Books For Keeps
  • Home
  • Reviews
  • Articles
  • Past Issues
  • Latest Issue
  • Authors and Artists
  • Latest News
  • Search
  • Menu Menu
September 1, 2006/in Picture Book 5-8 Infant/Junior /by Angie Hill
BfK Rating:
BfK 160 September 2006
Reviewer: George Hunt
ISBN: 978-1845070816
Price: £10.99
Publisher: Frances Lincoln Children's Books
Genre: Picture Book
Age Range: 5-8 Infant/Junior
Length: 32pp
Buy the Book

Death in a Nut

Author: Eric MaddernIllustrator: Paul Hess

Jack and his mum live a happy enough life in their cottage by the sea until, on the day she becomes ill, Jack meets the Grim Reaper himself striding along the beach towards the cottage. Jack struggles with Death, breaks his scythe, imprisons him in a nut and tosses him into the sea before returning home to find his mother recovered. He also finds that he can’t break eggs, slice vegetables or wring the rooster’s neck, while in town the shops are empty of everything that requires the death of anything.

Maddern’s retelling of this traditional, Midas-like tale, which was passed to him by traditional Scottish storyteller Duncan Williamson, is concise, conversational and highly effective. In providing a resolution that underlines the necessity of death without being too blood-chilling, it provides a reassuring addition to the literature on this ineluctable topic. The text is conveyed in a spidery script that treads beside or undulates over the gentle, pastoral, full and half page illustrations. Poignant little background details like the missing member of family photographs and the frieze in Jack’s kitchen add reminders of mortality.

Share this entry
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on WhatsApp
  • Share on Pinterest
  • Share on LinkedIn
  • Share on Reddit
  • Share by Mail
http://booksforkeeps.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bfklogo.png 0 0 Angie Hill http://booksforkeeps.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bfklogo.png Angie Hill2006-09-01 12:20:492023-04-07 12:41:35Death in a Nut

Search for a specific review

Author Search

Search







Generic filters




Filter by Member Types


Book Author

Download BfK Issue BfK 263 November 2023
Skip to an Issue:

About Us

Launched in 1980, we’ve reviewed hundreds of new children’s books each year and published articles on every aspect of writing for children.

Read More

Follow Us

Latest News

Latest CLPE Reflecting Realities survey shows sustained upward trend in the volume of inclusive literature for children

November 30, 2023

Winners of 2023 SLA Information Book Award

November 23, 2023

Nero Book Awards Announce Inaugural Shortlist

November 21, 2023

Contact Us

Books for Keeps,
30 Winton Avenue,
London,
N11 2AT

Telephone: 0780 789 3369

ISSN: 0143-909X (this is our International Standard Serial Number).

© Copyright 2023 - Books For Keeps | Proudly Built by Lemongrass Media - Web Design Buckinghamshire
Fly, Pigeon, Fly! Beast
Scroll to top