Reviews

Elephant alert by Jackie French

Ill. by Terry Whidborne. Animal Rescue series. Scholastic, Australia: 2012. ISBN 9781741698480.
Recommended for readers 8+. Jackie French has taken the plight of endangered animals as the theme of her new Animal Rescue series. With her easy to read style and engaging if unusually talented characters, her environmental message is conveyed with humour and action. Elephant facts at the end add to the veracity of the message.
Leo wishes something cool would happen as he sits talking with his guinea pig one hot afternoon. He is friendless and considered weird by his school mates. Then a robot gorilla arrives with an invitation to tea from Mozz, granddaughter of Dr Drizzsock, local scientist. Just a normal Sunday really!
This is the beginning of an amazing adventure to rescue elephants from a tsunami threatening to engulf their island home off of Sumatra. Leo's talent for speaking animal, rather than his friendship with Mozz, is the reason he finds himself in the Sky Tiger, a jet made entirely of recycled material, with Mozz and Fuzz, a jealous 3 legged woof pup, flying faster than the speed of sound.
With the occasional illustration to add to the narrative, this is an engaging series for the young adventurous environmentalist who will gain some information about endangered animals whilst enjoying the developing friendship between Mozz and Leo.
Sue Keane

Oh, No, Monster Tomato by by Jim Helmore and Karen Wall

Egmont, 2009. ISBN 9781405247412.
It was the time for the Great Grislygust Grow-Off when the residents tried to grow the biggest and best. This year, Marvin planned to grow the tastiest tomatoes in town, much to the disgust of brother and sister Boris and Prunella who mocked and bullied him. Motivated and showing remarkable resilience, Marvin plans and plants and waits and watches, while all around him the people of Grislygust seem to be having great success. Marvin is bamboozled, until he tries something very different. The results are quite magical and the ground begins to grumble and shake until Marvin has more than he bargained for.
This is a lovely story with bright, quirky illustrations, lift-the-flaps and humour that will delight the younger age group. Because the text is in handwriting interspersed with other fonts to provide emphasis, I think it is more a read-aloud or read-along rather than a read-alone. Throughout the story there are a number of opportunities to entice the children to predict what might happen next that will also keep them engaged. Miss 5, who adores tomatoes, really enjoyed the story and we are going to try to grow our own next spring - I do hope we don't have quite the dramatic results that Marvin did.
Barbara Braxton

Marngrook : A long ago story of Aussie Rules Football by Titta Secombe and Grace Fielding

Magabala Books, 2012. ISBN 9781921248443.
(Ages: 6+). Warmly recommended. Aboriginal stories. Australian Rules Football. I was initially surprised to receive another book detailing the Aboriginal origins of Australian Rules Football but upon reading this one found that the two books I have recently read fit well together.
Marngrook, subtitled, A long ago story of Aussie Rules Football, outlines the story of Wawi, who walking in the bush around the Grampians in Western Victoria, comes across a possum. Killing it with his boomerang, he skins it and uses the meat for a meal for his family. After eating, he carefully uses a sinew from a kangaroo tail, sewing up the possum skin into a roundish ball, stuffing it with emu feathers. When the last hole is sewn up, the shape resembles an emu egg, and the children run off playing with it, practicing their kicking and having fun despite their mother's call to collect wood.
This is a fascinating story of how the football came to be, and blends well with the picture book, Kick it to me by Neridah McMullin recently published by One Day Hill. This story tells the tale of Tom Wills, who growing up in Western Victoria played the game of marn-grook with his Aboriginal friends, later being able to suggest it as a new Australian sport.
The two stories sit well together, one from an Aboriginal perspective, and one from a European perspective, but both telling the tale of how Aussie Rules came to be, a subject dear to the hearts of many Australians, regardless of their origin.
In this book, Marngrook, the tale also shows Aboriginal family life, the skills of the hunter, the environment in which they live and their use of it as a place for food, clothing, weapons and playthings. Tucked within the story children reading it will also have a sense of the close knit community of Aboriginal people and their strong association with the land around them.
The naive painting style suits the book as it includes dots and traditional Aboriginal painting styles, not only telling the story through the illustrations, but also detailing the life and times of the people in the area.
Author, Titta Secpmbe is a descendant of the people who lived around the Grampians in Western Victoria, the Gunditj-marra-Jard-wa, and was brought up hearing this story, while illustrator, Grace Fielding grew up at the Wandering Mission near Perth and has won awards for her children's book illustrations.
Fran Knight

Ten Scared Fish by Ros Moriarty

Ill. by Balarinji Studio. Allen and Unwin, 2012. ISBN 978-1-74237-912-8.
(Recommended age: 2 years +) Ten scared fish is an excellent book for children because of the bright colours and large writing which is clear and easy to read.
The author and illustrators have worked well together as the pictures and text are very well matched . The simple text, complimented by the stylized graphics are very descriptive as well, as beautiful. The illustrations combine aboriginal symbols along with vivid colours and traditional patterns.
The animals in the story are turtles, snakes, shark and fish. The personality of the animals shine through despite the use of such simple drawings.
At first reading the book seems to be a simple counting book, as the animals are introduced one by one: the turtles, snakes, fish and finally shark. On closer inspection another layer of the story is revealed, as the environmental setting changes, flowing from the waterhole through the wetlands, to the river and finally to the ocean, where the fish are surprised and become scared.
Why would they be scared?
Reviewed by Year 6/7, Dunstan 2, Parkside Primary School, SA.

The Messy Mother's Day by Lucie Billingsley

Lothian Children's Books, 2012. ISBN: 987-0734412430. (Recommended ages: 3 year old listeners up to 6 year old readers). Everyone wants to give their mum the best Mother's Day, even Baxter the dog. In this fantastic rhyming book, a family tries to give their mother a great Mother's Day but Baxter the dog does a great deal of helping. What starts as a normal Mother's Day turns out to be a real mess.
The Messy Mother's Day uses rhyming and repetition, in a similar way to many picture books, to encourage young readers. Throughout the book the text is written creatively with some difficult words, used to build the children's vocabulary, written in a large bold font. The text fits in well with the descriptive and detailed pictures.
The Messy Mother's Day has really good illustrations. It is a wonderful, water-colour picture book. The book is colourful and helpful for young children learning to read. The creative pictures match the story line. There is an incorporation of mess throughout the pictures of the book.
Overall, an excellent picture book, good for young children, this book shows how families come together in times of need. Despite all the misery and mess, do you think mum will enjoy her Mother's Day?
Year 6/7 - Dunstan 1, Parkside Primary School, SA.

My marvellous Mum by Susannah McFarlane

Ill. by Lachlan Creagh. Little Mates (Series). Scholastic, 2012. ISBN 978 1 74283 224 1.
Picture book. Mother's Day. For the very young, this homage to mothers in the animal world has parallels to mothers in the human world, as two small animals have words to say about their fabulous mothers. The repetition of words beginning with M, is infectious, and listeners will have a fun time thinking what the next adjective might be in describing the attributes of the mothers portrayed. Max's Mum is miraculous because she is able to mend machines, while Matilda's Mum never misses a match, and can make her hurts go away. Each page has a positive attribute of the two mothers, ending with the annual Mother's Day picnic where, of course, all the things to eat begin with M.
The illustrations of the koalas and possums and their M words are cutely drawn and will encourage readers to look and laugh and predict, adding another to the Scholastic series of alphabet books for the young.
Fran Knight

Advent by James Treadwell

The Advent Trilogy: Book 1. Hodder, 2012. ISBN 9781444728477.
(Suited For: 16+) Recommended. Gavin Stokes is a regular city kid from London who thinks that his parents want nothing to do with him. Ever since he was a child, Gavin has seen things that no one else will believe. Sent to Cornwall to stay with his peculiar aunt, Gavin begins to uncover the source of his visions and the magic that surrounds them. An ancient magic, lost for centuries, which is only now returning to the world once more.
With the recent conclusion of the Harry Potter series still fresh in their minds, many readers could be forgiven for being somewhat tentative to delve straight back into the realm of fantasy and magic. Though Advent contains a boy-wizard of sorts, that is where the similarities stop. Treadwell has skilfully managed to breathe some much needed air back into the genre.
With an array of colourful characters combined with Treadwell's natural story-telling ability, Advent is an enjoyable read for all ages. At times it can be perhaps slow, which may disinterest younger readers, but the reader's attention is never entirely lost. Directed at a slightly older audience than that of the Harry Potter series, Advent has the potential to attract new readers to the genre whilst fans of the fantasy-magic variety will find themselves engaged in the originality of the story.
Advent is one of the better books of the fantasy-magic genre to come along since the inception of the Harry Potter series. The originality of the story combined with Treadwell's ability to keep the reader engaged throughout the entirety of the book make Advent an enjoyable read for all ages.
I recommend this book.
Michael Adams

Rama and Sita by Malachy Doyle

Ill. by Christopher Carr. Bloomsbury Books, 2012. ISBN 9781408139516.
(Ages 6+) Folk Tales. India.  With large, colourful and bold illustrations, the Indian folk story of Rama and Sita is given life in short, easy to read sentences and brief but vivid descriptions. The tale is of Sita, stolen by the Demon King and taken to his inaccessible island. Rima searches for her and being good and true, enlists the help of the monkey king who tells his followers to build a bridge to allow access to Rima and the demon king's army. They overpower the demon and his followers returning Sita to her rightful place.
This story reflects that goodness will overpower evil, just like the little oil lamp brings light to the darkness, and this story is remembered each year at the festival of Diwali, where lamps are lit to recall the story.
This book is one in a new series, Stories from World Religions, published by Bloomsbury in England, and would be a sound addition to a school library.
Fran Knight

Meet Nellie by Penny Matthews

Our Australian Girl (series). Penguin, 2012. ISBN 978 0 14 330623 8.
(Ages: 9+). Historical. Nellie has lived in the workhouse in Ireland, since the deaths of most of her family during the Great Hunger which struck Ireland in the middle of the nineteenth century when the potato crop failed. Unable to feed himself, let alone his daughter, her father placed her there, knowing she would have food and shelter. From there she was put aboard a ship bound for South Australia to work in the new colony.
So begins the story of Nellie, the fifth in the series of stories about girls throughout Australia's history, adding another 4 books to the 16 already published. She remains at the Depot where she is taken by a woman to be a helper in the kitchen at her boarding house. From Nellie's vantage point we see the colony and the new migrants who have come out to make a new life for themselves. Mrs Thompson who runs the boarding house has a husband working in the mines at Burra, several of the young men boarding with her work in places in Rundle Street, the centre of commerce, and we hear of the Governor, and the Aboriginal people on the streets. When the boarding house is destroyed in a fire, Nellie must fend for herself, as the family moves to Burra, and there is no room for Nellie.
Girls reading of Nellie will read of the perilous journey to Australia and the lack of protection these young girls had coming to a new colony, alone and without a family to support them.
For the 600 Irish workhouse girls who came to Adelaide, their lives must have been grim and Matthews' book will encourage its readers to think about this.
This is the first in the series of four books about Nellie, the second, being Nellie and the secret letter. As with all the others in this series, there is information about Nellie's time, facts about the date in Australia's history, an introduction to the next book, and an outline of the others in the series. The cover shows bits which have a significance to the story inside, and the charm at the top of the cover shows the date in which this book is set.
The whole series brings history alive for middle primary readers, and the books are supported with an extensive website.
with teacher notes.
Fran Knight

Dear Dylan by Siobhan Curham

Lone Pine by Susie Brown and Margaret Warner

Ill. by Sebastian Ciaffaglione. Little Hare, 2012 .ISBN 9781921541346.
In 1915, on a Turkish hillside a lone pine stood in a barren wasteland above a fierce battle being waged between the Turks and ANZACs, a conflict that has become part of Australia's history and identity. In 1934, a sapling grown from that lone pine was planted in the grounds of the Australian War Memorial in Canberra, Australia's national capital. In 2012, that tree still stands tall in beautiful, lush surroundings in memory and recognition of the events of 1915.
Lone Pine is the true story of that journey. From a soldier looking for his brother, a mother mourning the loss of her son, a gardener understanding both the significance and the vision, a Duke performing a ceremonial duty we learn of how a tiny pine cone from that solitary tree has become such a symbol in our commemorations. Told in simple prose against a backdrop of muted but magnificent artistry which you can view , the story is both moving and haunting. The soldier's mother plants three seeds but only two saplings survive, just like her sons; fierce storms batter the sapling the day it is planted at the AWM, just as war clouds started rumbling around Europe once again; it survives to stand tall and strong despite the storms it has to weather, just as our hope for peace does. The continuity of life through the pine tree echoes the seasons and cycles of human life.
Jointly written by a teacher librarian and a teacher, there is a real understanding of how to engage the target audience and tell a true story that is not just a recount of an historical event. Accompanying the story are notes about the events it depicts including more information about the tree itself which reinforce the theme of the renewal and continuity of life. As well as the sapling planted at the AWM, its twin was planted as a memorial to the fallen brother in Inverell, and even though this has since been removed because of disease, its son lives on at Inverell High School, planted by the fallen soldier's nephew. Two trees propagated from the pine at the AWM were taken to the Gallipoli Peninsula and planted there by a group of ANZACs in 1990.
There is much more about the tree and its descendants  and teaching notes are available that will take the students well beyond the story of a remarkable tree. With the resurgence of the significance of ANZAC Day in the understanding of our young, and a pilgrimage to the Dawn Service at ANZAC Cove becoming a must-do, life-changing event, the story of the lone pine deserves to be better known, and this wonderful book HAS to be a part of any school library's ANZAC collection.
Barbara Braxton

Red Dirt Diary 2: Blue about love by Katrina Nannestad

ABC Books, 2012. ISBN 978-0-7333-3069-8.
(Age: 9-12) Blue (Trudy Alice) Weston continues her diary writing for another year. Obviously book 1, Red Dirt Diary, being her first collection of thoughts about her life on her family's farm, Hillrose Poo.
Blue is now 12 and has to come to terms with the fact that she is going to be a bridesmaid for beloved teacher, Miss McKenzie. It's not only the girly bridesmaid world she has been unwillingly thrown into but also the fact that she is unhappy Miss McKenzie is going to be married and to someone Blue does not approve of. Her best friend Mat (Matilda Jane) is no help as she can't get enough of the wedding preparations.
Blue's family life on the farm with its odd collection of animals is hilarious. Her twin brothers Wez and Fez continue their death defying acts with their pig chariots and the pigs themselves have a bizarre and comical list of behaviours. I laughed out loud during some of the descriptions of (pig) Gunther's antics with his adopted ducklings.
Although there is plenty of humour in the story, there are many poignant moments of sadness and a great sense of caring and understanding is evident in the small farming community of Hardbake Plains.
The first person diary format appeals to students but unlike Diary of a Wimpy Kid there is much more text and only a scattering of line illustrations. Students who loved books such as Penny Pollard's Diary and Audrey of the Outback will happily move on to this longer text.
Both Red Dirt Diaries have a strong Australian flavour and are suitable for 9 to 12 year olds.
Jane Moore

More Bloody Horowitz by Anthony Horowitz

Walker Books, 2011. ISBN 978 1 4063 2561 4.
Perhaps the author could now have his name spelt as 'Horror' witz with this collection of 12 horror stories aimed at 12+ year olds.
The stories range in topics from the death of author Darren Shan to the modern day tales of selling your daughter on e bay and the T V reality show that provides a very grizzly end for the failed participants. With interesting twists and turns, Horowitz has fun with the genre and provides a variety of bizarre deaths and plots. My Bloody French Exchange is a vampire story with an unexpected outcome and in The Cobra and Power some very unpleasant children come to a very unpleasant end.
The book has an intentional retro 'cheap paperback' feel about it. The cover shows Horowitz's portrait watching a skeletal 'author' with quill and ink composing 'tales of horror', while the two column text on newspaper print quality paper is accompanied by black and white comic style illustrations. For those who need a break from the bloody stories an intermission section containing a 'poem, comment (and) crossword' is provided.
The book ends with a fun 'tongue in cheek' chapter from the chairman of Walker Books, David Lloyd.
For children who want something scary (but not terrifying) this is it. I have seen this book in a larger format and there is even a DS game with the same name!
Jane Moore

Lenobia's Vow by P.C and Kristen Cast

Atom, 2012. ISBN 9781907411199.
Before Zoey knew Lenobia as a professor and the House of Night's horse mistress, she was an ordinary teenage girl . . . but with a lifetime worth of problems. Lenobia's mother sent her on a ship to New Orleans. On the same ship is an evil bishop skilled in Dark magic and he wants her. On her new journey Lenobia hides in the stables away from the Dark bishop and finds herself face-to-face with love. Getting Marked as a vampire turns her world in the opposite direction.
The novella explains Lenobia's background. The book answers why Lenobia doesn't have a partner and explains why she is the House of Night's horse mistress in the House of Night series. The author's writing is thrilling and is a great read. I could not put it down. There are a few touchy scenes that make the book better, just love this novella.
Cecilia Richards (Student)

Love-shy by Lili Wilkinson

Allen and Unwin, 2012. ISBN 9781742376233.
(Age: 13+) Highly recommended. Penny Drummond wants to be a journalist. She is honing her skills on the school's newspaper and decides that she needs a big story, one that is different to the rest in the paper. When she discovers that a boy at her school is posting anonymous messages on a love-shy forum, she makes it her mission to 'find him, fix him, feature-article him. Next stop: Pulitzer Prize.' (Back cover).
Penny is judgmental, bossy and has no close friends. She pushes her way through life at school, not really realising that she is a social misfit. She is not prepared to forgive her mother for leaving home when her dad told her he was gay. She is taken back when Rin the girl next door makes overtures of friendship, and competes madly with Hamish, the editor of the paper. But it is the gorgeous, enigmatic Nick who really appeals to her. The descriptions of Penny gradually learning about relationships are touching, while also often being extremely humourous.
I just loved the quirky language in this book. Wilkinson had me grinning throughout most of it, as Penny wobbles her way through all the boys in her year at school, getting them to answer the most atrocious survey. When she finally finds the boy who is love-shy, he is totally unexpected and Penny discovers that not only does he need some fixing, there might be areas in her life and self that need fixing as well. On the way she gains some empathy for others and learns that she can't always be the best or the first.
Beautifully written humour is rare to find in books for teens and Love-shy has lots of it. Kids who pick up this book, with its quirky heroine, love-shy boy and hints of romance, will be sure to pass it around to their friends.
Pat Pledger