The Fairest of Them All
‘An apple a day keeps the doctor away’: the apple is our most commonplace fruit. Evelien De Vlieger has a weakness for the underdog, so we should not be surprised that in this book she champions the unpretentious fruit. From the prehistorical apple through Greek myths and Norse gods via William Tell, Newton and Snow White to the upside-down apple of the tarte tatin: in her nimble, humorous style De Vlieger tells fifteen stories in which the apple is central.
De Vlieger approaches her subject with sincere admiration, and it shows.NRC on 'The Big Chicken Book'
The stories alternate with heaps of facts about apples. Where does the apple actually come from? Why is it that if you plant an apple pip you won’t get a tree that bears exactly the same apples? Was Granny Smith really a granny? De Vlieger looks into insects, superstition, festivals, nutritional value, grafting and pollination. The many illustrations by Wendy Panders are as cheerful as the text: colourful, funny and informative. ‘The Fairest of Them All’ shows that an apple is far more than just the most boring option in the fruit bowl.
With lots of humour, but also with suitable precision, the drawings add significant value to the book.Pluizer on 'The Bike Book'
