Bottersnikes and Gumbles was a series of books by Australian author S.A. Wakefield and illustrated by Desmond Digby.
I was crazy for them when I was a kid.
Sadly they're out of print and can only be found on Ebay for exorbitant prices.
Digby's illustrations were very influential on me as a kid but you probably won't see it much in my work.
The series revolved around a group of creatures called the Bottersnikes, the bad guys and the Gumbles, the good guys.
The Gumbles are kind of like Australian Wombles and I wonder now if that was on purpose.
The whole thing is set in the Australian bush.
I was always particularly taken by the colour plates.
Very painterly.
I wish I had them onhand to scan instead of having to pick from the internet.
Enjoy...
