Ariana Treasure: The Lost Frog by Jacqueline de Rose-Ahern. Illus. by Karen Erasmus

For junior primary children beginning to show more interest in reading early chapter books, this new series Ariana Treasure will provide an excellent stepping stone from classroom readers. With six novels in the series, there is an opportunity for children to become familiar with Ariana and The Treasure Chest – a thrift shop which her mother owns and manages.

In this fourth story The Lost Frog, a new delivery has a surprise in store for Ariana and her mum: a very energetic, leaping frog who decides to bounce around the thrift shop knocking things everywhere. When it is safely back in the box, mum finds a name on a shirt that belongs to Hugo Walker who Ariana knows from school. After placing the frog in a fish tank, they contact the Walkers who have no idea about the frog. It is up to Ariana, Hunter, Maya and Alex to try to solve the problem of where the frog has come from. Hugo turns up as well and tells the children how to look after the frog. Ariana suspects Hugo knows more about this frog than he is sharing and eventually the truth will come out.

The vocabulary used in this book is accessible and provides repetition. The text is large and the sentences are simple and well-spaced. The idea of using a thrift shop as a setting will provide a unique experience for some readers or a familiar one for others who visit second hand shops. This story also covers the topic of being responsible in a very clear and practical way.

Themes: Thrift shops, Frogs, Friendship, Problem Solving, Responsibility.

Kathryn Beilby