A Picnic at the Lighthouse by Rebecca North

From the Publisher:

A Picnic at the Lighthouse is the heartwarming story of a young boy and his father who spend a fun-filled day together at a lighthouse. The book is about the special moments they share and the depth of a parent’s love.

Description:

This book about the depth of a parent’s love describes the special moments shared between a small boy and his father on an outing to a local lighthouse. On the whole, it does convey a very positive message about the importance of spending quality time with children and the deep love that parents have for their kids. It would be a good story to use when trying to discuss the difficult topic of divorce and children not getting to spend as much time as they would like with a significant adult – the importance of making the most of the time we do have together with love ones.

My Experience:

I read this twice to my three year old daughter (on separate occassions), trying to get her engaged with the story.  Unlike with most books I read to her, on neither occasion did she immediately ask me to read it to her again.  That was telling for me. I really wanted to love this book, as it is about one of my favourite places (the east coast of Canada), but the heartwarming story suffers from poor graphic design decisions. I was put off by the 1950’s reading primer-inspired illustrations and awkwardly placed text (way at the bottom of the pages and stretched across the whole page rather than in an easy-to read block).  Given the large size of the pages (8×10 portrait style), the font could have been bigger to better catch the eye.  I found that the text was too wordy in places, and at times, redundant. It needed better editing to make the story more crisp and effective.

     Likes:

• heartwarming story of a parent and child
• realistic depiction of an outing with a toddler

     Dislikes:

• simplistic illustrations
• poor text size, font, position
• uninspiring cover (graphic design challenged!)
• redundant text – needs more editing!

Why/How Use it with kids:

• good story to read before nap time
• ask about favourite or special outings the child has had with a loved one – draw a picture of the outing
• plan a special out for the child with a loved one – maybe an individual that they do not often get to see.

About the Author & Illustrator:

Rebecca North is a Canadian children’s author. Originally from Halifax, Nova Scotia, she now lives in St. John’s, Newfoundland. She completed a Bachelor of Science degree at McGill University and a Master of Science degree at the University of Alberta.

Nancy Keating has been a graphic artist for 25 years. She has illustrated several Newfoundland books for adults and children.