Illustrated Classics!

I visited The British Library in the pouring rain because I wanted a good look at the free exhibition there of Children's Illustrated Classics. I loved all of it! Unfortunately I couldn't take any pictures but there were a few versions of some of the best well known books such as the Iron Man, The Railway Children, Paddington Bear, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Wind in the Willows to name a few. I've researched some of the drawings to include on here!

Iron man illustrated by Tom Gauld …

and Laura Carlin

One of the stories which I thought was quite amazing was that of Quentin Blake and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The actual story had been illustrated a few times before but it was his illustrations which really set the story off. When he was developing the characters he described that he felt as though Willy Wonka was a fairly large man has he had his own chocolate factory and would help himself to the merchandise however, Roald Dahl didn't like the way Willy Wonka had been drawn so Blake then developed a much skinnier version.

I have included here another example which I loved. This is 'How the Whale got his Throat' by Rudyard Kipling. These are his own illustrations too! Beautiful.