Library says ‘Yes! Always!’ to No! Never!
Carey Harrisdale’s Library team have had even more than their long-awaited reopening to celebrate this term: Library Officer Miss Mel Pearce is now officially a published illustrator!
Miss Pearce’s debut picture book ‘No! Never!’ was written by mother-daughter team Libby Hathorn and Lisa Hathorn-Jarman and features a spirited little girl whose powerful phrase becomes her answer to every request, from tidying up her toys to going to bed, and what happens when her parents decide to try saying, ‘No! Never!’ themselves.
Miss Pearce graduated art school in 2008 with accolades, but her big break came in 2018 when she was scooped up by publisher Hachette during the WA Illustrator showcase ‘First page, First look’.
“After many years, it’s an amazing blessing to finally get my foot in the door of the industry. Due to COVID-19 I have not visited any bookshops and so am yet to see my book ‘in the wild’, so it still feels a little surreal. I am interested to see how it will feel once I do finally see it amongst other books for sale!” Miss Pearce said.
Executive Principal Mrs Jennifer Argue describes Miss Pearce’s book as “one of those rare children’s books that, while teaching children a valuable lesson about how to speak and behave appropriately, provides an insight for adults into effective parenting strategies.”
“No! Never! is an absolutely delightful book that will not only charm children from beginning to end, but is sure to engage parents and grandparents, too! With its entertaining storyline – which every parent has undoubtedly experienced – ‘No! Never!’ comes alive on every page with Mel Pearce’s vibrant, detailed and quirky illustrations that are sure to capture the imaginations of the young and not-so-young, stunning in their simplicity and intricacy,” Mrs Argue said.
Miss Pearce said, “Making the book was a season of firsts with plenty of mistakes, so I’m looking forward to next time, concentrating on enjoying myself a bit more in the illustrating process with slightly more experience.”
‘No! Never!’ is now available in all good bookshops (and libraries) and has recently been contracted for translation into Simplified Chinese and Turkish.
Well done, Miss Pearce! We look forward to reading many more of your books in the future!
