Scholastic, 2019. ISBN 9781760663490.
(Age: 4+) Highly recommended. Themes: Walls, Barriers, Prejudice,
Isolationism. A solid brick wall appears in the centre of each
double page. A child in armour appears with a ladder, and tells the
reader that his side of the book is safe because the wall is there
to protect him from whatever is on the other side. The other side
has a range of large animals: a rhinoceros, tiger and baboon, all
interested to see over the wall. But a small mouse happens along and
scares them away. On the safe side, water appears to be rising
rather rapidly, causing the boy to climb the ladder even higher,
while on the other side the animals are replaced by an ogre. The boy
tells us that the ogre is the scariest thing on the other side, but
when the water keeps rising and he is about to drown, or perhaps be
eaten by the lurking crocodile, the ogre leans over the wall and
plucks him to safety.
The boy is frightened when he realises that he is on the other side
of the wall. He tells the ogre that he is frightened that he will be
eaten, but the ogre assures him that this will not happen and shows
him around. All his fears vanish as he is befriended by the animals
and plays with them.
Readers will laugh out loud at the contrast of what is happening on
each side of the wall, especially when the 'safe' side becomes
anything but safe as the little fish are swallowed by a bigger fish
then a much larger fish as the water rises.
Readers will understand the theme of the book, that walls do not
make us safe, and discuss the way walls are used to give an
impression of safety in various situations. And unfortunately there
are a lot of examples around the world of wall building to draw
upon.
This is a laugh out loud look at the aim of keeping safe through
building walls, where building bridges would be more appropriate.
The watercolour and pencil illustrations are just wonderful, the
drawing of the wall down the centre of each page underlining the
difference between each side and causing much hilarity when the
situation is reversed.
Fran Knight
And then there were four by Nancy Werlin
Speak, 2018. ISBN: 9780147510266.
(Age: 14+) Recommended. A book for mystery lovers, Werlin has
written an easy to read and engrossing story about five teenagers
who escape death when a building collapses on them. It is not an
accident, someone is trying to murder them. Gradually the group
piece together a theory, unlikely as it may seem.
The plot contains enough twists and turns, unexpected events and red
herrings that the reader will be kept guessing until the end about
the teens' theory and whether it is true.
Written in two alternating voices, that of Saralinda del la Flor and
Caleb Colchester, Werlin skilfully draws out the characters and
events that befall the group. Saralinda's voice is quite unique with
exclamation points and strange sayings and once the reader becomes
accustomed to it, is very enjoyable to read. Caleb's on the other
hand is darker and told in the second person. All the characters are
unique and interesting, particularly Saralinda who has a club foot
and diabetes, but who with humour, manages to often be the voice of
reason in this diverse group. Caleb has suffered all his life,
labelled a bad boy, Kenyon is an outspoken young woman who has used
social media to call out a rape, while Evangeline and Antoine are
popular school leaders. As a group they don't appear to mesh well,
but when one of them dies, they have to work out a way to stay alive
and use each other's skills and expertise. And there are some
budding romances as well.
Mystery readers who enjoy books by Lauren Oliver and Karen McManus
are likely to enjoy the fast pace and suspense of And then there
were four.
Pat Pledger
Fart Monster and me: The class excursion by Tim Miller and Matt Stanton
ABC Books. 2019. ISBN: 9780733340215. 57p
(Age: 8+) Recommended. Themes: Humour, Speculative/Sci fi. Ben Dugan
takes his Fart Monster to school. His teacher, Mr Bendentoot has
organized an excursion to the Space exhibit at the local museum. On
the bus, various children deny causing the foul emissions of the
Fart Monster. At the museum, Professor Wilson demonstrates the
interactive displays to the class, which cleverly foreshadow the
novel's twist! After Fart Monster failed to find his home in the
simulated Solar System, an anti-gravity experience keeps Lucy,
Carter, Dave, Laura and the rest of the class occupied while Ben and
the Fart Monster investigate the Space Shuttle display.
Fart Monster convinces Ben to read the instructions so that they can
use the shuttle to take him home to his beloved 'Let her Rip'
planet. Despite his reservations, Ben and Fart Monster take off.
Their spacecraft stalls with their destination in sight but they
solve the problem and land the space shuttle. What will Fart
Monster's planet be like? How is Ben going to get home?
Another bodily function narrative with pleasing caricatures,
guaranteed to make you laugh out loud.
Deborah Robins
Find Spot at the library by Eric Hill
Penguin Random House Children's, 2019. ISBN: 9780241365694.
(Ages: 1-4) Themes: Libraries, Board book, Lift the flaps book.
Lift-the-flap books are usually instant winners with little ones,
especially when there is a cheeky animal or two hiding behind and
this third title in a new Spot series (previous titles are Find
Spot at the zoo and Find Spot at the museum) is no
exception. The series is a real nod to the original Where's Spot
first published in 1980, and while Eric Hill may have passed away in
2014 these have been done with the same humour and fun that has seen
generations of children fall in love with his books. Young children
will especially love finding Spot at the end, all dressed up in his
tiger costume for dress-up day at the library (it would have been
better if they had to lift a flap to find him though). All his
friends are there for the party too. The book also includes all the
elements that children love about visiting the library: borrowing
and returning books, story time, sing-along time, playing and
creating and quiet reading. This series will be a real hit with
toddlers, and this title a definite must for little library lovers.
Nicole Nelson
When the war is over by Jackie French
Illus. by Anne Spudvilas. Angus and Robertson, 2019. ISBN:
9781460753026.
(Age: 10+) Highly recommended. A powerful book written in poetry by
the word master, Jackie French, depicts the return of those who have
fought in the wars from WW1 to the present day. The book does not
try to give details of the wars, just the endings showing when and
how those who fought came home.
Jackie French has crafted a wonderfully moving poem that is easy to
read aloud while the illustrations by Anne Spudvilas are so poignant
that they will certainly bring tears to the eyes of most of the
readers that pick up this book. The joy, the desperation, the
heartbreak and the loss that war brings is shown in each
illustration with a great diversity of subject by the illustrator.
It will be a favourite in schools for Anzac Day and Remembrance Day
resources as it is short and direct and will bring about much
discussion about all the different wars to which Australia has sent
people to fight, many that children will not know about.
It could act as a spring-board for further research for the Year 10
History curriculum into war and conflicts around the world.
For younger children just analyzing each picture and what the
illustrator was trying to show for that war will provide some
marvelous discussions in Middle and Upper Primary classes. Teacher's
notes are available. Themes: Peace, Love, World wars, Family
reunion.
A great addition to this subject area for all schools and libraries.
Gabrielle Anderson
Catch a falling star by Meg McKinlay
Walker Books, 2019. ISBN: 9781925381207.
(Age: 10-14) Highly recommended. Themes: Family, Skylab, Death,
Grief, Coming of age, Friendship, Astronomy. McKinlay is an Award
winning author (Prime Minister's Literary Award-winning A
Single Stone, and CBCA-shortlisted No
Bears and Duck
for a Day) and has written an engrossing and heart-wrenching
story dealing with a death in the family and its aftermath. Frankie
Avery is left looking after her young brother Newt (short for
Newton) while her mother works very long hours as a way to forget
the death of her husband, which is never mentioned in the house. The
news stories of the imminent fall of Skylab bring back many memories
of the times she and her father watched the skies through their
telescope and seem to have affected Newt, who begins to act
strangely.
The historically accurate setting in 1979, when Skylab is going to
fall out of the sky, provides an excellent background for McKinlay
to explore the dysfunctional family dynamics in Frankie's household.
She is the one who must ensure that Newt is safe, but she is little
more than a child herself. As the threat of Skylab looms, it looks
as if Frankie won't be able to manage anymore and she desperately
needs a way to cope.
McKinlay is an expert wordsmith, who brings both the characters and
the setting to life with vivid imagery and description. Readers will
find themselves shedding a few tears along the way as they hope that
things will improve for Frankie, while despairing about the grief
that has led to the neglect from her mother.
This would make an ideal class set or literature circle book, as
well as one that would read aloud very well. Teacher
notes are available.
Pat Pledger
52 Mondays by Anna Ciddor
Allen and Unwin, 2019. ISBN: 9781760523480.
(Age: 8-12) Recommended. It's 1960's Australia and Anna is a young
girl with a strong wish. She desires a doll similar to Hitty, the
doll in her favourite story.
Anna's family try to help her find the doll of her dreams and they
decide that the best place to find the perfect doll is at the weekly
Monday auctions, hence the title 52 Mondays, the number of
weeks of patient searching it takes to fulfil Anna's wish.
During the years search, we get to see everyday life in Anna's home,
a loving caring household where simple everyday events such as
birthday parties, fixing broken china and playing in the backyard
are gently told.
There are insights into Anna's Jewish background and her visits to
her grandparents give an understanding into the family's recent
history.
This novel is based upon the author's own childhood and I enjoyed
the picture she painted of a simpler post war Australia. There are
many 1960's insights into everyday life, playing with paper dolls,
delivery of milk by a milkman and having photos developed to be
picked up later.
Throughout the novel there is a strong sense of family love and
understanding.
I recommend this book to 8 to 12 year olds.
Jane Moore
Encyclopedia of Grannies by Eric Veille
Translated by Daniel Hahn. Gecko Press, 2019. ISBN: 9781776572434.
(Age: 7+) This colourful and busy book gives lots of humorous
information you may have been wondering about grandmothers. It is an
entertaining and light-hearted look at all the different thoughts a
child may have had about grandmothers, like 'Why do grannies always
tell us to speak up? Why do they have creases on their faces?'
Headings include Age, Wisdom, Postcards, Flexibility, Knitting plus
many more.
It is a book to be shared with a child as there are lots of
interesting anecdotes written in quite small text.
This book would make a special gift to give and share with a
grandmother.
Themes: Grandmothers, Questions, Finding Information,
Humour.
Kathryn Beilby
There's only one mum like you by Jess Racklyeft
Affirm Press, 2019. ISBN: 9781925712902. I love your quiet stories,
songs sung loud in the rain.
No one can hug like you, Mum
or makes me feel the same.
Brave mums, playful mums, cuddly mums, quiet mums - every mum is
special in her own way and author/illustrator Jess Racklyeft
celebrates the many things that mums do to make their child's life
better in this ode to mothers that has been released just in time
for Mothers Day.
But rather than a twee platitude of a kind that we see too much of,
Racklyeft has illustrated this with watercolours of a host of
different mums from the animal kingdom, showing that motherhood is
not just the realm of humans and that in their way, mums are
critical in a child's development well beyond birth.
For those who are focusing on Mothers Day and may be treading warily
in acknowledgement of those students without mums, this is an
innovative approach that offers something a little different.
Barbara Braxton
War and resistance by Sophie Masson
Scholastic, 2019. ISBN: 9781742769219.
Highly recommended for readers aged 13+. Themes: World War II,
Resistance, Spies, Trust. Sophie Masson has created a wonderful
story weaving the circumstances of the young girl, Sasha and her
family, with the German boy, Dieter, at a time when the world was
about to explode again into war. The book begins with Sasha's
journalist father, Louis Jullian, expounding the dangers of the
German situation prior to 1939 to New Zealand and Australian
audiences. His desire to disclose truths that are both unpleasant
and alarming does not change when he returns to France. When the war
breaks out, his family are in danger and 12 year old Sasha does not
just want to survive, she wants to resist the advance of the German
power. Dieter, on the other hand is dealing with his own personal
difficulties and finds solace and meaning within the Hitler Youth
organisation. When the two families connect unexpectedly in
Biarritz, Sasha and Dieter are placed in a situation where distrust
abounds and her parents' involvement in the Resistance movement puts
them at odds with Dieter's German allegiance. Ultimately their own
survival and actions must defy what they perceive as evil. Bravery,
spies, lies and the Resistance movement are all entwined in this
interesting and compelling human story in a time of war.
Peppered with Louis Jullian's journalistic articles as a war
correspondent, this book has moments of tension that are based on
the true circumstances of World War II conflict for the 'ordinary
people' who get caught up in the turmoil. Knowing that Sophie
Masson's own family history was impacted by the Second World War, we
know that much of the setting and circumstances of this story are
linked to real world history of those involved in the resistance
movement. Consequently, this is a narrative that is worthy of
recommendation to lovers of history.
Carolyn Hull
The Royal Show by Yvette Poshoglian
Illus. by Danielle McDonald. Ella and Olivia book 23,
Scholastic, 2019. ISBN: 9781742999784.
(Ages 5-7) Recommended. Themes: The Royal Show, Families. Yvette
Poshoglian captures the special moments in Ella and Olivia's family
life. It's time for The Royal Show and both sisters are busy earning
money to spend on showbags and carnival games. Ella and Olivia are
in the middle of a cleaning frenzy, 'their bedrooms shine and the
living room sparkles!' Everyone's excited, Dad's entering his scones
in the baking competition and Mum's created a beautiful quilt to
participate in the craft show.
There's a real buzz of excitement as the day finally arrives,
they're eager to buy their favourite showbags and watch the wood
chopping. When Ella scans her ticket at the gates, bells ring, she's
a winner and her prize is a special showbag. Olivia begins to feel a
bit let down when Mum and Dad also receive special news about their
baking and sewing. How will young Olivia's show day end, will there
be a special surprise for her at the evening's events in the Grand
Arena?
Yvette Poshoglian's delightful stories are written specifically for
early readers who enjoy simple fun plots and relatable characters.
She celebrates the special relationship sisters Ella and Olivia
share and the simple joys of special events. Danielle McDonald's
cute drawings support the transition from picture book to beginning
novel. The Royal Show is another charming story just right
for young fans.
Rhyllis Bignell
Hopping weird by Ahn Do
Illus. by Jules Faber. Weirdo book 13. Scholastic, 2019.
ISBN: 9781742997926.
(Ages: 7-9) Themes: Kangaroos, Animals - care and health. Step
straight into the crazy world of Weir Do and his family as Mum's new
job impacts on their home life. She's working as a nurse at the
animal hospital and she brings some of the sick animals home. Weir
shows Kenny the koala how to chew gum leaves, of course they are
toxic and unpleasant tasting and he spits them out! Fun and games
happen when they dress the koala in little brother Roger's overalls.
At school, Weir and Bella struggle with their movie-making
assignment on friendship. Miss Franklin their teacher wants everyone
to make a short movie, but both children can't decide on what to
film. Mum's brought home a baby kangaroo for the family to care for
and Weir and Sally begin to document Joey's recovery. They capture
Joey eating the Fido's food and sleeping in his bed while Grandpa
makes a special apron with a pouch for the baby roo to snuggle in.
Dad provides plenty of silly jokes while Mum teaches Joey how to
survive in the bush.
They even venture into the bush, using the triangle tag tracker to
find Joey's mother and return her youngster back to her. Weir and
Bella film the search, with a few false starts, finally locating the
kangaroo. Back at school they realise the true meaning of
friendship, when they share Joey's journey with the class. Hopping weird is illustrated with Jules Faber's funny
cartoons of the joey's antics and the family's responses. Hot pink
is the colour focus from the fun lenticular cover to the accents and
creative font sizes and styles. Ahn Do's amusing and entertaining
story includes plenty of laugh-out-loud moments as well as exploring
the theme of friendship. The Weirdo series are just right
for beginning chapter books and for reluctant readers. This is
another winner for Ahn Do; fans of the Weirdo series will
find Hopping weird entertaining.
Rhyllis Bignell
The book that never ends by Beck and Matt Stanton
HarperCollins Children's Books, 2018. ISBN: 9780733337994.
(Age: 4+) Themes: Humour, Choose your own adventure. This is the
final book in the unique Books that drive kids crazy series.
It is a choose-your-own type adventure for younger children to be
navigated through either with an adult or on their own if they are
reading. A simple explanation may be necessary so children
understand that this book does not follow the usual way you read a
book. On each page you are asked a question and then that will lead
you to another page. You may be going backwards and forwards
throughout the book, never getting to the end. As an adult this book
did drive me crazy! However the large text and bright simple
illustrations will appeal to a child's sense of humour. A great
ending to the series.
Kathryn Beilby
Dress like a girl by Patricia Toht
Illus. by Lorian Tu-Dean. HarperCollins, 2019. ISBN: 9780062798923.
32pp., hbk.
Time for a sleepover and the guests have been instructed to 'dress
like a girl'. But what does that mean?
Does it really mean dresses and high heels, buttons and bows? Or
could it mean a space suit, a wetsuit, a medico's coat or something
entirely original?
Told in rhyme, the opening stanza sums up the focus and purpose of
this book perfectly . . . What does it mean to dress like a girl
Many will tell you in this big, wide world
that there are strict rules that must be addressed,
rules you will need when looking your best.
But when you are given these rules to obey,
the secret is heeding them - in your own way. The strong message is that we are each individuals and we
should be dressing to suit ourselves rather than what others might
say about our appearance, or what 'fashion' dictates or other
external influences. Written for the young girl who is becoming more
aware of the world around her, what others are doing and wearing and
starting to shape her own tastes and preferences, this is a timely
release that should spark lots of discussions not just about what is
'acceptable' but also self-acceptance and the influence of peer
pressure. Do 'clothes maketh the man'?
While Tu-Dean has depicted a diverse range of ethnicities and
origins in the illustrations, there is a strong theme of events like
slumber parties being about the friendships and fun that are common
desires of everyone, rather than differences that divide or separate
or having to conform to a given look to be accepted. Great for the
mindfulness collection.
Barbara Braxton
This is home: essential Australian poems for children selected by Jackie French
Illus. by Tania McCartney. NLA, 2019. ISBN: 9780642279385.
(Age: 8+) Recommended. Themes: Poetry. In her introduction, French
tells us that she has selected a group of poems that tell of our
country for readers from eight years old. In selecting she has
included some old favourites, some newer and some never before
published, many humorous and all to reflect the diverse background,
culture and history of this country.
Beginning with a page which gives some information about the sorts
of poems included, the reader must then turn to the index to find
the poem. I missed having a contents page but the index provided my
source of where to find things.
And what a coverage; from The man from Snowy River (Banjo
Paterson) to Grass trees (Jackie Hosking) Dog days
(Elaine Harris) Puddin' song (Norman Lindsay) Ward
((Shaun Tan) the list includes many old favourites by Paterson,
Henry Lawson, Odgeroo Noonuccal, but also newer poems by Meredith
Costain, Christopher Cheng, Steven Herrick, Leigh Hobbs and Janeen
Brian to name a few. Supported by McCartney's very funny
illustrations, each page is lifted by the visual story which
accompanies the poems, be it a nostalgic rural scene, Uluru, a group
of children playing, a coastal vista, or a city panorama. All filled
with a warm humour, each drawing is recognisable and endearing.
It is a book to dip into, to reread known poems and those not seen
before, to delight in the sweep of the classic Australian way of
life to one more attuned to today's world, to laugh out loud, to be
still and sad, to be aroused and be made thoughtful. But in the end,
poems are written to be read out loud, to share, to marvel at a
poet's ability to say so much in so few words, to create so much
passion in a phrase, to tell a story that will stay with you. And
this collection is full of poems that will do just that.
Fran Knight
