A review by mat_tobin
The Tale of Mr. Jeremy Fisher by Beatrix Potter
4.0
Based upon a picture letter that Potter sent to one of the children of her former governess, the story of Mr Jeremy Fisher tells of a failed fishing expedition in which another one of Potter’s creations loses items of clothing through a traumatic ordeal; this time whilst trying to hook some minnows for tea.
Heading off from his damp house at the edge of the pond, our intrepid frog steers his lily pad out onto the water but after hours of trying only manages to catch a rather put-out stickleback. Soon though, he finds that he’s to become food himself for a hungry trout. To his immense relief though, Mr. Jeremy Fisher is spat out when the assailant finds that the frog’s macintosh is not to his taste.
Sweet story aside, Potter’s illustrations throughout are a triumph; it was noted that she had a penchant for frogs and the attention to detail in Jeremy Fisher’s character and antics supports this. Sadly, Potter’s fiancé died of leukaemia a year before the book’s publication and one cannot but help look for connections between this delightful, tender frog and the man whom she loved.
Heading off from his damp house at the edge of the pond, our intrepid frog steers his lily pad out onto the water but after hours of trying only manages to catch a rather put-out stickleback. Soon though, he finds that he’s to become food himself for a hungry trout. To his immense relief though, Mr. Jeremy Fisher is spat out when the assailant finds that the frog’s macintosh is not to his taste.
Sweet story aside, Potter’s illustrations throughout are a triumph; it was noted that she had a penchant for frogs and the attention to detail in Jeremy Fisher’s character and antics supports this. Sadly, Potter’s fiancé died of leukaemia a year before the book’s publication and one cannot but help look for connections between this delightful, tender frog and the man whom she loved.