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Literary Review
A judicious choice
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The Hans Christian Andersen Awards are given by The International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) to an author and illustrator every alternate year. This time around, Aidan Chambers and Quentin Blake get the nod, says PREMA SRINIVASAN.
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THE Hans Christian Andersen Awards are the highest international recognition given to the writers and illustrators of children's books. These are awarded by the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) to an author and illustrator every alternate year for having contributed in a significant manner to children's literature. This year (2002), the winners were novelist Aidan Chambers (United Kingdom) and illustrator Quentin Blake (United Kingdom). The awards are to be presented at the opening ceremony of IBBY's 50th Anniversary Jubilee Congress at Basel, Switzerland in September 2002.
Aidan Chambers has been prominent in the children's book scene for the last four decades and has been consistently concerned with the promotion of worthwhile literature for young people. His particular forte is young adult fiction, a sub-genre which is increasingly getting attention in the contemporary writing scene for children. Chambers has always claimed that writing for children should take into account the recent explorations of both outer space and inner psychological space, of "gender within the personality", nuclear fission and television techniques. His two famous works of fiction, Breaktime (1978) and Dance on my Grave (1982) were path breakers in ways more than one. Traditional narrative sequence is discarded in favour of fragmentation and the use of various modernistic devices. For instance, the subtitle of Dance on my Grave is starling and attention catching. It says:
A life and a Death in Four Parts/ one hundred and seventeen Bits/ Six running Reports/ and Two Press clippings/ With a few jokes/ a puzzle or three/some footnotes/ and a fiasco now and then/ to help the story along.
Far too self-conscious or not, the fact remains that Chambers continues to be an energetic writer and critic. His books do amply demonstrate his convictions on the art of writing. Influence of writers like Kurt Vonnegut and B.S. Johnson may be detected but by and large Chambers has succeeded in exploring outrageously the thin dividing line between fantasy and reality, a theme which has preoccupied many writers from time immemorial.
Critics have agreed that the British picture book came to vigorous life in the 1960s. Quentin Blake, who was elected as U.K.'s first children's Laureate has received many awards in his life but his skill as an illustrator will be making an impact the world over in September 2002. A versatile illustrator, Blake may adopt the technique of a cartoonist but the outcome is sheer visual fantasy. Anyone who has had the opportunity to turn the pages of Blake's Patrick (1968) will be amazed at the series of visual treats while unfolding the story of Patrick. Patrick, by playing his violin, is able to bring singing fish out of the sea, change leaves into bright colours and, best of all, make trees grow cakes, cream and hot buttered toast! Critic Townsend has sagely commented on this book: "Does all this epitomise the gifts conferred by art on humanity?" Blake, like the proverbial alchemist, by his illustrations, changes the mundane world into a fairyland accessible to every child that picks up his book! In Jack and Nancy (1969) two children are blown away clinging to an umbrella, to a tropical island. The scenes are a page-turner's delight. Mister Magnolia (1980) is a book based on a poem with only one rhyme. There is a line to a page and the accompanying drawings make the book a jolly read. Blake has also successfully collaborated with other authors for children as in How Tom beat Captain Najork and his Hired Sportsman (1974). Picture books for children are their first introduction to art and literature. Only the best among such books are good enough for the young reader.
It is rather intriguing to learn that both the recipients of the Andersen awards this year have been chosen for their contribution to young adult fiction and picture story book respectively. Both these sub-genres of children's literature need to be explored by writers and illustrators who are fine-tuned to the concerns of the intended readership. The choice of the IBBY jury, as always, augurs well for the future of children's literature.
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