{"id":6341,"date":"2025-08-09T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-08-09T01:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/?p=6341"},"modified":"2026-01-21T22:41:13","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T14:41:13","slug":"walk_in_the_park_20241205","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/en\/2025\/08\/09\/walk_in_the_park_20241205\/","title":{"rendered":"A long and fas\u00adci\u00adnat\u00ading park walk span\u00adning thir\u00adty-five years"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u200bAntho\u00adny Browne, the beloved pic\u00adture book mas\u00adter (win\u00adner of the 2000 Hans Chris\u00adt\u00adian Ander\u00adsen Award for Illus\u00adtra\u00adtion), has count\u00adless fans in Chi\u00adna, includ\u00ading myself. I have been for\u00adtu\u00adnate enough to trans\u00adlate 22 of his works, includ\u00ading his auto\u00adbi\u00adog\u00adra\u00adphy, *Play\u00ading with Shapes*, co-authored with his son. Here, I would like to high\u00adly rec\u00adom\u00admend one of his ear\u00adly works, *A Walk in the Park*, a par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly spe\u00adcial sto\u00adry among his more than 50 pic\u00adture books. He told the same sto\u00adry three times over 35 years! And *A Walk in the Park* is the sec\u00adond time he told it. You must be won\u00adder\u00ading, what kind of sto\u00adry could be worth telling three times in a life\u00adtime by this pic\u00adture book mas\u00adter?<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

\n
A Walk in the Park (Chi\u00adnese ver\u00adsion, 2025)\n

<\/p><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Antho\u00adny\u2019s auto\u00adbi\u00adog\u00adra\u00adphy, *Play\u00ading with Shapes*<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span>First pre\u00adsen\u00adta\u00adtion: Uni\u00adver\u00adsi\u00adty assign\u00adment<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Imag\u00adine this scene: a sev\u00aden\u00adteen or eigh\u00adteen-year-old boy, with the physique of a pro\u00adfes\u00adsion\u00adal foot\u00adball play\u00ader, but with the long hair of an art stu\u00addent and a sloven\u00adly hip\u00adpie look; he\u2019s walk\u00ading a small, obvi\u00adous\u00adly not-so-expen\u00adsive dog in the park; the some\u00adwhat dirty mon\u00adgrel is very active, run\u00adning off to play with oth\u00ader dogs as soon as it\u2019s let go, com\u00adplete\u00adly uncon\u00adcerned about how expen\u00adsive they are; while the dogs are hap\u00adpi\u00adly and unin\u00adhib\u00adit\u00aded\u00adly min\u00adgling togeth\u00ader, this boy is busy apol\u00ado\u00adgiz\u00ading to the oth\u00ader well-dressed dog own\u00aders for his dog\u2019s rude over\u00adstep\u00adping of bound\u00adaries\u2026 This is a rather embar\u00adrass\u00ading yet mem\u00ado\u00adrable expe\u00adri\u00adence that Antho\u00adny Browne once had.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

In 1963, sev\u00aden\u00adteen-year-old Antho\u00adny entered art school. He skipped a grade in pri\u00adma\u00adry school and com\u00adplet\u00aded his pre-uni\u00adver\u00adsi\u00adty course a year ear\u00adly, so he was gen\u00ader\u00adal\u00adly two years younger than his class\u00admates when he entered uni\u00adver\u00adsi\u00adty. He was already a key play\u00ader for the Old Broad\u00adway rug\u00adby club, but his fash\u00adion sense leaned towards the then-pop\u00adu\u00adlar hip\u00adpie style. He did\u00adn\u2019t own a dog him\u00adself, but for a peri\u00adod he had to walk his moth\u00ader\u2019s dog every day. Walk\u00ading dogs in the park, act\u00ading as a tem\u00adpo\u00adrary dog own\u00ader, allowed him to observe things he had\u00adn\u2019t noticed before: the British were quite par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar about the cloth\u00ading of the per\u00adson walk\u00ading the dog and the breed of the dog. There was no hier\u00adar\u00adchy among the dogs, but a pecu\u00adliar bar\u00adri\u00ader exist\u00aded between peo\u00adple; often the dogs were hap\u00adpi\u00adly gath\u00adered togeth\u00ader, but peo\u00adple did\u00adn\u2019t inter\u00adact at all!<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

The book \u201cPlay\u00ading with Shapes\u201d describes this cre\u00adative expe\u00adri\u00adence from her uni\u00adver\u00adsi\u00adty days.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

At the art acad\u00ade\u00admy, there hap\u00adpened to be an assign\u00adment, or rather a course project, requir\u00ading them to cre\u00adate a chil\u00addren\u2019s pic\u00adture book with\u00adin a month. Antho\u00adny had no inter\u00adest in pic\u00adture books at the time, but to sub\u00admit the assign\u00adment, he turned his obser\u00adva\u00adtion into a sto\u00adry.<\/span>\u201c\u201cIt tells the sto\u00adry of a man and a woman who are com\u00adplete strangers, each tak\u00ading their dog for a walk in the same park. The two dogs play hap\u00adpi\u00adly togeth\u00ader, while their own\u00aders sit silent\u00adly on a bench, not even will\u00ading to look at each oth\u00ader.\u201d\u201d<\/strong><\/span>(Quot\u00aded from his auto\u00adbi\u00adog\u00adra\u00adphy, *Play\u00ading with Shapes*, here\u00adinafter the same) This was the first time he told this sto\u00adry with both text and illus\u00adtra\u00adtions. Because he was deeply trou\u00adbled by his father\u2019s death at the time, and also fas\u00adci\u00adnat\u00aded by the deca\u00addent and mis\u00adan\u00adthrop\u00adic style of the painter Fran\u00adcis Bacon, he\u2026<\/span>\u201c\u201cThe dog drawn looks like a fero\u00adcious, giant-eyed mon\u00adster, which would scare even the bravest child.\u201d\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

Although his ini\u00adtial nar\u00adra\u00adtives were far from being true pic\u00adture books, they were cru\u00adcial for this grow\u00ading young man, as he was attempt\u00ading to re-exam\u00adine human\u00adi\u00adty from a dif\u00adfer\u00adent per\u00adspec\u00adtive. For exam\u00adple, from a canine point of view, are human behav\u00adiors more \u201cunciv\u00adi\u00adlized,\u201d or at least a kind of \u201ccon\u00adfused behav\u00adior show\u00adcase\u201d? Antho\u00adny Browne\u2019s grad\u00adu\u00ada\u00adtion project at art school was \u201cMan is an Ani\u00admal,\u201d a per\u00adspec\u00adtive that con\u00adtin\u00adued into his lat\u00ader pic\u00adture book cre\u00adations. His depic\u00adtions of goril\u00adlas seem more human, while in mas\u00adter\u00adpieces like *The Zoo* (a 1993 Green\u00adaway Medal win\u00adner), it\u2019s dif\u00adfi\u00adcult to clear\u00adly dis\u00adtin\u00adguish the bound\u00adaries between ani\u00admals and humans. As he grew old\u00ader and gained more expe\u00adri\u00adence, Antho\u00adny\u2019s think\u00ading matured and became rich\u00ader, prompt\u00ading him to express it again and again. Of course, he lat\u00ader became more adept at using the \u201cshape play\u201d of pic\u00adture books.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span>Sec\u00adond retelling: The real pic\u00adture book<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

In 1977, 31-year-old Antho\u00adny told the sto\u00adry for the sec\u00adond time with text and illus\u00adtra\u00adtions. The rea\u00adson was that his first pic\u00adture book, \u201cThrough the Mag\u00adic Mir\u00adror,\u201d in 1976 was refresh\u00ading and proved that he was capa\u00adble of estab\u00adlish\u00ading him\u00adself in this new field. So he decid\u00aded to cre\u00adate a real pic\u00adture book, a sto\u00adry that is log\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly coher\u00adent from begin\u00adning to end.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

Inte\u00adri\u00ador pages of \u201cThrough the Mag\u00adic Mir\u00adror\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

Strict\u00adly speak\u00ading, *Through the Mag\u00adic Mir\u00adror* can only be con\u00adsid\u00adered a prac\u00adtice piece. The entire book con\u00adsists of a series of sur\u00adre\u00adal\u00adis\u00adtic images, bear\u00ading a dis\u00adtinct Magritte style. Ini\u00adtial\u00adly, they resem\u00adbled scat\u00adtered, exquis\u00adite post\u00adcards. Thanks to the men\u00adtor-like edi\u00adtor Julia McCrae, who sug\u00adgest\u00aded that the boy in the book, on a bor\u00ading after\u00adnoon, trav\u00adels through the mag\u00adic mir\u00adror, com\u00adplet\u00ading a walk beyond time and space. The \u201cpost\u00adcards\u201d were suc\u00adcess\u00adful\u00adly strung togeth\u00ader, and the incred\u00adi\u00adble images sparked the imag\u00adi\u00adna\u00adtion, large\u00adly pre\u00adsent\u00ading a roman\u00adtic and unre\u00adstrained imag\u00adi\u00adna\u00adtive world of chil\u00addren try\u00ading to tran\u00adscend the mun\u00addane dai\u00adly life.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

But tru\u00adly engag\u00ading pic\u00adture books need to return to the sto\u00adry itself. So, when decid\u00ading to work on his sec\u00adond book, Antho\u00adny nat\u00adu\u00adral\u00adly thought of the dog-walk\u00ading project he did at art school. When he sub\u00admit\u00adted his pen\u00adcil sketch\u00ades of this idea to the edi\u00adtor for dis\u00adcus\u00adsion, Julia once again offered a won\u00adder\u00adful sug\u00adges\u00adtion: since the book is aimed at young read\u00aders, why not add chil\u00addren\u2019s char\u00adac\u00adters to the sto\u00adry? \u2014Think about it care\u00adful\u00adly, would\u00adn\u2019t the sto\u00adry\u2019s lay\u00aders of mean\u00ading sud\u00adden\u00adly become much rich\u00ader when two chil\u00addren are involved? And, of course, child read\u00aders want to see \u201cthem\u00adselves\u201d in the sto\u00adry, right?<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

1977 edi\u00adtion cov\u00ader image<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

What we are read\u00ading now is the 1977 ver\u00adsion of the sto\u00adry, which is quite com\u00adplete in its struc\u00adture: a father and daugh\u00adter go to the park to walk their dogs and encounter a moth\u00ader and son who are also walk\u00ading their dogs; the two dogs almost imme\u00addi\u00adate\u00adly become friends, but the two adults do not inter\u00adact or com\u00admu\u00adni\u00adcate at all, which con\u00adtin\u00adues the orig\u00adi\u00adnal sto\u00adry con\u00adcept; but sur\u00adpris\u00ading\u00adly, the two chil\u00addren, inspired and influ\u00adenced by the dogs, grad\u00adu\u00adal\u00adly begin to inter\u00adact; as the chil\u00addren become close with the dogs, the boy and girl become good friends, and in the end, the girl keeps the flow\u00aders the boy gave her and keeps them in a vase, as a tes\u00adta\u00adment to their friend\u00adship. It is a warm and hope\u00adful sto\u00adry. Although the adults are still at the lev\u00adel of \u201ca col\u00adlec\u00adtion of baf\u00adfling behav\u00adiors,\u201d the chil\u00addren have made a leap for\u00adward, show\u00ading us the pos\u00adsi\u00adbil\u00adi\u00adty and joy of break\u00ading down bar\u00adri\u00aders. This can per\u00adhaps be con\u00adsid\u00adered a kind of \u201cpow\u00ader of child\u00adhood.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

Antho\u00adny Browne appeared on a BBC tele\u00advi\u00adsion pro\u00adgram in 1980.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
Antho\u00adny Browne per\u00adson\u00adal\u00adly went to the park to play the role from the book.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
His then-wife, Jane, also par\u00adtic\u00adi\u00adpat\u00aded in the film\u00ading of \u201cA Walk in the Park,\u201d play\u00ading the role of Dirty from the book.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

Now in his thir\u00adties, Antho\u00adny has added many ele\u00adments to the book, incor\u00adpo\u00adrat\u00ading his insights from life\u2019s ups and downs, while also attempt\u00ading to explore a path to recon\u00adnect with child\u00adhood. The for\u00admer relies more on real\u00adism, while the lat\u00adter play\u00adful\u00adly revis\u00adits sur\u00adre\u00adal\u00adism. We can try to exam\u00adine this book from these two per\u00adspec\u00adtives.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span>Real\u00adism and Slight Satire<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Inte\u00adri\u00ador pages of the Chi\u00adnese edi\u00adtion of \u201cA Walk in the Park\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

From a real\u00adis\u00adtic per\u00adspec\u00adtive, the father and daugh\u00adter in the book\u2014Mr. Smith and his daugh\u00adter Dirty\u2014clearly come from a work\u00ading-class fam\u00adi\u00adly with lim\u00adit\u00aded eco\u00adnom\u00adic means, as they live in a rel\u00ada\u00adtive\u00adly sim\u00adple, low-rise town\u00adhouse in a neigh\u00adbor\u00adhood filled with high-rise build\u00adings; while the moth\u00ader and son\u2014Mrs. Smyth and her son Charles\u2014live in a neigh\u00adbor\u00adhood of sparse\u00adly pop\u00adu\u00adlat\u00aded detached hous\u00ades. This class dif\u00adfer\u00adence is also evi\u00addent in their cloth\u00ading and the breeds of their two dogs (a mixed-breed and a Labrador). How\u00adev\u00ader, the moment the two chil\u00addren take off their coats, this dif\u00adfer\u00adence becomes irrelevant\u2014a par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly sym\u00adbol\u00adic ges\u00adture, as Antho\u00adny him\u00adself com\u00adment\u00aded:<\/span>\u201c\u201cThis is a ges\u00adture, sym\u00adbol\u00adiz\u00ading that they are shed\u00adding the armor that sig\u00adni\u00adfies social sta\u00adtus, or tak\u00ading off the robes that sym\u00adbol\u00adize oppo\u00adsi\u00adtion.\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

In \u201cPlay\u00ading with Shapes,\u201d Antho\u00adny Browne recounts his cre\u00adative jour\u00adney.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

In nam\u00ading the char\u00adac\u00adters in the sto\u00adry, Antho\u00adny employed the char\u00adac\u00adter\u00adis\u00adtic British dry humor with a touch of irony. The two dogs, a male and a female, are named Albert and Vic\u00adto\u00adria, after the beloved Queen Vic\u00adto\u00adria and her hus\u00adband. This roy\u00adal cou\u00adple was deeply in love; after her hus\u00adband\u2019s death, she renamed an arts and crafts muse\u00adum the \u201cVic\u00adto\u00adria & Albert Muse\u00adum,\u201d fur\u00adther enhanc\u00ading the cou\u00adple\u2019s inter\u00adna\u00adtion\u00adal fame. Inter\u00adest\u00ading\u00adly, in Britain, nam\u00ading a pair of dogs after such ani\u00admals is not offen\u00adsive; rather, it evokes a sense of famil\u00adiar\u00adi\u00adty among read\u00aders of all ages. In con\u00adtrast, the names of the two adults are some\u00adwhat unusu\u00adal: Mr. Smith and Mrs. Smythe. While they share the same name, the lat\u00adter is a rar\u00ader vari\u00ada\u00adtion of the for\u00admer, car\u00adry\u00ading a delib\u00ader\u00adate and affect\u00aded dis\u00adtinc\u00adtion, while the for\u00admer derives from \u201csmith.\u201d This like\u00adly sub\u00adtly mocks Mrs. Smythe\u2019s affect\u00aded airs.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

How\u00adev\u00ader, what\u2019s most unusu\u00adal are the chil\u00addren\u2019s names. The boy, Charles, is a name favored by the roy\u00adal fam\u00adi\u00adly; the cur\u00adrent Charles III (for\u00admer\u00adly Prince Charles) is two years younger than Antho\u00adny Browne. The girl\u2019s name, \u201cSmudge,\u201d is rarely used in Eng\u00adlish, espe\u00adcial\u00adly for girls. Its lit\u00ader\u00adal mean\u00ading is \u201cstain, smudge,\u201d mak\u00ading it seem more like a strange nick\u00adname. Charles lat\u00ader remarked in *Sounds in the Park* (1998) that \u201cthe name is a lit\u00adtle fun\u00adny.\u201d How\u00adev\u00ader, a clos\u00ader exam\u00adi\u00adna\u00adtion reveals that the word also means \u201cto blur or smear,\u201d so the author may have intend\u00aded to use the name to metaphor\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly imply \u201ceras\u00ading dif\u00adfer\u00adences.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

A recent Eng\u00adlish edi\u00adtion of \u201cA Walk in the Park\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/strong><\/span>Sur\u00adre\u00adal\u00adist ele\u00adments<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Because of its real\u00adis\u00adtic style and satir\u00adi\u00adcal humor, this work was ini\u00adtial\u00adly cat\u00ade\u00adgo\u00adrized as a rather unique pic\u00adture book after its pub\u00adli\u00adca\u00adtion, often used to dis\u00adcuss top\u00adics relat\u00aded to social class with young read\u00aders. How\u00adev\u00ader, Antho\u00adny\u2019s orig\u00adi\u00adnal inten\u00adtion was sim\u00adply to \u201cdescribe human behav\u00adior in a gen\u00ader\u00adal sense.\u201d He knew that a pure\u00adly real\u00adis\u00adtic pre\u00adsen\u00adta\u00adtion might bore young read\u00aders, so he could\u00adn\u2019t resist adding many seem\u00ading\u00adly strange ele\u00adments, which became a hall\u00admark of his lat\u00ader pic\u00adture books.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

For exam\u00adple, when the two fam\u00adi\u00adlies set off for the park, var\u00adi\u00adous strange shapes and fig\u00adures were hid\u00adden on the brick walls, in the win\u00addow\u00adpanes, on the chim\u00adneys, and in the bush\u00ades; when they arrived at the park entrance, strange objects also appeared on the gateposts (includ\u00ading inside the gateposts) and on the iron rail\u00adings; the most detailed scenes were the two scenes in the park: a woman was push\u00ading a stroller with a dog in it, a man was walk\u00ading a toma\u00adto, Robin Hood was prac\u00adtic\u00ading archery against a tree, a wood\u00adpeck\u00ader had its beak stuck in a tree trunk and could\u00adn\u2019t pull it out, a man in a top hat was walk\u00ading a pig, Tarzan was swing\u00ading on a book, and San\u00adta Claus was kick\u00ading a red ball!<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

Inte\u00adri\u00ador pages of \u201cA Stroll in the Park\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

Frankly, these details are large\u00adly unre\u00adlat\u00aded to the main sto\u00adry\u00adline; Antho\u00adny added them sim\u00adply to amuse him\u00adself and because he thought chil\u00addren would enjoy them. How\u00adev\u00ader, these details do indeed cap\u00adti\u00advate young read\u00aders, and they also stem from Antho\u00adny\u2019s innate, almost untrained, sense of humor from a young age. In one of his sur\u00adviv\u00ading doo\u00addles from when he was six, he drew a pair of legs, but instead of legs, he depict\u00aded two pirates hid\u00ading in the shoes, climb\u00ading up the \u201cmast\u201d (legs). This self-amus\u00ading enjoy\u00adment of adding details to draw\u00adings extend\u00aded to his ear\u00adly career draw\u00ading anatom\u00adi\u00adcal dia\u00adgrams for med\u00adical trea\u00adtis\u00ades. Because this inter\u00adest indeed con\u00adtra\u00addict\u00aded the spir\u00adit of sci\u00adence, he was forced to aban\u00addon that lucra\u00adtive pro\u00adfes\u00adsion.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

Antho\u00adny Browne\u2019s doo\u00addles when he was six years old<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span>The ques\u00adtion of mean\u00ading<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The child\u00adlike fun, com\u00adbined with his fas\u00adci\u00adna\u00adtion with sur\u00adre\u00adal\u00adism, made *A Walk in the Park* an instant hit with read\u00aders of all ages upon pub\u00adli\u00adca\u00adtion. At the time, Aiden Cham\u00adbers (win\u00adner of the 2002 Hans Chris\u00adt\u00adian Ander\u00adsen Award for Best Author), a renowned British chil\u00addren\u2019s author and read\u00ading pro\u00admot\u00ader, was host\u00ading a read\u00ading pro\u00adgram on BBC Two. Cham\u00adbers ded\u00adi\u00adcat\u00aded a spe\u00adcial episode to the book and con\u00adduct\u00aded an inter\u00adview with the author. He asked Antho\u00adny why he includ\u00aded those hid\u00adden details in the illus\u00adtra\u00adtions. Antho\u00adny, embar\u00adrassed to answer \u201cjust to make myself hap\u00adpy\u201d or \u201cto make the illus\u00adtra\u00adtions look more inter\u00adest\u00ading,\u201d racked his brains and gave a more wit\u00adty answer. I said\u2026<\/span>Those hid\u00adden details reflect how chil\u00addren see the world, because they see things for the first time. Their high\u00adly coor\u00addi\u00adnat\u00aded imag\u00adi\u00adna\u00adtions make ordi\u00adnary things seem fresh and strange.<\/strong><\/span>\u201d\u201cAnd years lat\u00ader, he found this answer quite rea\u00adson\u00adable, because\u2026\u201d<\/span>\u201c\u201cThis is exact\u00adly what sur\u00adre\u00adal\u00adists want to do: return to the won\u00adder a child feels when see\u00ading the world for the first time.\u201d\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

Antho\u00adny Browne\u2019s auto\u00adbi\u00adog\u00adra\u00adphy in \u201cPlay\u00ading with Shapes\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

How\u00adev\u00ader, anoth\u00ader ques\u00adtion Cham\u00adbers posed at the time, \u201cWhat is the sig\u00adnif\u00adi\u00adcance of the brick wall in the book?\u201d\u2014Anthony could\u00adn\u2019t imme\u00addi\u00adate\u00adly come up with an answer. This was like\u00adly because his work was large\u00adly uncon\u00adscious; it was\u00adn\u2019t until 12 years lat\u00ader, in *The Tun\u00adnel* (1989), that he con\u00adscious\u00adly depict\u00aded the brick wall and wall\u00adpa\u00adper to rep\u00adre\u00adsent the char\u00adac\u00adter and pref\u00ader\u00adences of the broth\u00ader and sis\u00adter in the book. In oth\u00ader words, Cham\u00adbers\u2019 ques\u00adtion prompt\u00aded Antho\u00adny to think more deeply, con\u00adtin\u00adu\u00ading to ques\u00adtion him\u00adself: could the details in the illus\u00adtra\u00adtions pos\u00adsi\u00adbly hold a more pro\u00adfound mean\u00ading?<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

Aiden Cham\u00adbers (1934\u20132025), a BBC pre\u00adsen\u00adter.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span>The Birth of a Unique Pic\u00adture Book Lan\u00adguage<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

It was this con\u00adstant ques\u00adtion\u00ading and con\u00adtin\u00adu\u00adous explo\u00adration that ulti\u00admate\u00adly made Antho\u00adny Browne a mas\u00adter of pic\u00adture books. I once wrote a long arti\u00adcle about it.<\/span>The Birth of Antho\u00adny Browne\u2019s Pic\u00adture Book Lan\u00adguage<\/strong><\/span><\/a>This sec\u00adtion intro\u00adduces the for\u00adma\u00adtion process of his unique illus\u00adtrat\u00aded nar\u00adra\u00adtive style. Sim\u00adply put, *A Walk in the Park* was a cru\u00adcial start\u00ading point. In *Look What I Have*, pub\u00adlished in 1980, the \u201chid\u00adden details,\u201d orig\u00adi\u00adnal\u00adly used pri\u00admar\u00adi\u00adly to light\u00aden the mood, grad\u00adu\u00adal\u00adly became inte\u00adgrat\u00aded into the main body of the sto\u00adry. In *Hansel and Gre\u00adta*, pub\u00adlished in 1981, he was already quite adept at using sur\u00adre\u00adal\u00adist shape games to nar\u00adrate the main plot. And *The Goril\u00adla*, pub\u00adlished in 1983, is con\u00adsid\u00adered a mile\u00adstone in the matu\u00adri\u00adty of his pic\u00adture book lan\u00adguage, right\u00adful\u00adly earn\u00ading him his first Green\u00adaway Medal.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

But it was pre\u00adcise\u00adly this relent\u00adless pur\u00adsuit of self-improve\u00adment that led Antho\u00adny to a sense of con\u00adfu\u00adsion about his cre\u00adative career after win\u00adning the Green\u00adaway Medal for the sec\u00adond time (for *The Zoo*). Per\u00adhaps he felt a vague dis\u00adsat\u00adis\u00adfac\u00adtion, yet did\u00adn\u2019t know how to con\u00adtin\u00adue improv\u00ading. Then, the sto\u00adry of walk\u00ading his dog in the park resur\u00adfaced in his mind. Per\u00adhaps, when we feel con\u00adfused, we should all go for a walk in the park.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

Inte\u00adri\u00ador pages of \u201cA Stroll in the Park\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
This is actu\u00adal\u00adly a view of the park near Antho\u00adny Browne\u2019s house!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span>Third retelling: A cul\u00admi\u00adna\u00adtion of all efforts<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/figure>\n

\u200b<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

In 1998, Antho\u00adny Browne retells the sto\u00adry for the third time with text and illus\u00adtra\u00adtions. *Sounds in the Park* can be con\u00adsid\u00adered the cul\u00admi\u00adna\u00adtion of Antho\u00adny Browne\u2019s pic\u00adture book lan\u00adguage, rep\u00adre\u00adsent\u00ading, in my opin\u00adion, the pin\u00adna\u00adcle of his pic\u00adture book cre\u00adation. This time, Browne does\u00adn\u2019t change the core of the sto\u00adry, but unlike the third-per\u00adson nar\u00adra\u00adtion of *A Walk in the Park*, *Sounds in the Park* uses the first-per\u00adson nar\u00adra\u00adtion of the four char\u00adac\u00adters (moth\u00ader, son, father, and daugh\u00adter). From the per\u00adspec\u00adtive of an omnipo\u00adtent nar\u00adra\u00adtor, all four are \u201cunre\u00adli\u00adable nar\u00adra\u00adtors.\u201d Four \u201cunre\u00adli\u00adable\u201d tex\u00adtu\u00adal nar\u00adra\u00adtives, paired with cor\u00adre\u00adspond\u00ading\u00adly styled visu\u00adal nar\u00adra\u00adtives, often with sig\u00adnif\u00adi\u00adcant dif\u00adfer\u00adences between text and illus\u00adtra\u00adtion, plus the author\u2019s detached nar\u00adra\u00adtive in the cov\u00ader illus\u00adtra\u00adtions, mean that the entire book actu\u00adal\u00adly tells nine sto\u00adries! This pro\u00advides read\u00aders with almost lim\u00adit\u00adless inter\u00adpre\u00adtive pos\u00adsi\u00adbil\u00adi\u00adties.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2015, I per\u00adson\u00adal\u00adly con\u00adsult\u00aded Antho\u00adny, who was vis\u00adit\u00ading Bei\u00adjing, about the source of the nar\u00adra\u00adtive inspi\u00adra\u00adtion for *The Sounds in the Park*. He said it was main\u00adly influ\u00adenced by the famous Japan\u00adese direc\u00adtor Aki\u00adra Kuro\u00adsawa\u2019s film *Rashomon*. In fact, this film is adapt\u00aded from Ryuno\u00adsuke Aku\u00adta\u00adgawa\u2019s short sto\u00adries *Rashomon* and *In a Bam\u00adboo Grove*, and sim\u00adi\u00adlar nar\u00adra\u00adtives can be found in William Faulkn\u00ader\u2019s *The Sound and the Fury*. In oth\u00ader words, *The Sounds in the Park* has a high\u00ader pur\u00adsuit of lit\u00ader\u00adary appeal.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

Antho\u00adny Browne\u2019s auto\u00adbi\u00adog\u00adra\u00adphy in \u201cPlay\u00ading with Shapes\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

A care\u00adful com\u00adpar\u00adi\u00adson of \u201cA Walk in the Park\u201d and \u201cSounds in the Park\u201d will reveal many more inter\u00adest\u00ading sim\u00adi\u00adlar\u00adi\u00adties and dif\u00adfer\u00adences. For exam\u00adple, the orig\u00adi\u00adnal cov\u00ader image of the for\u00admer, depict\u00ading a father and daugh\u00adter walk\u00ading their dog into a park, is sim\u00adi\u00adlar to the image on the first page of the lat\u00adter\u2019s \u201cThe Fourth Voice.\u201d The for\u00admer is real\u00adis\u00adtic yet con\u00adtains hid\u00adden details, while the lat\u00adter per\u00adfect\u00adly match\u00ades the girl\u2019s quirky and cheer\u00adful car\u00adtoon style. For exam\u00adple, the for\u00admer fea\u00adtures San\u00adta Claus play\u00ading foot\u00adball in the park, while San\u00adta Claus also appears in the lat\u00adter\u2019s \u201cThe Sec\u00adond Voice,\u201d but is inte\u00adgrat\u00aded into the sto\u00adry, suc\u00adcess\u00adful\u00adly reflect\u00ading the feel\u00adings of the unem\u00adployed blue-col\u00adlar father. For exam\u00adple, the scene of two dogs chas\u00ading each oth\u00ader in the park; in \u201cA Walk in the Park,\u201d there is an image where the tree trunk is not ful\u00adly obscured, with Vic\u00adto\u00adri\u00ada\u2019s front half vis\u00adi\u00adble on the right side of the trunk and Albert\u2019s hind half on the left, mak\u00ading them appear as if they are com\u00adbined into one dog. \u201cThe Sounds in the Park\u201d con\u00adtin\u00adues this idea, using a lamp\u00adpost to divide the image into two parts in \u201cThe Third Voice,\u201d with the girl\u2019s part under a clear blue sky and the boy\u2019s part under a gloomy sky. In the cen\u00adter of the image, Albert\u2019s front half is vis\u00adi\u00adble on the right side of the lamp\u00adpost, and Vic\u00adto\u00adri\u00ada\u2019s hind half is vis\u00adi\u00adble on the left side.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/figure>\n

In short, *Sounds in the Park* is an upgrad\u00aded ver\u00adsion after years of rethink\u00ading. To empha\u00adsize that the sto\u00adry is mere\u00adly an obser\u00adva\u00adtion and reflec\u00adtion on \u201chuman behav\u00adior in a gen\u00ader\u00adal sense,\u201d Antho\u00adny Browne delib\u00ader\u00adate\u00adly drew all the human char\u00adac\u00adters as goril\u00adlas (even San\u00adta Claus was\u00adn\u2019t spared). Fur\u00adther\u00admore, he sig\u00adnif\u00adi\u00adcant\u00adly enhanced the emo\u00adtion\u00adal inten\u00adsi\u00adty of the sto\u00adry. The flower Charles gave Dirty was ini\u00adtial\u00adly just an ordi\u00adnary flower, kept in a reg\u00adu\u00adlar jam jar after being tak\u00aden back to his apart\u00adment. In the upgrad\u00aded ver\u00adsion, that flower becomes a vibrant, fiery pop\u00adpy, kept in a com\u00admem\u00ado\u00adra\u00adtive mug, its shad\u00adow cast on the wall resem\u00adbling a con\u00adver\u00adsa\u00adtion bub\u00adble, sug\u00adgest\u00ading that this friend\u00adship has more to offer, some\u00adthing to look for\u00adward to\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

Inte\u00adri\u00ador pages of the Eng\u00adlish edi\u00adtion of \u201cSounds in the Park\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span>The sig\u00adnif\u00adi\u00adcance of two ver\u00adsions coex\u00adist\u00ading<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Log\u00adi\u00adcal\u00adly, since this sto\u00adry of walk\u00ading a dog in the park, span\u00adning 35 years, has final\u00adly reached its final, upgrad\u00aded ver\u00adsion, should\u00adn\u2019t the ear\u00adli\u00ader ver\u00adsions become obso\u00adlete or obso\u00adlete? Quite the oppo\u00adsite. Because the goril\u00adla ver\u00adsion of *Sounds in the Park* is gain\u00ading increas\u00ading pop\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adi\u00adty, the ear\u00adli\u00ader live-action ver\u00adsion of *A Walk in the Park* has actu\u00adal\u00adly received more atten\u00adtion. For pic\u00adture book enthu\u00adsi\u00adasts, these are two styl\u00adis\u00adti\u00adcal\u00adly dif\u00adfer\u00adent inter\u00adpre\u00adta\u00adtions of the same sto\u00adry. Com\u00adpar\u00ading their sim\u00adi\u00adlar\u00adi\u00adties and dif\u00adfer\u00adences, and expe\u00adri\u00adenc\u00ading the mag\u00adic of dif\u00adfer\u00adent nar\u00adra\u00adtive meth\u00adods, can be extreme\u00adly enjoy\u00adable and helps improve one\u2019s appre\u00adci\u00ada\u00adtion of pic\u00adture books. At the same time, it also allows one to wit\u00adness the remark\u00adable growth of a pic\u00adture book mas\u00adter.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span>To con\u00adtin\u00adu\u00adous\u00adly improve your\u00adself, keep ask\u00ading ques\u00adtions and explor\u00ading. And of course, don\u2019t for\u00adget to take reg\u00adu\u00adlar walks in the park!<\/span><\/p>\n

Writ\u00adten by A\u2011Jia on Decem\u00adber 5, 2024, by Erhai Lake in Dali.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200b<\/span>\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/figure>\n
<\/figure>\n

\u200b\u200b\u200b\u200b<\/p>\n

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