Puffin, 2012. ISBN 9780141335698.
(Age: 9+) Carter and Sadie Kane are descendents of the House of
Life, an Egyptian temple of magic. In The Red Pyramid and The Throne
of Fire, the Kanes learnt to command their unique abilities and
revived the sun god Ra, a worthy opponent to the god of chaos,
Apophis. In the third and final installment of this electrifying
trilogy, Apophis is hell bent on bringing forth the end of days, and
the Kanes have a limited amount of time to defeat the god of Chaos
himself and save mankind.
Following on from the Percy Jackson phenomenon about Greek gods and
their offspring, The Kane Chronicles breathes life into the Egyptian
gods and goddesses. From an off-kilter exuberant hippopotamus
epitomising Hapi, the god of the Nile, and an incredibly feline and
agile female depicting Bast, the cat goddess, Riordan's creativity
shines as he interprets the quirks of these ancient beings. The Serpent's Shadow picks up where The Throne of Fire left off, as
Carter and Sadie discover an ancient spell that may defeat Apophis.
With magical abilities and an academy of magical students, these
siblings have the weight of the world on their shoulders. Told
through interchanging perspectives, we learn about Sadie's inner
turmoil between two boys, and Carter's insecurities about his role
as a leader.
It's the creativity and immensely imaginative world that Riordan has
created that's the focus here, and you'll be constantly entertained
with The Serpent's Shadow. Whether we're stumbling upon the next
Egyptian god, hearing from Sadie's ghostly mother, visiting the
underworld or seeing Carter turning into a falcon, The Serpent's
Shadow is full of surprises.
You'd definitely need to read the first two books of The Kane
Chronicles before delving into this one, as it's full steam ahead
from the first chapter. If you've read the Percy Jackson series and
you're hankering for more, or you simply love Egypt, this series
will not disappoint and you'll be wondering why it's just a trilogy.
Jeann Wong
No-bot: the robot with no bottom by Sue Hendra
Simon and Schuster, 2012. ISBN 9781471115653
(Age: 6+) Picture book. Body parts. Humour. When Bernard the robot
gets off the swing at the park, he realises that his bottom is
missing. He searches for his bottom, asking other animals he meets
for an answer to his question. Each has seen the pieces of Bernard's
bottom somewhere, and pass him on to the next animal to ask. In the
illustrations the reader sees the bottom being used for a variety of
things: a nest, drums, a flowerpot, a boat and a bucket for a sand
castle. Each time he is just too late to get back his bottom, but in
the end they are there for him to retrieve and replace on his body.
Humour abounds in this little story as the robot searches for his
bottom. The other animals that help him try their hardest, but it is
the robot which eventually finds what he is looking for. A story
which could be used as an introduction to talking about body parts,
or to defuse the anxiety some children feel about using the word
bottom, or simply to talk about searching for something until it is
found, asking friends for help, this book will find a place in
classrooms and homes.
Fran Knight
Never fall down by Patricia McCormick
Doubleday, 2012. ISBN 978 0 857 53221 3.
(Age: 14+) Recommended. Boy soldiers. Children in war. For those who
recall McCormick's, Sold (2009) will understand that she does not
hold back in her descriptions of children in desperate situations
around the world. Sold shows a young naive girl sold into sexual
slavery in Nepal, and this shows a young boy, taken by the Khmer
Rouge and forced into being a soldier. Based on a true story, Never
fall down, will educate and inform as well as tell a story that
perhaps some will find hard to read. After extensive interviews with
the person on whose life the story is based, Arn, the tale is told
in short, clipped phrases seeming to emulate the speech of someone
new to speaking English. It makes the reading more abrupt and
interrupted, rather like the life of the young man in question.
In a village in Cambodia when the Khmer Rouge move in, we see first
hand what happened in that country when it is taken over by
fanatics. All who disapprove of their regime is killed: those who
are educated, those who hold official jobs, those who have money.
All killed. To survive, Arn learns to play music, learning
very quickly from one old man who, once his tutelage is finished, is
killed.
The boy moulds a small band at the Khmer Rouge instructions,
eventually realising that the reason for the music is to drown out
the noise of those being executed: usually by a hammer bow to the
head. Starvation and many deaths follow. as millions of villagers
are taken from their homes and forced into slave labour. The
young learn not to recognise people they know: they learn to keep a
mask on their faces telling their tormenters nothing. And if the
camps are not bad enough, when the Vietnamese Army moves west to
take Cambodia back from the Khmer Rouge, Arn, always thinking only
of survival, learns how to use a rifle and becomes a boy soldier to
live.
This is not an easy read, the brutality of the Khmer Rouge is
overwhelming, and the story is told in bare clipped prose that makes
it all the more real. Rescued from a refugee camp, Arn and several
others were taken to the USA by an unusual man, where he found life
most difficult, but in finding a place of safety, Arn Chorn-Pond
founded Children of War, an organisation which aims to help those
children whose lives have been uprooted by war, and now works with
Cambodian Living Arts, a group he again founded to encourage the few
musicians who survived the Khmer Rouge to pass on their knowledge.
Fran Knight
Tom and Tilly by Jedda Robaard
Black Dog Books, 2013. ISBN 9781 742032 48 1
(Age: Pre-school) Warmly recommended. Pre school. Picture book. Bath
time. Delightful water colour illustrations follow the story of Tom
having a bath with his bear, Tilly. Tom makes a paper hat and
together they sail through the water on an adventure. They take care
to avoid pitfalls: a large yellow duck, a busy city, several
fearsome frogs, a storm, a whale and a whirlpool, until safely out
of the bath and ready for bed.
The simple story line makes this an ideal read aloud for young
children at bath and bed time, settling them into a routine of doing
these things before bed, bathing, reading a story and then falling
asleep. At the end of the story is a double page spread with
instructions for making the paper boat in which the boy and his bear
sailed through the story. This is an ideal story at bedtime, with
instructions for a craft session the next day.
Fran Knight
Stories for 5 year olds ed. by Linsay Knight
Ill. by Tom Jellett. Random House Australia, 2012. ISBN
9781742756660.
Stories for 6 year olds ed. by Linsay Knight
Ill. by Tom Jellett. Random House Australia, 2012. ISBN
9781742756660.
Recommended. These collections of short stories are from well known
authors including Robin Klein, Dianne Bates, Victor Kelleher, Bill
Condon, Vashti Farrer and Sophie Masson who all write with flair and
are sure to keep the reader's interest. As an adult I found myself
starting from the beginning and not being able to put the books down
until the end such was the quality of the stories. I am certain that
children of the selected age will equally enjoy these engrossing
stories, all in big print for the beginning reader, but equally good
to read aloud as a bedtime story or as a short story for a class
reading. My copies will be stored for my grandchildren.
In Stories for 5 year olds I was particularly taken by the story of
The two gorillas by Ursula Dubosarsky, where a little girl decides
to give the toy gorillas a bath. From then on, lots of things happen
as Becky plays with the toys; some quite scary including a gorilla
burial and cutting off a gorilla's arm. All ends well. Pets also
feature in some of the stories and children will get a giggle out of
Duck down by Janeen Brian.
Pat Pledger
Made on earth by Wolfgang Korn
Sub-title: What we wear. Where it comes from. Where it goes.
A&C Black, Bloomsbury, 2012. ISBN 9781408173916.
(Age: 11+) Is it possible to write an engaging, informative book
about globalisation? Wolfgang Korn has proven that it can be done.
Without illustrations, Made on earth offers only text, a map, a
glossary and an index, yet it takes its readers on an imaginative,
enlightening and disturbing journey.
The author has turned the manufacture and distribution of his red
fleece jumper into a narrative. Readers follow the production and
manufacturing process through three countries until the garment is
purchased then discarded, recycled and shipped overseas again. At
each stage of the jumper's existence, the people who work in the oil
fields, factories and retail outlets, as well as those who crew the
tankers and cargo ships, tell their stories. The result is a
compelling overview of the complex economic web that is the global
economy. The impact of Made on earth stems from its interweaving of
a mass of information with fictitious but convincing characters. The
use of the present tense for immediacy and a brisk, journalistic
style owe much to Wolfgang Korn's experience as a writer for
newspapers and magazines. His command of the subject may be due to
an interest in political science and history. The author has been
well served by the translator. Readers are unlikely to be aware that
the text was originally written in German. The diary structure is
effective but the use of dates in 2005 and 2007 may undermine the
urgency of the message, while text boxes that range over one and a
half pages can be visually disconcerting.
Authors of non-fiction face the challenge of knowing that their work
is not always as engaging as fiction. Wolfgang Korn has met that
challenge with a fast paced, wide ranging narrative that will open
the eyes of many older children and young adults to the system of
international trade in which we are all enmeshed. Some may even
forget that they are reading an information book.
Elizabeth Bor
The diviners by Libba Bray
Allen and Unwin, 2012. ISBN 9781742375229.
(Age: 15+) Recommended. Evie O'Neill has a secret, a power that has
gotten her into trouble in her boring hometown where she uncovered
the secrets of some powerful party goers. Bundled off to live with
her Uncle Will, curator of The Museum of American Folklore, she is
thrilled to be in New York City, with its shopping, parties, alcohol
and speakeasies. She meets a fabulous Ziegfeld Follies girl and a
handsome pickpocket, but when brutal murders occur, seemingly occult
based, she finds herself investigating with her Uncle.
The glamorous atmosphere of the 1920's New York, with parties,
dancing girls and gambling comes to life in the hands of Printz
Award-winner Bray, who has the well-honed skill to write dialogue
and describe scenes that are indelibly marked on the reader's mind.
This background is absolutely fascinating and beautifully described,
with the research going into making it feel very authentic. The
mysteries of the occult are dark and threatening and seem even worse
when contrasted with the partying, fashions and fun that flapper,
Evie craves.
Evie meets up with a strange group of people in her quest for fun
and her dangerous attempt to uncover the beast, Naughty John, who is
murdering innocent people in a horrendous fashion. There is a large
cast of characters to remember, all interesting with strange
backgrounds and strange powers. Memphis Campbell is a numbers
runner, whose healing ability has failed him. Jericho works for her
uncle and has secrets of his own, and Sam, the pick pocket, is
searching for his family who were involved with Project Buffalo.
Theta dances for the Ziegfeld Follies and lives with Henry, a
talented, gay musician. Together they have to face the evil of the
beast.
Aimed at the mature young adult, (there are references to drinking,
drugs and gambling), this large tome (578 pages), the first book in
a series, is a gripping paranormal thriller full of historical
detail. Libba Bray answers five
questions about the book for The Horn Book
and there is a site
for the series with a trailer and author information.
Pat Pledger
Quiet Queenie by Susannah McFarlane
Ill. by Lachlan Creagh. Little Mates series. Scholastic, 2012. ISBN:
9781742833316.
(Age: 3-6) This Little Mates series is beautifully Australian. Each
one focuses on a different letter and a different Australian animal.
In this case the letter is Q and the animal is Queenie who is quite
possibly the quietest quokka in Queensland. Filled with 'q' words
many of which are quintessentially Australian this book will help to
extend vocabulary, assist with phonemic awareness and help beginning
readers in letter knowledge and identification. The dedication of
each book to a single letter sometimes results in strange choices of
vocabulary and seems to dictate the path of the storyline which in
the case of Quiet Queenie is more of a sequence of vaguely related
information and events rather than a plot. As an alphabet and
vocabulary book however Quiet Queenie is a delightful small picture
book with beautiful Australian and uncommon words such as quartz,
quaint, quoits, quandong, quail, quoll, quarry, quad bike, quince,
quell and quipped.
Depicted in these books is the beautiful Australian landscape amid
gorgeous soft and detailed illustrations which children will love
searching through for other 'q' things and will delight in the cute
Australian animals. These books are a great platform for initial
sounds games with emerging readers and encourage the reader to
relate elements of the story to their own life, thereby making some
of the rich vocabulary meaningful. Each of these titles ends by
posing a question to the reader, in this case 'Are you quiet
sometimes too?'
Nicole Smith-Forrest
The Voyage by Murray Bail
Text, 2012, ISBN 9781921922961.
(Age: Adult - Senior students) The main character of this novel for
adults and senior readers is Frank Delage who manufactures pianos to
his own revolutionary design. Accompanied by a piano he travels to
Vienna from Sydney, where his workshop is based, to publicise his
wares in one of the cultural centres of Europe. What follows is a
Jamesian juxtaposition between the old rich and traditional culture
of Vienna and the gauche clumsiness of the colonial who has
travelled to show them a new way of making 'their' instrument. In
drawing rooms where Strauss played and Schoenberg had visited Delage
tries to awaken the Viennese to his new ideas, but with little
success. The Viennese salesmen do not need more piano designs and
dislike even the colour of the Australian timbers he has used, and
the Viennese aristocracy seem rather amused by the oddity of a new
style of piano. Frank is aware of himself as a man with little
charm, a quality he does not trust, and little business acumen. He
does attract attention from the aristocratic and cultured Amalia
Marie von Schalla who may have had doubts about his piano but liked
him enough to show him her breasts. Unfortunately for her, Frank has
by now also attracted the attentions of her daughter Elizabeth who
decides to accompany Frank on his less than triumphant return home.
He does sell one piano, but it has little chance of converting
listeners to its radical design as it has been chosen to be centre
piece of a conceptual work in which the piano is totally destroyed.
Oddly for a maker of pianos Frank likes silence and particularly
dislikes the chatter of the drawing room and his sister, and all
women, it's tempting to conclude. He had hoped for a silent sea
voyage home, but has to engage with Elizabeth and the few other
passengers. His reflections on his experience and his reactions to
that experience are expressed in a stream-of-consciousness style
that jumps from subject to subject, often mid-sentence. Frank is not
a believable character and the style is clumsy. Fortunately this
book is short as it never springs to life.
Jenny Hamilton
The Interrogation of Ashala Wolf by Ambelin Kwaymullina
Walker Books, 2012. ISBN 9781921720086.
(Ages: 14+) Recommended. Ashala Wolf is the leader of a tribe of
illegals hiding in the Firstwood. Now she has been captured by Chief
Administrator Neville Rose. He is intent on destroying all illegals
especially Ashala's tribe. To avoid getting caught she tried to kill
herself and almost succeeded but instead she is now injured and
vulnerable. And with her Sleepwalker ability blocked she has no way
of escaping. Ashala is forced to give up her tribe's secrets to a
machine that can pull the memories from her mind. While her
betrayer, Justin Connor, is right beside he, watching her every
move.
Ashala loves her tribe and the Firstwood, it hurts her to think that
because of this machine she is betraying them. This is a great new
series. With unexpected twists and a continuous sense of suspense it
kept me reading till the end. I would recommend reading this book
and I hope the future books in this series are just as good as this
one.
Tahlia Kennewell (Student)
Every day by David Levithan
Text, 2012. ISBN 9781921922954.
(Age: 15+) Recommended. Named only as A, every day is a
different life in a different body. Sometimes A wakes up in the body
of a boy and sometimes in the body of a girl, but always A applies
the guidelines: Never get too attached. Avoid being noticed. Do not
interfere. But then A wakes up in the body of Justin and meets
Justin's girlfriend, Rhiannon and discovers that he wants to be with
her every day.
This is a challenging book that is very difficult to classify and to
describe. I had it on my shelf for a very long time, but when it
starting coming up on best lists for 2012, I knew that I would have
to read it and I am so glad that I did. Levithan has delved into
what love is by using A's experiences in different bodies. He
explores love that is casual and complacent in how Justin treats
Rhiannon; he looks at a very caring, accepting love between two
young women and ultimately we see how A looks at love and what A
does to make sure that Rhiannon is happy.
After the initial period of getting used to the fact that A goes
from one body to another - and it is never explained how or why - I
found that A's voice was so authentic that I felt that I knew and
really liked and respected the character that A maintained even
while in different bodies. It is never clear if A is a boy or a
girl, but is just a caring, thoughtful individual who is trying to
take the best possible course in a terrible predicament.
The ideas in this book will be challenging for many as Levithan
looks at love, sexuality and relationships of all kinds, but
ultimately it made me examine the selflessness of real love, no
matter where it is found. It is a book that is sure to promote much
discussion.
Pat Pledger
Croak by Gina Damico
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2012. ISBN 9780547608327.
(Age: 13+) Recommended as a humorous paranormal read. Lex's
behaviour has become violent, so her parents have sent her off to
live with her Uncle Mort to try and get her to calm down. She thinks
she is going to be staying on a farm, but when she gets there she is
shocked to find that her uncle is a Grim Reaper and he is going to
teach her the family business. She discovers that she fits in really
well in the town of Croak, but her sense of justice doesn't allow
her to disregard the action of murderers.
I picked this title up from a best book of 2012 list and really
enjoyed its originality and humour. Damico has the ability to write
not only very funny dialogue but she keeps the reader grinning with
her descriptions and the names of the town of Croak, its streets and
surrounds. Her conversations with Edgar Allan Poe and the games of
US presidents in the Afterlife are also hilarious. However there is
also a dark side to the story and the mystery surrounding the
unexplained deaths is riveting and there is also some heartbreak
that will bring a tear to the eye.
Lex is a fabulous heroine. She is smart and fits in well with the
Reapers, but finds that she cannot subdue her sense of justice. It
becomes imperative that she discovers the killer who leaves victims
with strange eyes but no cause of death. This of course gets her
into trouble in the town of Croak and her adventures with Driggs and
a group of young misfit reapers are a great read. The love interest
with Driggs will keep young readers interested but it is her
character, her forthright manner and her quirky sense of humour that
will remain in the reader's mind.
This is a good book to offer teens who would like a break from the
saccharine paranormal romances that abound at the moment.
Pat Pledger
Racing Car is Roaring by Mandy Archer
Ill. by Martha Lightfoot. Busy Wheels series. Scholastic,
2013. ISBN: 9781742835112
(Ages: 3-6) Recommended. Rabbit loves racing around the track with
Racing Car. The big race is about to take place and as the mechanics
do some final checks on Racing Car Rabbit zips up his overalls and
puts on his helmet. VVRROOOMMM goes Racing Car as Rabbit steers it
onto the track and WHOOSH go the cars as they screech around the
bend. But what's that up ahead? The crowd gasps. There's an oil
spill on the track! Can Rabbit and Racing Car get safely around and
will it be Rabbit standing on the winner's podium?
The great elements of this book are its simplicity of story, the
relaxed way it introduces new and technical language and the fun way
it encourages interaction with its readers. The technical language
or terms associated with cars and car racing such as 'pit stop',
'skids' and 'marshall' are printed in bold print allowing young
readers to pick them out and consider them. The illustrations
themselves are clean and bold with primary colours and are very
accurate in their representation of the machinery and its parts and
the race track itself. The last couple of pages dedicate themselves
to factual information about race cars. There is a labelled diagram
of a racing car and labelled pictures of different types of racing
machines, eg. Motorbike, Formula 1 car, rally car.
This is not only a fun and engaging story but is highly factual and
informative - a perfect story to share with those curious
machine-loving preschoolers and young school-age children. Not only
will children pick up a lot of new language and concepts but it
provides ample opportunities for questions and discussions around
what these concepts mean, examining similar terms eg. 'marshall' and
'umpire' and looking at the discourse and symbols of the car racing
world, eg. 'Lights out' means 'go'.
Nicole Smith-Forrest
Sammy and the skyscraper sandwich by Lorraine Francis and Pieter Gudesaboos
Book Island (NZ), 2012. ISBN 978 0 9876696 0.
(Age: 4+) Board book. Picture book. Endeavour. This unusual board
book expounds the tale of a young boy gathering together a whole
range of food items from the kitchen cupboard and the fridge, to
make a sandwich. He piles stuff on top of each other until it
reaches the second floor of the house, passing dad in the bath. Then
on until it reaches the roof, going through the roof to go ever
upward until he needs a crane to add things to the top. The twist at
the end takes Sammy back to reality.
This board book is unusual as it has a large number of words to read
out to a child wanting it read aloud. As it is a board book, it is
one that a child can hold and be rough with, but its size (about
40cm by 25 cm) takes it out of the range of a very young child. It
will need adult supervision because of its size and the number of
words, and children will need help with the story as it is most
unusual, telling a tale about a child using up all the food to build
a sandwich which he then does not eat.
Younger kids will love it being read to them and they will love
finding all the food mentioned in the text, as well as following
Sammy's adventure and mum's patience. Each page has a variety of
things to look at and talk about.
Fran Knight
October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard by Leslea Newman
Candlewick Press, 2012. ISBN
9780763658076.
(Age: 16+) Highly recommended. Matthew Shepard was a 21 year old gay
student who was savagely beaten, tied to a fence and left to die;
all at the beginning of Gay Awareness week at his college in 1998.
And the guest speaker for Gay Awareness week was Leslea Newman, the
author of this verse novel which is a moving and powerful response
to a shocking crime of hate.
It is a slim volume of 68 poems which unfold chronologically; the
first part focuses on the night Matthew was attacked, the second
part on the subsequent trial. Surprisingly perhaps, given the
subject matter, this is not a difficult book to read. Indeed there
is a certain beauty and elegance about the volume which makes the
story it tells even more shocking. And this dichotomy is nowhere
more apparent than in the cover: a seemingly peaceful pastoral scene
which takes on new meaning with the prologue poem The Fence
(before).
Cleverly, the author offers us unique perspectives on events: from
the fence which held Matthew to the moon looking down upon him, from
his cat waiting anxiously at home to the shoes he wore on that
fateful night. The one voice we do not hear is Matthew's. Yet the
humanity of his tale is more imaginatively evoked by revealing how
many were touched by his death.
Newman weaves her tale with a variety of poetic forms, some quite
simple (haiku and rhyming couplets) and some more complex (pantoums
and villanelles). Often it is the sheer simplicity of form that will
strike a chord with the reader whilst the variety complements the
varied voices. Newman's 'explanation of poetic form' at the end of
the volume, only adds to the value and depth of the work.
Newman's sympathy clearly lies with Matthew and she openly labels
his attackers as 'monsters'. However, extensive notes at the
end of her collection outline her sources and the context of each
poem and if readers are concerned about her bias, there are also
several pages of resources for further viewing.
If October Mourning is A Song for Matthew Shephard, it is also a
song of hope: that we can learn from his death. This is not just a
lesson in humanity, it is an extraordinary achievement.
Deborah Marshall
