Green Cities by Sheila Boudreau. Illus. by Katy Dockrill
University of Queensland Press, 2026. ISBN: 9780702271175. (Age:10-14 years) Highly recommended.
Green Cities: How green infrastructure helps heal the planet is a fascinating look at a growing movement of providing a possible solution to climate change issues. Written by a Canadian university lecturer, landscape artist and urban planner who specialises in green infrastructure, this very green looking book is an excellent introduction for upper primary - early secondary students to show how positive action is being taken to future-proof cities against climate change. This new edition has been adapted for the Australian market but does use examples from all over the world.
Presented in a traditional nonfiction format, with a contents page, an introduction, four clearly defined chapters, and a concluding section featuring a detailed glossary, selected resources, and an index, this book offers accessible information supported by softly muted illustrations. Although the text is substantial, it is thoughtfully spaced and enhanced with bold headings and visual features such as coloured text boxes, quote circles, large images, and labelled diagrams to engage the reader’s attention
The introduction, A Green Way, gives a brief overview of what we already have in our cities and what this book hopes to achieve. Each of the four chapters provides further information, ideas, examples of green architecture already happening across the world and how readers can play a part in greening their cities.
· Chapter 1: Cities: A great Invention that Could Be Even Better · Chapter 2: Nature First: Creating Greener Cities · Chapter 3: Going Green: Green Infrastructure in Action · Conclusion: Making Our Future even Greener
In Chapter 2, pages 16-17, the topic: Learning from Indigenous Knowledge discusses how for over 60,000 years, First Nations Peoples have lived in harmony with Country which encompasses land, sea, sky, living things, knowledge systems, cultural practices and responsibilities associated with each area. Being connected to Country can enable people to understand things differently and take greater responsibility for nature and the ongoing effects of climate change. The author suggests that governments would be wise to include First Nations voices in future planning decisions.
Green Cities would be a valuable addition to schools and public libraries.
Themes Renew Urban Spaces, Climate Change, Green Infrastructure, Nature, Relationships, Sustainability, First Nations Knowledge, Engineering.
Kathryn Beilby
Dog stayed by Tammy Forster & Margeaux Davis
Allen & Unwin, 2026. ISBN: 9781761181191. (Age:3+) Highly recommended.
Young readers will quickly grasp the loneliness of the old man, as he waves his cane at people, blows his nose when they try to speak to him. He doesn’t like looking at old photographs, or cooking, or sleeping in his large bed. Children will readily sympathise with the old man sleeping alone, cooking for himself and having no one else in his house. And hope for something to change.
And it does. One day a salesman stops at his house. Blowing his nose, the man sees him off his property, telling him to take his scruffy dog with him. But the dog stays. And each day when Mr Hindbottom goes about his chores, the dog is there. One evening a scrap of food is thrown from the window and the dog eats it. This keeps happening over the next few nights, and as the days become cooler, an old quilt is added to the giveaways. One day the old man takes the dog into the bathroom to give the dog a bath, figuring that if the dog is going to stay then at least he can smell nice.
Dog teaches the old man when it is the best time to take a walk, and what treats are the best. Mr Hindbottom teaches the dog when to run, and how to pack as he puts things into the ute for an excursion. And soon people came to see Mr Hindbottom, and he never blows his nose as they speak. But too, he begins to have less energy, he can no longer walk to the letterbox, and seems content to stay in his pyjamas all day.
When he is no longer there, all sorts of things happen at the house, but the dog stays, sure he will love no one else.
But the new owners look at the old scruffy dog and take him as their own, a new season in his life begins.
A charming tale of the changes in life, of life and death, to the seasons of life, the phases, and times of transition. Children will love the warmth between the old man and the dog, and be heartened that the dog will have another person to love.
The change in his circumstances leads him to another phase in his life.
The lovely illustrations match the warmth of the story, giving a loving treatment to the old man, his boredom and loneliness sympathetically shown. Children will readily see snatches of the wife, now no longer there: photos on the wall, her knitting wool next to her empty chair, the handmade quilt, two placemats at the table, her book and creams still on the bedside table next to her empty bed space. All these and more are wonderfully shown, not needing words, but adding to the text. And astute readers will see the difference between the first and last endpaper.
Drake is sneezing, Drake is sick. Can his friends help cure him, quick?
Drake is a little dragon who cannot control his sneezes. When he is put to bed with a bad cold his friends give him a hot broth but it is so hot that when he sneezes, he sets a fire truck alight. Mary has a great idea and makes him a cold concoction but when he sneezes, he covers Mary with snow. Finally when he tries a moderate brew, bubbles come out of his bum, and then Drake decides that bubbles are fun and everyone goes out to play.
This is a great early reader that has many uses. An adult can read it aloud to a young child, getting them to predict the rhyming words at the end of each sentence and try and predict what is going to happen. They could then begin to read along with an adult. The large print and humorous, brightly coloured illustrations are a boon for the beginning reader who could read the story alone. There are instructions for the adult on how to use the book, guidelines for drawing Drake and a list of new words to learn.
This is a series that appeals to children and has a place in a home and school library.
Pat Pledger
Gross Things Animals Eat by Dr Claire Stevens & Adele K Thomas
Children love a book where there may be a hint of grossness happening! Gross Things Animals Eat will delight readers young and old with its fascinating facts about the eating habits of the animal kingdom. Written by vet Dr Claire Stevens, this colourfully presented book, packed with entertaining gross facts and delivered with plenty of humour, including all the farts, poo and vomit young readers desire, is sure to be enjoyed again and again.
Beginning with how often animals eat, this page provides some surprising facts. For example, humpback whales eat every six months, Galapagos turtles eat once a year and cows every four hours. Following on from this, the next few pages let readers know that eating dirt is very common. Many animals do it including birds, gorillas, wallabies, deer, tapirs and zebras. Dirt is full of nutrients that animals need to stay healthy.
And now comes section that is sure to be discussed with great mirth. Poo! Many animals eat poo including kangaroos, rabbits and elephants who actually eat their own poo. Baby koalas eat their mother’s poo. Household pets like rabbits, dogs and guinea pigs eat their own poo too. Poo provides many nutrients just like dirt and also gets rid of toxins in their bodies.
This fascinating book goes on to discuss decomposing animals like vultures, garbage guzzlers such as bin chickens, blood sucking monsters like leeches, bone chewers such as giraffes, skin eaters like leopard geckos, vomit eaters like skua seabirds, wood eaters such as termites and perhaps the most unusual tear eaters - moths and butterflies suck the tears of various animals straight from their eyes!
The bold, glossy illustrations in full colour work brilliantly with the accessible, well-spaced text, speech bubbles and Fun facts with the tiny page corner warnings adding a fun touch children will love. This is a great read that will capture children’s interest.
With its tactile cover, readers will love reciting the title of this book, while following the four words 'up, down, over and through' using the equipment displayed. A celebratory invitation to explore their surroundings outside, children will see and use whatever equipment is there to use, not necessarily manufactured equipment but things in their environment giving the same pleasing challenge.
The readers follow the children playing on such equipment, a playground with many interesting and diverse features. There are nets to climb, castles to explore, bridges to cross, stairs to climb, roundabouts to turn on, slides to slide on, places to hide, sand to play in, boxes to stack. In rhyming pairs of lines, the text refers to the two families meeting at the playground and the two friends having adventures over the equipment. They go up, down, over and through all the pieces of equipment before them, while the last part of the story has them in the sandpit where they talk about top, bottom, empty and full, big and small, fast and slow.
This is an easy book introducing words to younger readers, and they will be further interested in predicting the rhyming words. Bright inviting illustrations support the text, making this a useful book to have in the classroom.
Narm-Jaap: A Flinders Street Station History is part of the Our Lands Indigenous History series about Australia’s most iconic landmarks and the land on which they are built. The first book in the series Tubowgule: A Sydney Opera House History is a 2026 CBCA Notable in the Eve Pownall Award category.
This fascinating book offers a glimpse of the past and how Naarm (Melbourne) became the place where Flinders Street Station would be built. Originally people from the Kulin Nation would meet at Narm-Jaap (Queen’s Wharf) where tea-tree scrub grows along the Birrarung (Yarra River). It was here the various groups would meet and yarn, trade resources and hold ceremonies. They lived off the land harvesting tadpoles and eels, hunting kangaroos and possums and moving inland in the cooler months when the Birrarung would flood.
In 1803 British colonisers decided that this place Naarm (Melbourne) would make the best spot for a settlement. Over time white settlers took over the land and forced the First Nations Peoples onto reserves further inland. They built numerous structures including the Flinders Street Station. This iconic building grew from a small station with one platform to a huge construction begun in 1901 and completed 1910. Over the following years the building has been adapted and enlarged to cope with a growing population.
Narm-Jaap: A Flinders Street Station History is beautifully presented with a glorious embossed cover depicting a family on Country, with the outline of Flinders Street Station subtly and cleverly outlined in the background. Inside, the glossy pages showcase detailed illustrations that add great visual interest and depth to the narrative, complementing the accessible and informative text.
Narrative nonfiction picture books offer an engaging and skilful way to introduce young readers to significant historical events, helping them understand how the past continues to shape the world they live in today. This book will be a valuable resource for a school and public library.
Bat Brikson, the adopted son of Adeline and Joab of the Cattenveldt tribe is less than two centimetres tall, lives in Groundlands and wants to fly beyond the grass to the world above.
Bat has never really fitted in; he looks different and he has different dreams to the other Groundlands residents. Bat wants to be high and join the Drakkonbarqs who ride dragon(flies), live in the treetops, and are feared by most of the people in Bat’s village. Then there are the Bittenklore, the other ground dwelling tribe who although are not the enemy they are essentially the ruling class of the Groundlands.
When Bat gets the chance to ride a moth and adventure into the world of the Drakkonbarq he is swept into a world he couldn’t even have imagined existed but there is danger here too and although he feels more at home in the trees he still must face his fears and find out who he really is.
This is a magnificent book and one that needs to be read slowly and quietly to really understand the true wonder of the story. Although ‘little people’ stories have been around for a long time, this adventure fantasy feels less like a fantasy and more like a discovery of a world within the human world. I loved the worlds of Bat and his friends both old and new and the gentle tension that comes from finding new places and trying to fit in while also trying to find out who you really are. This was one of those books that you can’t put down and need to read “just one more” chapter to find out how the story develops and ends.
This would make a brilliant class novel or read aloud for upper Primary classes but would also be enjoyed as an independent read for readers who will take the time to really engage with the wonder and magic of this story.
The night tiger by Sherryl Clark & Hannah Sommerville
Allen & Unwin, 2026. ISBN: 9781760113421. (Age:3+) Highly recommended.
As the day ends and the setting sun fills the window with red, a boy finishes his meal and plays with mum before he goes to his bedroom. Outside, darkness has fallen and a single star glitters in the sky. The cat jumps onto his bed but the boy cannot close his eyes. Shadows climb over the walls, the boy worries about what might be there in the darkness. He stands by the window and watches the silver-grey outside, hears twigs scratching the glass and bats flying in front of the rolling clouds. The moon casts a pale light over the garden as the boy climbs out of the window, and into the garden.
Once outside he becomes the night tiger.
He stares into the eyes of the black cat, and they pounce. The boy leaps and growls, and vanquishes the shadows. He watches the owl take off from the tree, the tiger flying after him. Coldness grips him, the black cat hisses and the spell is broken. He turns his back on the moon and climbs through his bedroom window. He snuggles down with the cat beside him and dreams of being the night tiger, bouncing, pouncing, while he sleeps.
This lovely story of imagination, of adventure, of courage will appeal to all children, as they recognise the dreams they also have of being brave, daring, of being heroic and bold, of overcoming fears. In our dreams we can be all we want to be. Beautifully evocative, layered words are accompanied by illustrations that take the breath away. Who hasn’t snuggled in bed worried by the shadows or what might lie in a dark corner of the room. Sommerville creates a dark, menacing background which reflect the boy’s fears, and as he climbs out of the window, he becomes the strong, silent, bold tiger, as the moon offers some light. The dark garden becomes a playground for the tiger and the black cat, as they pounce and bounce through the grass.
I love the image of the tiger behind the tree, on one side still the boy, then passing behind the tree he emerges as the tiger, and the contrast between the safe room with mum, compared with the darkness of his bedroom. And the endpapers, the first showing the house and garden at sunset, compares neatly with the last endpaper later at night, with everyone asleep.
Themes Fear of the dark, Courage, Adventure, Tigers.
Fran Knight
Sharks Up Close by Aidan Green
Wild Dog Books, 2026. ISBN: 9781742037264. (Age:5+) Highly recommended.
Any library can never have enough shark books. They are so popular with young readers and this newly released hardcover edition of Sharks Up Close will be flying off the shelves! The full page colour photographs are a highlight and combined with small chunks of accessible text, this will be a nonfiction book borrowed time and time again. Each shark captured in film is clearly labelled and while there is the most well known – the Great White shark - there are also lesser known ones shown including the Sand Tiger shark, Lemon shark, Ocean Whitetip shark and the Goblin shark.
Throughout the book the interesting facts are presented in large font either black or white depending on the darkness of photographic background. Did you know:
· There are over 500 species of sharks alive today - the smallest being the Dwarf Lantern shark at 20cm and the largest being the Whale shark that can grow up to 18m · Scales are called dermal denticles and are more like teeth than scales · For First Nations People living in coastal areas, sharks can represent totems, ancestors and sometimes gods. · Humans are responsible for the death of approximately 100 million sharks each year. · The largest shark to ever live was the megalodon which lived between 3.6 and 20 million years ago. It could grow up to 20 metres in length
For both teachers and students, this book serves as an excellent model for factual report writing, offering clear coverage of habitat, features, life cycle, diet, and a range of engaging additional facts.
Themes Sharks, Features, Life Cycles, First Nations, Facts, Photographs.
Kathryn Beilby
The hair of the pigeon by Mohammed Massoud Morsi
UWA Publishing, 2026. ISBN: 9781760803247. (Age:16+) Highly recommended.
Morsi’s novel reveals the struggles of Palestinian refugees in Syria, living in the Yamouk camp, not the refugee tents that you might imagine but a large haphazard suburb of structures that have accumulated over time. The lives of the inhabitants have been upended by the conflict in the Middle East, ‘hopeful souls cast by fate as fodder to the beast of politics and power’. It is where Ghassan’s childhood begins, his friendship with thick-skinned Badawi, and nascent love for Sama, she of the swirling dark hair and the flock of homing pigeons.
At its heart this is a love story, told from Ghassan’s point of view. But he is reticent person; Sama describes him as different, his mind always elsewhere. Morsi allows his thoughts, sudden memories, and dreams to drop into the story, just as they do in life. Through them Ghassan (and the reader) gains insight into the emotions and events that thread his life.
Everything in Ghassan’s world is disrupted, people torn apart, people hurt, betrayed and killed. Most harrowing are the chapters about his capture and torture in Sednaya prison the ‘Human Slaughterhouse’, notorious during Assad’s regime. For those that flee, there is the desperation of escape by overloaded boats, at the mercy of thrashing waves and hostile naval craft.
The joy in this story is the sense of shared humanity, of people caring for each other, the friendship that burgeons in the loneliest places. They are characters that we can all relate to, creating an understanding that we all have the same hope and dreams, ‘our living oneness’. It is a profoundly moving account, one which is built from stories lived and experienced, and descriptions that reflect Morsi’s observant eye as photographer, journalist and now writer.
The hair of the pigeon is the well-deserving winner of the 2025 Dorothy Hewett Award.
Themes Syria, Love, War, Refugees, Humanity, Endurance, Kindness, Redemption.
Helen Eddy
Sophia and Gracie to the rescue by Kate Waterhouse. Illus. by Sally Spratt
Sophia is the fastest horse in town and Princess Gracie is her best friend. They are both in need of a holiday and decide to go away together. Then disaster strikes and their holiday is interrupted by a cyclone. The two friends must work together to save the day, using their unique skills and connections to support those who have been affected by the disaster.
This is a beautifully illustrated picture book with many fine details in the images. The story is told in rhyme that at times does follow the cadence required to make it flow. There are times when the words chosen requires the reader to force the rhyme which breaks the flow of the words.
Overall, this book is brilliant for young children who like animal stories and seeing the main characters helping those who have been impacted by a disaster or other misfortune. I loved the interplay between Sophia and Grace and the amazing illustrations, the horses are truly brought to life by the incredible artwork of Sally Spratt.
Sophia and Grace to the Rescue is the third book written by Kate Waterhouse that follows the adventures of these two horses and would be a wonderful addition to any home library. This series of books can be read aloud, although I do recommend reading it first to work out where you will need to adjust your flow or pronunciation to make the rhymes work.
Integrity is important. It helps us to make good decisions. And making good decisions means we feel good about ourselves.
Integrity is not an easy word to explain to young children but with the thoughtful examples shared - Have you ever given up your bus seat even though your legs are tired? Have you ever picked up litter that wasn’t yours? Or owned up to squiggling on the carpet? – children will begin to grasp the idea.
The first concept discussed in the book is about values that are important: respect, honesty, helpfulness, tidiness, fairness, manners, loyalty, hard work and keeping promises. This provides a valuable opportunity for discussion where children can add their own. From these values, children learn that values guide their actions and how they might respond to different situations. Examples are given throughout to help further encourage understanding of the concept of integrity and importantly, that integrity does not necessarily need to be rewarded, it can happen when a good decision is made.
The vibrant and engaging graphic novel style scene centred on the finding of a packet of dropped jellybeans, beautifully demonstrates the concept of integrity. It may lead to a perfect teaching/learning moment when children could create their own artwork to share with others about a situation that involved integrity.
A trio of bilbies walk to their new home behind the wire fence. They bemoan the fact that they have little water and no food, because of the rabbits, cats and foxes, and so need to find a new home. Easter Bilby leads the two young bilbies through the rabbit fence and into their new home, completely free of the introduced species which have had such an impact on native animals. But once inside the protected area, they find it is very bare. So some negotiation is required to firstly find some seeds. Lizard points out the that there are already seeds in the ground, while the Mistletoe Bird shows them what the birds do in spreading seeds. And the Hopping Mice show how they spread seed wherever they go. For the seeds to grow, they need water. Bearded Lizard points out that the rain will soon come and germinate the seeds wherever they are. The bilbies show the others how they dig, causing furrows in the ground just right for water capture and seeds to thrive. They then burrow down into the ground to stay until the rain passes.
The next double page shows a bright, luminous image of the desert after the rain passes. Growth is luxurious, colourful and widespread. And the illustrator, Bianca Richardson, has added the names of each which will encourage young readers to try and grow some of these themselves. The illustrations are wonderful, showing the red desert in its majesty, covered by growth after the rains, and supporting the many animals that live there.
Several pages will bring gasps of surprise from the young audience. The double page showing the rain is breathtaking, as are the following double pages showing the desert in bloom. The last double page has illustrations and information about each of the introduced animals shown in the story: Foxes, cats and rabbits. And of the animals now protected in these safe havens: bilbies, hopping mice, mistletoe birds and bearded dragons. Each of the protected animals has a role to play in the desert environment and young readers will love reading about what these animals do to survive.
The GOLF squad have been sucked into a desert world in the final mad-cap adventure of the 18,000 holes in the Universe series. The series follows five friends who find the most amazing, confusing, and incredible golf course in the entire universe. Each hole takes the intrepid group to a new place full of danger and golf as they try to save Grandpa Galileo and his golf course from terrible Uncle GOOF.
As the title suggests there are 18,000 holes in Grandpa Galileo’s golf course and the friends must find him before time runs out, the only problem is he has been in the course for 20 years and they only have a couple of hours before the course is destroyed and a boring hotel is built in its place.
I haven’t read the first two books in the series but after finishing this one I really wanted to read them all in order as I really enjoyed this book. The action is fast-paced, the illustrations are brilliant and the adventures are funny and crazy as you would expect from the creators of the Fartboy series. You don’t have to like golf to get into this book, as it is filled with danger and wonder that will appeal to readers of all ages. If the rest of the series is as good as this final book, then this is sure to be a favourite for independent readers. It would be an enjoyable read aloud although the illustrations really enhance the story which makes it more suitable for independent readers who can read at their own pace and focus on the illustrations as they travel through time and space on the quest to rescue Grandpa and save the golf course once and for all.
Themes Friendship, Family, Adventure, Space Travel.
Mhairi Alcorn
Connected: Networks for Kids by R. A. Stephens. Illus. by Tamlyn Teow
Connected: Networks for Kids is a primary years introduction to the mathematical concept of ‘graph theory’ where networks and network diagrams are visual ways of displaying connections and relationships. From researching the Australian Curriculum this concept is more likely to be introduced in Year 10 Maths but this narrative nonfiction picture book gives an accessible and concise explanation of the concept to primary school aged readers.
Chloe has a dot on her top which is called a ‘node’. Her siblings and friends also have nodes and they are connected by lines or ‘edges’. This is called a network. The network expands with more family and friend connections and this is called a ‘spanning tree’. When the edges loop back together again it is called a ‘circuit’.
As well as increasing children’s understanding of how networks function and grow, Connected: Networks for Kids also thoughtfully reinforces the idea that children and adults form networks reminding readers that everyone is connected in meaningful ways.
The colourful and vibrant illustrations begin with Chloe alone on a single page and finish with a diverse range of characters in front of a world wide connected map on a double page spread. The endpapers add to the visual interest with the front showing people standing alone and the back showing them all connected. There is also a valuable page with Extra Maths Facts.
