I sincerely believe that anyone with a soul and a brain ought to intersperse any and all ‘grown-up’ reading with some intelligent kids books. I’m not just talking Harry Potter (although that has its place) but lovingly written and illustrated picture books. Especially the ones that reference The Count of Monte Cristo, Zane Grey, Peter Lorre and The Little Mermaid…
“One lazy grey afternoon, as I was sitting in my studio, my imagination, apparently angry at being ignored, took a holiday – and never returned.”
So begins Last Resort, one of the most exceptionally lyrical, beautiful and emotionally complex books I’ve ever read. And it’s a picture book – you know, for kids!
Narrator and illustrator Roberto Innocenti tells, through stunningly simple and evocative images, the story of his journey to reclaim lost inspiration. Stumbling across The Last Resort, a seaside hotel, he takes shelter inside and meets a motley crew of characters. He observes the invalid girl, the mysterious stranger digging on the beach, the woman muttering her poetry along the shore. All seem familiar and yet he has not met a single one before. Though you might have.
The mix of real and fictional characters he comes across is brilliantly diverse, taking Roberto on a wonderful figurative journey through the favourite haunts of the imagination. At the end of the book is a glossary of the people he was actually thinking of; in one case he concedes the figure is a hybrid of a Zane Grey cowboy and Edmond Dantes. Thrown into the mix are Antoine de Saint-Exupery, Cervantes and Calvino – among others – and yet the simplicity of the tale is such that you can take from it what you recognise and still understand without feeling patronised.
That’s the real beauty of it, of course. It inspires people to read and find out more rather than being better-read-than-thou, which is precisely why parents should read this with older children and discuss it with them; particularly if those children are showing creative tendencies and the frustration that comes with an artistic ‘block’. And hey, if your kids aren’t interested, it’s no loss. I guarantee that if you’re a keen reader – of any type of book - you’ll be reading its sumptuous prose and poring over the exquisitely detailed illustrations for years to come anyway.
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