Paint with Magic

Paint with Magic by Sandi Wooton, illustrated by Pat Kan (Big Sky Publishing) HB RRP ISBN 9781922265180

Reviewed by Dianne Bates

This is a clever picture book which would be ideal for the classroom as it teaches the readers which creatures live in and near the ocean. 

Told in rhyming verse ideal for reading aloud, it starts with a child indoors on a cold, rainy day who decides to paint an octopus. 

The octopus then dictates other creatures to be painted in the sea such as fish, whale, dolphin, squid. The magic begins with the addition of starfish, crabs, urchin and shells. But suddenly there’s a shark! What will happen next?

This is a fast-paced, exciting book which is sure to be a hit with readers aged three to six years. The illustrations in watercolour are bright and attractive with the artist declaring towards the end of the book, ‘It’s my best work, my best painting ever!’ 

Next there’s a clean sheet of paper so the young artist gets to work on a new painting. To find out what it begins with, you need to grab Paint with Magic and read it all the way through!