The Ordinary Life of Jacominus Gainsborough

In this wonderful picture book, we meet Jacominus Gainsborough and follow his journey through life. We watch as he goes to school alongside his peers and over time tries to find his place in the world.

His life is not without mishap; a fall when very young means one leg is weaker than the other, something which affects him throughout his life.

On one detailed double page spread we see some of what he is discovering about the natural world around him and the skills he is learning at the same time such as how to ride a bike.

He soon realises that he isn’t as big or fast as many of his classmates and doesn’t always enjoy doing the same things as them.

As he grows up, he meets many people, illustrated in photo album style, some who share his life, some whose company he enjoys, some he doesn’t trust and others he loves. His grandmother is one of the most significant adults in his younger life, her wisdom is of particular significance for him with pearls of common sense such as ‘C’est la vie mon cher,’ and ‘When we can’t have what we like, we have to like what we have.’

He makes an effort to learn languages which help him understand the world and lead him to try and make a difference and sort out the world’s problems. He joins the armed forces and experiences war, loss, friendship and in time love too.

Jacominus Gainsborough is not a perfect character but as the writer tells us neither is anyone. His experiences are not unique; many individuals have experienced the same things as him. Moving and steeped in quiet philosophy, this is a book which celebrates the ‘journey’ and ups and downs of ordinary lives.

The artwork is simply stunning. Readers will spot echoes of Shaun Tan in the style of illustration, the depth of detail and variety of layout and design. Don’t miss the who’s who on end papers.

As the writer reminds us in her preface, this is a book to take your time with, linger over the illustrations where there is so much to discover, think and talk about the ideas within the text.

An absolute gem of a book.