I first read about On The Night That We First Met on The Book Chook. (Read her review here). The title grabbed me straight away and I knew this was a book that I needed to read.
Do you remember the day or night that you first met your child? Is the memory vivid and rich? I gave birth to my daughter via an emergency c-section so when I first saw my daughter I was looking up at her as she was being lifted up and over the screen towards me. Now and then, especially when she’s sleeping and I crawl along the ground to get a glimpse of her in her cot, I see my daughter from that same angle and the memories come rushing back of that first afternoon when I met her.
Nadine Bates has written a beautiful story. It is her story but it’s a universal one. It’s a mother’s perspective when the whole world stops to welcome the most beautiful child in the world. The trees and leaves, the animals and creatures, the stars and the ocean all stop for this child, your child.
Nadine writes some wonderful imagery of a velvet-cloaked sky, an emerald ground, and stars that hum a little quieter. This imagery is very powerful in setting up a magical scene for a miraculous event.
The illustrations are divine. The watercolors are gentle and almost folk-like. The adorable illustrations evoke love and warmth, and they depict an angel sharing this baby with the world.
This is a keepsake book for a child; something that will remind them of how much they are loved. I love that there is space at the back of the book for each family to personalize the story with memories of their own.
The text is quite sophisticated, however. For me, this is a mother’s book. One that will bring a tear to a mother’s eye each time she reads it.
Whoever you decide to buy this book for, mother or child, it is one special, heart-warming book. To make this an even more delightful gift, Hootenanny Books also created four handcrafted dolls to compliment the book (These can be purchased separately or as part of a gift pack with the book).
If this sounds like a book you’d love make sure you get to one of the book launch events (Vic or Qld) where you could meet author, Nadine Bates. This also happens to be the very first book published by Hootenanny Books.
Book Details:
Author: Nadine Bates
Illustrator: Zlatica Hlavacova
Publisher: Hootenanny Books, July 2011
