Where the Forest Meets the Sea

This is a fictional story but it is based on a real family living in a remote part of the Australian rain forest. You can only take a boat to the beach during high tide and you need to know how to navigate the reef. Unfortunately the reef is not as spectacular as it used to be. The water is not as clear because there has been run off from road construction. Luckily the forest surrounding the homestead is all protected park land now. However, there are still outside factors that can affect the health of the water and the forest. I think this is a wonderful book and the content is age appropriate. We live in a world we have to protect and we need to honor our children by being truthful with them. The artwork is beautiful and rich and the story is closer to reality than one might think.

A boy journeys through the rain forest and begins to fantasize about the plants and animals that lived there millions of years ago. At the end of the day, he begins to wonder how it could change in the future. The forest in this story really exists in Australia. The artist uses relief collages for the illustrations in this book. Many of these "collage constructions" have been exhibited in art galleries around the world. This story makes the reader think about how civilization can affect Mother Nature. Finding the hidden pictures is sure to delight readers of all ages.

.This is one of Jeannie Baker's early books, first published in 1988. It's good to see that it is still in print."Where The Forest Meets the Sea" is truly a work of art. It is an ideal companion to her most recent work "The Hidden Forest". It is fascinating to see how her style and technique has evolved and become increasingly sophisticated over the past 12 years.Jeannie has an unashamedly environmental message to deliver, with her simple story lines dealing with the fragility of very special, ecologically unique areas. She doesn't push too hard with the rhetoric but lets her beautiful, ultra-lifelike, 3 dimensional images provide the perfect supporting context.Having recently seen an exhibition of Jeannie's work that provided the images for "Hidden Forest" it is clear that it is the visual power of the images that is the most effective means of convincing people of the value of a particular environment.In the dark forest scenes there are hidden dinosaurs and aboriginal figures providing a mystical quality to the book. The message that comes through is the timelessness of the natural environment. We are reminded at the end of the book of the potential for man to radically change the environment for the worse. It takes books like this to provide us with insights and observations that will prevent this from happening..

Jeannie Baker is a collage artist, and has created a beautiful book from a huge array of natural materials. The photographic illustrations of the collages have enormous texture. An Honour Book in the Australian Children's Picture Book of the Year awards. It conveys a message of the need to care for the natural environment, and warns against the over-development of wilderness areas. Raises important issues in the most exquisite way.Well-loved by children, and deserving of a place in every school, public and home library.A beautiful depiction of an exquisite wilderness, the Daintree Rainforest of far north Queensland.Also recommended for older children and adults who enjoy and appreciate innovative illustration and the art of children's books.

For years I used this story very successfully with my primary school classes, but now it is my 19 month daughter who loves this book and requests it to be read to her nearly every day. She is actually starting to memorise the story and often provides some of the words herself she has heard it that often. She spends ages pouring over each page looking at the detail in each amazing collage. I have visited the Daintree rainforest several times and wondered, as the author says, "But will the forest still be here when we come back?" I hope it will still be there when I can take my daughter to see it. Maybe, if enough people read this book to their children ...