Masha du Toit

I found this lovely bright little book by writer / illustrator Ellen Raskin.  It was published in 1972:

I’m fascinated by the illustration style which seems to be planned for the way the book was printed.    I love the way the colours are separated and overprinted to create other shades, and how the black  line ties everything together:

The story is about a little boy called Franklin Stein who is a bit lonely, and so makes things.   He makes himself a friend out of the junk in a cupboard, and calls him Fred:

There’s a lot to look at, and the story is amusing too.  Fred is not very popular, but by the end he has won first prise at a pet show:

And he has made all the neighbour’s happy – except for the landlady who is made to fix up the rickety rackety-house.

Here is a detail of Fred peering in at a vain neighbour.

Franklin Stein makes a new (human) friend Elizabeth (who also makes things), but plans to make himself even more friends.  Here is is on the last page, getting some fresh material:

Now I’m very curious to see some more of Ellen Raskin’s books.  Aparently there’s one called “Nothing Ever Happens On My Block” which sounds great.