Farmer John's Tractor

Sutton’s muscular rhyming text turns the tractor into a folk hero, and Belton’s watercolor illustrations add a dreamy quality. Great for “rusty yet trusty” grandparents to read to adoring grandchildren. * Kirkus Reviews *Teachers doing a unit with young children about disasters and in particular floods, will find this beautiful picture book very useful. The illustrations in watercolours by Robyn Belton bring the wet weather to life. The fact that this is the 10th anniversary of Farmer John’s tractor is testament to its lasting appeal. * ReadPlus *The rhyming text is fun to read aloud, and the watercolor illustrations allow the weather and the steadily pouring rain to be the book’s focus. – Christine * Goodreads *This picture book is terrific as a read-alone or read-aloud and will add a classy touch to any library collection. – Amy Shepherd * St. Anne’s Episcopal School, Middleton *This gorgeously illustrated story will enthrall youngsters …The rhyming text flows nicely and is easy to read. The artwork tells the story beautifully and fills the pages with soft, delicate watercolor paintings with a hint of nostalgia. This picture book is terrific as a read-alone or read-aloud and will add a classy touch to any library collection. * School Library Journal *

Sally Sutton is one of Walker Books Australia’s bestselling picture book authors. Her first picture book for Walker Books Australia, Roadworks, won the Picture Book category of the 2009 New Zealand Post Children’s Book Awards and was followed by Demolition and Construction to complete the series. Her books have also reached an international audience and have sold into the UK, US, Korea and The Netherlands. She lives in Auckland, New Zealand, with her husband and two daughters.

Robyn Belton is one of New Zealand’s best known and most celebrated children’s book illustrators. Her first book with Joy Cowley, Greedy Cat (1983), established her in New Zealand and the United States and their second collaboration, The Duck in the Gun (1985), won her the Russell Clark Award in 1985. The book quickly established an international following and its powerful anti-war message saw the book translated into Japanese and chosen as one of the 10 Children’s Books selected for the Hiroshima Peace Museum. Robyn’s 1997 book with Jennifer Beck, The Bantam and the Soldier, won both the Picture Book Category of the New Zealand Post Children’s Book Awards, and the Book of the Year. In addition to her work as a professional illustrator, Belton has taught and run workshops throughout New Zealand for both children and adults. She has participated in the Book Council’s Writers in Schools programme as well as teaching at Polytechnics in Nelson and Dunedin. In addition to workshops, Belton has spoken and published widely on the subject of illustration, and has had her work exhibited in New Zealand, Italy and Japan. Robyn Belton was the 2006 winner of the prestigious award for children’s literature, the Margaret Mahy Medal.