Presented in repetitive rhyming verses, a cluster of little bilbies collects offerings from several other Australian animals to adorn their Christmas Tree.
One verse is repeated, encouraging younger children to recognise and join in when the page is turned, and more particularly join in with the actions described - jumping, tapping and dancing. A new word appears in the repeating verse which adds interest and the format is turned around part way through the book, to add complexity.
The fun of collecting the offerings from the lizard, emu and wombat comes together at the end when the whole group crowd around the decorated Christmas Tree, now adorned with Australian bush flora, and piled beneath with Christmas presents.
An introduction to the coming season, children will love the references to Australian plants and animals, recognise those animals depicted and create their own trees with the instructions given at the end of the book.
The colourful illustrations will keep readers amused as they spot touches of the Australian bush, and recognise the animals shown, and of course, be further intrigued with the tactile cover.
Themes Australian animals, Australian bush, Humour, Christmas.
Fran Knight
The very hungry caterpillar's very first encyclopedia
The popularity of The Very Hungry Caterpillar series of books will be further enhanced by this beautifully presented first encyclopedia. With familiar images and colours, younger readers will enjoy learning about a myriad of topics. The contents page lists the following key headings: Our World, Body and Health, Earth, Animals and Nature, History, Science, Maths and Technology, Space. Under the main headings are further topics which are discussed over a double page spread with accessible text, plenty of ‘white’ space, bold headings, highlighted key words, labelled images and clever photographs. In the final pages there is a glossary, detailed index and acknowledgements.
Curious children can discover simple and introductory facts about hundreds of new and interesting topics including symmetry, electricity, exploring the world, colours, farm animals, incredible inventions, shapes, phases of the moon, what is alive, rocks and minerals, space travel, looking after your body and so much more. For early readers, this is a book for sharing and reading together. For older more confident readers, one which they can go back to time and time again.
Themes Facts, STEM, Curiosity.
Kathryn Beilby
The robin and the reindeer by Rosa Bailey and Carmen Saldana
The wintery white landscape is a wonderland for Little Reindeer who is learning about snow and cold for the first time. So entranced is she by her surroundings that she doesn't notice that the herd has moved on on its journey to the caves in the warmer south. She is lost and the snow has already covered their tracks so she has no idea which way to go. But she remains calm, remembers her mother's words about digging a hole in the snow to keep warm and waits out the night.
Through the snowflakes that are still falling the next morning she catches a flash of red - curious because Leader told her all the birds had also travelled south - and a robin with his scarlet breast appears. Together, with the robin perched on Little Reindeer's nose like a beacon, they travel through the forest until...
This is a simple story beautifully told and illustrated in a muted palette that reflects the setting, making it a great choice for a calming read at the end of a boisterous session or day. A cross between a picture book and a novel, it is ideal for those making that transition as it has the supports needed such as just a sentence or two on each page to maintain interest even though it is somewhat longer than a regular picture book. Just as Little Reindeer realises she is becoming "a real reindeer" when she sees her budding antlers, so readers will understand that they are becoming 'real readers". Just charming.
Themes Reindeers, Robins, Snow.
Barbara Braxton
Twelve little festive frogs by Hilary Robinson and Mandy Stanley
Catch a star, 2022. ISBN: 9781922326355. (Age:2+) Recommended.
Based on the classic rhyme, The twelve days of Christmas, Twelve little festive frogs is a lovely counting books that will appeal to young children. The title page introduces the reader to the names of all the little frogs, who cavort in a circle around the title. All are drawn in cute poses and dressed in bright clothes, each holding a small branch from a Christmas tree. The text is simple, instead of a partridge in a pear tree, the frogs find a parcel and the words 'Pass the parcel!', in tiny font, tell the frog what to do with it. Then of course, the text accumulates until the parcel lands in a beautifully decorated fir tree. Young children will love the alliteration of word combinations like 'dancing deer', 'rockin’ robins', and 'frosty feathers' and will have fun trying to remember all the items.
They will also enjoy perusing the bright illustrations and identifying all the fun things associated with Christmas. Each little frog can also be identified by its unique clothing and coloured face, which are really cute and lots of fun. Details like a little rabbit watching what is going on, prancing deer and a sleigh that is used to pull the presents will also intrigue readers.
This is a very happy, feel-good book that is sure to be enjoyed during the festive season.
Themes Christmas, Frogs, Presents.
Pat Pledger
The Twelve Dinosaurs of Christmas by Evie Day and Liam Darcy
On the first day of Christmas, my grandpa gave to me . . . A Santasaurus and her dino baby!
Can there be anything better than a grandpa who understands your love of dinosaurs and instead of drummers drumming, lords a-leaping, golden rings and a partridge in a pear tree, gives you dinosaurs for the Christmas countdown?
Young dinosaur lovers will delight in this hilarious, colourful, action-packed twist on the traditional song as more and more dinosaurs - some familiar, some not-so, are added to the little girl's collection. And with this week's news that Queensland Museum Network palaeontologists have excavated Australia's first head and associated body of a 100-million-year-old long-necked marine reptile in what has been described as the Rosetta Stone of marine reptile palaeontology, the continuing fascination with these ancient creatures is going to peak again, making this book such a fun read for the enthusiasts - perhaps even offering them some new species to investigate or imagining the problems such gifts might cause... It's amazing what something that starts as just a bit of light entertainment can lead to.
Themes Dinosaurs, Christmas.
Barbara Braxton
Barefoot Kids: Your epic money adventure by Scott Pape
When 8 year old Levi Anderton was laughed at in class because he froze when his teacher asked him to read something aloud, the situation had the potential for any number of outcomes, all of them profound and some of them not good. But Levi was able to turn the incident on its head and within 6 months he was the boss of his own company selling reading rulers and cases online fielding and fulfilling orders from around the world. Like Sir Richard Branson, he turned his disability into an opportunity.
For years, Scott Pape, author of highly successful The Barefoot Investor has been engaged in programs to make financial literacy a key part of every primary and secondary school curriculum including having an annual 4-6 week money challenge similar to the Premier's Reading Challenge, and, for primary students in particular, showing them the power of working, saving, spending and giving.
And so, in this engaging easy-to-read step by step guide for young readers to make and carry out a financial plan, interspersed with success stories like Levi's for encouragement, there is the blueprint to help them become financially savvy at the very least, if not world-leading entrepreneurs. Money may be the "root of all evil" but it seems to be something everyone desires. Regardless of how we might prefer it to be different, success still seems to be measured by salary and despite odds of one in 292 million of winning the recent mega US $2 billion lottery, millions around the world bought tickets in the hope of becoming rich. Closer to home our students are probably seeing the consequences of the 'cost-of-living crisis" that is reported on every news bulletin, so it would seem that a book by a recognised expert that has both sound advice and practical strategies would be very appropriate and timely.
Arranged into the six steps entitled Earn Some Money, Stash Your Cash, Be a Barefoot Boss, Get What you Want, Make Someone Smile and Grow your Money, readers are taken from that first basic understanding that money comes from working and even though they might resent pitching in with household chores there are ways that make them in charge so they are in control of both what they do and what they do with the rewards. There are charts and checklists so each child can map their own path (even those under 7) including being able to pitch the idea of being paid for chores confidently to parents.
With language and layout chosen so that the reader is encouraged, supported and successful on each page, this is a must-have for every child so that they not only get the things they want without having to wait for Christmas or birthdays but they develop the critical understandings and foundations for their future financial security as they learn so much in a practical, personal real-life way. You could not give a child a better gift. It would have been brilliant for when my son was little, but now I have grandchildren.
Safar is a very beautiful hardcover book with its pastel coloured pages and soft illustrations of people, designs and places by renown artist Amani Haydar. ‘Safar’ means journey. The chapters explore what different kinds of travel mean to Muslim women: travel as a journalist, travel as adventure, travel to original homelands, changes to identity in different countries, finding a new home, the politics of travel, and the peace and spirituality of natural spaces.
The chapters draw together conversations with such interesting people as Yassmin Abdel-Magied, Dr Susan Carland, and Tasneem Chopra, to name just a few. One contributor, Zenith Irfan, was the first woman to scale the mountains of Pakistan on a motorbike at the age of twenty! Dr Umber Rind shares her experience as a Badimaya Yamatji and Pakistani woman working in anti-racism advocacy. We hear stories from all of these women, with many humorous, thoughtful and inspirational insights. Malik includes their tips, as they share what they have learned in their journeys.
The Muslim tradition of Hajj, the pilgrimage made by millions to the Kaaba in Mecca, is named after Hajar, wife of Abraham, who, lost in the desert, sought guidance from Allah, and then discovered water. In honour of her, and other notable Muslim women travellers of the past, this book highlights the stories of discovery and transformation made by modern day women. It offers thoughts and reflections, and stories that all readers can empathise with, regardless of their religion, but must be a particular source of pride and inspiration for young Muslim women and girls. The book presents such a fascinating collection of intelligent and confident women.
For those who enjoy the book and want more, there is a very good YouTube video of Sarah Malik in conversation with TV Presenter Farah Celjo and illustrator Amani Haydar on the release of Safar.
Themes Muslims in Australia, Travel, Identity, Self empowerment.
Helen Eddy
The gecko and the echo by Rachel Bright and Jim Field
On the island, the little gecko called Goldy dreams of being a star. She sings out of tune, loudly and at length, annoying the neighbours, who do not seem to be able to anything about it. The little gecko knows that to be a star, she needs to practise and practise so she does. It goes on incessantly, 24/7 and Goldy's noise becomes very annoying to the other animals. The last straw comes along when in time with the crickets chirping, Goldy sings a song through burping. The animals beg Goldy to stop, as it is all me, me, me and they do not want to have to listen to the singing. Deflated, Goldy leaves and walks to the Red River Campus where she is convinced she will find an audience that appreciates her singing.
Here she calls out and is surprised when she is answered. She calls out lots of sounds and they all are returned. She sings and is even more surprised when the song comes back. But it is out of tune, so Goldy wants to find the other singer to help. A passing butterfly whispers in Goldy’s ear that the voice she is hearing is an echo. It is her voice she is hearing.
Shocked. Goldy determines that she will return to her family a different gecko. She hums for the babies when they go to sleep, waltzes to the back of the queue at breakfast time, and gives space to others to dance, being mindful of the needs of those around her and kind in her dealings with the family. All the animals now have the opportunity to shine and together they will all be stars.
This is a lovely story of stepping back, of not hugging the limelight, of encouraging others to try things out for themselves and of course for those with big personalities to make sure everyone else has a go.
Vibrant illustrations cover each page with the lush flora on the island, supporting all the animals that live there. Readers will love picking out all the animals shown and identifying them in their environment. More about this English illustrator can be found here.
And readers will love drawing along with him on his website as he demonstrated how to draw one of his characters, Monsieur Roscoe.
Aura Parker, the author of Meerkat Splash has created a clever rhyming book which will appeal to young readers. From the charming cover to the gorgeous front endpapers featuring the meerkat elves busily making presents and the back endpapers showing a traditional Christmas celebration, this enjoyable read is about the meerkat friends playing a wobbly Christmas game which may end in disaster!
The story begins with the following rhyme across two double pages which is complemented by delightful illustrations:
Hi hooray! It’s Christmas Day! Meerkat One, it’s time to play. Meerkat Two and Meerkat Three. ‘Cheeky elves! Come climb with me!’
This is a perfect book released just in time for the Christmas season and one that early childhood readers will enjoy over and over again.
Themes Meerkats, Christmas, Rhyming.
Kathryn Beilby
The offline diaries by Yomi Adegoke & Elizabeth Uviebinene
This is a story of friendship, and also the sadness of lost connection, set within early high school and with additional social media pressures. Ade is a new arrival in a new town and school. Moving has not been a happy change and all the pressures of ‘starting over’ are weighing heavily on her. A chance meeting at the hair salon her mother attends, gives her the opportunity to make a new friend. Shanice frequently spends time at her father’s salon because she is often alone and lonely, especially since her mother died. The surprise encounter and almost immediate connection between the two 12 year-old girls develops further at school and via their online chats. Sadly though, Ade also manages to connect with the two popular but mean girls at school, despite Shanice’s warnings about their self-centred and cruel demeanour towards her in the past. Can their friendship survive when Ade is pulled in two directions? Can Shanice survive being excluded again?
This is a social drama story for pre-teens and early teens, with characters who do not have an Anglo-Saxon heritage. There are light-hearted moments and also some naive aspects to the lives of the two main characters as they negotiate inter-personal challenges. With some of the conversations and interactions shared as ‘Chatback’ conversations, and each of the girls communicating via their diary or journal entries, there are insights into the friendship impacts, especially when things start to go awry. There are some struggles with the bullying and exclusion of the ‘mean girls’ which are intensified by the influence of social media communications. Family life has some challenges for both girls, but they are loved and there are positive aspects to their lives, and they are genuinely hurt when their friendship suffers. Young female readers aged 11-14 will enjoy this story, and it will be endearing for readers with African or Caribbean heritage.
Themes Friendship, Bullying, Social media, Grief, Family.
Carolyn Hull
Scientists are saving the world! by Saskia Givinn and Ana Albero
Scientists are Saving the World! is a wonderful new graphic style picture book that will provide an excellent introduction for young readers to the world of science and the role scientists play in our lives. Bright and colourful images are complemented by simple accessible text clearly written and well-spaced out.
Written as a story, the book begins with a young child asking the question, “If all the scientists are saving the world right now…who is working on time travel?” His mother’s response takes the young boy and the reader on a connected journey exploring a variety of different scientists and their discoveries. Mary Anning, palaeontologist is the first one mentioned. She discovered her first dinosaur when she was 12 years old. This is followed by astronauts including Leonid Kadenyuk who was the first Ukrainian citizen to go to space. Perhaps one of the more unusual and unfamiliar scientists are the acoustic biologists who listen to animals and record their sounds. Katy Payne recorded elephants trumpeting and with her husband discovered that hump-back whales sing songs. Many of the scientists mentioned in the book are trying to protect Earth from climate change. Biologist Wangari Maathai grew up in Africa and started a campaign to encourage local women to plant more trees. She was the first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace prize in 2004.
In the final pages of the book are 24 brief snapshots of the scientists mentioned and could be used as a ‘gateway’ for further investigation and research. Teachers may find this book a valuable resource to share with students when looking at the STEM curriculum.
Themes Scientists, STEM, Protecting the Planet.
Kathryn Beilby
Flipper and Finnegan by Sophie Cunningham. Illus. by Anil Tortop
Albert Street Books, 2022. ISBN: 9781761180071. (Age:4+) Recommended.
Subtitled ‘The true story of how tiny jumpers saved Little Penguins’ readers will look closely at the colourful knitwear adorning the penguins on the cover. Beguilingly the story opens giving readers information about the lives of these Little Penguins, found on the southern coast of Victoria. Readers will learn how they fish and dive, and of their nightly parade watched by thousands of tourists every year on Phillip Island, and of course, why they are called Little Penguins.
There are dangers lurking in the water but they learn to avoid them until one day a dark cloud hangs over their patch of the sea. They come up for air only to find themselves covered in oil. Meanwhile at the Wildlife Centre, Prasad and Mac have heard of the oil spill. Flipper finds herself covered in oil, oil she cannot clean, and she cannot find Finnegan, so she goes back to a new barrow only to find herself trapped. She struggles to escape but stops when she realises there is another occupant in the cage, Finnegan. Back at the Centre the only thing available to stop the penguins preening themselves and ingesting the oil that covers their bodies is a jumper. A call is put out on radio, TV and the Internet to ask for help, and even the oldest man in Australia knits. After that it is bath time, where all 10,000 feathers are cleaned with soapy water.
Once cleaned, the Little Penguins were rested up and fed before being released.
A story that gives lots of information, added to with the pages at the end of the book. Colourful illustrations of the lives of Little Penguins add to the wonder of the story which promotes environmental concerns and the impact of disaster on the natural world. When people band together a solution can be found.
Themes Environment, Little Penguins, Victoria, Oil spill, Disasters, Knitting.
"From outside on the busy north London high street, Pages & Co looked like an entirely normal bookshop, but once inside it didn't quite make sense how everything fitted inside its ordinary walls. The shop was made up of five floors of corners and cubbyholes, sofas and squashy armchairs, and a labyrinth of bookshelves heading off in different direction. A spiral staircase danced up one wall, and painted wooden ladders stretched into difficult-to-reach corners. Tall arched windows above made it feel a little like a church when the light spilled in and danced on the air. When it was good weather the sun pooled on the floor and the bookshop cat - named Alice for her curious nature - could often be found dozing in the warmest spots. During the summer the big fireplace behind the till was filled to bursting with fresh flowers, but at it was October, a fire was roaring there."
Does this not conjure up every booklover's dream of a magical place, a bookstore where magic and mysteries, adventures and escapades beckon? And for it to be the home of Tilly who prefers the company of book characters to the people in real life and, although not having been outside London, is a seasoned traveller within the pages of the books that abound on the shelves for in the first in the series she discovered her father was a fictional character and she, herself, was half fictional. There is much more to her grandfather and grandmother and the family's history and lives than she ever imagined. Bookwandering is what this family does, and it might explain the mysterious disappearance of her mother and the absence of her father. As she and her best friend Oskar search for her missing mother, they meet the powerful but sinister Underwood family, search for the mysterious Archivists and encounter the Sesquipedalian, a magical train that uses the power of imagination to travel through both Story and the real world. It is owned by Horatio Bolt who specialises dodgy dealings as a book smuggler trading in rare books, and his nephew Milo...
In this, the second last in this series, Tilly and Milo hurtle towards their final showdown with the Alchemist, and the stakes are higher than ever - though there is always time for hot chocolate! Milo Bolt is ready to be the hero of his own story. With Uncle Horatio trapped in an enchanted sleep by the power-hungry Alchemist, he sets off with his new friend Alessia to find a cure and save them all. Their journey leads them to the magical treehouse - home of the Botanist, the Alchemist's sworn enemy. Against the clock, they hunt for the cure: foraging in the Secret Garden, challenging Robin Hood and confronting the mighty Jabberwock.
But the Alchemist will stop at nothing to unlock the powerful secrets of The Book of Books, and Tilly, Pages & Co. and the whole world of imagination are under threat as a battle for the fate of bookwandering is set in motion..
Created for independent readers or perfect for classroom read-alouds, this is a series that really needs to be read from the first one in order so that the subsequent adventures have context but it will have the book lover hooked from the start, regardless of their age, and wishing they too could bookwander into the magical, mystical world of their favourite characters. Miss Now 12 is going to be delighted when her copy arrives in the post as she has been hooked on this from the start.
And if you have readers looking for similar stories about magical bookshops, suggest The Bookseller's Apprentice and The Grandest Bookshop in the World. to tide them over while they are waiting for the final of Pages & Co., probably about this time next year. In the meantime, those who haven't ventured into the doors of this magical place have time to catch up!
An outstanding view of Earth from space is constructed in this highly original perspective of our place in space by internationally applauded author illustrator, Oliver Jeffers.
A father takes his two children in the car travelling initially to the moon. Driving at 37 miles an hour, they will take one year to cover the half a million miles. From the moon they look back at Earth one year ago, and see people cannot agree on what to do about the world’s problems. The family travels on to Venus, seventy eight years away. Looking back they see that Earth 78 years ago was besieged by war with tanks, soldiers, planes dropping bombs, with an atomic bomb seen in the background. Driving on for another 150 years take them to Mercury and looking back they sees the carve up of Africa, as European nations fight over this continent. Mars is 170 years away, and adult readers will be predicting what conflict Jeffers may allude to as the family arrives on the red planet. Four nations again are fighting over a small piece of land jutting into the sea. Not much has changed.
And so on we go, the readers taken on a trip around space, seeing what planets are in our solar system and how far they are from each other, giving children a unique perspective of our place in space. And more importantly a perspective on what we have achieved over millennia, as each turn takes us back a number of years, revealing the incessant conflict which has occurred.
A children’s guide to the universe and a brief history of the conflicts of the world are presented in a way that is most accessible, as the children are in a car with their dad, driving between planets. The vastness of space is broken down into manageable chunks, the view back to Earth conceivable as the readers are all aware of the tensions that borders create.
Jeffers was born and raised in Northern Ireland and says that being in New York gives him a perspective of the conflict back home. The us and them becomes just us, as he travels back in time to when man first lived in caves, intent on survival, and nothing else.
Beautiful images of space throughout this story will give all readers pause for thought as each of the planets radiating from Earth comes into view. The small car and its three occupants journey across space and time taking the willing readers with them, sharing a view of the trouble the world has built for itself, finding in the end that there is no place like home.
The endpapers offer an outline of our solar system with Earth’s distances from each planet and a time line reprising the conflicts alluded to in the text. Adults and children alike will be intrigued and provoked, initiating endless discussions and multiple readings, while quotations from astronauts add another layer of interest.
For information about this uniquely talented author look hereand be sure to check out the clip of the book on his website, or find it on YouTube.
Themes Conflict, Space, Solar system, Journey, Home.
Another rural crime set in South Australia, featuring Hirsch (Bitter Wash Road,Peace, and Consolation) will thrill fans who have enjoyed the series. Hirsch patrols a wide area, driving to isolated properties, checking on lonely people, as well as keeping an eye on the small township where he lives. Janne van Sant’s backpacker son has gone missing, and he has been asked to drive her around checking the last spots that he has been seen. Then a call comes in and Hirsch must deal with a roadside fire – a suitcase has been set alight and it contains a body. Hirsch has to contend with problems with people who are against COVID vaccination and there are rumours of anti-government sentiment amongst the young men in the community. And there are also rental scams and online bullying to deal with, as well as a plane crash and a dog attack.
Hirsch is a favourite character of mine. Disher manages to describe him as a very believable, fair person who takes his duties, both of solving crimes and watching over vulnerable people very seriously. He is intelligent and observant, and his wry comments alleviate the underlying tension in the story.
There are many layers to Day’s end. There is the mystery of the missing backpacker to solve, while the body of the tattooed man in the suitcase must be identified and his murderer found. The Federal Police become involved in what is happening on Hirsch’s watch, and he must be careful not to interfere with their case, while still carrying on using his knowledge of the country and the people.
This is a great read and I look forward to more in the Paul Hirschhausen series. Fans of the rural noir genre may also enjoy books by Jane Harper and Candice Fox.
