Milo and the Sunflower by Pieter Scholtz

01 Aug 2009
Milo and the Sunflower

Milo and the Sunflower is a story, set in France, about a boy named Milo who is epileptic. His seizures are accompanied by visions, triggered by his immediate experiences.

The reader shares with him the discovery of the connection between life and art, as he makes contact with some of the major impressionist and post-impressionist artists of our time, including Degas, Toulouse-Lautrec, Picasso and Van Gogh.

However, it is primarily an adventure story which culminates, after several episodes, in Milo assisting a family of struggling gymnasts to develop their act and regain their sense of self-worth.

Date of Publication: August 2009
ISBN: 978-0-620-43558-1
Publisher: Horus Publications
Reviews: “I expected a story well told. What I did not expect was a piece of writing that was so layered. Throughout there are allusions to other worlds – music, writing, poetry, dance, art and more.

How does one write for a young person? For me it is foreign territory, but here I have an answer that makes sense. Assume intelligence and curiosity and then plant clues to be followed which will lead to unexpected places. Different readers with different histories and interests will make their own individual maps of discovery. And who knows what the outcome will be?

On one level I was intrigued to know where the story was going and so read page after page without putting it down. On another I was delighted to find that, cunningly, the story was but a pretext to take me somewhere else.” – Andrew Verster, at the launch of the book at Adam’s Bookshop, Durban.

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