The Flint Heart
by Katherine Paterson & John Paterson
illustrated by John Rocco
Candlewick Press | 9780763647124 | $19.99 | Sept 2011

A really lovely book trailer for The Flint Heart, the enchanting new novel from Katherine and John Paterson, illustrated by John Rocco (who also did the animation for this trailer from his own illustrations).

I originally read this in manuscript with just place-holding unfinished sketches for most of the art. I got my finished copy of the book the other day and now I want to re-read it to better appreciate Rocco’s art.

More about the book from @CandlewickPress’ web site:

An ambitious Stone Age man demands a talisman that will harden his heart, allowing him to take control of his tribe. Against his better judgment, the tribe’s magic man creates the Flint Heart, but the cruelty of it causes the destruction of the tribe. Thousands of years later, the talisman reemerges to corrupt a kindly farmer, an innocent fairy creature, and a familial badger. Can Charles and his sister Unity, who have consulted with fairies such as the mysterious Zagabog, wisest creature in the universe, find a way to rescue humans, fairies, and animals alike from the dark influence of the Flint Heart? This humorous, hearty, utterly delightful fairy tale is the sort for an entire family to savor together or an adventurous youngster to devour.

A robust and wildly entertaining fairy tale, freely abridged from Eden Phillpotts’s 1910 fantasy and wryly retold by Katherine and John Paterson.

The Flint Heart (Book Trailer by CandlewickPress)