What do you do to cure a bored, lonely rainbow? In Kim Chatel’s latest book, Rainbow Sheep, Genevieve the shepherdess tells him tales that tickle him into happy tears. Those colourful tears transform her flock from grey and dirty brown, into rainbow sheep. The delightful illustrations in this ... more

What do you do to cure a bored, lonely rainbow? In Kim Chatel’s latest book, Rainbow Sheep, Genevieve the shepherdess tells him tales that tickle him into happy tears. Those colourful tears transform her flock from grey and dirty brown, into rainbow sheep. The delightful illustrations in this picture book come from Chatel’s own fiber art. There is a section Felting for Fun, after the main story, where Chatel explains how children can make a rainbow sheep of their own. What a great idea to combine the fun of reading with the joy of craft! In a recent interview with Mayra Calvani of Blogcritics Magazine, Kim Chatel said “Sometimes it's hard to pick one voice out of the noise.” With Rainbow Sheep, Chatel has proved she’s one writer whose voice can rise above the flock. Chatel has an instinctive understanding of what makes a picture book work. From the muted colours of the felted art work, to the gentle humour of the text, Chatel has presented the reader with a satisfying package. She uses simple, yet expressive, language – the clouds were heavy and grey, like the belly of a sleepy kitten, with her own deft touches of humour – the sheep were pleasantly steaming in the sun. Quirky and delightful, Rainbow Sheep will be an asset to any school, library or home bookshelf. As a gift for a special child, it could begin a fascinating hobby. If you purchase Rainbow Sheep from Chatel’s own web site, www.kimchatel.com , you receive a signed copy of the book and a felted sheep of your own. You can also link to a movie about felting and enter a children’s short story contest.

This is a delightful book about Genievive and the sad rain cloud. She tells him funny little stories using her imagination until he is laughing so hard he cries, tears of happiness and the raindrops color her sheep. Folks come from all over to see her famous rainbow colored sheep and to her the sh... more

This is a delightful book about Genievive and the sad rain cloud. She tells him funny little stories using her imagination until he is laughing so hard he cries, tears of happiness and the raindrops color her sheep. Folks come from all over to see her famous rainbow colored sheep and to her the shepherdess tell her funny imaginative stories. This is also an interactive book of sorts in that it uses felting for the illustrations and the author has taken it a step further to show you how to do felting and create your very own felt sheep. If you order a copy from the author, she will send you your very own kit to make a sheep. The instructions are pretty clear, but watching the video on her website really helps. Seeing is easier for some folks than reading about doing.