“Promenade was proposed by my editor at French publisher Gallimard Jeunesse - a selection of my favourite French verse which I would illustrate for a children’s edition. Writing my preface I realised I knew my French readers would be better French speakers than me - perhaps this lack of de haut en bas would make this book a friendly offering to able older students here.
The poems are from various periods and move through links in subject matter with shifts in mood. I’ve made my drawings contemporary - so I gave the emotional turmoil of the 16th century Loise Labe to a teenager, and the ‘beau chevalier’ of the 19th century Chanson de Barbarien became a tank commander.”
Promenade de Quentin Blake au Pays de la Poesie Francaise Gallimard Jeunesse, e14 www.gallimard-jeunesse.fr