Old man emu by John Williamson
Illus. by Simon McLean. Puffin Books, 2020. ISBN: 9781760898793.
(Age: 5+) Recommended. For fifty years, singer songwriter John
Williamson has been entertaining us with his wild and witty songs.
Old man emu was his first hit in 1970 and it is fitting that
it be published this year to honour John's debut appearance on New
Faces, when he sang this song and won the competition, launching his
career.
Everyone can sing along - I cannot imagine there are many people out
there who cannot hum along to this song, even if only the last line,
about running the pants off a kangaroo! All readers will find it
hard not to sing along as this is read out to them, and their voices
will sing out as they attempt to drown out that of the person
reading the book. As they listen to, read or sing along they will
hear of a range of Australian animals the emu encounters:
kookaburra, cockatoo, kangaroo, dingo, galah and wedge tailed eagle,
all adding to the fun of the rhymes he makes in the song, and the
journey they all take.
This book makes an indelible introduction to a range of Australian
animals for young readers, allowing them to sing along and enjoy the
rhymes, encouraging them to predict the rhyming words, and discern
the attributes of each animal represented. The silly look on the
emu's face is endearing, and McLean's lively illustrations will
evoke a legion of followers, as they spy different things on each
page, and then pour over the endpapers covered with line
illustrations.
There are videos
of this available on Youtube. But the one of John
Williamson and Simon McLean reading the book is wonderful.
Themes: Australian animals, Emu, John Williamson, Humour, Verse.
Fran Knight