Reviews

Cosmic by Frank Cottrell Boyce

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Macmillan 2008
(Age 9+) Highly recommended. Liam is desperate to win a trip to a theme park in China which offers a ride in The Rocket - the biggest thrill ride in history. The only problem is that the winners have to be dads accompanied by their children and Liam is only twelve years old. On the plus side he is taller than average and has an embryo beard. He is also in the gifted and talented group at school. These, he feels, are the qualities needed to pass himself off as a dad. Against all odds Liam is a competition winner and sets off to China with his friend Florida, who reluctantly agrees to play the part of his daughter.

This is a wonderful story, whimsical, unusual, thought provoking and funny. Cottrell Boyce confronts some topical issues - the nature of fame and celebrity, the problem with parents who are either completely absent or who push their children too far, and the underhand behaviour of adults who manipulate children to fulfil their own obsessions.

Four winning dads and children arrive in China to discover that The Rocket is much more than just a theme park ride. It is ironic that Liam as the 'dad' realises he will be missing out on the adventure of a lifetime as it is only the children who will venture into space; the dads have to remain on earth and fill in all the boring forms! Eventually Dinah Drax, the brains behind The Rocket, decides to offer an ultimate prize for one of the dads - the opportunity to accompany the children on their space flight.

Liam wins the prize, but his skills as a dad are sorely tested as drama and danger threaten the space flight, and he faces up to the possibility that they may not make it home. Liam's attempts to behave in a 'dadly' way are superbly portrayed. At what point do you admit you are scared? How do you make four frightened and argumentative children do as you say when you are just a kid yourself? You may be gifted and talented, but there are times when you still need your dad.  Cottrell Boyce has such a direct approach that young readers will empathise with Liam's dilemmas.

Liam has always felt too big. He has been picked on by teachers because 'a big lad like you should know better,' and the other kids call him names. It takes a trip to the far side of the moon to put his size into perspective and make him feel small again.

This is a superb book. It would be an excellent story to read aloud in upper primary and lower secondary, and should generate all kinds of discussion and comment. The ending left me with a smile on my face and a lump in my throat. I'm hoping that Cosmic will make a well deserved appearance on next year's Carnegie shortlist.

Claire Larson.

Hamlet by John Marsden

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Text Publishing, 2008. ISBN 978192135147 1
(Ages: 12+) A modern version of the well known tale of Hamlet is sure to raise eyebrows when the author tells us that he has made it more accessible to an adolescent audience. Some will say it is dumbing it down, but I found it to be better than that. Yes there is an element of change for change's sake, and I was annoyed at the sex scenes designed to titillate rather than further the plot, but Marsden sticks to the storyline, while trying to expose the incredible decisions Hamlet must make. Sometimes his attempts to translate Shakespeare's language into a more palatable form, is clunky and readers will notice the variation of style. Marsden includes some links between the familiar scenes which draw out some of the possible reasons behind peoples' actions which will make some events clearer for the novice.

Hamlet and co are adolescent, Hamlet at boarding school in nearby Gravatar when he hears of his father's death and mother's remarriage. He lopes along, understandably trying to make sense of it all, but when the ghost appears, he is torn. From playing football with Horatio, and having lewd thoughts about Ophelia, he now must turn to graver actions. He gives the players newly arrived at the castle, some extra lines to say in their play and this serves to warn us all that dire deeds will soon transpire.

When he next sees Ophelia, he is maddening in his response, when he sees Gertrude he hears something behind the curtain, and stabs, killing Polonius. Laertes then comes on the scene wanting revenge and Claudius plots for Laertes and Hamlet to meet in a competition. The end is near when Gertrude drinks the poisoned wine meant for Hamlet, Hamlet stabs Laertes with the poisoned sword and is also wounded. Struggling towards Claudius, Hamlet then stabs the king and dies.

And when is it set? The use of carriages and 'Your Royal Highness', and the word lavatory mark it as nineteenth century, but when the butler refuses to change around the furniture because it is not on the list of things he does, I became confused. Sandwiches appear at Gertrude's wedding, Hamlet and Horatio play a strange form of golf with racquets, and talk of playing football on Saturday afternoons.

But perhaps I'm nit picking. Kids will enjoy the thrill of it all; teachers will give it to kids as an introduction to the play; some adults will read it to remind them of their schooldays, and some will read it to find out how the author has remodeled the play to suit a 21st century audience. But many like me, will go back to the play, eagerly wanting to reread the familiar and entrancing words.
Fran Knight

The pop up dinosaurs galore by Giles Andrease and David Wojtowycz.

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Orchard Books, 2008.
(Age 3+) In this fun dinosaur book, the reader gets to see what different dinosaurs look like. A tyrannosaurus rex chases after a small dinosaur, a pteranodon swoops through the air, a triceratops nods to its young, the neck of the diplodocus sways above the trees and the earth shudders when the giganotosaurus stomps on the ground.
The appealing story about each dinosaur is told in rhyme and would be good to read aloud. The vivid illustrations are a delight. Each dinosaur has a quirky face and devilish grin, which should delight a young audience.
There are lots of tantalising tabs and flaps for the reader to find, each with fun objects behind. The pop-ups are wonderful and will give a young user lots of opportunity to learn about the shapes of different dinosaurs while having a lot of fun.
As with all pop-up books, care is needed to keep the pop-ups intact, so this is a book to keep safe and treasure.
Pat Pledger

The View from Connor's Hill by Barry Heard

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Scribe Publications 2007
Louis Braille Audio. 2007 8 CDs 8 hrs
(Adult) Barry Heard, author of 'Well Done, Those Men', an account of his experiences in Vietnam, details minutely his boyhood in this memoir. From the Melbourne suburb of Ringwood, where he spent his preschool years, to Doctor's Flat, near Omeo in Victoria's High Country, he vividly recalls his life blow by blow. His amazing total recall provides clear images of rural life in the 50s and 60s. We visit country shows, deb balls, football matches, dates at the pictures, school days and exploring the bush with him. He writes endearingly of his horse Swanee and his sheepdog Rover, who could play hide and seek with children and whose death brought shearers to tears. There is plenty of quiet humour at his own and others foibles.

Mike Bishop captures Barry's voice well in these CDs but each episode in his life is so meticulously detailed that it becomes more of an historical record than a gripping autobiography. He describes rather than reflects on his experiences. Students needing to interview older people would find much material here; otherwise few students would bother with this. The narrative would need to move faster to sustain their interest. Barry's strength is his clear memories rather than his writing style. Here, he is well and truly 'heard'.
Kevyna Gardner

How to heal a broken wing by Bob Graham

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Walker Books, 2008
(Age 5-10) Recommended. Bob Graham brings us another one of his thought provoking and caring picture books. Young Will is the only person who notices a bird lying on the ground with a broken wing. He carefully picks it up, and with his mother's help, wraps a scarf around it and takes it home in his mother's handbag. He finds that 'With rest, and time, and a little hope a bird may fly again,' even if a loose feather can't be put back.

Sparsely worded, the beautiful cartoon like illustrations must be examined closely to uncover all the nuances of the story, with its emphasis on how one small boy, supported by loving parents, can make a difference. Every picture has a subtle message, with grey washes capturing the impersonal feel of the skyscrapers and the uncaring nature of the crowds in the street. Graham colours Will in a bright red jacket, making him stand out as a lighthouse of hope against the greys of the city pavement. Will's house is brightly coloured and also emphasises the love and hope found there.

This is memorable story about one small boy's ability to notice what is happening around him and how he reacts with compassion and love.
Pat Pledger

The General by Robert Muchamore

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Hodder Headline, 2008
(Age 12+) The Cherub agents are sent to Las Vegas to engage in a sophisticated war-game at Fort Reagan, a huge military base. American and British troops are patrolling 'Reaganistan' to support the newly elected democratic government and rout out terrorism. Hmmm - sound familiar? The several thousand 'inhabitants' are mainly students being paid $80 a week to take part. About ten percent are paid extra to act as insurgents and stir up trouble for the troops. The Cherub team, under the direction of American hating Kazakov immediately side with the insurgents and generate spectacular problems by destroying several million pounds worth of surveillance equipment and causing a mass break out of violent diarrhoea among the troops. Kazakov and the Cherubs eventually bring the war-game to a complete standstill and American General Shirley is left red faced while muttering about unfair play.

This part of the story will certainly appeal to anyone interested in the military and is right up to date as it deals with the faceless enemies and urban environments encountered by the modern army.

However, as in the previous Cherub adventure, The Sleepwalker, Muchamore presents his readers with a sequence of completely unrelated stories. The General opens with James, sporting a green Mohican, on a mission to infiltrate an anarchist organisation. This is interspersed with another plot where some of the younger Cherub agents break into a state of the art Air Traffic Control centre and completely trash it to demonstrate the ineptitude of the cartoon style security guards. These stories fill the first 130 pages, but end abruptly and are not referred to again until the epilogue, some two hundred pages later.

I can't help feeling that Muchamore is growing lazy. There is no effort to intertwine the plots. Subtlety is absent and none of the characters are given an opportunity to reflect; one plot finishes and the next begins in a welter of action and violence. For example, James, after being severely beaten by the police in the first storyline, does not appear to remember such dramatic events when captured by angry soldiers later on in the book. A crashingly obvious flashback would have been preferable to the complete hiatus we are presented with.

Sensitive characterisation, subtle plots, hints and build-ups are not Muchamore's forte. Forget sophistication, lets hit 'em with a sledgehammer. Muchamore is churning them out and I'm not convinced the formula is working anymore. This is a book that was written in a hurry and which lets his readers down.
Claire Larson

Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr

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Harper Collins, 2008.
(Age 15+) Imagine that there were faeries all around you, dark and dangerous, but only some people could see them. Leslie is a damaged girl who longs to reclaim her self-esteem and her body and overcome the pain of her brother's betrayal to the drug dealers who raped her. She decides that having a tattoo would help her do this and when none of the conventional patterns appeal, Rabbit the tattooist shows her a special book of designs. A tattoo, with dark wings surrounding strange eyes, calls to her and she chooses it, not knowing that it will bind her to Irial, the eerie faery who is King of the Dark Court.

Compulsively readable, this urban fantasy sweeps the reader along in the grip of terror for Leslie as she warily treads through the dangers at home, working tirelessly to pay the household bills as she avoids her drunken father and deceitful drug-using brother. Add to this the reader's apprehension about the effects that the tattoo, the horror of the practices of the Dark Court, and the interplay between Irial and Niall, the Summer King's lieutenant, and it is one terrifying read.

Leslie's friend, Aislinn, the new Summer Queen from Marr's first book, companion novel Wicked Lovely, tries to protect her from the faery world and sends Niall to watch her, but he too has devastating powers over humans and his interest in her has to be denied. Other characters from Wicked Lovely feature, but it is Leslie who captures the imagination of the reader. It is a story of one girl's attempt to survive a rape and an awful home life and to reclaim herself. As Leslie links with Irial, the Dark King, she must also find the strength to overcome an addiction to the seductive powers of darkness.

This book will read as a stand-alone but having the faery background from Wicked Lovely would flesh out some of the story. It is a dark captivating story, with its themes of rape, betrayal, addiction and making choices, and left me hoping that more stories about the faery courts will appear soon.
Pat Pledger

Does a sea cow say moo? by Terry Webb Harshman

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Ill. by George McClements. Bloomsbury, 2008.
(Age 5+) When Flash lands on earth from outer space he is perplexed by all the words that are used on both the land and the sea and he has some puzzling questions to ask. Does a school of fish go to school in the sea? Does a clown fish wear a bow tie and red hair? Jack gets to answer his queries and the result is a plethora of pictures in his notebook explaining each one.
The effervescent pictures and humorous play on words make this story great fun to read. It is written in verse that is occasionally clumsy, and it would be useful for an adult to practise it first before reading aloud to get a good rhythm, but the double meanings of the words will delight children. It would be a useful addition when planning for a unit on the sea, providing a starting point for extending children's vocabulary and looking at the underwater environment.
Pat Pledger

The declaration by Gemma Malley

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Growing up in Grange Hall, where she has been taught to be subservient, Anna is dismayed when a new boy a little older than herself comes to be trained. She knows her place, keeps her eyes downcast, looks forward to be useful when she leaves, and never, never asks questions.  She is a Surplus, a child born to parents who were not licensed to do so. Those who have taken the Longevity drugs to avoid disease, ageing and so death, were not allowed to have children and those who went against the Declaration, had the children taken and put into care where they were taught to know their place and learn to be useful, servants to those who had signed the Declaration.

It is a world in the future, where anti ageing is taken many steps forward, where the stem cells of the young are harvested to make the Longevity drugs. But this means that the authorities must be alert to overcrowding and so steps are taken to keep this under control.  A dazzling story, one which foresees the outcome of some of the steps being taken today by science, where questions are asked about the logical conclusion about these experiments. All sorts of ideas pop up in this layered story, stem cell research, license to have children, energy use, global warming, corruption and the exploitation by the first world, of the third world.

The new boy challenges Anna in a way that makes her troubled, sensing in him the downfall that may engulf her as well. When he is sent to solitary, Anna overhears the matron's plans for him, and so she escapes with him. There follows a heart stopping escape to London where an underground movement waits. The second book in the series, Resistance can't come soon enough. This is a tale of a nasty future which is almost visible and certainly possible.

Fran Knight

Naomi and Ely's no kiss list by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

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Allen and Unwin, 2008
(Age 15+) Ely and Naomi are soul mates. They both live in the same apartment block in Manhattan and have been best friends forever, sharing their clothes and music and living through Naomi's father having a brief affair with Ely's lesbian mother. They have even compiled a no kiss list of boys that neither will kiss, to ensure that their friendship lasts. But what happens when Ely, gorgeous and gay, kisses Bruce the Second, Naomi's boyfriend?

Although this book is written from several viewpoints, both Naomi and Ely as well as several friends, Cohn and Levithan juggle the different voices adroitly, compelling the reader on to see if Naomi and Ely's friendship will survive. Naomi is devastated when Ely kisses Bruce the Second and she has to come to grips with the fact that Ely is gay and that their friendship will never develop into anything more. She needs to decide what is really important to her. At the same time promiscuous Ely takes a look at his lifestyle and also asks himself what he really wants.

Teens will love this witty story, with its sophisticated but vulnerable characters and will identify with the search for love and exploration of their sexuality. The New York setting, music and pop icons will attract and the writing style is fun to read.

Strong language and sexual themes make this a book for older teens.
Pat Pledger

Little ballet star by Adele Geras and Shelagh McNicholas

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Orchard Books, 2007.
(Age 5+) What little girl wouldn't want to go backstage to meet the ballet dancers performing in The Sleeping Beauty? Tilly's aunt is a ballerina and is giving her a wonderful birthday treat, showing her what happens before a ballet performance. Tilly sees the dancers put on their makeup and tries on a costume in the wardrobe department; explores the wings and the stage and watches the orchestra tuning their instruments. Then she excitedly sits through the show and gets a wonderful surprise at the end.

This is a sparking story, full of warm, loving people who are willing to share the joy of dancing. The delightful illustrations bring to life the rapture and wonder that Tilly feels about dancing. Happiness beams from every face in the book.

A keeper - this book is sure to delight the reader who will find out about the intricacies of a ballet performance and will identify with a little girl who loves ballet. It is the sequel to The ballet class, but can be read alone.
Pat Pledger

The sleepwalker by Robert Muchamore

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Hodder Children's Books, 2008
(12 +) I am a huge fan of Muchamore's The Recruit, but haven't read others from the series until now. I was looking forward to The Sleepwalker, and in many ways it didn't disappoint. Gritty, exciting, realistic and fast moving, it ticked all the boxes you would expect for an appealing teenage read. However it is most definitely a teenage read and that's where I came in for a bit of a shock. I recommended The Recruit to my nephew when he was nine and he loved it. I'd be in deep trouble with his Mum if I encouraged him to read The Sleepwalker! Muchamore has moved on and so have his characters. James Adams, aged ten in The Recruit is now fifteen and like many fifteen year old boys is preoccupied with sex, swearing, alcohol and his looks.

To be fair Muchamore's books all include the warning 'Not suitable for younger readers' on the cover and they are located in the teenage section of most book shops and libraries, but I was still caught out, and I know of at least one Year 6 teacher who has been recommending The Cherub series to the boys in her class based on how much her 11 year old son enjoyed The Recruit. You read one book in a series and you assume the rest will be similar. I won't be doing that again!

Robert Muchamore is fulfilling a need for realistic, action packed reads for the 'fight club' generation who enjoy military style action and violence, but are not quite ready for James Patterson and Andy McNab's adult books. The Sleepwalker is violent, opening with a stomach churning description of a fatal air crash. Tragedy and pain are dealt with 'manfully' - you laugh about it and you get on with it. However, the idea that an agent, having just lost his entire family in said air crash, becoming one of the main investigators is somewhat irritating in a book that purports to be 'realistic'.

The story turns on Fahim, an English boy with Arab background who believes his father may be responsible for the air crash. Cherub agents Jake and Lauren are sent in to investigate and find themselves up against Fahim's chillingly violent father and uncle.

The Sleepwalker's downside is the sub-plot covering Cherub agents James' and Kerry's two week work experience in a fast food outlet. Through the entire book I was waiting for this to somehow link to the main storyline, but it never did. In the end it petered out like a damp squib and seems to have no other purpose than padding and offering a tension building break from the main plot. None of Muchamore's readers appear to mind this rather lazy writing technique and The Sleepwalker has been awarded a universal five start rating by Amazon reviewers. He is obviously hitting all the right buttons with teenage readers, so who am I to quibble?
Claire Larson

Murderer's thumb by Beth Montgomery

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Text Publishing, 2008.
(Age 13+) How would you feel if you uncovered the body of a girl in a silage pit? Adam Statkus is a newcomer to the small dairy community of Falcon Ridge. Fleeing from his abusive father, Adam and his mother settle into a house on a dairy farm and it is while he is helping out with farm chores that he makes the gruesome discovery. He is intrigued by the mystery and decides to uncover the identity of the murdered girl. Is she one of the teenage girls who went missing six years in the past? The discovery of a cryptic clue to a lost diary sets him a quest to find the diary, which he hopes will reveal the identity of the murderer.

This is a perfect murder mystery to introduce the genre to teenagers. Montgomery has created a story that has all the elements of a compelling who-dunnit. There is an interesting young detective who is tenacious and loves to decipher puzzles, a couple of villainous older footballers, a strong young girl who won't let anyone put her down, and a fascinating trail of clues and red herrings.

The rural setting where everyone knows everyone else and where outsiders are viewed with suspicion gives an added dimension to the story. Adam gets accepted into the local footy club, but wonders whether he can trust the other players. He is afraid to give out his telephone number because his father might trace him, and worries about the safety of going shooting with two of the older players. He is also perplexed by the behaviour of the Thackeray family, and their attitude to the missing girl Emma.

The tension mounts as Adam cleverly works out a succession of clues leading to the diary, and the reader is forced to continue with the story to find out whether he will be safe and to discover who committed such a dire murder.

I thoroughly enjoyed this mystery, loved its pace and allusions to cryptic crosswords and was kept guessing the murderer's identity to the end.
Pat Pledger

Perry Angel's suitcase by Glenda Millard

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Ill. by Stephen Michael King. ABC Books, 2008. ISBN 9780733322556
(Age 9-12) This is the third instalment in the Kingdom of Silk series which began with The Naming of Tishkin Silk, then Layla Queen of Hearts and now this wonderful new story involving the Silk family. This touching story is about finding one's place in life and the journey involved in reaching that place. Perry (short for Peregrine) Angel, an orphan, arrives one day to stay with the Silk family carrying only a small shabby suitcase with the initials PMGDA embossed on the front. For Perry this case holds all the treasures of his life so far. Perry is very quiet and is enthralled by the daily rituals of the Silk family, taking in their quirky traditions and day-to-day routines. As with the other titles in this series life is not always as straight forward as we hoped and many secrets often remain untold. Perry slowly begins to trust the Silks and develops a special relationship with Ben. However a misunderstanding makes for a climatic ending until calm is restored and new life stories unfold.
Tracy Glover

The red leather diary by Lily Koppel

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Harper Collins, 2008. ISBN 9780061256776
(Age 15-Adult) Lily Koppel, the author of this book and also writer for the New York Times, discovered a red leather diary among other treasures during a clean up in the cellar of her New York apartment building. The author of the diary - Florence Wolfson - had not missed a single day's entry from 1929 (when she received it as a birthday gift) until the end of 1934 (the lifespan of the diary). What unfolds is a fantastic insight into the Bohemian life of America during the 1930's and the life experiences, through intimate thoughts and emotions, of Florence during those five years. Intrigued, Lily set out to try and find information about Florence and in discovery her still alive proceeded to meet with her to discuss the diaries entries. Florence added insight to the entries and what transpires is a reflective look back on those times and the unfolding of a true story of a woman who dared to follow her dreams.
Tracy Glover