Mary

This is the latest in a series of picture books by Wildsmith with a religious theme. Drawing on gospel and apocryphal sources it tells the story of Mary, the mother of Jesus. Starting with her parents, Anna and Joachim, who are told by an angel that they will have a daughter whose name will be known in all the world, the book concludes with Mary’s death and her assumption into heaven. In between most of the story is taken up with her role as the mother of Jesus, from his babyhood and childhood when she makes sure that he learns to read and write, to her presence at his crucifixion and ascension.

Each scene is framed in an archway of gold. Wildsmith’s palette is bright, but at the final scene where Mary is crowned Queen of Heaven and earth she is in the midst of a burst of vibrant colour in the style of earlier Wildsmith pictures. It is, as we would expect from Wildsmith, a book of great beauty, but not for the very young as it demands a degree of textual and visual maturity.