The Sheep Fairy: When Wishes Have Wings

Sim’s richly graphic illustrations have appeared in a number of contexts over the years, and here they grace the somewhat psychedelic story of Wendy the flying sheep. Sim uses a light-on-dark dry brush painting technique to create texture across the page, allowing the colours underneath to peep through the upper layers. The busy spreads are attractively laid out, if a little densely populated at times. Wendy’s reward for saving a fairy from a sticky end in the bramble bush is to be granted her wish to fly, and before long she is soaring through the night sky and heroically seeing off predators. A bright and breezy book, full of strong colours and shapes to amuse the younger child.