Camping trips are buckets of fun, however some can quickly descend into chaos. Camping Chaos is a true story from Monica’s childhood set on the Wild West coast of Tasmania.
Monica used acrylic cut-paper collage to make each Camping Chaos illustration come alive. In addition, Monica collected various pieces of memorabilia to elevate and personalise elements in the story. This included fabric, buttons, rope and netting which had belonged to the main character - ‘Dad’. Numerous rocks and foliage throughout the story were created from snippets of a historical article taken from the Western Herald newspaper, which was written about an original resident of the area whose life story paralleled aspects of the main character’s connection to the wild West Coast of Tasmania. A selection of original photographs in the end papers from Monica’s personal collection adds authenticity to the true story.
Monica has always lived along the North West coast of Tasmania, and currently calls Latrobe home. The West Coast of Tasmania, in particular the Granville Harbour area, is a special place and holds many memories for her and her family.
Camping Chaos is Monica’s third children’s picture book, following the successful release of Bug Soup Beat (2019) and Pecking Order (2019)
Monica Reeve is also an artist and early childhood teacher. For the past 20 years Monica has specialised in Early Childhood education and Primary Art teaching, with a particular passion for engaging young children in the arts through literature.
The perfect gift for anyone who loves four wheel driving, camping, exploring the great outdoors or Tasmanian history!
Hardcover, 28 pages
20cm high x 28cm wide
Forty South Publishing, 2020
