Too Many Acorns

By Susannah Crispe

Reviewed by Margarite Igras

Susannah Crispe is an Australian children’s author and illustrator known for her beautiful book Under the Moonlight as well as the illustrator of several titles including The Real Cowgirl, Where the Heart Is, Cookie, Under the Moonlight and Cloudspotting.

Too Many Acorns was a challenging project for her because she wanted to create a book about grief without ever mentioning or showing grief.  Aimed at the younger 4- to 7-year-old, it is a visual portrayal of loss, using the metaphor of acorns to parallel the overwhelming emotions and chaos that can build up when we experience loss of some kind or another.

On a whimsical level, this is a story about a boy who likes collecting acorns only to find that he has gathered so many that it overtakes his room, house and world. What can he do to resolve this? On a deeper level, without a mention of loss or grief, we see Patrick and his dad going for a walk. They seem sad and distracted. When Patrick finds an acorn, and then another, he feels some comfort so continues to collect them.  Eventually, there are so many acorns, that something needs to be done. This is a trigger for father and son to try and rediscover the things that made them happy. After a burst of laughter, they swept up the acorns, they talked, and they laughed, and they made a plan.

Crispe has used minimal text, allowing the detailed watercolour and digital illustrations to carry the story. Her autumnal colour palette speaks to me of a season of loss, as does the clues in the family photos on the wall that include activities with a mum. And I love what the author has done with the end papers.

This is a sad yet uplifting story that could be used to start a conversation about grief in a very visual and creative way.

EK Books 2024 (with Teacher’s Notes)

Susannah Crispe