posted on 21 Sep 2024

The Dictionary Story by Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston

Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston are the partnership who previous brought us the wonderful A Child of Books and, for those who know that, a new collaboration is a cause for celebration. And, if you buy it, you won’t be disappointed because this isn’t just an entertaining, inventive story but a design classic that has been done full justice by the publisher.

Before dipping into the content of the book, it’s worth saying that the two authors and illustrators credited on the jacket are really part of a bigger creative team who get their acknowledgement inside:

“Thanks to the artist and bookmaker Haein Song, who provided a beautiful handmade dictionary for us to feature within these pages. Also, thanks to the brilliant Yasmina Cowan, whose photography helped us capture this and so many other wonderful books.”

Once you open the book, you’ll soon understand why it’s so important to recognise these otherwise hidden contributions.

The story itself is a wonderful piece of controlled anarchy. Sat at the end of a row of other books, Dictionary is puzzled about who and what she is – even what she’s for. After all, Dictionary reasons, all those other books tell stories of one sort or another but she tells none. Everything is about order.

So, she decides to bring some of her words to life as drawings pop up that represent some of the words – first it’s a greedy Alligator that starts to rampage across the pages looking for something to eat. It spots Donut that’s popped into life and it’s off in pursuit and the previously well-ordered pages of Dictionary are beginning to get scrambled.

Other words take shapes – Moon, Ghost, Soap, Cloud, Queen and more – and although there are all sorts of stories here, Dictionary realises that she’s lost all sense of who and what she is and “now nothing was in the right place or even making sense”.

How to clean up this mess? Dictionary needs some help and so she calls on her friend Alphabet to find a way to restore order.

How do they do it? Well, I’m not telling here so that you can find out for yourself. I’ll give you one clue though…. it involves a good-old sing a-long.

This is an enchanting book for younger readers getting to grips with the notion of the alphabet but book lovers of any age will be able to appreciate the fabulous inventive design and artistry that has gone into the production.

Available now from Walker Books, you will be able to get a copy from your local independent bookshop – who will be happy to order it for you if they don’t have it on the shelf.

 

Terry Potter

September 2024