Finding Home

In New South Wales, Australia, a mother koala and her joey manage to escape a bush fire, but must find eucalyptus leaves to survive. Unfortunately, there are dogs and people near the trees. The people do not bother the pair, but seem to protect her until she finds a forest where she and her joey can live safely again. The simple but moving story is based on the life of a real koala. Marks's sensitive visualizations are rendered in watercolors, pen, and pencil. He floods the double-page scenes with the transparent paints for emotional affect, like the reddish yellows of the bushfires and the restful blues of the leafy sanctuaries at night. The koalas are drawn naturalistically with affection, while the humans are indistinct shapes. The visual narrative clearly and sympathetically portrays the problem of a "wild" animal in a shrinking habitat. Notes add information on koalas and on the factual basis for the story.