Summer Evening

"As a revelation of the wonders of the English language, de la Mare's poems for children are quite unrivaled." - W. H. Auden

Part of a quintet of books revolved around the four seasons, this is a beautifully atmospheric picture book based around de la Mare's eight line poem. In Summer Evening, readers will join a farmer and his family as they enjoy a picnic dinner in the late summer sun. Their pet cat spots a mouse in the field and a chase pursues that includes a dog, a horse, cows, pigs, chickens, and ducks The sparse text and bright colors give children much to look at and explore, and they will love identifying the different animals in each spread. It concludes with all the animals going to sleep, so also a great bedtime read.

With striking orange and yellow tones throughout, this conjures up perfectly the feeling of a balmy late summer evening.


About the Author
Walter de la Mare (1873-1956) was born in Charlton, Kent. In 1907 he published his first collection of poems he soon established a wide popular reputation with volumes like The Listeners. He wrote poetry and short stories for younger readers; Peacock Pie (1913) is now considered a twentieth-century classic.

Carolina Rabei was born in 1989 in Moldova. She moved to Cambridge, England in September 2012 to complete an MA in illustration. Her first picture book, Snow, with words by Walter de la Mare, was published to huge critical acclaim. Summer Evening is the third de la Mare picture book that she has illustrated.