Mrs Noah's Song

A beautiful new picture book in the bestselling Mrs Noah series, in which Mrs Noah brings song back into the world and shows the children how to listen – and sing

Mrs Noah sang to the children when they woke in the morning.
She sang as she worked in the garden, growing flowers and growing food.
She sang lullabies at night to help the children sail into sleep.

“If you want to learn to sing,” Mrs Noah tells the children, “first you must learn how to listen. Close your eyes, tight shut, and open your ears, wide, wide.”

At first the children hear only silence, then birds call, bees hum – and they hear the song of the garden. That night, Mr Noah makes a surprise present for the family so that they can all sleep together out in the garden. Then, at dawn there’s the best surprise of all – the magical sound of the dawn chorus, led by the phoenix. On a joyful new day, Mrs Noah’s birthday, there is birdsong in the garden and a future full of shared song for Mr and Mrs Noah and the children.

“"Mayhew's flowing, vivid mixed-media illustrations give the book a warm texture all its own...a beautiful and necessary parable for our time."- Kirkus Reviews on Mrs Noah's Pockets "[Mrs Noah] never wavers in her moral resolve, and her cleverness and compassion shine in this sly secular reimagining." - Publishers Weekly starred review on Mrs Noah's Pockets "Marrying Jackie Morris's words with James Mayhew's richly textured illustrations, this book is fabulous in all particulars, from its duped patriarch believing that his wife is sewing curtains rather than secret pockets for centaurs, to it endpapers, full of wild waters and gambolling fantastic beasts." - The Guardian on Mrs Noah's Pockets "An alternative approach to the story of Noah in which Mrs Noah is foregrounded and magical beasts survived the flood. Mayhew's colourful, naive images using collage show the celebratory garden she makes, filling it with love for her family." - The Sunday Times on Mrs Noah's Garden "Picture-book lovers will delight in the gentle, transformative hopefulness of Mrs Noah's Garden ." - Times Literary Supplement on Mrs Noah's Garden”

"Third in the superb Mrs Noah series, in which she brings song back into the world and shows the children how to listen - and sing... Illustrated with stunning collage artwork."

The Bookseller

"...a tender celebration, set at the beginning of a new world, of listening, gardens, family and birdsong, especially the dawn chorus... The sumptuous illustrations using collage and print make it a thing of beauty."

-- Nicolette Jones Sunday Times, Recommended Summer Reading

"I could enthuse about every turn of the page which reveals gorgeously detailed illustrations with lyrical text alongside...

I look forward to sharing this book with all children and adults who revel in looking at beautiful illustrations and imagining a world where nature is treated with the reverence it deserves. I hope that this creative author illustrator partnership will continue to work together on other Mrs Noah books.

Strongly recommended."

-- Karen Argent The Letterpress Project

“The third in this series, wherein Jackie Morris’ lyrical words are visually sung in collage style art by James Mayhew, is again gorgeous. Together they tell a magical tale about how Mrs Noah brings song back into the world. Music and song are a way of connecting people no matter where they are and Mrs Noah assuredly unites her family by singing to the children, morning, noon and night, while Mr Noah listens enraptured.”

-- Jill Bennett Red Reading Hub

"Mrs Noah brings music back into the world, teaching her children to sing and sharing the wonders of the dawn chorus in this beautiful picture book, featuring poetic text and exquisite collages."

The Guardian: Summer Reading, the 50 hottest new books

"I have been so excited to see Mrs Noah’s Song by @JackieMorrisArt & @mrjamesmayhew. A story that celebrates silence & the sound of birdsong is a very special book. I loved hearing more about Mrs Noah & her family. Oh & the gorgeous collage illustrations too!"

-- Jo Bowers (Associate Dean & Lecturer: Primary Education) via Twiter

"Oh my! This story is a feast for the senses. Visually stunning and perfect lyrical prose. This is a brilliant and beautiful celebration of nature and song, and the power of listening...

This is a moving book of love and loss and new life. A story of listening and singing together. A celebration of nature and song that is such a joy to read aloud... A lovely book to share with children to spark conversations around the power of listening and the joy of singing."

EdSpire, via Instagram

"In Morris and Mayhew’s latest adaptation of the Judeo-Christian story of Noah and the ark, life after the flood is once more enchanted and interwoven with nature. The imagery-rich text and lavish collage and mixed-media art create a harmonious composition that touches on themes of oral storytelling, generational art, and rebirth..."

Kirkus Reviews

“This enchanting book is every bit as beautiful as those that went before. The story of birdsong and nature inspiring music and song is told in poetic, magical language, and James Mayhew's collage style illustrations are gorgeous."

Nursery World

"A sweet story of family, perfect for bedtime".

Booklist

"Mrs. Noah's Song is a magical book about Mrs. Noah, who has a beautiful singing voice and wants to teach the children to sing, but in order to do so, the children must first learn how to listen.

I love how this book encourages kids to listen and to get outside and enjoy the beauty of nature."

-- @forevermylittlemoon via Instagram

The third book in this delightful series is no less enchanting than its predecessors...Text and image are so integral to the overall reading experience of this book that they could not exist alone. Mayhew’s harmonious colour palette, imaginative use of collage effects, the clever way musical notes and staves infuse the whole landscape, plus the flowing robes of the Noah’s and many coloured fantastical beasts, all contribute to the mystical, gentle atmosphere of the book.

Add to that Morris’s considered text with its rhythmic repetitions and balanced lines: ‘she sowed seeds and she sewed clothes’, ‘growing flowers and growing food’ and you have a book to read and reread in KS1 (age 5-7) as inspiration for drama, singing, collage and seed planting! A treasure."

The English Association - Primary Plus Reviews

Jackie Morris is the bestselling author and illustrator, photographer and painter who created the international bestseller, Lost Words, winner of the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal in 2019, with Robert Macfarlane. Her books for Otter-Barry Books include One Cheetah, One Cherry, The Seal Children, The Jackie Morris Book of Classic Nursery Rhymes and, with James Mayhew, Can You See a Little Bear?, Mrs Noah’s Pockets and Mrs Noah’s Garden. She lives in Pembrokeshire, Wales.

James Mayhew is the creator of many bestselling picture books, including Once Upon a Tune: Stories from the Orchestra, published by Otter-Barry Books. He is a winner of The New York Times book illustration award and numerous other prizes. James lives in Suffolk, England.

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