Emmie

By Marjorie Crosby-Fairall

Reviewed by Margarite Igras

Marjorie was very young when she decided to become an illustrator. Today, after gaining a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Illustrations, she is an internationally published illustrator of over twenty children’s books. She received the CBCA Eve Pownall Award for her first picture book Killer Plants, whilst Bear in Space and Summer Blue were both given CBCA Notable Books. Her latest book, Emmie Builds Something New, aimed at 3- to 8-year-olds, is an amazing 40-page catalogue for creating inventive contraptions from scraps and dusty forgotten treasures. The illustrations are so clear they could almost serve as an instruction manual.

Emmie the mouse lives in the attic with things no one wanted.  Her days were spent crafting those things into something new, from an intricate seed harvester to a repurposed doll house that became Home Sweet Home. Everything changed one day when she saw the silhouette of a cat in her attic kingdom. Emmie must use her inventor skills to deal with this new problem. So, she sketched. She scrounged. She scrabbled. Her series of inventive machines were big, and noisy, with gears to change speed. But the cat was still there; not the fierce enemy she anticipated, but a soggy sad cat that needed a friend.

The minimal text is enriched by the amazingly detailed and colourful illustrations. There is so much to see on every page. This delightful story entertains, inspires and reminds us that when you look beyond the stereotype you could find a friend.

Affirm Press 2025

Marjorie Crosby-Fairall