Picasso and the greatest show on earth by Anna Fienberg
Allen & Unwin, 2023. ISBN: 9781760296988. (Age:12+) Highly recommended.
Picasso and the Greatest Show on Earth by Anna Fienberg is a gentle story about friendship, human fragility and finding happiness. Exploring emotions and relationships, this story will engage the reader to reflect and enjoy the meandering storyline. Delving into the different ways, we as humans, deal with loss, blame and embarrassment, the reader shares in the beauty and power of art and nature triumphing overall.
The story's protagonist, Frances, finds herself in a new place, new high school and new home. Her family have recently been through the trauma of losing a loved one and are all dealing with it in their own ways. Frances has been gifted a troubled puppy called Picasso. She doesn’t know how to interact properly with the puppy and finds his germs unnerving. Frances is passionate about all germs. She draws them, researches them and is fascinated by their properties, and dogs can have lots of germs!
When Frances meets and befriends a boy at school, Kit, their love of art ignites a strong connection. But both characters have their own issues that they are dealing with. Slowly they begin to share snippets of their past, and their love of art draws them together. Sharing time together and exploring the beauty of the natural environment, Frances finds comfort in their friendship.
When given a task to create a large wall mural at the school, they both immerse themselves in the task of bringing their love of the natural world and art together. However, as things get rocky for them both, will their relationship be strong enough to withstand the challenges. Will they be able to really trust each other, or will their deep secrets tear them apart?
Anna Fienberg has created an engaging and thought-provoking storyline. Beautifully written to capture the emotions and feelings, this novel would appeal to those who enjoy exploring the human interactions and the importance of communication and understanding. Dealing with personal relationships, adversities, feelings, complexities and more, this novel has everything to keep the audience engaged. Teacher's notes are available from the publisher.
Vesper only wanted to help, and yet by going out to save others from the Storm, which curses everything it touches, she caused her father to have to come to rescue all of them, and now the queen's soldiers have caught wind of where he is. After years of hiding, her revolutionist father is found and imprisoned. Desperate to save him, Vesper does the only thing she can think of - disguising herself with ikonomancy and finding work in the palace. Attempting to find the hidden prison, all the while hiding her father's book of ikonomancy as he is a gifted ikonomancer. Problem is, he never taught her, and only those deemed worthy to take on an apprenticeship by the Palace are meant to undertake the study. Finding herself working for the Prince's right hand man, Vesper must watch herself carefully, as her continued attempts to learn ikonomancy in secret are dangerous, as are her attempts to find her father. All while the Storm continues to close in on the city, and threaten all their lives.
The beginning of the novel is slower than expected, especially as is starts with an action scene - the story itself seems somewhat disjointed, with characters lacking proper development. By the end of the book, readers might feel like they know some of the characters, but still feel unsure about the majority. The main character, Vesper, has lots of self-doubt and guilt, which can be relatable, though also drags the story down continuously. With as many fantasy books as there are on the market, and the high caliber of writing, this has not quite met the mark. Still an interesting concept and a well built world, with some twists, though readers will have to be patient reading to discover them.
Another in the highly entertaining series of board books about Roobee Roo and her magic pouch is presented in this book Under the stars in which Roobee Roo and her friends go camping.
Her pouch is full of things that people take with them when going caping, so the young readers will be excited to see what happens. Some may have been camping and so predict what might happen to Roobee Roo and her friends, while for others it will be a new experience. Over the pages, Roobee Roo and Quizzy collect sticks nad leaves and make their own bush stew, and are very grateful when Mum makes a real one. Quizzy is with her family in a campervan, a different way of camping than Roobee Roo who has put up her tent by herself. The two sing and dance before meal time and are thrilled when Dad gives them roo-mallows to toast over the fire. When it is dark a torch is shone into the night sky to see the stars. And Roobee Roo goes to bed in her sleeping bag zipped up tightly with fluffy parrot in her pouch.
Themes Camping, Tents, Night sky, Humour.
Fran Knight
Nature's song by Robert Vescio. Illus. by Nicky Johnston
New Frontier, 2023. ISBN: 9781922326782. (Age:3+) Highly recommended.
Aiming to bring the outside world inside for her housebound brother, a little girl sets out into the garden and foreshore nearby. She has been impatient to go, aware of the neighbourhood calling her, but she must wait for her mother to say so.
At last she is allowed to roam outside: she wallows in the comfort of the outside world, breathing in the blooms, looking at the myriad of tiny things she spies along the foreshore. Life is not only smells and comforts, but it creeps and crawls, skips and bounces towards the sea. She sits on the jetty watching the fish and the birds and dolphins, then begins to collect things to make her brother smile again. Her little dog brings in some seaweed, she collects driftwood and shells, flowers and leaves. She takes the things back home, using them to make a map of where she has gone, marking the spots where she found the things she collected. A map he can treasure.
A warm hearted story of love between siblings as the boy is holed up inside and his sister collects things to keep him in touch with the outside world. She scours the wild places outside and then the foreshore where she adds to her collection of things often overlooked. In taking them back to her brother, children will see what has happened to him and talk about the restrictions such an injury has on someone.
They will love looking for the variety of different things illustrated in the book, perhaps adding a few more things to her collection as they make up their own treasure map.
Nicky Johnston’s use of pencil and watercolour give a soft edge to her illustrations, inviting readers to share their own experiences of collecting things, particularly by the sea, and marvelling at the vistas she sees along the way.
The end papers give readers an exercise in following maps and will encourage them to make their own.
After seeing Dragonsong listed in A Mighty Girl's 2023 Summer Reading List I decided to revisit Anne McCaffrey’s classic books which I had read when they were first published. I was not disappointed with Dragonsong, the first in the Harper Hall of Pern series, and which was written by McCaffrey for adolescents.
Menolly is fifteen years old and lives in a hold close to the sea, where her father oversees the people and the fishing industry. She has been allowed to work with the hold’s Harper, creating music, singing and playing and dreaming of one day becoming a Harper, but when he dies her father refuses to allow her to play or sing because she is a girl, and she is left to the drudgery of menial work. Finally, when she can no longer bear not to make music, she runs away but is caught in the dreaded Thread fall which could destroy Pern, as there are fewer and fewer dragonriders to obliterate it. Seeking shelter in a cave she discovers a clutch of fire lizards, who imprint on her and change her life forever.
This is a classic science fiction story that has stood the test of time. Menolly tries to be a dutiful daughter, but eventually she can no longer suppress her musical talent as demanded by her father and the only way out seems to be to run away. Her courage and determination is inspirational, and the setting of Pern, a world full of dangers, dragons, and wondrous little fire dragons brings a story of bravery and adventure. Readers can expect to enjoy a feel-good, escapist and motivational book, and will be quick to recognise like me, the influence that McCaffrey has had on later stories featuring dragons.
The third book in the Two Rivers series, following The long call and The heron’s cry, sees the return of Detective Inspector Matthew Venn and his two off-siders, Jen Rafferty and Ross May, this time investigating the murder of Jem Roscoe, a celebrity sailor, who has been found in a boat anchored in Scully Cove. The local Greystone lifeboat team had been called out in a raging storm answering a mayday call and found his body. Jem, a local celebrity sailor and adventurer, had arrived in town, telling the townspeople that he was waiting for a mystery visitor. And it is up to Venn to find out who that was and why Jem was murdered.
Cleeves’ setting on the Devon coast, with its violent storms, high seas and tall cliffs, and superstitions surrounding Scully Cove, is described vividly and adds to the brooding atmosphere of the mystery. Matthew Venn is a quiet man, described in a work appraisal as lacking charisma, but one who immerses himself in the background characters and geography surrounding the murder victim. He is uncomfortable in Greystone, a town he had visited in his youth, and one that is populated with the Brethen, the sect that he has left behind, but he knows that he could find the motive for the murder by investigating Jem’s past. With help from his team, Venn gradually uncovers clues that help unravel the mystery surrounding the death and when another man is found dead in Scully Cove, it is apparent that the two are connected.
Readers will need to connect subtle red herrings to work out how the murders were committed and who killed the victims, making the story enjoyable. The series does not fall into the cosy category but is not dark enough to make some readers uncomfortable. Cleeves writes clever and atmospheric mysteries and The raging storm is sure to please her fans.
The strongly constructed hand sized board book is an episode in the highly acclaimed and popular ABC series called Ginger and the vegesaurs,which will ensure kids will pick it up. Brightly coloured, with funny images of a variety of fruit and vegetables as the main characters whose story we follow, the book has instant appeal.
The second book in the series: Dinner time, evokes laughter from the cover as two bananas and a carrot peer out at the reader. Again, a dense text means an older person is needed to read it out loud, but the images will keep younger children laughing their heads off as Ginger and the two Pea-Rexes search for a chilli snack. Unbeknownst to them, they are headed for a collision course with some Bananaraptors.
I love the images of the different fruit and vegetables as dinosaurs, so melding two things that kids love, fruit and veg and dinosaurs.
Great fun, lots to laugh at and a tie in with a beloved TV series will ensure these books are never left on the shelf.
Themes Dinosaurs, Humour, Friendship, TV tie in, Read aloud.
Defy the night is a fabulous read for fans of stories like Robin Hood and other tales of masked outlaws breaking the law to assist the helpless and poor. In the kingdom of Kandala, a virulent sickness is spreading and there is not enough medicine made from the rare Moonflower to go around. Tessa Cade has been trained as an apothecary and she does her best to illegally obtain medicine and get it to those who need it the most. She is assisted by Wes, whose face she has never seen. When danger overcomes the pair, Tessa makes the terrifying decision to steal into the palace and face King Harristan and his brother Prince Corrick, the King’s Justice, who metes out harsh punishments to those breaking the law.
Defy the night is Kemmerer writing at her best, with a beautifully described world, court intrigue and a potential rebellion of people who need the medicine for their families. Tessa and Wes are engaging characters who will have the reader breathlessly reading as they undertake their dangerous missions and their slow burn romance helps to keep the reader immersed in the story. The tension really ramps up when Tessa enters the castle and meets the King and Prince Corrick. She learns more about the pair and begins to understand some of the complexities of ruling a country and navigating jealousy and ill-will. Will she be able to influence the King to help her people?
I really enjoyed the author’s Elementals series beginning with Storm, which is still in print, and for fans of outlaws seeking justice, readers might like to read Outlaws of Sherwood by Robin McKinley, Murmuration of starlings by Franny Billingsley, Mask of mirrors by M.A. Carrick and Outlaws Scarlett & Browne by Jonathan Stroud.
The earthy sepia toned colours used in the inviting illustrations, set the background for the hot sweaty work in shearing sheds found all over outback Australia. The use of the blade shears was supplanted by mechanised shears introduced in the late nineteenth century and these were passed over for more recognisable equipment used by shearers today.
Jack Howe is a giant of a man with hands like tennis rackets, and blades that seemed like extensions of his arms.
People can only watch him as he shears his way through a large complement of sheep each day. Most people shear about 100 sheep per day, but Jack can do better than that. After much deliberation about how well he can do, a competition is announced. Jack enters the competition to shear 300 sheep but others try to distract him. One jumps on his back, one tickles him, one replaces all the sheep with shorn sheep, but he carries on regardless.
People are stunned at his achievement when at the end of the allotted time he keeps going until he has shorn 316 sheep. He was not not just the champion of Australia but champion of the world. And rather than stay behind and celebrate, off he goes pirouetting into the distance. His record set in 1892 has never been broken.
This true story of Jack Howe, a shearer from Queensland, will intrigue young readers learning about an Australia of the past. They will be able to gleen a a great deal of information from this book, about the life style of itinerant shearers and the working of a shearing shed, while the glossary of words used in the text will add another level of interest. A short biography of Jack Howe’s life is given at the end of the book which will add to the reading of his life through the picture book.
Themes Australian history, Nineteenth century, Shearing, Shearers, Competition, Shears.
Will, and his friends J (Juno) and Dar, live in the town of Scarborough (Scar Town), whose history includes the inundation of Old Scarborough to create a reservoir. Will also lives with the personal trauma of a missing father, a trauma that happened at about the same time as the old town was flooded. Everything changes when there is a leak in the dam wall and it threatens to collapse, and the old town starts to reappear from the mire. Will and his friends go exploring in an old home that rises from its watery grave and their discovery of cash and bones creates a fissure in the normal life of Will and the remnants of his family. J and Dar too become embroiled in a dangerous mystery as they seek to hide their discoveries from the adults in their life. Trust is under threat, but so is truth.
This is an intensely exciting dramatic tale with the young people (aged 12 and 13) exercising their independence and lack of trust in the adults around them. They put themselves in danger, but they also seek to solve a complex mystery that weaves around the old town that is re-appearing from the watery grave that has hidden it for about seven years. This book will excite readers aged 11-15 as the action and drama begins from the first page. There is a fierce and feisty response of the young protagonists to their discovery of a stash of cash and a skeleton, but also moral dilemmas as they initially keep the discovery secret until their own lives become threatened. Grief and struggle are also woven into the story, and relationships with parents also need repair. This is a powerful story and one that will grab young readers and they will be the ones who recommend it to their peers. Tristan Bancks certainly knows how to write for early teen readers … but I am not a teen and I loved it!
Allen & Unwin, 2023. ISBN: 9781761068492. (Age:8-12) Highly Recommended.
Whimsical and tinged with magical qualities, this is a charming story of a family who escape the ‘big wide world’ in their converted ice-cream truck and end up in a magical valley without a route to return. In this strangely isolated world they spend many years learning to survive and living without the accoutrements of modernity (except for those items they took with them.) The family co-exists with their recently widowed Nan-Nan, with a few chickens that they took with them, a whole lot of love and a very limited supply of reading material. They soon learn to live for an uncertain future, but they also learn to rely on the local horses who, almost by magic, seem to be able to read their needs and befriend and support the human intruders into their magical realm. When the youngsters, Honey and Rumi, have lived for seven years in the valley their father, Papa, gets ill and it becomes clear that they cannot remain in this idyllic environment forever. But are they ready for a return to the world that they no longer know and that they had left behind so long ago?
This is a simple tale told through the perspective of Honey. Her connection to her favourite horse implies a connection and communication that has mystical possibilities. Interspersed throughout the simple tale of survival and ingenuity are chapter breaks with text and email communications from their family who are outside the magical valley and are concerned about their disappearance. The essence of the story though is the resilience of a warmly connected family despite their unusual circumstances. With hints of the Covid landscape that disrupted many lives, this is however just a lovely, warmly joyous story for 8-12 year olds who still consider magical possibilities which older readers might dismiss.
Henry Page has been there for his friends while they have loved and lost. Loved and won. But he has never been in love. He's watched his parents and wanted that kind of love, the love that lasts, the meet in high school and stay forever. While he's picked his best friends, Lola (gay) and Murray (straight) up from the pits of despair of love gone wrong, and always been there for them in their failures and successes, he's just never had that spark. Henry is a good student, busy trying to become the editor of the school newspaper, always had a way with words. Then he meets Grace Town. Transfer student from another high school, in senior year. She's quiet. Elusive. Walks with a cane, dresses in boy's clothes. Doesn't draw attention to herself. But Henry notices her. And when they are put together as co-editors of the school newspaper, their worlds collide.
Told from Henry's perspective, this story is very much a tragic love story. A mix of real time and text format, the story moves quickly from the two characters meeting to becoming established in each others lives. Numerous characters are fleshed out in detail, with the exception of Grace - while described, she is the mystery to be solved through the book, so hints and clues are dropped and readers will make guesses early on. Some characters are a bit 'extra', such as Henry's Australian friend, which is interesting given that the author has lived in Australia. The character is listed as having moved to America in their early childhood and having lost their accent, but that they put it on, and even dress in exaggerated Aussie dress (think Steve Irwin). Some readers may find this endearing, others may find it irritating. The book is otherwise well written, well paced with the usual cadence of the author. Perfect for fans of John Green's The Fault in Our Stars and Adam Silvera's They Both Die at the End.
Themes Romance; Contemporary; Relationships; Tragedy; Hardships; Grief; High School.
The 1tth in the Funny Kid series, Catastrophe is another hilarious look inside the kid-centric world of Max Walburt. The writing is punchy and irreverent. Black and white cartoon-style illustrations are scattered throughout and while long, the story is fast-paced and easy reading.
Max is dramatic and he starts the story by declaring himself completely done with being the funny kid. He's maturing and because his mum is running for mayor he's pretty sure when she is elected he's going to become the 'First Kid'. His monologue with his pet duck goes something like this: "I'm not saying I want Miss Sweet to go to jail or anything, but if Miss Sweet doesn't show the First Kid the right level of respect, my hands will be tied...". He's already decided on the name of his chauffeur and the size of his security detail when his parents shock him out of his own head with the gift of a cat. A real, living, actual cat. Max is not only fiercely anti-cat but also anti-catperson. So this gift is actually a significant problem. So, while everyone is trying to convince him how great cats are, Max is doing all he can to get rid of it, including persuading his parents to take it back and encouraging the cat to run away.
Pages and pages of irreverent humour ("In the corner, my baby sister, Rosie, has decided to teach herself to read by trying to to climb a bookshelf") and an insight into Max's unbelievable logic and imagination ("Give a person a cow and you're giving them the gift of milk, butter, cream, ice cream, cheesecake, yoghurt...That animal invented dessert. We should worship it") make this an absolute joy to read and your brain, if not your acutal mouth will be laughing. And whilst Max declared himself maturing, there are plenty of cat bum and other toilet humour jokes to enjoy.
Fans of Diary of a Wimpy Kid will adore this series, which is also a perfect next step with longer text for lovers of Weirdo or other heavily-illustrated series.
Themes Humourous stories, Cats, Persuasion.
Nicole Nelson
Too late by Colleen Hoover
Little Brown, 2023. ISBN: 9781408729465. (Age:Adult)
This book, we are told, started out as a 2012 project the author worked on when she was writing her other, very different, books when experiencing writers block. The unfinished chapters were later put on a website for readers to see and they gave feedback as more were written. Writer and readers enjoyed the process and the finished product was released as a free e-book. Now edited and published the foreward of Too Late states that it is in no way appropriate for children or young teens with trigger warnings which include foul language, graphic sexual scenes, murder, sexual assault and drug use.
Sloan is a beautiful college student in a controlling relationship with Asa. He owns the house they live in and Sloan is exhausted as there are parties at the house nearly every night with lots of people and Asa expects her to be there and then provide him with sex every night giving her little time to study. She knows his money comes from drug deals and despises him for it but she needs his money to keep her disabled brother in a care home. Carter, real name Luke, is working undercover with Dalton, real name Ryan, to bust Asa’s drug ring. They have infiltrated his college operation and Carter has been put in Sloan’s Spanish class. In spite of being well trained to keep it as a work assignment Carter feels an immediate strong romantic connection with Sloan, a dangerous development as she is monitored by jealous Asa’s associates. He doesn’t trust anyone and is quick to act where his self interest is compromised. That’s it really, the point of view switches between Sloan, Carter and Asa as the investigation proceeds and the relationship develops and Asa gets more and more paranoid. There is the advertised, sex, drugs and violence but little in the way of narrative arc, the one dimensional characters, supposedly college age, seemed much older, had nothing to recommend them and didn’t develop. Devoted readers of this bestselling author will no doubt find it an entertaining read but I had trouble finishing it.
I was quickly enthralled by this exciting story of Maude Mulligan. She and her father are barely surviving in 1913 London. They live in a squalid flat which is sinking into the Thames bog. Her father is killed in an accident at his work on the docks and things become even more grim for Maude. Maude picks up a yellow ribbon that falls from the hair of a wealthy girl called Eleanor and Maude’s life changes. It becomes a mystery as to why Eleanor’s mother and the villainous manager of their failing family business are so keen to capture Maude. The villains pursue her and are nearly successful in catching her on several occasions but luckily Maude escapes. She is cared for and helped by some young politically active suffragists. To Maude’s surprise Eleanor gets involved in trying to uncover the mystery and the two girls travel to Manchester. Enriching the plot is the way Maude keeps experiencing unsettling, strange visions. It transpires that she is a seer and can foretell the future. A skill that is both a curse and a blessing.
Catherine Norton successfully creates a grimy, grotty London prior to World War 1. The suffragettes, precarious unsafe working conditions and poverty add authenticity to this historical fiction. Through Eleanor’s point of view the reader understands the frustration of a girl whose interest in science and learning is considered ridiculous. And from Maude’s point of view, we also learn about Maude’s precarious existence and poor conditions for the working class. There is considerable foreboding about World War I in her visions. I was intrigued by the popular phenomena of the time where people of all backgrounds believed in fortune telling. Fortunately, the story has lighter moments and Maude is a strong heroic character unflinching in her risk taking and positive, despite her many years of hardship. It finishes with an ending suitable for a sequel. I was reminded of a past CBCA Book of the Year winner by Catherine Jinks called A Very Unusual Pursuit which was also a successful blend of historical fiction and fantasy.
