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y separately published work icon Ships in the Field single work   picture book   children's  
Issue Details: First known date: 2012... 2012 Ships in the Field
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'Susanne Gervay and Anna Pignataro have created a moving and significant picture book, Ships in the Field. It crosses boundaries in a universal recognition that children are part of the journey of war, migration, loss and healing. Through warmth, humour, pathos and story within story, it breaks the silence, engaging children, families and community.' (Source: Publisher's website)

Teaching Resources

Teaching Resources

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Teachers' notes via publisher's website.

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

    • Abbotsford, Fitzroy - Collingwood area, Melbourne - North, Melbourne, Victoria,: Ford Street , 2012 .
      image of person or book cover 55492114490907662.jpeg
      This image has been sourced from online
      Extent: 1v.p.
      Description: col. illus.
      Note/s:
      • For primary school age.
      • Publication date: February 2012.
      ISBN: 9781921665509 (pbk.), 9781921665233 (hbk.)

Works about this Work

The Politics of Picture Books : Stories of Displaced Children in Twenty-first-century Australia Mary Tomsic , 2018 single work criticism
— Appears in: History Australia , vol. 15 no. 2 2018; (p. 339-356)

'This article uses cultural representations to write refugee history. It examines twenty-first-century picture books about displaced children, alongside published responses to them, to explore how refugee experiences and histories are constructed, both for and about children, in an Australian context. The visual literary form of picture books as political texts is examined as a space for discussion and dialogue. Published responses to them, however, more commonly reveal rigid interpretations of imagined readers, invoking binary divisions between displaced and non-displaced children. Through these sources, questions of humanisation and (de)politicisations in refugee history are considered.'  (Publication abstract)

Encouraging Empathy through Picture Books About Migration Kumarasinghe Dissanayake Mudiyanselage , 2014 single work criticism
— Appears in: Picture Books and Beyond 2014; (p. 75-91)

Reading children’s literature is often considered important for developing readers’ empathy towards others. Picture books that thematise cultural diversity and issues of cultural difference often affirm positive models of cultural harmony and tolerance, thereby providing young readers with exemplars of human rights and social justice. Since 2000, many picture books have responded to Australia’s changing policy regarding immigration, especially the impact on refugees and asylum seekers. This chapter will discuss how picture books targeted for primary aged children engage with the subjective experience of migration and encourage readers to take up an empathic position with regard to the plight of others as represented in the texts. Picture books discussed in this chapter will include recent examples that deal with Asian-Australian relations, refugees, and asylum seekers. The chapter will have direct relevance to the cross-curriculum priority ‘Asia and Australia's Engagement with Asia’, and will include the general capabilities: ethical understanding and intercultural understanding.

[Review] Ships in the Field Tali Lavi , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: Magpies : Talking About Books for Children , March vol. 27 no. 1 2012; (p. 34)

— Review of Ships in the Field Susanne Gervay , 2012 single work picture book
A Step Back in Time Stephanie Owen Reeder , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 17 March 2012; (p. 32)

— Review of A Day to Remember Jackie French , 2012 single work picture book ; Lightning Jack Glenda Millard , 2012 single work picture book ; Ships in the Field Susanne Gervay , 2012 single work picture book
Journeys to Safe Harbours Marc McEvoy , 2012 single work column
— Appears in: The Sun-Herald , 26 February 2012; (p. 6)
[Review] Ships in the Field Kate O'Donnell , 2011 single work review
— Appears in: Bookseller + Publisher Magazine , Summer 2011/12 vol. 91 no. 6 2011; (p. 39)

— Review of Ships in the Field Susanne Gervay , 2012 single work picture book
A Step Back in Time Stephanie Owen Reeder , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 17 March 2012; (p. 32)

— Review of A Day to Remember Jackie French , 2012 single work picture book ; Lightning Jack Glenda Millard , 2012 single work picture book ; Ships in the Field Susanne Gervay , 2012 single work picture book
[Review] Ships in the Field Tali Lavi , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: Magpies : Talking About Books for Children , March vol. 27 no. 1 2012; (p. 34)

— Review of Ships in the Field Susanne Gervay , 2012 single work picture book
[Review] Ships in the Field Helen Martin , 2012 single work review
— Appears in: Reading Time : The Journal of the Children's Book Council of Australia , May vol. 56 no. 2 2012; (p. 16)

— Review of Ships in the Field Susanne Gervay , 2012 single work picture book
Ships in the Field by Susanne Gervay Francine Sculli , 2011 single work review
— Appears in: Buzz Words , December 2011;

— Review of Ships in the Field Susanne Gervay , 2012 single work picture book
A Child's Eye for Enchantment Linda Morris , 2011 single work column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 31 October 2011; (p. 11)
Discusses the evolution of children's illustrations in Australia.
A Peek into the Future of Storybook Linda Morris , 2011 single work column
— Appears in: The Age , 7 November 2011; (p. 17)
Journeys to Safe Harbours Marc McEvoy , 2012 single work column
— Appears in: The Sun-Herald , 26 February 2012; (p. 6)
Writing Social Justice Through Fiction Susanne Gervay , 2011 single work column
— Appears in: The Lu Rees Archives Notes, Books and Authors , no. 33 2011; (p. 34-35)
Encouraging Empathy through Picture Books About Migration Kumarasinghe Dissanayake Mudiyanselage , 2014 single work criticism
— Appears in: Picture Books and Beyond 2014; (p. 75-91)

Reading children’s literature is often considered important for developing readers’ empathy towards others. Picture books that thematise cultural diversity and issues of cultural difference often affirm positive models of cultural harmony and tolerance, thereby providing young readers with exemplars of human rights and social justice. Since 2000, many picture books have responded to Australia’s changing policy regarding immigration, especially the impact on refugees and asylum seekers. This chapter will discuss how picture books targeted for primary aged children engage with the subjective experience of migration and encourage readers to take up an empathic position with regard to the plight of others as represented in the texts. Picture books discussed in this chapter will include recent examples that deal with Asian-Australian relations, refugees, and asylum seekers. The chapter will have direct relevance to the cross-curriculum priority ‘Asia and Australia's Engagement with Asia’, and will include the general capabilities: ethical understanding and intercultural understanding.

Last amended 10 Nov 2021 15:53:40
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