Many people would be surprised to learn the College Library has a well-resourced picture book collection. Our picture books support students’ development of visual literacy and are often borrowed by senior students as related literature to their English prescribed texts. A quality picture book is not just for young children - the age range for picture books is widely considered to be 0 to 18 years. The illustrations in picture books are an integral part of the story and extend concepts and meanings in the plot (which is where they differ from traditional early childhood books). A student’s visual intelligence is developed by looking for the meaning in the pictures.

A recent addition to the College Library’s collection is a magnificent picture book titled Teacup, written by Australian author Rebecca Young and illustrated by Matt Ottley. It is the simple story of a young boy who must leave his home in search for a new one across the ocean. His sole possessions include a book, a blanket, a bottle, and a teacup filled with “some earth from where he used to play”. We do not know why he must leave, or why he is alone. References to refugees or forced displacement is never mentioned but is instead left to the reader to decide why and what the boy is fleeing. It is an allegory told through simple language and exquisite, sparse illustration. To the young reader, it is a story about a boy’s journey in a boat. To the older reader, it represents the heartache, uncertainty and trepidation of finding a new home…while never forgetting the one left behind.   

Teacup, along with all our other wonderful picture books, is available for loan and can be reserved by choosing ‘Search in the Library’ on the Library website.  

The College Library