Author(s): Erica Harrison

New Children's Picture Books

A Cautionary Tail, illustrated with images from the animated short film featuring Cate Blanchett, Barry Otto and David Wenham, is a beautiful, expressive text in rhyming verse about difference and acceptance. Born with a wee nub at the base of the spine, as the little girl grows up, so does the nub; into a beautiful, expressive tail. The girl is accepting, her parents encouraging of her difference and her school friends think it's way cool what her tail can do, and express. But it's hard holding on to your individuality as you get older, when you think all you need to do to belong is to conform. Wouldn't she be better off without this freaky feature?