Out of the Egg is about a hen, a seed, a little red chick and a great green whispery tree.  It’s about not giving up on a good idea, and children not accepting the silly things their parents sometimes say. It’s a bit like the old story of The Little Red Hen but I’ve given Out of the Egg a new generation and a new ending.

I did all the pictures for Out of the Egg using woodblock prints. It’s a long process which involves drawing the picture on paper then transfering it to a woodblock, carving the picture out of the wood, inking it, then printing it. This is an old way of making pictures and it seemed just right for Out of the Egg.

Out of the Egg was published by Houghton Mifflin Books in Boston then by Walker Books Australia. It was awarded the Best First Book Award in the 2008 NZ Post Children’s Book Awards and was listed in the CBCA Notable Australian Children’s Books in 2008. Out of the Egg has previously been translated into French and Hebrew and is now available in bilingual editions by OneTree House in te reo Maori, Samoan, Niuean, Tongan and Chinese.

“An appealing twist on an old favourite.” — Time Out New York Kids

Out of the Egg is also available in bilingual editions in Australia https://www.johnreedbooks.com.au/p/out-of-the-egg-fofoa-mai-le-fuamoa-english-samoan-edition?barcode=9781990035258&search_key=Out+of+the+e

There are good Teacher Resource Notes for Out of the Egg from the State Library of NSW here:

https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/learning/analysing-picture-books-out-egg

Workings  shows how I made some of the pictures for Out of the Egg

Here’s a clip of me reading Out of the Egg