The Voyage of the Poppykettle (review)

Ingpen originated the tale of the poppykettle in a 1980 Australian-published book; his home town of Geelong, the locale within the tale, then created a Poppykettle Day to join in the fun, which celebration Ingpen has incorporated in this updated telling of the tale. Including some material he found in museums in Peru, Ingpen developed the legend of seven tiny fisherfolk who set to sea in a kettle that they took from the ruins of Machu Picchu. The Hairy Peruvians, as the fisherfolk were called, used large brass keys to weigh down their odd vessel and sailed for four years across rough and treacherous seas, aided once by an old woman and once by a friendly dolphin, until they finally landed on their "Unchosen Land." Ingpen's Peruvians are hairy indeed, and they're clothed in tunics and furs with their arms and legs wrapped mummy-fashion in strips of white cloth. The painterly illustrations vary in style—some are muddy and indistinct, others, such as the depictions of the old lady's proportionately huge and weathered face and the brilliantly turquoise dolphin, are in sharp focus. Still other spreads are atmospherically black and white, and there is even a technical cut-away of the inside of the kettle. Ingpen doesn't seem to care too much about maintaining consistency in the number of miniature people—though he says that there are seven, sometimes only five are aboard, and, after one is lost in a storm, seven nonetheless turn up on the beach. These inconsistencies are bothersome, as is the rather trite finale, where he tries to account for the popularity of the celebration by indicating that "maybe for the children it's simply something fun to do." Despite these problems, however, there's allure in an epic journey undertaken by miniature folk who manage to defy the elements and find a new home; such is the stuff of legends, after all, and Ingpen's particular blend of doll-like characters, helpful grandmas and dolphins, and an ordinary/extraordinary vessel may put wind to the sails of a new generation of imaginations.