Isabelle Stories Volume 2 by well-known author Jane Godwin has four different short stories that share events in Isabelle’s daily life:
1. Sleeping Over: Year 2 Disco night and sleepover 2. Forest School: Exploring the forest, building a bridge and an unfortunate accident 3. News and Views: Isabelle shows the class her baby cousin Bibi. Harry B shares some disappointing news 4. Harry and the Isobels: End of year concert where Isabelle is chosen by Izzy to sing ‘Morning Has Broken’ with her and there is a surprise visitor in the audience.
This year Isabelle, Harry B and Izzy are in Year 2 with a new teacher Miss P. It takes a little bit of time to adjust to change and in particular over excited Izzy is struggling to contain her enthusiasm. The children take part in a disco and sleepover on the same night and while it has its moments all goes well in the end. In Chapter 2 the students are very lucky to have one day a week where they attend forest school. Here they can explore nature and on this particular day they also build a bridge across the creek and climb a tall tree. Unfortunately Harry B falls out and breaks his arm but it is not too serious. News and views are shared in Chapter 3 and Isabelle proudly brings in her baby cousin Bibi to show the class. Harry B shares that he is going to live in Alice Springs which upsets Isabelle. He is her best friend and she struggles to cope with her feelings. Harry does ask Isabelle to look after Rowena, his spiny leaf stick insect as it cannot go on the plane, and this helps to ease her disappointment. In Chapter 4 the school concert is being held and Izzy is asked to sing ‘Morning Has Broken’ and chooses Isabelle to sing it with her. It is a great success and Isabelle is overjoyed to see Harry B at the concert. Sadly though Rowena dies and the children bury her in the backyard.
These stories are perfect for newly independent readers who may be familiar with some of the feelings and events taking place. Throughout the book are engaging black and white drawings that will provide visual clues and links for young readers. Of particular interest are the clever letters written by Isabelle which contain words and pictures to be deciphered. An enjoyable read.
Themes Family, School, Friends, Feelings.
Kathryn Beilby
The daring tale of Gloria the Great by Jacqueline Harvey. Illus. by Kate Isobel Scott
A fable about being kind to each other is presented within the gloriously funny story of Gloria the chook, going missing from the farm. Gloria is always doing things differently from the other chooks. She eats the food in the dogs’ bowls, howls just like them, is in your face, and is always very bold, doing her own thing. Until one day she just disappears. The family is intent on hunting down their Christmas decorations and do not hear the quiet noise from below. They look at the hawk in the tree outside and conclude that Gloria was just too slow. The other chooks blame each other for her disappearance, saying they were too unkind. They squabble so much they end up in a great melee of noise and feathers. The noise quietens for long enough for the children to hear that noise again, so they all look under the house where they had gone in their search for the decorations and find Gloria, a little dishevelled but alive. She has eaten the occasional bug to keep alive.
She is treated regally by the family, and given a table of food to eat, even a bed by the AGA. Once again out in the yard, in true Gloria fashion, she shares her stories of her exploits with the other chooks. She is surprised that they are so supportive, and Dulcie tells her that they have all decided to be kind, that difference is no reason to reject others.
The stunning illustrations create another level of humour to the story. Kate’s childhood was surrounded by chooks and so she offers a great deal of fun in her depictions of them. The scenes in the farmhouse, henhouse and farm yard are wonderful and her closeups of the hens fighting over who is to blame will cause hoots of laughter from the readers. I especially loved the images under the house, a lone dejected Gloria looking very small in the darkness, and the contrast between the large, healthy chooks and the newly found skinny Gloria is hilarious.
Noongar storytellers Isobel and Leanne have drawn on their love of country and knowledge of its stories to present this inviting, wonderful read aloud tale of ancestors.
A child tells her mother that she wants to meet her ancestors. She has heard of them, listened to people talking about them, and now wants to meet them. She wants to tlak to them and listen to what they know, so helping her know who she is.
Mother tells her that she meets them everyday, she listens to them, sees them all around, she knows them through smells and talks to them.
They can be heard when the wind whistles through the tree, they can be talked to when she listen to the birds and animals and plants, they can be felt through every step she makes on Country. The Ancestors are well known and are strong reflected through mother and child.
The theme of this story introduces Country to us all, how people view their Ancestors, how Country informs all they need to know. Ancestors are all around, offering their insights to the younger generation. All they need do is look, listen, interact, smell and touch.
The illustrations impel readers to look closely at the flora and fauna of the countryside, as the distinctive acrylic images cover each page with clear links to Noongar Country in the south west of Western Australia. Readers will love spotting the animals and grasses and flowers shown in the pages, and I loved checking out the name of the different eucalypts shown with their wonderfully coloured flowers. Western Australia’s glory is shown in all of its vibrancy and Leanne has the ability to put on the page what she sees around her home.
Themes Aboriginal themes, Ancestors, Landscape, Western Australia.
As Little Owl was growing up he could see the city in the distance. He wanted to get closer to be able to see the lights and practised his exercises to make his wings strong. His mother pointed out the moon and the stars and their brightness, but Little Owl was not convinced, he wanted to go to the city.
Eventually his wings became strong enough and off he went, mum telling him she would always be there for when he returned.
Arriving at the city, all seemed what he wanted, but the lights were too bright, they moved too quickly, were too loud and there was nowhere safe to sleep. He looked up at the moon with thoughts of home: he missed the quietness of the frogs, the sight of the moon and stars, and he missed his mum. So he turned right around and flew back home where mum was waiting for him.
A delightful story of ‘there’s no place like home’ will endear itself to the readers. Younger readers will have no hesitation in agreeing with Little Owl going back home, but at the same time admiring his bravery in trying to widen his horizons. All readers will recognise the pull of testing your wings but knowing someone is always there when you return. The comfort of being able to stretch your wings and change direction if it is needed, is there for all younger readers to see.
Author/ illustrator, Katie Stewart has created a gentle and astute story akin to an Aesops’ fable, where an instruction about life is given through a story, without it being too heavily imposed. The gentleness of the owl wanting to go to the city and finding it not to his liking is very telling as he feels confident enough in his mother’s care, to return home.
The double page illustrations will entreat the readers as their eyes sweep across the night landscapes. I loved the endpapers with the beautiful feathers resting gently amongst the leaves.
Themes Owls, Taking flight, Leaving home, City.
Fran Knight
Learned by heart by Emma Donoghue
Pan Macmillan, 2023. ISBN: 9781035017775. (Age:16+) Highly recommended.
It is interesting to consider Donoghue’s latest novel Learned by heart within the context of her other works, Room (2010), The wonder (2016), Akin (2019) and Haven (2022) with their recurring themes of captivity, restraint and personal challenge. In Learned by heart, it is the restraining world of the 19th century boarding school, a world bound up in rules, restrictions and punishments. Eliza Raine and Anne Lister are two young girls thrown together by chance when they are made to share the attic room dubbed the Slope. But perhaps it’s not really chance that has led Mrs Tate to house these two less desirable pupils together in their tiny room. Lister is precocious but impoverished, and Raine, though wealthy, is ‘less white’.
Not being familiar with the story of Anne Lister of ‘Gentleman Jack’ fame, I was most intrigued by the depiction of Eliza Raine, a young Anglo-Indian girl, who with her sister Jane, the progeny of their English father’s relationship with his Indian ‘wife’ in Madras, is sent to a prestigious school in Regency era Yorkshire. Raine is very aware of how others see her as 'foreign-looking... tawny... dingy or plain brown'. Lister however regards her as 'the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen' and gradually the example of Lister’s enthusiasm and fearlessness builds Raine’s own self-confidence.
Donoghue presents the story of Lister and Raine’s developing relationship from Raine’s point of view, through her letters and her memories of their time together. For Raine, her love once given, is never taken back. The feeling of loss, when their lives part ways, sends her to the mental asylum, whilst Lister goes on to achieve notoriety as a confident lesbian, writer, and landowner.
As Raine herself says “It is a sad story”, a meeting of hearts for a short time. She hopes to be remembered, their love living on in the ‘brown-blood trail of ink’. Donoghue’s novel beautifully brings to life their forbidden relationship, their free-spirited rebellion against the strictures of the school, and their dream of a marriage with exchanged rings. It is a sad romance.
Allen & Unwin, 2023. ISBN: 9781760877002. (Age:10-13) Highly recommended.
South Australian author Rosanne Hawke has written the third novel in the Australian Disaster Zones series. Alex is the story of a thirteen-year-old boy who lives with his family on a farming property called Spring Park in the Flinders Ranges region of South Australia. This engaging novel is set in 2020 in an area that has suffered significant drought for a number of years as well as devastating bushfires sweeping through the area in 2019.
As a young student living on a farm Alex must travel long distances on the school bus each day but before he leaves he is responsible for doing a number of chores in order for the farm to remain viable. Once home Alex also has a heavy workload as his father is struggling with his mental health resulting from the bushfires and Alex’s mum has taken shifts in the local pub to make ends meet. Alex loves farm life and enjoys nothing more than being with his kelpie Tangi and colt Jago.
Alex’s new neighbour Bonnie and her family have moved in next door with camels. They are training the camels to work with tourists on treks in the outback and this causes concern for some of the region’s residents. Alex and Bonnie become firm friends and spend time together connecting with each other’s animals, helping each other in times of need, battling feral dogs, exploring their environment and most importantly revealing their long-held secrets and worries. Together with Harry another Year 7 student they set up a plastic recycling initiative which draws the whole community together as well as allowing Alex’s dad to find a new purpose in life.
Rosanne Hawke has cleverly interwoven so many important topics into this narrative including the effects of climate change, overuse of plastics, First Nations care of Country, depression, and the history of camels in Australia. The strength and resilience of Alex, Bonnie and the other children, their daily struggles and hopes, how they deal with drought and other life issues are told beautifully in this story. A fascinating read.
Where will the sleepy sheep sleep? by David Metzenthen and Jonathan Bentley
Allen & Unwin, 2023. ISBN: 9781761066160. (Age:2+) Highly recommended.
The very talented duo of David Metzenthen and Jonathan Bentley have collaborated in an outstanding picture book that could well appear on awards lists. Readers are asked in a recurring refrain: 'Where will the sleepy sheep sleep?' The first double page spread asks the reader: 'Do you think the sleepy sheep will sleep on top of this wild and windy hill?' And children will love to examine the illustrations and shout out why the sleepy sheep couldn’t go to sleep there. Bentley has drawn the very woolly sheep just managing to stay stable as the wind pushes against the grass and clouds as well as his ears. The look on his face is priceless – mouth open in dismay, tired eyes drooping.
The next page begins with another refrain, 'Baah!' that children will enjoy, and shows a sleepy sheep sailing through the air, being blown away by the wild wind. And the story continues, will the sleepy sheep sleep in a steep and stony valley, or where the foxes hunt and the dingoes howl, or in a small, dark and damp cave, and so on until the sleepy sheep finds just the perfect spot for sleeping.
The tongue twisting language and repetition make it a perfect book to read aloud, and the refrains will ensure that children will become involved in the story and join in and discuss why the sleepy sheep couldn’t sleep in an uncomfortable spot and begin to guess where the best place might be.
Bentley’s illustrations are eye-catching, with vivid colours and memorable characters. Many emotions are shown on the face of the sleepy sheep, just by changing the expression on its cute mouth and location of its pink toned ears, while the position of its feet signal what is happening. Readers will be aware that the sky, first appearing as a pale blue, gets darker and darker and adds to the sheep’s urgency as it searches for a place to sleep.
The exceptional humour, language and illustrations in Where will the sleepy sheep sleep? will ensure that this becomes a bedtime favourite, and older children just beginning their journey to becoming independent readers will love the repetition that will help them identify the text. This is a keeper! Just gorgeous!
Allen & Unwin, 2023. ISBN: 9781761068935. (Age:9-13) Highly recommended.
The sixth book in the Rise of the Mythix series by Anh Do is titled Prophecy’s End and begins with Stanley dreaming wildly about more from the ‘Prophecies and Portents’ book. He has been guided by strange clues each time a new Mythix was discovered, and now compelling words leave him shaken as he has been dreaming of his lost wife Christine and her possible connection to the Sunken Temple of Tears.
After leaving the shipping container Kelly, Minh, Jimmy and Stanley head to Waveside to search for the temple and the answers it may give. There they encounter two unusual twins, Ralph and Alph, who are not what they appear to be but give them directions to the lost Temple. Along the path heading towards Eagle Rock, the four are trussed up in a net by the twins and lose their possessions. They eventually capture the twins who fear The Collector, William James. Stanley is convinced the twins may be more Mythix reincarnated from The Leprechaun.
At Eagle Rock the wild waves will batter them against the walls of the cliff but the twins show them a tunnel that appears when the waves part. The travel through the ocean tunnel is dangerous and difficult but all finally emerge in a cavern. What will they find? Will the prophecy end? Or are the Mythix in more danger?
This very entertaining series will continue to engage those readers who enjoy adventure, danger, and humour in their stories. The illustrations work well with the text and provide visual prompts to support readers who may struggle with large chunks of writing. Book Seven is coming soon with new heroes and new legends.
Themes Fantasy, Myths, Dystopia, Adventure, Power, Good vs Evil, Friendships, Danger, Humour.
Kathryn Beilby
The pit by Peter Papathanasiou
Hachette, 2023. ISBN: 9781529424485. (Age:Adult)
Senior Constable Sparrow is the Aboriginal offsider to Detective Sergeant Georgios Manolis, both of whom we met in Papathansiou’s first crime thriller The Stoning. This time Sparrow is on his own, intrigued by the phone confession of a murderer who invites him on a trip to the crime scene in the Kimberley outback. The snag is, the old man insists on also taking along a young companion from his Perth nursing home, Luke, who is confined to a wheelchair. So the three runaways set out on their long road trip: ‘the old rogue, the young pup, and the undercover blackfella’.
The pit is a gritty ‘outback noir’ exposing all the worst elements of remote Australia: bigotry, racism, corrupt cops, prostitutes, drugs, alcoholism, derelict hotels, asbestos contamination, mining and destruction of Aboriginal lands. Bob, as a homosexual in the 1960s, has experienced the worst of it all. We know that he has serious medical issues; a condition that is most likely terminal. What he hopes to achieve by the trip with these particular companions is a mystery. But the signs are that it will be dangerous.
While the characters don’t seem particularly likeable at the start, even the ambiguous Sparrow, and especially the ill-tempered and demanding Luke, Papathanasiou does succeed in engaging our empathy as the story progresses. And amidst the grime, there are moments of appreciation of the beauty of the wild outback. This is a book that will appeal to readers of the increasingly rugged genre of Australian crime novels.
From the time a small feathered animal launched itself into the air 150 million years ago, the planet's skies have been populated with birds and now more than 10 000 species have evolved from that first archaeopteryx, being the only creatures of the dinosaur era to survive the impact of the asteroid that hit the earth 66 million years ago.
Using minimum text and many many illustrations of examples, the reader is taken on an exploration of the species that explains what a bird is, how the species evolved, and the features that have made them so successful including the power of flight, their senses, their adaptations to their habitats, migration and all the other facets of life that one would expect to discover. The only drawback that it may have for the younger reader is the small, handwriting like font that may prove tricky for them to read without help. Overall, though, this is an intriguing and informative book that really provides an 'all-you-need-to-know' introduction to a creature that varies from the bee hummingbird that weighs less than a ping pong ball to the wandering albatross with its wingspan of over three metres to the ostrich which is the largest living bird on the planet these days, outstripped by the extinct giant moa, endemic to New Zealand.
Steve Jenkins has given young readers some fascinating insights into the animal world such as The Animal Toolkit and Animal Facts by the Numbers, and this is just as fascinating.
Themes Birds.
Barbara Braxton
Lots of things to know about weather by Emily Bone and Katia Gaigalova
Because it often determines what they can or cannot do, young children are aware of the impact of the weather on their lives, And many, once they have learned the various weather conditions and how they form, have further questions that they want answers to such as how fast do the fastest winds blow; how heavy is a cloud and where are the driest and wettest places on Earth?
Using the format of a child asking the questions and a parent answering them, this new book from Usborne explores some of those questions that curious kids ask, such as the ubiquitous "why is the sky blue?" and including raising topics that they don't know they don't know like who the weather gods of various civilisations believed in and why spiders are bigger in warm weather!
As usual the text is accessible for the target audience, the format is appealing and there is extra support through the provision of a glossary and index so the book is easy to navigate. Quicklinks to vetted internet sites add extra information and explanations so curiosity can be satisfied at the point of need and, there is even a lot the parent can learn if they are exploring the book together with their child. Who knew that beetroot juice, the whey left from cheese making and even the juice in the pickle jar were environmentally more friendly ways of keeping roads free of ice than the more commonly used salt?
Themes Weather.
Barbara Braxton
The ghost ship by Kate Mosse
Pan Macmillan, 2023. ISBN: 9781509806928. (Age:15+) Highly recommended.
The ghost ship is the third in the series The Joubert family chronicles but absolutely can stand on its own as a fascinating story of two unique women carving out their lives in the 1620s, the story travelling from France to the Dutch Republic to the Canary Islands off North Africa. It is the time of the persecution of the Huguenots, or French Protestants, by the Catholic nobility, leading to an exodus of refugees to South Africa. Louise Reydon-Joubert is a determined young woman, in love with ships and the sea, who takes command of the merchant ship ‘Old Moon’, first as the owner, then as the captain.
There are many well-researched books of historical fiction that recount the adventures of headstrong independent women. The thing that sets this one apart is the interesting juxtaposition of the two main characters. Louise is a woman who confronts male prejudices and asserts her intelligence and determination, speaking and behaving in ways that society is reluctant to countenance. On the other hand, there is a young girl who is forced to step into the shoes of her dead brother, and become a boy in order to secure his inheritance. She becomes the quietly spoken, and cautious Gilles, a man who avoids attention and keeps to himself as much as possible, always in fear of being found out. When the paths of these two meet they become gradually drawn to each other. They are both assuming roles outside of societal norms. Their relationship becomes something forbidden and dangerous, in the times of conservative religion and the Inquisition.
Added to this is adventure on the high seas, with merchant ships and slaving ships, and pirates! The ‘Ghost Ship’ is a strange phantom ship enveloped in clouds of noxious air, with no living crew, only dead figures slumped at the oars. Stories of the ship become embellished with superstition: the vessel is crewed by the undead, it is a thousand feet long, and it is commanded by a red-horned she-devil!
Mystery, adventure, murder and romance; this book has it all. And at the heart is an interesting interrogation of the role of women, of religious conservatism and intolerance, and the recurring and ongoing persecution of refugees. Readers who enjoy intelligent historical fiction, will no doubt eagerly await the promised sequel.
Themes 17th century, Huguenots, Women, Gender, Sailing ships, Pirates.
Temora Murphy is eleven years old. She lives in a world where she never really fits. The other girls make fun of her. She's not the "right" sort of girl for anyone - least of all her mother. On the candles of her birthday cake, she wishes for escape. Like magic, in a black pearl box at the bottom of her garden, books begin to appear. The books help her to leave her world and find another where she belongs.
On her twelfth birthday, Temora makes another wish, a wish that alters her life forever. Temora Tempest is welcomed into a world within a book, where everyone else has been waiting for her. But when some of the other apprentices fall victim to a magical disease that could only be caused by one person - a monster thought long dead - Temora realises that there can be darkness in every story. And that it might be her job to save everyone.
Described by the publisher as "a literary children's story; a portal fantasy work, featuring a diverse cast of characters and a protagonist who marches to the beat of her own drum" this is a story for all those girls like my now-Ms 17 who go through primary school more in touch with the characters in stories than the luminaries of social media and who can not only transport themselves deep into a story but have a solid conversation as though they were a real part of it. Although S grew up in a loving family with a loving mother, and did not have the same adventures as Temora, she certainly had the confidence to march to the beat of her own drum because of her reading (and still does), and would have loved this book when she was in her late primary years.
A complex read for independent readers who would like to find themselves in their favourite stories it is one to snuggle up with on cold winter nights, particularly as the next in this Wordspinner series - Temora and the Dreamers - will be out in September.
Danny is bored. He would have liked to have been playing with his brother Mick but he's off with his mates so, instead, he takes his dog Scruff for a walk on the beach. Even though Danny thinks it's a vast, boring nothingness, especially on a cool wintry day. Scruff loves it and it's not too long before they are having a game of fetch as Scruff continually chases a stick into the water and brings it back. But it's when they see a crowd of people shouting and laughing and waving to someone in the water, that Danny's afternoon takes a remarkable turn...
As usual, master storyteller Browne offers a visual feast as he combines fairly straight-forward text with his rich illustrations and, just as Danny' mother suggests he use his eyes closely because "you never know what you might see", so too should the reader. But, for me, as much as I love the sea in all its changing moods and colours, and the treasures found along its shore, it is the dedication that underpins this story. "In loving memory of my big brother Michael" suggests there is a poignant undertone of loss and longing that there could have been a different ending to his brother's real-life story and this is echoed in the muted palette and flat, almost featureless seascape with just the odd break on the horizon.
So, as well as offering young readers the opportunity to think about what Danny's mother suggests about finding hidden treasures and sharing their stories of seaside adventures, it is also an opportunity to think about friends and things lost forever and the emotions attached to this. Given this is the third book about loss and grief that I have read and reviewed in the last three days, perhaps I am overthinking what might seem a simple story but my experience of Browne's writing is that like, the beach, there are always hidden treasures to discover. You just have to look.
Themes Dogs, Sea, Imagination.
Barbara Braxton
Consumed by Greg Buchanan
Hachette, 2023. ISBN: 9781398712720. (Age:Adult) Recommended for fans of dark mystery.
I picked up Consumed because Greg Buchanan’s first book about Forensic veterinarian Cooper Allen, Sixteen horses, was described as a literary crime sensation. I was intrigued to read about a new field in the crime genre, as well as read a literary thriller. I have not read Sixteen horses but was able to follow the motivation and character of Cooper as she investigated the horrific scene that she had been called to. Famous photographer Sophia Bertilak had fallen outside her house and been consumed by her two pigs. Although it seems like an awful accident, photographs have been removed from inside the house. Cooper becomes absorbed in the life of Sophie and her children, Matthew and Lucy, especially as Sophie’s most famous photograph had been of a pipe sticking up out of the ground, which was discovered to have been the burial place of a lost child. As Cooper delves deeper into Sophie’s life, long unsolved mysteries emerge, and these secrets begin to take over her life and her sanity.
Although the writing is wonderful, and the chapters short, I did not find Consumed easy to read. The title Consumed is very apt – not only do the pigs consume a body, but Cooper is consumed with what has happened both in the past and the present. It is dark and terrifying, more a tale of horror than a mystery. However, as often as I put it aside, I found myself returning - the suspense and tension, the secrets and the unlikeable characters, kept drawing me back to the pages.
This is not for readers who enjoy cosy mysteries, or prefer a clever detective, but may appeal to those who enjoy a dark, complex plot with an unsettling mystery within a mystery. An unforgettable read.
