Animalia 40th Anniversary Edition

By Graeme Base

Penguin 2026

Reviewed by Mia Macrossan

How time flies! Graeme Base’s Animalia is celebrating 40 years, a book that has enthralled and delighted generations of children. Graeme’s is one of Australia’s most acclaimed creators who has published many wonderful  books including The Eleventh Hour, The Waterhole, and my favourites The Discovery of Dragons, Truck Dogs and The Curse of the Vampire Robot.

Animalia, an alphabet book featuring animals doing crazy things made the Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Picture Book of the Year Honour List in 1987, and is notable for its detailed illustrations, wordplay, visual discovery and just plain originality.

Children (and most adults) adore alliteration and the Animalia alphabet provides a feast on every page. Look for ‘crafty crimson cats’, horrible hairy hogs’, ingenious iguanas’ and more.  It is impossible to pick a favourite but ‘lazy lions lounging in the local library’ has long been a standout.  I’d forgotten how cleverly the fonts are used on each page, how fantastic yet natural the animals are. Some of the language can be challenging for young readers but it is all part of the fun.

Each page provides endless moments of discovery and delight. Graems says: ‘Making books over the years has been all about finding joy – that other people have also found joy in my work, so widely and for so long, is an incredible gift and I am truly grateful’. So are we, Graeme, for all your glorious books, but particularly for this one.