Penguin, 2015. ISBN 9780141357034
(Age: 16+) Recommended. Suicide. Grief. Mental Illness.
Bullying. This is the first YA novel from an established American
author, and in this poignant and heart-wrenching novel she addresses
some very complex issues that have personally shaped her life.
Recent YA novels, like John Green's The Fault in our stars,
have addressed serious and challenging issues of life and death and
this novel by Niven is in a very similar style; pathos and humour
interwoven with the challenging issues of family grief, mental
illness and suicide. All the bright places begins with a suicide rescue as the two
central characters meet while both are staring at the ground from
the high vantage of the school bell tower. 'Is this a good day to
die?' is the opening line. From this precarious start, we are
introduced to Theodore Finch and Violet Markey, who are both dealing
with weighty issues in their life; one who is obviously troubled by
grief and the other unique in his tenuous and unusual hold on life,
sanity and the world. Their encounter begins a friendship and
eventually a romance that takes them wandering through their home
state, all the time gathering unusual memories and experiencing the
roller-coaster ride of romance, mental illness and the life-altering
grief that comes with an untimely death. This sounds incredibly
grim, and yet there is real humour and joy as we see life through
the eyes of the charming yet strange Theodore, and the
slowly blossoming Violet. The impact of grief on Violet is to rob
her of creativity, and yet Theodore seems able to draw out of her a
new vision of the world and of life. References connecting the
central characters to the words of Virginia Woolf and other literary
masters who battled (and lost to) depression, are scattered
throughout the book. Relationships with adults are secondary in this
book, but seen through the eyes of the young people, we get a
glimpse of the difficulty that depression, mental illness and grief
are for teens. The adults too, are battling their own issues, and
counselling and strategies to move forward are not clear cut.
Bullying and violence issues are also highlighted in the book and
demonstrate that young people do not deal well with mental illness.
School is not always a good place to find 'bright places'.
My concern with this book is that the issues it deals with may be
too weighty for some young people to handle well. Recommended, with
some trepidation, for 16+ readers, as identifying the vulnerable is
not always easy, and this book may be too confronting for some,
particularly for those battling their own mental health issues.
However the book's transformation to film will invariably mean that
younger readers will be wanting to read this too.
Carolyn Hull
Stories for Simon by Lisa Miranda Sarzin and Lauren Briggs
Random House Australia Children's, 2015. ISBN 9780857987440
(Age: All) Highly recommended. 'We all stand on sacred ground: Learn,
respect and celebrate' - NAIDOC theme 2015
Kevin Rudd's Apology to the Stolen Generations in February 2008 was
momentous for all Australians - both Indigenous and non-Indigenous.
And it is critically important that we teach our children the
significance of this in order to nurture the healing in a meaningful
way and to promote a positive future for all our people.
This beautifully written and illustrated book is destined to be a
key title in this educative process for younger children as the
collaborators (and long-time friends) transform the huge issues
surrounding this acknowledgement of a dark time in our nation's
history into a story that even small children can readily grasp.
Simon collects many beautiful things such as shells and feathers and
fossils. When he is sent a boomerang as a gift to start a new
collection, he immediately takes it to school to show everyone. The
old newspaper in which it is wrapped becomes the focus of many
questions as the teacher spots these words 'For the pain, suffering
and hurt, we say SORRY'. After the class discussion about this
tragic history, Simon's thoughts and dreams reflect his new
knowledge. A dream of raining 'sorry' stones becomes a reality and
the beginning of a new friendship, a new 'collection' of special
stories and a new appreciation of First Australians' past.
Sarzin and Briggs were mentored throughout the creative process by
Indigenous Elder Vic Simms, ensuring that both text and
illustrations were sensitively handled with all due respect. He says
'I believe this book will generate interest, understanding and
reconciliation for the future, starting with the minds of children
and by telling a story that is seen through their innocent eyes.'
Suzy Wilson, founder of the Indigenous Literacy Foundation, states
'This book is a welcome and important addition to school libraries
and bookshelves everywhere. It will provoke important conversations
between parents and children, in classrooms and throughout the
community'.
Highly recommended for all readers, particularly younger primary
students, this is a must have for your collection to continue
developing cross-cultural understandings.
Sue Warren
Pig the fibber by Aaron Blabey
Scholastic, 2015. ISBN 9781743629062
(Age: 4+) Highly recommended. Humour. Lying. Relationships. The
irrepressible Pig the Pug is back with Blabey's hilarious dog
staring out from the front cover, a crayon in his mouth, the word
Pug crossed out and fibber overwritten. Pig's eyes are nervously
darting to the left, knowing he has done something wrong and waiting
for his discovery, a story already developed to explain what
happened. So much on the front cover! And the fun continues inside
as we see the poor sausage dog, Trevor, lounging cheerily on his
bed, unaware of the blame about to be apportioned to him.
I love Blabey's work. His rhyming stories are filled with interest
and layers of meaning. They appeal to the reader and listener, to
the child and the adult, the discussion ensuing from the tightly
controlled stories always a treat, while the illustrations so full
of character and mirth, are sure to engage any reader in the
insights offered into human behaviour.
As the reader turns the pages of this book, Pig's misdeeds are
shown. Each double page has Pig doing something wrong, and then
blaming the hapless Trevor. Many children will recognise the
character, friend, sibling or foe who blames them for someone else's
bad deeds, and so will turn the pages to see how this story is
resolved.
Pig wants to get at the bag of biscuits placed in a high shelf. He
lets off a huge stink, blaming Trevor, of course, which clears the
room, and while no one is about scrambles on a chair to get at the
bag, with disastrous consequences.
A lovely story of greediness, of blaming others, of lying to get
your own way, children will laugh out loud at Pig and his antics,
and love the resolution where the long suffering Trevor still has
enough compassion in his heart to help Pig in his convalescence.
Fran Knight
The soldier's wife by Pamela Hart
Hachette, 2015. ISBN 9780733633737
(Age: Upper Secondary students) Well recommended. This is a story
of a society in 1915 where women stayed at home looking after their
children. Ruby is just married and Jimmy has gone to war. She finds
a position with Mr Curry's city merchant timber yard. She comes
under scrutiny from the two junior clerks who find a woman in her
position difficult to accept. Mr Curry's son is the Lieutenant in
her husband's force and as the story continues this is the link that
helps Ruby survive, for being a woman in an important position is
not a welcome sight. When her badly injured husband returns, Jimmy
has difficulty with her having job. His injuries and their inability
to communicate sensitively, lead to an almost fatal finale. It's a
time when women had to step in to help with the war overseas but the
returning soldiers had their horrendous nightmares and physical
issues to deal with and Jimmy was wanting to return to the time of
bliss when he left Australia's shores.
It's a compassionate story, no doubt very common and least
understood, even today. Ruby is portrayed as a caring, sensitive and
brave woman, who understood the people she worked with and tried to
understand the husband who came home.
It is a well described story of the times and emotions of the
characters involved. So many stories have been written and this is
realistic, strong and believable.
The text is clear and the style belongs to the era.
Sue Nosworthy
Fish jam by Kylie Howarth
Five Mile Press, 2015. ISBN 9781499800982
(Age: 3-8 years) Toot the fish loves making noise. He swims through
the sea 'scooba-dooba-diddly-dooo'-ing and
'beep-bop-bubbly-booo'-ing, but none of the other sea creatures want
to play with him because they think he is too noisy. Toot is pretty
downhearted. He can't stop making his loud, musical noises but he
keeps being told to 'shhh' and 'shoo!' It isn't until Toot is
unexpectedly swallowed by a huge blue whale that he finds a place
where he fits right in - in the band living inside the whale's
stomach!
This fun picture book uses simple, large illustrations and texture
created through layered colours and printing. Bold writing gives
precedence to the sounds being made by Toot and the other sea
creatures, encouraging young children to make the sounds themselves.
Toot himself is a funny looking fish which highlights the musical
theme of the story. He is the colour of a brass instrument, has a
horn for a nose, clarinet buttons on his back and a guitar tail. The
illustrations focus on facial expressions and emotion as Toot
becomes sadder and sadder as he is shushed and shooed by the other
animals. We also see the anger of the great white sharks as they
shoo away Toot with their stern eyes, sharp teeth and oversized
'SHOO!' The second-to-last page folds out to show the inside of the
whale and the band of sea animals.
This book contains limited narration with only 6 sentences
throughout. Told largely through illustrations, and with the aid of
the dialogue and sounds made by the sea animals, this story is
useful for encouraging inferential comprehension and prediction.
Young children will also enjoy reading the story themselves using
the illustrations and their own imagination.
The last page explains, in a simple sentence, the concept of scat
singing, where nonsense syllables are used instead of words to sing
a song. It encourages the reader to use their own voice as an
instrument and make up their own sounds to make a song. In addition
to its usefulness in text comprehension it would be great to use
when teaching melody and in encouraging children to experiment with
making music. The style of the writing and the illustrations invite
children to become active participants, and is a perfect text for
discussion and involvement.
Nicole Nelson
What makes your body work? by Gill Arbuthnott <br>
Ill. by Marc Mones. Bloomsbury, 2015. ISBN 9781472908865
(Age: 9-11) This is a subject every youngster is curious about,
themselves and their body. This book gives the reader information
about various systems and parts of the body, as well as activities
to demonstrate the points made. It will be a useful addition to the
bookshelf for Primary students or Teachers looking for simple
information and experiments.
The brightly coloured pages have simplified textual information
accompanied by either labelled diagrams, as in a cross section of
the human skin, or engaging coloured cartoon styled children adding
information in speech bubbles. The text helps younger students
understand by making comparisons to familiar objects, such as the
blood system related to different sized roads and the surface area
of the villi in the gut equating to a tennis court.
'Try it Yourself' sections accompany almost all chapters giving easy
step by step instructions for the reader to follow, and an
explanation of what they should observe. If equipment is needed
simple diagrams accompany the description.
Thankfully, there are some chapters at the end under the heading
'You can't try it yourself' which include the urinary, reproductive,
hormone and immune systems.
The inclusion of a glossary and some websites, of British origin, to
enable the young researcher to gather more information adds depth to
the information given. An index enables a quick search when looking
for a specific word, while the contents page gives an easy reference
to each chapter.
Sue Keane
The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B by Teresa Toten<br>
Walker Books, 2015. ISBN 9781406362992
(Age: Upper middle school) Highly recommended. Themes: Obsessive
Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Mental illness, Depression, Heroes,
Adolescence, Love, friendship, lies, loyalty, family breakdown.Adam
Walker has the same concerns as most 14 year old boys; will he find
a girlfriend? Is he going to grow? Should he try out for the school
track and field team? All complicated by his obsessive compulsive
disorder (OCD). At a support group for OCD teens Adam falls
instantly in love with new girl, Robyn and vows to pay more
attention in the group, get better and to grow so that she might
like him. In the group they are asked to choose an alter ego as part
of their therapy and almost all choose superhero identities, Robyn
chooses to be Robin and Adam becomes Batman, resolving to be her
hero and fix all her problems. Their romance blossoms and the group
help one another out with their issues as only other sufferers
could. Together they investigate whether the rituals and candle
lighting at the local Catholic Church have anything positive to
offer them. However Adam, who has become central to the wellbeing of
others, is increasingly unable to cope with his own issues which
manifest themselves in escalating compulsions. Loyalty is important
to Adam but he hates lies and it is difficult when he shares his
time between his separated parents. His mother makes him promise to
keep her hoarding and drinking a secret and when she starts to get
threatening letters, which she also wants kept secret, his disorder
ramps up. A crisis point is reached which ultimately brings with it
hope for the future.
In the same way as the funny and self-deprecating main character of
When Mr Dog Bites demystified Tourettes and a range of other
mental illnesses, this book gives us some insight on what it must be
like to live with OCD. Teresa Toten's believable characters are
heroic in the way they strive for normality whilst living with this
debilitating condition yet essentially their struggles will resonate
with all teens finding their place in the world. Highly recommended
for upper middle school boys and girls. A very useful study guide is freely
available on the author's website.
Sue Speck
The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson<br>
Pan Macmillan, 2015. ISBN 9781447266150
Highly recommended. Joel wants nothing more than to be a Rithmatist.
He wants to be someone with the unique ability to bring chalk
drawings to life; better known as Chalklings. He wants the right to
defend his world from the Wild Chalklings that plague it. Joel has
spent his whole life following his deceased father's passion, and
learning and studying as much about the Rithmatists as he possibly
can. But only one in one thousand children are chosen, and Joel is
not one of them. However, Joel can draw near-perfect circles; better
than anyone that Professor Finch has seen at Armedius Academy in
years. When students start mysteriously disappearing from the
academy, it is Joel who puts these skills to use and helps Professor
Finch in his investigation. Joel, with the help of his friend
Melody, must join forces to solve the crimes at the academy. But
during their search, they discover more about themselves and their
world than they ever thought possible.
Sanderson's imaginatively written novel draws the reader into his
exceptional world of Armedius Academy. The chalk drawing
illustrations at the beginning of each chapter also helps the reader
put together an image of what the Rithmatists work looks like. His
characters are likeable, and Joel is especially endearing, whilst
Melody is charmingly awkward. The fast-paced action teamed with the
suspense of the slowly unfolding mystery will keep the reader on
their toes, needing to know what happens next.
This gripping and at times quite funny novel is suitable for
children and teens of all ages, but will especially strike a chord
with those who favour mysteries and fantasy.
Emma Gay
Fuzzy Mud by Louis Sachar<br>
Bloomsbury, 2015. ISBN: 9781408864746
(Age: 9+) Highly recommended for a younger audience (aged 9+) for
its dramatic impact in a well-crafted exciting story. Themes:
Bullying; Friendship; Environmental issues. A book about bullying
and an environmental disaster! An unlikely combination in a book,
and yet it works brilliantly. The central character in this story is
in year 5 in an Academy school in America; she is quiet and a
'goody-goody two shoes'. The older boy she walks to school with has
become a target of the newly arrived bully to the school. A simple
decision to walk home via a different route to escape the bully's
threats leads them into 'Fuzzy Mud' and its life-altering and
potentially world-altering consequences. What started as a solution
to future energy needs, has mutated into a deadly organism capable
of world-wide destruction. The young pair's timidity is also
challenged, and they discover strength and friendship they didn't
think was possible.
Sachar, author of Holes, cleverly intertwines this
child-centred tale with its school-focussed issues with the record
of Interview in a Senate Inquiry following the incident and the
record of the mathematical explosion of a binary fission organism.
Carolyn Hull
A Single Stone by Meg McKinlay<br>
Walker Books, 2015. ISBN: 9781925081701
Highly recommended for age 11+. (Note for younger readers: Information
about birthing is veiled; significant deaths occur, but only basic
detail is given). Themes: Bravery; Society Rules; Matriarchal rule;
Fantasy; Defying authority. Jena is a very successful harvester of
the valuable wealth that is locked deep within the mountain
crevices, a mountain that also locks them into their valley and
community. A significant earthquake from the past has kept the
community from any attempt at escaping their circumstances, and so
they must learn to survive. Collectively, they control their society
rules to cope with their restricted freedoms. They particularly
manipulate their young girls by binding them or readjusting their
bone growth so that they remain slender and lithe and flexible
enough to creep inside the mountain cracks in order to seek out the
mica that becomes their winter fuel. This claustrophobic searching
creates a tension for the reader as we too travel with the very
young girls as they twist through the fissures within the mountain
in the search for potential warmth for their community.
The complication for the story comes when Jena discovers that the
older Matriarchs in the community have been giving pregnant mothers
'tonics' that effectively create early births, and then potentially
smaller daughters. Her journey of discovery to reveal the myths of
her community and to unearth the dangers of their practices is
almost like a journey through a labyrinth of societal secrets.
I can highly recommend this book. It is a fantasy tale, but is
really an exploration of what can happen when the struggle for
survival, combined with isolation from outside influences, causes
guidelines to be created that can eventually undermine the fabric of
the society. It takes a brave soul to question the status quo. This
book contains predominantly female characters, with few male
characters.
Carolyn Hull
The race to the beach! by Anna Shuttlewood<br>
The Five Mile Press, 2015.
(Ages: 3-7) The watercolour illustrations of this book are stunning
and the accompanying story of the zoo animals and their day at the
beach is great fun! Although they find lots to do (munching on
watermelon, building sandcastles, dozing in the summer sun) it isn't
long before long the animals are getting a tad bored of the beach.
Seal's idea, a swimming race, is met with great enthusiasm. Except
for Giraffe that is . . . he didn't seem that interested in the sea
at all. But when Crocodile, who is leading the race, needs help, it
is Giraffe and his long legs to the rescue. The zoo animals still
aren't sure whether giraffes can swim, but he is declared the winner
of the race anyway.
This is a good story to kick start a discussion about what qualities
really are important. Is it more important to be the best at
something or to be a great friend? Giraffe is a bit of a quiet
achiever, who doesn't brag about his abilities, but when there is a
friend in need, he shows great bravery.
Nicole Nelson
I don't like koala by Sean Ferrell
Ill. by Charles Santoso. Koala Books, 2015. ISBN 9781742761497
(Age: 5-8) Adam smiles widely, his arms opened wide, ready to
receive a beautifully wrapped box. Blue and white striped box now in
his hands, he eagerly sits down and unties the long red ribbon. With
bated breath he quickly lifts the lid to reveal . . .
Adam does NOT like what he sees. He thinks Koala is the most
'terrible terrible' with terrible eyes that follow him everywhere he
goes. He tries to explain to his parents his aversion - the scary
eyes, the big ears, the scratchy claws. But they don't understand.
Wherever Adam goes, Koala is there. Adam simply cannot get rid of
him. He tries everything but no matter what he does Koala will not
leave him alone. It isn't until something worse than Koala comes
along that Adam realises Koala isn't so terrible after all.
The dark humour of this title makes it suitable for a slightly older
picture-book audience who will understand Adam's attempts to rid
himself of Koala, and his eventual love for Koala. While not exactly
scary, Koala is a little disconcerting and the dark, dreary and
muted colours add to the gloominess of this quirky text. The
illustrations themselves are done in pencil and are wonderful in
their crispness, leaving lots of white space and adding a fitting
shadowiness.
It may take a couple of reads but just as Koala grows on Adam, this
picture book will grow on you. Overall, this is a quirky, humourous
tale about the comforting friendship of a stuffed toy. While it may
be too obscure for some children, it is a wonderful example of the
dark comedy genre and contains fantastic illustrations.
Nicole Nelson
The Girl at Midnight by Melissa Grey
Atom Books 2015. ISBN: 9780349002132 The Girl at Midnight is a rich fantasy which incorporates
both dragon and phoenix mythologies in order to set the parameters
of a new world within the world we know.
Echo is a destitute orphan and a thief. It looks like her life will
be nothing but trouble until she is discovered in her library home
by an Avicen woman who calls herself The Ala. The Ala finds Echo a
place between the worlds and teaches her the values of her people,
in particular; to fear the Drakharin. While thieving a present for
The Ala's birthday, Echo stumbles upon a dangerous secret, a secret
that could bring peace to the warring Drakharin and Avicen. But can
she live long enough to find it? It will be the most dangerous
adventure of her life and Echo is prepared to fight the Drakharin
Dragon Prince himself if need be, and she may have to.
While the concept behind this book is undoubtedly engaging for
fantasy lovers, it draws too much on the paranormal romance genre.
It limits itself to an audience of boy-crazy teenage girls. One of
the major issues with this book is that it seems to be more about
Echo's hormones than the conflict between the two magical races,
which is clearly more interesting. While this would be the perfect
fantasy, these aspects compromise the book and I wouldn't recommend
it unless you're a boy-crazy teenage girl who loves fantasy novels.
Kayla Gaskell (Age nineteen)
My name is Lizzie Flynn, a story of the Rajah Quilt by Claire Saxby
Ill. by Lizzy Newcomb. Black Dog Books, 2015. ISBN 9781922179913
(Age: 8 to adult) Highly recommended. Australian history. Convicts.
Needlework. My brain went into overdrive reading this fabulous book
about a quilt made by women aboard a convict ship headed for Van
Diemen's Land. As an ex history teacher and teacher librarian, my
mind skipped from convict ships to the loathsome voyage to
Australia, the reasons so many were sent out, the role of women,
what they would have found when they got here, and so on, a whole
unit of work about Australia's early history set around one
beautiful book. And then if visiting Canberra, it can actually be
seen. It's on my list.
Leaving Woolwich in 1841, the 180 women aboard the Rajah were given
cloth, scraps of material, scissors, thread and needles, along with
Bibles, to keep themselves occupied on the horrendous voyage across
the world, by reformer, Elizabeth Fry and her committee.
In this picture book, a taste of life aboard the ship is given, with
accounts of bullying, industry by some, death and storms being shown
in the compact and precise writing. Lizzie is unable to sew and
watches the other women, all the while moving the fabric around to
make patterns. Eventually she does learn to sew and this becomes her
refuge, especially after her friend, Molly dies. Once landed, the
future looks hopeful as Lizzie is taken to the laundries to work,
clutching the quilt.
This is a wonderful book showing hope in the future despite an
appalling start in life.
Several websites offer more information about this episode in
Australia's history; The National Gallery which now owns the quilt
has an outline of the
work and its history, while there is a passenger
list of those aboard the ship, Rajah. This wonderfully
illustrated book gives readers an insight into the perils of being
sent to Australia, and the industry of some in making the best of
it, as well as a taste of what some of our forebears endured in
making the forced trip.
This is an outstanding example of the ability of Black Dog Books to
produce high quality informative nonfiction picture books, with its
story and illustrations taking us with Lizze as she comes to
Australia, while two pages at the end show the real quilt along with
an explanation of the finished product.
Fran Knight
Teddy took the train by Nicki Greenberg
Allen & Unwin, 2015. ISBN 9781760112134
(Age: Junior primary) Recommended. Resilience. Imagination. Courage.
Loss. Melbourne. When Mum and Dot go to the market they have a great
time. Mum blows the steam from her coffee while Dot picks out a bun
and Teddy chooses the cabbages. But unexpected rain means a rush for
the earlier train, and squeezing into a window seat, Dot shows Teddy
all there is to see, the sights and sounds of a bustling city. When
they get off at their station, Dot realises that the train has taken
Teddy. She speaks to the railway guard, and he explains that perhaps
Teddy took the train, after planning his escape for a while. He has
joined his friends at Bear Bend and gone there to have a picnic.
When Dot goes home she explains this to her other toys, and during
the day she imagines him trying to get back home to her, overcoming
the many obstacles that may lie in his path. After tea and her bath
and about to get into bed, someone is at the door and a surprise
awaits.
In imaginative stanzas, Greenberg outlines her story about Teddy. Is
he lost on the train, left by Dot when she scampers off with her
mum, or has he planned this getaway? In delightful rhyming lines,
the story unfolds of Teddy's adventure but with a tinge of sadness
as Dot imagines what may have become of him. Teddy's resilience at
finding his way home underlines Dot's as she waits all day for him
to return.
Children will love this story, deciding if Teddy has run away or
been left by Dot in the train, wondering what will become of a lost
teddy, working out their own concerns at being lost, marveling at
the kindness of the train guard.
Greenberg's distinctive illustrative technique makes this a book to
read over again, looking for small things in each picture, looking at
the different way things are represented, spotting images of
Melbourne in the background. I loved Dot's hair replicated in the
wallpaper, and the images of people on the train, as well as Mum in
a wheelchair, and the bustling market scene.
Fran Knight
