International fame as a children’s book illustrator doesn’t come to us all. Ingrid Godon, however, has long been up there with other front-runners of Flemish book illustration such as Carll Cneut and Gerda Dendooven. In Mijn Opa is een Boom Godon has produced, in collaboration with Kim Crabeels, a reading-aloud book for the under-sixes about getting older. It centres on a grandfather and his relationship with his grandson.
The large format works convincingly here, allowing the inspired drawings to really come into their own. They’re executed partly in crayon and subtly lithographed. There’s something slightly repetitive in the story, but that’s something it has no trouble coping with. The cover itself is fine, though the binding method failed to inspire much confidence on the part of the panel. Nevertheless, this time aesthetics triumphed over production values and ultimately this generously dimensioned book received the blessing of all.