From the Depths

As I was reading Jasper Fforde's Lost in a Good Book I kept stumbling upon unexplained references to books I hadn't thought of in ages. Fforde's book is full of literary allusion and I can only wonder how many of them slipped by me unnoticed. At one point, Thursday Next is approached by a little boy who asks her to draw him a picture of a sheep (see chapter two) and later there is a mention of Ant and Bee. I haven't given a thought to these books in ages and this casual mention prompted me to dig out a copy of the only one of their books I own: Ant and Bee and the ABC. I think what is notable are the odd illustrations by Bryan Ward. These books were not life changing but still there is a fondness.