably be surpassed by 5,6,7k in the future and at more expense to those who use it. So this is everything I love in a book.

This is the first US edition published in 2002 and edited by Judy Taylor of Bodley Head Publishing and a longtime friend of Ardizzone. What she lovingly compiled is a collection of simple sketches and watercolours sent to the artist’s closest friends and correspondents over many years.

Ardizzone was born in 1900 in what was then French Indo-China before moving to England at the age of five to live between his grandmother and later, boarding school. He became a successful artist and diarist and throughout his life he wrote letters to his family and friends from which these beautiful illustrations are taken.

Some of my favourites are from his letters of thanks (in the most part) to his friend Michael Behrens who he met in the 1950s. As the friendship between both families grew, Ardizzone would holiday at Behrens homes in Majorca and the South of France which produced some beautiful, idyllic scenes of life in the sun.

Behrens was also noted for his generosity in giving Ardizzone wine and a number of the illustrations depict the artists gratitude upon receiving a case.

There are many of his letters to his wife, children and grandchildren, including the charming picture above of his granddaughter Susannah giving sugar to a horse.

These wonderful illustrations hark back to a time sadly long lost. He managed to combine a certain innocence with a cheeky sense of humour but above all he reminds us all of what is, in the most part lost to the digital age: care and effort.

To receive a letter from a friend is infinitely better than an email or message with predictive text. It is a sure sign of the value of a friendship or love, I feel very fortunate to have known such a time and to still put pen to paper.