Hot Key Books, 2015. ISBN 9781471404702
(Age: 16+) Recommended. 'What would have happened if the Nazis had
won Wold War II?' This book, set in 2014, explores this scenario. It
tells the story from the point of view of Jessika Keller. She is the
daughter of an influential and powerful father and is set to be a
world champion ice skater. Jessika is struggling with her sexuality
and knows that her choices can have far reaching consequences.
Her neighbour Clementine is not from an influential family.
Clementine asks questions - and this makes Jessika nervous and
confused. When Clementine is scheduled for surgery to prevent her
from contaminating the gene pool the story gains momentum as it
drives toward a tragic and disturbing finish.
The author, Julie Mayhew, has included historically accurate
information in her story: the Bund Deutscher Madel, and The
Poisonous Mushroom. In her notes at the end of the book she draws
powerful correlations between her text and current day events in the
world.
While at times the writing fell flat, the story will promote much
discussion. It leaves the reader with the question: Is it ever okay
to close your eyes to avoid seeing injustice?
Linda Guthrie
Little Shaq by Shaquille O'Neal
Ill. by Theodore Taylor. Bloomsbury, 2015. ISBN 9781619637214
(Age: 6+) Highly recommended. Shaquille O'Neal's new basketball
series introduces Little Shaq, his family along with his friends to
young readers in an easy to read chapter book. The rivalry on the
basketball court between Little Shaq and his cousin Barry causes
problems. Their team wins the game when Little Shaq shoots the final
goal right on the buzzer. Unfortunately, Barry thinks his cousin
should have been a team player and let someone else participate in
the final play.
At home, the cousins problems escalate and Barry throws his game
controller in anger, breaking their favourite game. Luckily Shaq's
father is there to help the boys talk through their issues -
selfishness and resentment. He sets them a challenge to raise enough
money to purchase a new game.
At school, their science project gives Little Shaq an idea - a
gardening business where they can water and care for their
neighbour's yards. After their parents and Nana Ruth agree, they
load up the red wagon and begin their Saturday morning rounds. Along
the way, they develop an understanding of how plants grow and the
importance of working together. Little Shaq even helps Barry with
his basketball moves.
With vibrant, graphic art style illustrations Theodore Taylor
complements Shaquille O'Neal's lively writing. This new series is
excellent for sports fans and young readers, encouraging them to be
team players, working together to solve problems.
Rhyllis Bignell
Newt's emerald by Garth Nix
Allen & Unwin, 2015. ISBN 9781760112653
(Age: 10+) Highly recommended. Fantasy, Historical fiction, Regency
romance, Crime. A story that draws the reader in from the start, Nix
mixes historical fiction with a bit of magic, and a touch of romance
along with one funny situation upon another to create a Regency tale
of Truthful Newington, a strong minded but naive young woman about
to make her debut into London society. But her family's jewel, the
Newington Emerald is stolen just as her father displays her
inheritance, and she vows, along with her cousins, the Newington
Lacy's to find it. But being a polite young woman she knows that she
cannot ask the questions she wants to ask in the places in London
she needs to go, so with the help of her great aunt, Lady Badgery
she masquerades as her French cousin, Chevalier de Vienne. As he is
about to join the monastery, no one will question his innocence and
lack of background. So far so good, but when Truthful meets the
acerbic Major Barnett, she sees that she needs him to help her.
Unbeknown to her he has orchestrated their meeting as he and his
masters question the motives of this particular Frenchman in
London.
Napoleon has just been captured and the theft of the emerald means a
group will have all the money they need to repatriate Napoleon from
the Rock of Gibraltar and begin again. The English government does
not want this and along with General Ley is doing all they can to
prevent it. But Truthful gets enmeshed in the plot, and after saving
Barnett's life is expected to retire back to her gracious
surroundings and prepare for balls. This is now beyond her and
hearing that her enemy, Lady Plathened, a strong sorceress who has
her emerald will be at the same masquerade ball in Brighton as she,
dons again her own disguise to help Barnett is his capture. Fun from
start to finish, Truthful finds herself in many hair raising scrapes
where her quick wits and minimal training in magical powers are
needed. The Regency background is well delineated, the characters
engaging and the storyline fascinating. I loved it and hope to read
more about this young woman.
Fran Knight
My dog Bigsy by Alison Lester
Allen & Unwin, 2015. ISBN 9780670078936
(Age: 3+) Highly recommended. Farm animals, Dogs, Friendship,
Routine. When Bigsy gets up in the morning, he wanders around the
farm greeting and being greeted by all the animals he sees. He
chases the cockatoos, sends the kangaroos back over the fence, talks
to the horses, herds the ducks to the dam, runs around the cows who
do not move at all, chases the sheep, something he is not supposed
to do, plays with his friends Slinky, and so on, back to the
farmhouse, and as his friend is getting up for the day, he goes back
to bed, tired out from all his exertions.
I love the endpapers with the maps of the animals Bigsy will meet on
his morning excursion. They place the animals in the minds of the
readers.
Each delightful double page shows Bigsy with one set of animals. He
barks or woofs or makes some sort of noise at the animal he is with
and they respond in a like way, showing readers the sorts of nosies
these animals make. He plays with them in some way or other, showing
again the nature of the animal he is dealing with. On his way around
the farm, younger readers will get to know the animals found on a
farm, something about them and the noise that they make, all within
the context of a dog's walk. Each double page will encourage a
reader to question. Why do the kangaroos need to be over the fence?
Why do the hens not able to tell how many eggs they have laid? Why
does the pig tell Bigsy off?
Lester has used her familiar watercolour technique to present the
story to the readers and has included cut out material as some parts
of the background, adding texture and interest. What a wonderful way
to introduce farm animals to younger children, and I can imagine
classes reading this book out loud, gleefully practising the noises
made by Bigsy and the animals he meets, taking to heart the all
encompassing affection between the dog and his owner as they swap
their places in her bed, adding a kernel of humour on which the book
is ended.
Fran Knight
This & that by Mem Fox
This & that by Mem Fox
Ill. by Judy Hoacek. Scholastic, 2015. ISBN 9781743622537
(Age: 3-6) Highly recommended, Bedtime, Stories, Readaloud, Family.
The elegant simplicity of Fox's words in this book, parallel the
line and colour block illustrations by Horacek. Each is deceptively
simple, foreshadowing the effort gone into the book to pare it back
to the bare minimum.
The words 'I'll tell you a story of this, and I'll tell you a story
of that' introduce the book, and are repeated after every rhyming
couplet which gives a hint of a fanciful tale. In putting the baby
mouse to sleep, the parent tells stories. The first is of a
cavernous tale and a chimp with a magic hat, then two boys running
down a road with a cat, then on to a pair of crazy giraffes and so
on. Each gives the illustrator the opportunity to embellish and
extend the lines, as each turn of the page reveals something from
the page before peering over the next illustration. And watch out
for the mice running through the whole story, beginning on the
cover.
And the illustrations allude to many other stories; stories about
animals, giraffes and elephants, mice and cats, kings and queens,
carriages and castle, reminding children of stories they have heard
at night before sleep. Finally the story ends and the baby mouse is
bid goodnight with a hug.
Fox's story is imbued with family, with storytelling at its heart as
the children go to bed, of love and hugs, of familiarity. Children
will love recognising images from other stories they have heard, and
join in with the refrain, laughing at the antics of the mice as they
make their way through a range of stories. Hoacek and Fox worked on
Where is the green sheep (2010) and I heard Mem Fox read this
aloud to a group of children keeping the audience enraptured, and
this will too.
Fran Knight
The Hollow Boy by Jonathan Stroud
Lockwood & Co., bk 3. Corgi Books, 2015. ISBN
9780552573146
(Age: 11+) Highly recommended. Fantasy. Ghosts. Horror. Lockwood
& Co are back in another exciting adventure following the first
two books in the series, The screaming staircase and The
whispering skull. Ghostly phenomena is growing in an alarming
way in Chelsea, but Lockwood, Lucy and George haven't been asked to
help out. Instead they are faced with minor apparitions until Holly,
the new assistant gets them a job with an influential woman. Then
they have to all work together to face their toughest job yet.
This series just keeps getting better. Lots of ghosts, thrills,
adventure and depth of characterisation make it a stand out read.
Once again it is narrated in Lucy's voice. When she returns from a
brief holiday visiting her family, she discovers that Lockwood has
employed Holly Munro, a girl who is everything that Lucy isn't -
tidy, organised and beautifully dressed. Lucy finds it hard going to
even be polite to Holly, let alone manage the overwhelming desire
that she has to talk to the ghosts that they encounter, instead of
eliminating them immediately. Of course, this is alright when the
ghost has a benign reason to talk, but when the ghost is vicious,
then it puts everyone into danger. The skull that only Lucy can hear
doesn't help with its insidious comments.
Lucy is also obsessed with finding out what has happened to
Lockwood's sister, and gradually the reader begins to learn some
more about Lockwood. The reference to 'The hollow boy' is intriguing
and keeps the reader thinking about the characters, long after the
book is finished.
Of course, amongst the angst and differences between the characters,
there is adventure galore, as the group battle deadly ghosts with
their rapiers, salt and iron. Readers familiar with Chelsea in
London will enjoy imagining the department store that is taken over
by the spectral apparitions, and there are many heart stopping
moments especially for Lucy as the team faces down dire ghouls.
I really enjoyed The hollow boy. Stroud builds an
exceptional adventure with a great cast of young protagonists. He
also leaves the reader breathless and waiting for the next in the
series, with an unexpected cliff hanger conclusion.
Pat Pledger
We're going on a Santa hunt by Laine Mitchell
Ill. by Louis Shea. CD Recording by Jay Laga'aia. Scholastic
Australia, 2015
ISBN 9781743626429 (Age: 2-8) This is one of many of Scholastic's
many book and CD sets and these three artists (Mitchell, Shea and
Laga'aia) collaborated on the similar We're Going on an Egg Hunt,
which I think suited the 'we're going on a bear hunt' formula better
than this one does. Shea's illustrations (he also does the Where's
Santa search book) are filled with interesting animal
characters and surprising colours; there are lots of dark shades and
almost fluorescent colours. This gives a strange phosphorescent
quality to some of the pages. In addition, the illustrations on the
endpapers don't seem to match the rest of the illustrations.
Regardless, children will be drawn to this pop of bright colour
against the dark cover background and the sparkly gold title, but
may not be so engaged by the story. As a read-aloud some of the
lines seem like they are forced to fit in to the structure and do
not even translate well to song. Listening to the audio, it seems a
challenge for Laga'aia to sing it, and almost impossible to join in
with some parts. For example, 'We can't go over it. We can't go
under it. We'll have to go through it! Run so fast to lead the
charge!' and 'Look out! What is it? A reindeer herd! Holding sled
team races!' The lack of flow and rhythm makes it more of a 'put on
the cd and let the child listen to it and look at the book' rather
than the fun, interactive book it should really be.
Nicole Nelson
Dandelions by Katrina McKelvey
Ill. by Kirrili Lonergan. EK Books, 2015. ISBN 9781921966828
(Age: Pre-school - Yr 2) Oh dear! Dad has mown the lawn and, to his
daughter's dismay, he's cut down two dandelions. He sees them as
weeds but she's been watching and waiting for them to be puffballs
so she can blow their fluffiness away on the wind. To her,
dandelions are magical, a part of a miniature world that big people
can't see. Disappointed but pragmatic and forgiving her father, she
settles to wait for them to grow again but dad has a surprise for
her. There are a couple by the verandah post that he hasn't pulled
and they're just ripe for blowing. But where do they go when you
blow? Take your imagination on a journey as you follow the tiny
parachutes over the fence, along the street, through the park, down
to the river and onwards, ever onwards.
This is a most calming, peaceful story about enjoying being in the
moment and taking time out to just be, imagine and wonder. Who
hasn't enjoyed the sunny face of a dandelion and blown a 'fairy
clock'? Who would love to take time out, lie on the fresh-mown lawn,
look at the endless sky and just dream? Where will your imagination
drift? Does it go the same place mine does? Why not? Celebrating a
most ordinary moment in daily life, it encourages the adult reader
to take time to notice the small things that are big things to the
children in our lives and rejoice in them.
The beautiful, gentle watercolours give the book so much of its
charm and tranquillity, giving life to the lyrical text through its
beautiful design. Created by a former paediatric nurse, they ooze a
knowledge of very young children in need of comfort and time out, a
chance to take themselves out of wherever they are at the moment.
In the busy, noisy life of school, this is a perfect choice for that
after-lunch settling period as you invite the children to imagine
they had just blown the seeds and where they would travel. Would
they have a different journey from that in the story? And what
happens to them when they land? A magical introduction to an
investigation about how things grow!
Barbara Braxton
Tadpoles. Fairytale twists series by various authors
Crabtree Publishing The Pied Piper and the Wrong Song. ISBN 9780778719601 Snow White sees the Light. ISBN 9780778719571 The Elves and the Trendy Shoes. ISBN 9780778719571
(Age: K-2) These are just three in a series of traditional
fairytales that have been given a new, modern twist to turn them on
their head. In Snow White sees the Light, Snow White is tired of
being treated like a slave by the dwarves and enlists the help of
the Queen with the magic mirror; in The Elves and the Trendy Shoes
no one wants to buy the elves' old-fashioned footwear then one day
they wake up to find their shop full of trendy shoes; and in The
Pied Piper and the Wrong Song the rats don't disappear. Cinderella,
The Three Pigs, Hansel and Gretel, and The Ugly Duckling are among
sixteen tales that have been given a modern slant in this collection
suitable for newly independent readers looking for something a bit
different.
Vibrant illustrations and puzzles that encourage the reader to
sequence the story (a critical element of the organising strand of
the information literacy process) add appeal and there are also
notes to adults to help them make the reading more of a five-minute
wonder with suggestions for helping the young person predict, use
the context cues, and make connections between the text, themselves
and the world, thus supporting the strategies we encourage within
the classroom.
As well as being entertaining reads for the K-2 age group, these
stories would also be valuable teaching tools in teaching students
about the interpretation of texts and the factors that influence the
author's perspective. While the original stories were written as
didactic stories to keep young children on the straight and narrow
for fear of dire consequences, what do they look like through a more
modern lens? Perhaps older students could be challenged to make
their own take on one of the stories. Valuable additions to the
collection are those that can be read and used across a range of
ages, and this series fits that bill.
Barbara Braxton
Tower of Thorns by Juliet Marillier
Blackthorn & Grim, bk 2. Macmillan, 2015. ISBN 9781743535448
(Age: 15+) Highly recommended. Fantasy. Fairy tale retelling. The
second in the series following the Aurealis Award winning Dreamer's
Pool, is another enthralling episode in the lives of
Blackthorn and Grim. Lady Geileis, a noblewoman, has asked for the
Prince of Dalriada's help to expel a howling creature from an
abandoned tower on her land. The tower is surrounded by impenetrable
thorns and the sound of the howls of the creature have cast a blight
over the whole area, and threaten the sanity of its inhabitants. The
Prince asks Blackthorn and Grim to investigate and as they seek
answers it becomes apparent that strange things are going on and
that Lady Geileis may know more than she is telling them.
This is a beautifully written story. The prose flows along, with
Marillier creating a world that is very easy to visualise. The manor
house, the abandoned tower, the abbey and all their attendants, are
brought to life in such a vivid way that they remain with the reader
long after the book is finished. The harsh Blackthorn is at her
best, as a healer and as a problem solver as she seeks the truth
behind the howling creature in the tower. The background story to
Grim gradually unfolds in a fascinating way, and his actions had me
in tears more than once, as he proves just how heroic he is.
Marillier builds up the tension in the story as the puzzle behind
the howling creature is gradually uncovered. The story feels
familiar, as fairy tale retellings do, but there is much to think
about and to ponder, as the tragic tale of love unfolds and danger
faces both Blackthorn and Grim. Tower of thorns could easily be read as a standalone as
Marillier gives the reader enough background to understand the
characters, but readers would then want to go back to Dreamer's
Pool, as the characters are so fascinating. Juliet Marillier
is one of my favourite authors and I look forward to reading more in
the Blackthorn & Grim series.
Pat Pledger
Octonauts Creature Report
Simon and Schuster, 2015. ISBN 9781471117787
Highly recommended for children who are fans of the Octonauts TV
show. Octonaut Creature Report is a collection of fact
sheets and Octonaut styled images about different ocean creatures.
Read about the bottle-nosed dolphin or the snot sea cucumber. Find
the matching stickers for each page.
Young children will enjoy looking at the bright cartoon style
pictures but will require support, from independent readers, with
the text.
It is a great way to introduce non-fiction texts to young children.
Kylie Kempster
In the evening by Edwina Wyatt
Ill. by Gaye Chapman. Little Hare, 2015. ISBN 9781742975283
(Age: 5+) Highly recommended. Themes: Friendship; Overcoming
obstacles in friendship; Shyness; Making Friends. I loved the text
in this book - it is a lovely story of the discovery of friendship
between Oscar and Charlie, despite the anxious misgivings of Oscar.
Their isolation from one another eventually is overcome by simple
acts of kindness, even though they are not initially well-received.
They both become concerned for each other - without ever having met.
The poetic start to the first few pages allows a tender introduction
to the difficulties of the characters living relatively lonely and
separated lives. However, the illustrations could have done so much
more in connecting this gentle plot-line to a child's understanding.
The illustrations are inspired by an Emily Dickinson poem: 'There's
a Certain Slant of Light' and are atmospheric, muted interpretations
of the text using watercolour washes and eccentric pencil drawings
of animal characters with a few 'splatters' of light added. Although
I admire the intention, I am surprised the Publisher and/or
Illustrator did not aim for a more realistic visual portrayal that
children could connect to more easily. Overcoming anxiety and
beginning a friendship with a shy friend would have resonated so
much more obviously with a more realistic choice of illustration
style, although I recognise the 'poetry' of the image as well as the
lyrical text.
Worth reading for the beauty of the writing alone.
Carolyn Hull
Meet . . . Sidney Nolan by Yvonne Mes
Ill. by Sandra Eterovic. Meet . . series. Random House
Australia, 2015. ISBN 9780857985897
I recently evaluated the 759 section of an established primary
school library collection, the section that could be best described
as 'painters and their paintings'. While there was a solid
representation of those European artists that could be expected,
there was nothing relating to our Australian painters, particularly
those of the 20th century. So I was delighted to see that the latest
in the Meet. series, that collection of biographies about iconic
Australians for primary students, addressed the life and times of
Sir Sidney Nolan. Its focus is the story behind the distinctive Ned
Kelly paintings (available via Scootle MO12591).
As a young boy growing up in Victoria, Nolan loved to listen to the
stories about Ned Kelly told to him by his grandfather who was a
police officer at the time. It inspired his imagination in many ways
and so when circumstances of World War II had him on the run rather
like the Kelly gang, an idea was sparked and a signature series of
images was created. And from that grew a new and different way to
show this country's amazing landscape making his style and works
instantly recognisable, both in Australia and beyond. There is now a
permanent display of his works at the Canberra Museum and Gallery http://www.cmag.com.au/collections/nolan-collection
and together with the tools available on that site, this new
addition to this series is perfect for enabling younger students to
begin to learn about the legacy of this great Australian.
Barbara Braxton
Sun kissed by Jenny McLachlan
Bloomsbury, 2015. ISBN 9781408856116
(Age: Upper primary - lower secondary) Themes: love, friendship,
fitness, Sweden, challenges, resilience, humour. 15 year old Kat,
after an unfortunate incident involving her older sister's
ex-boyfriend, is sent to spend the summer holidays with her aunt in
Sweden. Devastated at leaving her best friends behind, Kat promises
to keep in constant communication with them and travels, alone for
the first time, to Stockholm, where there is the anticipation of
some serious shopping opportunities. However, on arrival eccentric
Aunt Frida whisks her off to a remote island to a cabin without
power and no phone signal. Once on the island Kat is free to roam,
meeting Nanna and her twin who are training for the island's
marathon challenge 'Tuff Troll' involving a 5km run, a 1km swim and
a 1km kayak. Things look up when Kat meets Leo and spends a
wonderful day alone with him, capped off with a thrilling cliff jump
into deep water. When Leo's girlfriend turns up Kat is hurt and
confused but vows not to let them spoil her stay. She tells them she
and her friend are entering the competition and the story unfolds
from there. This is the third in the Ladybirds series,
following the group of friends negotiating the early teen years with
humour as they find out who they are and what is important in their
lives. Romance is there but friendship, discovering inner strengths
and resilience are more central and in this volume Kat explores some
of her Swedish heritage and discovers the power of physical
competition in developing self-awareness and inner strength.
This playful look at girls on the brink of independence experiencing
lots of 'firsts' in life will appeal to 'Chic Lit' lovers from upper
primary to lower secondary.
The author's website is here.
Sue Speck
Manners & Mutiny by Gail Carriger
Finishing School bk 4. Atom Books, 2015. ISBN 9781907411595
(Age: 12+) Recommended. The Finishing School series comes to
a satisfying conclusion in Manners and Mutiny. Sophronia is
missing her sootie, Soap and is really worried about what the wicked
Picklemen are up to. Her teachers ignore her warnings about them and
she is unsure about who to trust - Lord Akeldama the vampire or the
werewolf dewan. As a large scale plot starts, it is Sophronia who
has to save her school and her friends from invasion in a series of
clever and dangerous actions.
All is revealed about the Picklemen and what they are up to and it
is a surprising and dastardly plot indeed. Sophronia continues in
her role as a clever and daring young heroine who puts all her
training to good effect to overcome the Picklemen. Alongside her
adventures is her continuing interest in Soap, whom society dictates
is not the ideal candidate for her hand, and it is fascinating to
see how this romance progresses. There are other surprises in store
with some of Sophronia's friends having hidden talents.
The Afterword is a wonderful way to let the reader into what happens
next with the characters and it certainly made me wish to see more
of Sophronia, Soap and her friends as adults in a new series.
Lots of fun, quirky dialogue and great action make this amusing,
unique steampunk series an enthralling read.
Pat Pledger
