Reviews

Lily in the mirror by Paula Hayes

Fremantle Press, 2016. ISBN 9781925163872
(Age: middle school) Recommended. Vietnam, Family. 'To be dark and mysterious is one of my lifelong goals' says Lily, bemoaning the fact that her life is rather slow, but when she discovers a strange mirror in her Grandfather's house, locked in a room that no one uses, she is entranced with what she finds. Mystery and magic appear all at one, as the girl in the mirror needs Lily's help.
Of Vietnamese extraction, Lily does not know her mother's parents but the locked room in her granddad's house is intoxicating. Related in Lily's emotive voice, the story is of wrongs righted as Lily and the girl solve a family mystery together. Lily's brush with he supernatural helps her win over the bullies at school, and her advanced knowledge of the Harry Potter books gives her an unexpected advantage. Middle school readers will love Lily's fresh voice and the working out of the problem of the girl in the mirror.
Fran Knight

The Memory Book by Lara Avery

The giant's necklace by Michael Morpurgo

Ill. by Briony May Smith. Walker Books, 2016. ISBN 9781406357127
(Age: 10+) Recommended (with reservations for sensitive children) Themes: Ghosts; Death. Young Cherry, the only girl in her family, is keen to finish the excessively long 'Giant's Necklace' (a shell collection on a string) before the family leaves their beachside holiday home. Unfortunately, her focus on finishing the task prevents her from noticing the changing sea conditions, and this prevents her from leaving the shore safely. Her attempts to climb the cliff to escape the wild seas leads her to the old abandoned tin mine, where she encounters ghosts from a long ago mine collapse. Although Morpurgo cleverly leads the reader to think this is a story of survival, it is actually a ghost story and might be quite confronting for readers too young to deal with the grief-washed ending.
Morpurgo writes very engagingly with metaphor dripping from the pages, and simple scenarios of family life revealed in a way that children can connect to. The challenging theme of lives lost though may mean that this is one of Morpurgo's books that may need to be discussed with the child reader, rather than just placed in their hands. The illustrations by Briony May Smith are colourful and in a naive style, and perhaps may wrongly hint at a more light-hearted story.
Carolyn Hull

Lizzie and Margaret Rose by Pamela Rushby

Omnibus, 2016. ISBN 9781742991528
(Age: 11+) Highly recommended. World War Two. Evacuation. Blitz. A little known area of the impact of war on Britain and Australia forms the background of this engrossing historical novel from Rushby, that of those children evacuated from Britain to Australia during World War Two. We have all heard of internal evacuation when thousands of London children were sent to villages and towns in rural Britain, as reflected in two award winning books, Goodnight Mister Tom (1981) and Carrie's war (1978), but here is a new setting for a story of children coming together, of overcoming hostility and blending as a new family, as a child is evacuated to Australia when her family is killed in the Blitz.
The first part of the book navigates the opening years of World War Two, with London bombed every night and a sister in Australia worried sick about her relatives back home. When Margaret Roses's parents are killed in their Anderson Shelter, Margaret Rose is sent to her aunt but here she must look after her Gran who is suffering dementia, as well as do the shopping and housework while Aunt Rita works. When the authorities see what Margaret Rose's situation is they contact her other aunt in Australia for a place for the child. Meanwhile separate chapters are told by Lizzie, Margaret Rose's cousin in Townsville. A neat contrast to how each child manages through the war is given with their stories, enabling readers to get a clear picture of what life was like in both countries.
But Lizzie does not seem as happy about taking in Margaret Rose as her family, and after two months aboard ship with its own problems to cope with, Margaret Rose arrives in Australia, ready to settle into her new home. At first Lizzie is almost hostile to her cousin, but when Japanese planes bomb Townsville, the two are forced to cooperate and this creates a bond and friendship follows.
Many new themes are tackled by Rushby, bringing to her audience a piece of Australian history that few know about, and wrapped up in historical fiction, will garner a wide readership.
Fran Knight

Tiny Timmy: Kids' World Cup by Tim Cahill and Julian Gray

Ill. by Heath McKenzie. Tiny Timmy series bk. 4. Scholastic Australia, 2016. ISBN 9781760273668
(Age: 6-8) Recommended. Soccer. Sports. Teamwork. Tim Cahill, Socceroos superstar has co-authored this series of soccer-based junior novels centred on Tiny Timmy, his football mad family and friends. It is the World Cup games and Australia is competing against the best teams in the world. Mum, Dad, Kyah, Shae and Timmy squash up on the couch to cheer for Australia. He has even been ball-kid at one of their games.
Timmy's team the Lions is practising hard for their gala day - not galah day - no pink and grey cockatoo costumes, just lots of teams from all over the state competing for a big trophy. Training includes games of sock-er-ball in Mike's hallway, a tough schedule filled with extra practice matches and Coach Roach's pep talks on game preparation. Of course, Studs and Hacker are more interested in their new team shirts than eating the right diet, warm-ups, stretching, and getting the right amount of sleep.
Gala day is filled with excitement, detailed game plays and dramatic events, and of course Studs and Hacker's lunch of pizza and soft drinks has interesting consequences.
This easy to read chapter book features text with different sizes of font, words in bold and in graduated sizes, animated words and bigger spacing. Heath McKenzie's line drawings are humourous snapshots of Timmy's life, his family, friends and his team.
This series is great for high interest, lower reading age students as well.
Rhyllis Bignell

Dingo in the dark by Sally Morgan

Ill. by Tania Erzinger. Scholastic, 2016. ISBN 9781742990972
(Age: 4+) Dingoes. Australian animals. Sleep. Poor Dingo cannot abide the dark. He is a sunshine dog, needing Sun to be there so he can sleep. He howls at Moon all night so during the day he is so tired he sleeps while his friends play. He chases Sun hoping to catch it to make it shine all the time enabling him to sleep and play.
Owl and Possum remonstrate with him about his howling and ask him why he does it. He tells them he is afraid of the dark. They point out to him that Sun watches over them during the day and Moon watches over them during the night. So Dingo is able to sleep with Moon watching over him.
This is a neat story teaching younger children about night and day and what happens in each part of the day.
The story illuminates the passage of the moon and sun during the day, and shows children what they must do during each part of the day.
Erzinger's oil based illustrations show clearly the passage of the sun and moon overhead, encouraging the readers to see how each changes and the effect of each on the environment.
Readers will be able to discuss their fears, particularly that of being afraid of the dark while sharing this book. Teacher notes are available from Scholastic.
Fran Knight

By the light of the moon by Tom Percival

Bloomsbury, 2016. ISBN 9781408852118
(Age: 3-6) Moving house is a difficult time for adults and young children, their familiar rooms and play spaces are gone.
Ivan's old house had always been so warm and friendly. This new one was NOT.
When Ivan cannot fall asleep in his strange new bedroom, he sits up and stares out of his window. A magical shimmering ball of light falls in the garden and he dashes downstairs to see what it is. Ivan is led on a nighttime escapade past rocks, streams and flowers. Suddenly the light changes into Moji a small friendly magical creature, who paints the world with moonlight. Ivan becomes a brave boy following Moji on a special adventure, up into space flying by the stars and the moon. Moji's magic paintbrush illuminates the sky, moonbeams shine down on Ivan's new house. Dancing through the deepest forests and diving under the sea, Ivan's courage grows as he holds Moji's hand.
When Moji paints the word home across the night sky, Ivan realises that he can make new memories in his new house.
Tom Percival's computer-generated backgrounds use broad brushstrokes in muted tones. A palette of blues, pinks, blacks and greys brings the night setting to life, as motion lines create movement around the stylised characters. By the light of the moon is a gentle magical story, just right for those times when young children need reassurance.
Rhyllis Bignell

Discovering dinosaurs by Simon Chapman

Ill. by Rudolf Farkus and Mike Love. Bloomsbury, 2016. ISBN 9781408194614
(Age: 7+) Highly recommended. Dinosaurs, Non fiction, Fossils. The spectacularly ferocious image of a Tyrannosaurus Rex on the front cover is a winning invitation to this book with lift the flaps and pop ups about the perennial favourite topic, dinosaurs. I can't imagine too many people, kids and adults alike, moving past this book on the shelf. I picked it up immediately, reveling in the feel of this over-sized hard cover book and its thick pages revealing a host of hidden things telling me more about dinosaurs than I had read for a while.
Any good non fiction book is armed with a contents page, index and glossary and these, apart from an index are offered in this book, teaching young readers how to access information.
An introduction by Simon Chapman gives us the background and readers will love the 'boys own adventure' lifestyle he seems to lead.
The first double page introduces the reader to the time periods under discussion, Triassic, and the lift out flaps on each page reveal the Jurassic and Late Cretaceous periods, placed over a map of the world. Each double page thereafter reveals a different area of the world and the dinosaurs particular to that area. So the first page introduces the reader to where and when the dinosaurs first appeared on earth, followed by the velociraptor, amongst many others. Each double page tells us about the dinosaur with a fact box of all those curious bits of information young children absorb. Some pages have full page illustrations, some have many smaller pictures, some pages have lift the flaps and some have pop outs. It all leads to the last pages, one of which talks about their extinction while the next tells us about fossils and what they show us. All in all a fascinating addition to the range of books about dinosaurs which I am sure will be well read. A forward thinking teacher, parent or librarian might like to show kids how to use it carefully.
Fran Knight

Maladapted by R. Kurti

Walker Books, 2016. ISBN 9781406346299
(Age: 13+) Recommended. Science versus Religion in this fast-paced dystopian adventure. Cillian, a budding mathematician, is the sole survivor of a terrorist attack on the Metro (subway). Triggered by the trauma, hitherto untapped superpowers enable Cillian to save himself. Sadly, his father's parting word, 'Gilgamesh', quickly becomes his quest.
Within hours, Cillian's home is burgled and he knows he must look for the answers to the sole clue to his real identity. But there is another lost soul for him to meet in Foundation City. Tess is an orphan. She was raised by an extreme religious group, 'Revelation' who were responsible for the subway disaster and every other attack on the high tech ruling elite. Tess is sent to observe and ultimately destroy Cillian but the pair become friends, united by their distaste for the extremism on both sides.
Of course the friends endure, but it is clear they have unfinished business in Foundation City. In Maladapted, characterisation is not one of Richard Kurti's strengths so readers looking to get to know Tess and Cillian, will be disappointed. However, the electrifying plot commands you to keep reading and we can expect that the main characters will be fleshed out in the ensuing series. Maladapted is crafted to satisfy fans of the Maze Runner and Divergent series or similar novels in the popular dystopian/sci-fi/horror category.
Deborah Robins

Riddle Gully secrets by Jen Banyard

Fremantle Press, 2016. ISBN 9781925163957
(Age: 8-11) Adventure, Humour, Bushrangers. Seemingly homeless boy, Dan, attracts the interest of Riddle Gully's earnest young reporter, Pollo di Nozi who sees the lack of interesting material a challenge. Dan camps with his father, Twig, in the bush surrounding the town, not needing the comforts of town or city to survive. Their connections with the greedy Major Bullock, links them with Diamond Jack and the bushranger's hidden treasure. American 'gold-diggers', Pooky and Curly, stir the pot, developing a sense of danger when Pollo, Will and their friends are chased in the bushranger's caves.
This is a clever, funny novel for mid to upper primary people which touches on real situations making readers think about what they would do in their place, and along with strong characters, makes this a fast paced read. A terrific mystery novel, this book is the third in the series.
Fran Knight

Artie and the Grime wave by Richard Roxburgh

Allen & Unwin, 2016. ISBN 9781760292140
(Age: 8+) Recommended, Adventure, Crime, Families. Having an adventure is not something Artie wants to do, but when Bumshoe is kept captive by a group of thieves in their cave of stolen goods, he knows he must act, after all, Bumshoe has helped him out before.
Artie is part of an unusual family: Mum, Maggie, has not emerged from the house or her dressing gown since her husband died, and Artie and his sister must fend for themselves. Artie loves the next door neighbours, with their unpronounceable name, who invite him in to tea. Bumshoe is his opposite and the two get along extremely well, avoiding the bullies in the town, and being kind to the strange old woman across the road who insists on giving them talcum covered sweets.
But finding the cave changes their equilibrium, and Artie must find a way to rescue Bumshoe after his own hair raising escape.
He enlists the help of the neighbour, curiously called Aunty-boy, and when the Mayor's sidekicks come to call, both Bumshoe and Artie seem ready for the chop, or in this case the oven, as the Mayor has a predilection for pampered pet meat, and wants to try something different.
A very funny story for middle primary people, the light touch taken with the poo and fart jokes is most welcome, as the incidents, names and situations the boys get into carry the story along splendidly. Roxbugh furnishes his own distinctive drawings, adding another level of humour for the mainly male audience to snigger over with glee and satisfaction.
Fran Knight

The mozzie with a sharp snozzie by Irina Goundortseva

Big Sky Publishing, 2016. ISBN 9781925275773
(Age: 4+) Mosquitoes, Butterflies, Self perception. The mosquito who lives in the pond hankers after being a butterfly. He sees them flying around the pond, beautiful creatures, colourful, light and attractive. He asks if he can join them but is laughed at. When he asks them why they do not want him, they tell him that he is ugly and not fit to be seen with them. Dejected he walks away, not willing to use his flimsy wings. He spies a beautiful flower, equally as attractive as a butterfly, and using it as a cloak, approaches the butterflies once again. Life is now just what he wants, but then the unexpected happens and the group is captured and taken to a laboratory. Here he is able to use his special skill to advantage and free them all.
A story of being satisfied with what you have, of celebrating your skills, of not always wanting to be like everyone else will have resonance in the classroom as this is an issue which besets younger children. This story opens that discussion admirably.
Fran Knight

The patchwork bike by Maxine Beneba Clarke

Ill. by Van T Rudd. Hachette, 2016. ISBN 9780734416681
(Age: all) Highly (Highly x 2) recommended. Humour. Africa. Ingenuity. Working together. Families. Village life. On the edge of the No-Go desert, there is not much to work with to have some fun with your friends. But this one boy and his brothers find much to keep themselves occupied, whether it be sliding down the sandhill, climbing the Fiori tree, or avoiding their fed up mum. But the best thing is riding the bike he and his brothers made, with its bent bucket seat, handlebar made from twining branches, tin pot handles and wood cut out wheels. The boys can go anywhere in their bike, over the sand hills, or riding through the village or the fields. Many times they must stop and do some running repairs, but they always have a lot of fun.
The infectiously funny story of boys and their home-made bike will invite comment and delight as younger readers marvel at their ingenuity and will eagerly try to replicate what the boys have done.
The illustrations are wondrous, with their thick black outlines and block colours rendered on recycled cardboard with intriguing stickers on each piece. The background of the village with its mud-for-walls houses, sparse fields, few trees, sand hills and abandoned car will alert the readers to the paucity of these children's lives, and perhaps make them reflect on the richness of their own. The stunning illustrations will provide a talking point for the reader as they hunt out clues about the lives of these boys, and perhaps think about why the long suffering mother is fed up. I love the introduction of speed using a bold brush of colour across the page and was further intrigued by the use of shadows throughout the book, underlining the heat of the day. There are very few picture books available for our students set in Africa and this makes a welcome addition to any class looking at children outside their own experience.
Clarke has had many short stories, non fiction and poetry published in Australia and this is her first picture book. The illustrator, Rudd, too presents his first picture book for us, and I can only hope they produce more.
Fran Knight

There may be a castle by Piers Torday

Hachette, 2016. ISBN 9781848668621
(Age: 10+) Recommended. On the wordless turquoise cover, a stylised path winds its way to a distant castle while the blurb simply states, 'like I said, kid, it's your story. Are you ready?'
There may be a castle is a multilayered story, told through the eyes of two narrators, Mouse Mouse Mallory a small eleven-year-old boy, a procrastinator, a thinker whose constant companion is his stuffed toy donkey Nonky and his older sister Violet. Her personality is opposite to her brother's: she is confident and feisty like her hero, a pirate queen. Mouse hates Christmas, as every year they travel to their grandparents' house on Christmas Eve. Even with dire weather warnings, Mum bundles the children out of the house and settles toddler Esme in her car seat.
The car ride is fraught with tension, and in a minute in snowy dangerous conditions, the car crashes. The SUV rolls down a steep hill, the windscreen shatters and Mouse who has undone his seatbelt is catapulted out into the snow. His mother bleeding and unconscious and his sisters hang upside down in the car, Esme safe in her car seat while Violet is trapped by her seatbelt.
This is the turning point of Torday's narrative, clearly delineated by chapters and font styles, the two tales unfold. Mouse wakes up in a magical land inhabited by strange characters, knights, monsters, giant dinosaurs and a large talking donkey. He cannot look back; there is an enemy lurking in the woods. He is constantly encouraged and cajoled to 'maybe find the castle,' that lies ahead. Meanwhile Violet has to confront the consequences of the car crash; it is up to her to save her mother and sister.
Just like Christmas cake that exploded on impact, leaving crumbs in the car and scattered on the snowy ground outside, Torday leaves plenty of clues for the astute reader along the way to the culmination of the story. While each of the main characters shows great resilience and resourcefulness, the reader also needs to persevere at times with different storylines and the individual quests.
This story is challenging, a dark and compelling story, at times nonsensical with the annoying minstrel's lengthy songs, but most of all it is confronting. There may be a castle is suited to a more mature, discerning preteen reader.
Rhyllis Bignell

We found a hat by Jon Klassen

Walker Books, 2016. ISBN 9781406347517
(Age: 3+) Highly recommended. Sharing. Problem solving. Humour. Two turtles find a hat. They try on the hat in turns and find that it looks good on both of them. But there are two of them and only one hat. They decide that the best thing to do is to leave the hat, because it would not be right if one has a hat and the other does not. But their eyes tell a different story. As they watch the sunset together they find their thoughts and eyes are drawn back to the hat on the ground behind them. Later going to sleep, their eyes remain open, watching the hat. When one falls asleep the other creeps towards the hat, asking the other what he is thinking. He tells his friend that he is dreaming of them both wearing the hat. Each has a hat in his dream and the other turtle, satisfied that this solves the problem, falls asleep beside his friend.
Readers will know that this solution satisfies both turtles, that the hat which loomed as a problem between them has been reduced in its significance and they are content. Their eyes are closed and they sleep.
Divided into three chapters, Finding the Hat, Watching the Sunset and Going to Sleep, children will love reading each section as the story unfolds, offering possible solutions to the problem. The wonderful sepia illustrations with pages of single colour against which the turtles and hat, are initially shown as small figures within the panorama of the desert. But as the problem looms, the figures become larger, almost filling the pages.
But the eyes tell the story of trust, of friendship, of longing, of teetering on the path of deception, of coming together as friends again - themes which could be discussed with a group of children either in a class, group or at home.
The third in a series of books about a hat, I want my hat back (2011) and This is not my hat (2012) this book will be equally well received, its charming style, infectious humour and instantly recognisable themes making it a book kids and adults will pick up to read and share.
Fran Knight