Toodle the cavoodle: Sniffle snuffle by Richard Tulloch. Illus. by Heidi Cooper Smith
Big Sky, 2022. ISBN: 9781922765772. (Age:3+) Recommended.
All children will recognise this ragamuffin, boisterous animal using his nose to smell all the wonderful smells in his neighbourhood, particularly those given off by food. He snuffles around the overgrown grassy area near his house, sniffing at the cans and sandwiches he finds. He sniffles through the grass coming to a halt at the abandoned car which his friend loves. Together they imagine lots of places to visit. One day the older man with the smelly sneakers is on his ride on mower, chopping down the lovely long grass. The woman with grubby gumboots is picking up all the cans and rubbish and clearing them away. Startled he makes for her car where he can hide, but finds that the car is being taken away too. High up he barks for attention until the family attracts the the crane driver and lets him down.
Grandma has an idea and the next time Toodle steps outside he sees the car, all newly painted and covered with trailing plants looking just as inviting as before. And now he smells all the smells of all his friends as they sit in the car and imagine.
A wonderful story of friends and friendship, of a dog at the centre of the household, of a solution to the problem of what to do with the messy space next door with its abandoned car. A fun tale of the relationship between a dog and its owner, will have children laughing at the dog as he recognise people via their footwear.
The lively illustrations suit the story beautifully, Cooper Smith adding a great deal of fascinating detail for eager eyes to take in, things they will recognise in their own backyards and waste spaces in their neighbourhood. The recycling solution will add a level of discussion to the group as they finish reading. Teacher's notes and a book trailer are available from the publisher.
Themes Dogs, Family, Rubbish, Recycling.
Fran Knight
Unnecessary drama by Nina Kenwood
Text Publishing, 2022. ISBN: 9781922458896. (Age:16+) Highly recommended.
Brooke is an over-thinker, someone who must have every i-dotted and t-crossed before proceeding with the messiness of life. She is on the precipice of University life and moving into shared housing with strangers – a leap for someone who has mastered anxiety and list-making, but not yet learned what to do with her mountain of emotions and fears. Her new home has few rules and there will always be uncertainties for Brooke. Harper is the established tenant (who is romantically connected to Penny), but it is when Jesse (aka Jeremy) the third housemate arrives that Brooke is thrown into a maelstrom of emotional turmoil because of their shared teenage history. When Brooke was 14, Jesse rocked her equilibrium and her sense of self and left her constantly second-guessing her every move. Learning to live in close proximity to someone who deeply angers you, reminding you of your unworthiness, and yet stirs every tingle of desire is not going to be easy. And in the true tradition of Rom-coms Brooke does everything wrong before things are righted.
This is an absolutely charming story of teen romance and living with the burden of anxiety. Brooke is the voice-inside-the-head of every teen who doubts themselves, has been hurt in the relationship arena, and who is struggling to learn how to self-analyse and then manage their own insecurities before stepping out in the social world. I loved every minute of the story. Brooke and Jesse both have family histories with painful implications for their lives, so there is depth to the characters as well as comedic insights into Brooke’s self-talk that is always far too ‘plan’ oriented for the influence of chaotic romance. The new life of a University student with assignments, housework, house parties and friendship pathways to navigate are all presented with Brooke’s overly anxious view of the world. It is a hilarious and yet thoughtfully concerned journey for the reader. Nina Kenwood has got it just right. Teaching notes are available.
A lovely to hold board book will be adored by younger readers feeling the delicious textures which lie beneath the flaps on each double page. Tactile, visually bright and attractive, the book will remind older readers of The Little Prince and its environmental message, and gather younger readers into its sway as they search for the little fox amongst the various things depicted.
A smelly cheese, prickly cactus, birds in flight, a leather tent and blue planet hide a bright lantern, aromatic rose, a wooly sheep and bright moon, all designed to ignite the senses and be engaged in what is seen or felt or imagined on each page.
I am so glad the cactus had no prickles, even though I could imagine them, just as I could smell the lanolin of the sheep and the kerosine of the lantern and the fragrance of the lovely rose. Children and adults alike will discuss each page and what each means to them as they read, coming in the end to an understanding of some of the variety of things which make up our planet.
Designed to stimulate the senses and practise their motor skills, the tactile book will appeal to a wide variety of children bent on lifting flaps, feeling different textures and talking about the search for the fox before nodding off to sleep.
Themes Sleep, Moon and stars, Lift the flap, Textures.
Fran Knight
Little Ash: Party problem by Ashleigh Barty, Jasmin McGaughey and Jade Goodwin
Number five in this successful series of small books for newly arrived readers of chapter books will entice readers to seek out the others in this series based around Ash Barty’s stories of her younger days. Each book has about six chapters of several pages, in large print with some illustrations dotted amid the text. Some words are in darker font to stress words possibly not seen before.
A fancy dress party has Ash and her friend James very excited. Unsurprisingly Ash will go as a tennis player, but the whole scheme is under threat when her favourite tennis racquet is missing at the party. All of her friends are there, each dressed in their favourite dress up. After an egg and spoon race, the group goes swimming, changing from their costumes into swimmers. After getting out of the pool, Ash changes back into the tennis outfit but finds that her racquet is not there.
With James’ magical powers and Ash investigating, the team searches the garden without success. They go into the room where the parents are and Ash’s mum sees something is wrong. She tells them to ask around and go and eat some of the party food. Finding the racquet is a huge relief and the party is topped off when the costume competition takes place.
A neatly resolved story about losing something then finding it again in an unlikely place, the story revolves around Ash and James working together on a problem. Mum intervenes with suggestions and the resolution has them all relieved. Easy to read this small book will be picked up readily by early chapter book readers, thrilled to learn more of the art of reading, of new words and of Ash Barty.
The striking cover of The Bedtime Book of Impossible Questions is full of colour, floating images plus a few curly questions, and will have young readers hooked before even opening this fascinating book. Right from the very first chapter, ‘Shall I tell you a secret?’ where the author tells the reader that science is about asking questions, it is clear this will become a treasured bedtime or indeed, anytime book. The book explores all sorts of impossible questions which can then lead to even more questions, but it is stressed that not every answer is necessarily correct. Answers are based on evidence and with more discoveries and experimentation over time they could change.
The double spread contents page allows the reader to choose the questions to be discovered or the book can be read in numerical order. Some of the questions that piqued my interest were:
If I were born in a different year, would I still be me? What is the opposite of a spider? Does yellow look the same to me as it does to you? How many trees are there in the whole world? How heavy is earth? If you can feel bitter, do other feelings have tastes?
With more than 40 questions, each one is thoughtfully answered, and children will be able to absorb the explanations in their own way. Adults too, will be able to learn and add to the information shared. The illustrations throughout are colourful and engaging and will provide visual clues for the reader.
This book would make an excellent Christmas or birthday gift for the curious child or children in your life.
Themes Science, Questions, Curiosity.
Kathryn Beilby
Play School: Breathe in and out by Jan Stradling and Jedda Robaard
One in the very useful Mindfully Me series of books which touch upon subjects that are pertinent to some students at any one time, and to many over the space of their school lives will be read by students and teachers alike as they tackle a common problem, despair. This story talks about Big Ted and his bout of not feeling himself. When his four friends come to visit Big Ted at his house, he does not feel like playing, he is uncharacteristically quiet and reserved. When asked, he says that he feels stormy: he feels like the dark clouds which come before the rain.
All of his friends understand, and suggest they build a mindfulness cubby, a place to feel safe and calm. Big Ted is not so sure, but sits in it for them. Little Ted returns with a gift of lavender, saying that when things get a little tight with him, he smells the lavender and then he passes over some basil and cinnamon sticks. Big Ted smells the offerings, saying they remind him of his mother’s kitchen. Kiya brings in a picture of the sea and together they think of how calm and peaceful it looks and how sparkling the sea is. Jemima has picked up her guitar and is playing a tune, telling him that when she is wound up she plays her instrument and feels calmer. Humpty brings in a slow down jar, one that when it is shaken the glitter inside flows slowly to the base of the jar reminding people to breathe in and out. Each of his four friends has offered something that helps them become calm after feeling at a loss or worrying over something. Each of the offerings use one or other of the senses to rally the person feeling low. The smell of the lavender, basil and cinnamon remind Big Ted of the warmth of his mother’s kitchen, pictures of the sea remind him of calm sights, Jemima’s playing works on his hearing while the slow down jar uses his own experience of breathing in and out. Each friend uses a sense: smelling, looking, hearing and feeling to evoke a pleasant response, to make him feel happy once again.
This most successfully outlined story about mindfulness will encourage younger readers to watch out for each other, to be aware that the simplest of things will help their friends and themselves out of the blue times in their days, and building a mindfulness cubby may be the first step.
The Play School Mindfully Me series helps children and their carers tackle life's challenges together - big or small. (HarperCollins)
Themes Depression, Mindfulness, Friendship, Five senses.
Fran Knight
The last crayon by Fifi Colston
Book Hungry Bears. Little Steps, 2022. ISBN: 9781922678522. (Age:2-5)
This simple yet gorgeous picture book will be perfect for younger readers learning about colours. The opening page of the story shows six colourful squirrels finding a piece of paper and a box of crayons. They each choose the crayon that matches their own body colour and are able to easily compare their crayon to the sun, sky, grass, berries and butterflies. The squirrel with the grey crayon takes time to decide what his colour is compared to and cleverly comes up with a line drawing for all of the others to colour in.
This is a lovely story to share with younger readers with a very special message.
Themes Crayons, Colours.
Kathryn Beilby
The boys from Biloxi by John Grisham
Hodder & Stoughton, 2022. ISBN: 9781399702751. (Age:16+ - Adult) Recommended for lovers of Crime Drama.
Two families, who start their lives in similar circumstances in Biloxi, Mississippi on the Gulf of Mexico, end up in very different positions because of the choices they make. One family, the Falco’s, end up mired in corruption and involved in illicit activities and running establishments that enable prostitution and gambling to line their pockets. Their life is complicated by greed, and power is exercised with no regard to the law. The other family, the Rudy’s, maintain their church attendance and work hard to eventually work in the legal world, upholding law and order and trying to change the reputation of the community that is their home. Their life is not perfect, but their desire is to see the bad reputation and grimy behaviours of their town wiped out and the coast ‘cleaned up’. Their two sons, Hugh Falco and Keith Rudy, grew up playing baseball together, but the passage of time and the different paths of their lives and their climbs to success, leads them to be on opposite sides of the courtroom in a case that involves murder. The political wheeling and dealing of legal and illegal activities are woven into the story and there is an inevitability of this good vs evil saga. The showdown in the courtroom is coming.
Grisham manages to pull the reader along into the grimy world of organised crime without getting his hands dirty in the process. Written with a somewhat spare, almost documented and non-judgemental style, this initially feels like we are being given a briefing of the record of a legal situation and court case from the very beginning of its history. Sentences are short and devoid of imagery, characters are described but we do not connect to them or warm to them. The boys from Biloxi lacks the narrative flair and tension of many crime novels, but at the same time the lean exposure of the plot’s complexities gives it a journalistic feel and an inescapable pull. Interestingly, Grisham has also spared us the worst of the awful and grisly detail of the illegal activities, and even the language use (with barely a swear word in sight) has been pared back so that we are on the outside looking in, but without the stench of the evil cesspit in our faces. This makes it an interestingly different story. But the complications of the nefarious world of crime bosses and also the US legal and political world and its machinations are revealed in an intriguing way. It isn’t nice, but it is compelling. This is for lovers of legal crime dramas, 16+- adult readers.
Allen & Unwin, 2022. ISBN: 9781761066009. (Age:7+) Highly recommended.
Rita’s Revenge written by Lian Tanner is another hilarious follow up to A Clue for Clara, the famous chicken detective. Filled with hilarity, havoc and venture, this story will easily get those pages turning and entertain its audience with its fast-paced action and humour. While it is not a sequel, it is best if you have read A Clue for Clara previously.
Rita the duck loves a good poem but is a bit of an outcast from her group. Desperate to gain respect from her fellow ducks, she sets out to avenge Clara, the hero detective who has mocked all the ducks from their hometown of Little Dismal. Quickly setting off to pursue her mission, she meets and befriends Tracey, a young girl who is also angry with Clara for her heroics that caused her best friend and her father to leave unexpectedly. As they work out ways to communicate together, their anger and sadness dissipate, and they begin to question if their rage is pointed in the right direction. Suddenly when a chook-napping occurs….. could they possibly have been looking at this whole situation from the wrong angle all along?
Written cleverly in diary and letter form it makes for an easy and entertaining read. The audience will be amused by Rita’s amateur diary recordings, with entries like ‘waiting o’clock’ and ‘half past egg’. Interleaved are Tracey’s heartfelt sentiments shared in unsent letters to her departed friend, Jubilee. This novel is sure to appeal to anyone who enjoys fun, adventure and a bit of suspense. Add in some cute feathered friends who keep everyone on their toes, and you will be eagerly waiting to see what happens next. This novel, with its humorous storyline, easy print and smatterings of fun illustrations, makes for a enjoyable read. If you previously loved Clara’s clever detective skills, you will simply adore Rita’s poety, persistence and combative dance too!
Themes Problem solving, Friendship, Adventure, Humour, Teamwork.
Michelle O'Connell
Where's my stick? by Fifi Colston
Book Hungry Bears. Little Steps, 2022. ISBN: 9781912678662. (Age:3-6)
Over time Maxie finds a number of sticks in varying sizes and buries them in the sand. However, each stick disappears due to natural changes in the environment. Finally, Maxie buries the largest stick with another pile of sticks as a marker and to her surprise as well as finding the stick, Maxie finds some new four-legged companions!
This is a short entertaining story set at the beach with full page colourful illustrations of Maxie and various sea creatures and will appeal to younger readers.
Goodreads Choice Award Winner for Best Mystery & Thriller (2022) and Winner of the Ned Kelly Award for Best International Crime Fiction, The maid is an intriguing mystery starring an unforgettable main character in Molly Gray. Molly is a maid in the superior Regency Grand Hotel. She loves her work, delighting in keeping the hotel rooms perfect, but she has problems with her social skills and is often the butt of the jokes of other employees. When she discovers the body of Mr Black in his suite, she is targeted by the police as a main suspect, and the fact that she has been helping her friend use a hotel room every night adds to her fears. Fortunately, she does have friends who will help her and together they scheme to uncover the dirty secrets in the hotel and the identity of the murderer.
The character of Molly Gray reminded me of Don Tillman in The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion and is as equally as engaging. Although Molly is different, the final twists and turns in the novel demonstrate her intelligence and unique take on what is right and wrong.
The cast of friends and villains surrounding Molly add depth to the story and it is easy to relate to Molly’s struggles to work out who is friend or foe. I found myself holding my breath hoping for the best outcome for Molly, and finally very surprised and satisfied by the final denouement.
This is a suspenseful and great escapist cosy read for all lovers of mysteries.
Like a thorough historical research project, Horse pulls together the story of Lexington, a famous racehorse of the 1800’s, by piecing together fragments of stories from different voices. Thus we learn about the slave Black Jarret a dedicated groom and horse trainer, and Scott, an itinerate painter of horses and the men who tended them, in the 19th century. Another voice is added from 1954: Martha Jackson, a gallery owner is called on to value a painting of Lexington; and then in 2019, there is the retrieval of another painting from a rubbish pile and the discovery of the lost skeleton of the horse itself in the archives of the Smithsonian.
While Brooks brilliantly brings to life the personality of the horse Lexington and his close relationship with Jarrett his carer, and the joys and misfortunes that the horse experiences, this is not simply a new version of the Black Beauty story (Sewell, 1877), or indeed a horse story as such. Brook’s novel reveals the racism inherent in America’s history built on slavery, a racism that continues into the shocking events of current times with police shootings of innocent black men and the 'Black Lives Matter' protests.
The black figures in the 19th century equestrian paintings of famous horses are rarely named; they are the people who worked the stables and trained the horses to become winners but were never recognised. It was only the owner who took the glory. Slaves were appraised and sold on, families split apart, just as the horses were sold for their race prospects or their breeding value. The slave had no control over his own life.
Brooks raises the question of whether it is possible to have a true friendship between humans who are not equal, when one has power and freedom, and the other has always to tread with fear. Mary Barr, the granddaughter of Black Jarrett’s master, is hurt when her care for him is distrusted and her offer of friendship is received by Jarrett with incredulity. Even in modern times, the black man has always to be aware of how his actions may be interpreted. He does not have the freedom to ‘move easy in the world’, or the luxury of ‘expecting the world to be good to you’, the freedom that the 2019 Australian curator Jess takes for granted, until she is confronted by the different experiences her romantic interest, and ‘friend’, Theo, a black man, reveals to her.
Historical and current perspectives of animal rights and human rights are both important themes in Horse. But it is the voices of the characters and their different experiences that give the novel its life. The personalities, both animal and human, draw the reader in and keep us engaged, wanting to know more. It’s one of those books where the reading has been so enjoyable that you slow down reading the last chapters, not wanting it to end.
Themes Historical fiction, Slavery, Racism, Horse racing, Animal rights, Human rights, Black Lives Matter.
Helen Eddy
In the serpent’s wake by Rachel Hartman
Random House, 2022. ISBN: 9781101931325. (Age:14+) Highly recommended.
In this sequel to Tess of the Road Tess is trying to help her quigutl friend Pathka, who needs to reach the Polar Serpent to heal, while also spying for her Goreddi monarch. With her friend and failed priest Jacomo, she joins countess Marga’s voyage through many islands that have been colonised by the Ninysh, who are trying to subdue the indigenous people. Spira the dragon who holds a grudge against Tess, is also leading an expedition to find the serpent and will do whatever they can to stop Tess.
The book opens with a poem that summarises what happened in Tess of the Road, reminding readers of the journey of survival and self-examination that Tess has undergone. There are more trials for her In the serpent’s wake, as she has her eyes opened to the way that the native peoples are treated and is forced to look at the effects of colonisation. And once again meeting Will, the man who had so mistreated her in Tess on the road, is a terrible burden to bear. Her companions, Marga, and Jacomo, as well as Spira, all must come to terms with their beliefs and shortcomings as the voyagers encounter the local inhabitants and the political unrest that has occurred because of colonisation.
Rich in world building, the reader is treated to a wonderful fantasy world of sea going vessels, dragons, strange creatures that live in the seas and of polar tigers that can swim and are trained to fight. Poems and songs are dotted throughout the narrative, challenging the reader to consider the religion and beliefs of the indigenous peoples.
Ivan Lucic and Nell Buchanan, featured in in Treasure and dirt, return in an engrossing mystery set near the Murray River. Nell returns to her hometown of Tulong, tasked with a cold case involving a body discovered when a water regulator was sabotaged. Then more bodies are found, and Nell begins to suspect that her family may be involved in the crimes.
Hammer deftly juggles many threads in The tilt, not least the geological features of the area and the beauty of the forest that lines the water and creeks. The reader is drawn into the narrative, which is told from different viewpoints, as the author poses difficult questions. Who is the woman who sabotaged the water regulator? Why was a man running for his life in the forest? Who is Jimmy Waters who relates his life as a young boy looking after cattle in the forest, while his father is at war? And what happened to Tess the young girl who was in love with Tycho Buchanan who disappeared under mysterious circumstances?
As the bodies stack up, Nell finds herself left in charge to solve the cases, as Ivan Lucic has been recalled and leaves her with Kevin Mackangara, the local police officer. She faces threats from the local pub owner and Neo-Nazis in the district while she uncovers much of the secrets and history of her family.
This was a stand-out read for me. Hammer manages to pull all the disparate layers of the story in a stunning conclusion and the setting of the forest and environment theme led me to further investigation of the area around Deniliquin and Echuca. Readers who enjoyed novels by Jane Harper, Garry Disher and S.R. White are sure to want to pick this up.
In a dramatic and colourful tale, dragons, dragon-fighting and romance combine in a fervent way, and a family that has a long tradition of Dragon contests in their arena must fight to maintain their place in the Dragon-fighting community. The fantasy world of Hispalia has strong hints to the reader of the Spanish bull-fighting passions, but with the added threats of attack by wild dragons. Dragons owned and trained by the Draganadors as a form of entertainment, ‘perform’ to the death at the hand of their trainers. Zarela is a young woman who still mourns her Flamenco-performing mother, who died as the result of a dragon attack, and works to mimic her Mother’s skill and to support her Dragandor father in the arena. Sadly, there is tension in the community and when dragons attack during a performance it seems that Zarela and her father have been targeted deliberately. Zarela’s zest for life and her desire to protect her family name have unexpected consequences when she employs a young trainer, Arturo, to help her become a performer in her own right. The relationship between Zarela and Arturo begins with tension, but a slow burn passion weaves its way into the story alongside the mystery of the cause of the opposition to Zarela’s family endeavours.
This is a story that burns! Dragon attacks and fantasy tension introduce intriguing stresses into the adventure but woven alongside this are activists who are working to save the dragons (bull-fighting parallels). Dragons are interesting fantasy creatures and there are many species with different qualities within the story. The tensions in the story between humans and with the dragons make for an exciting tale. The romance that develops with the dancing Zarela and the brooding trainer, Arturo, has elements of sensual stress as they both have strong passionate personalities and reasons to dislike one another. Additional tension, in an environment where death is always a close companion, weaves throughout the entire story and compels the reader forward and the author manages this well. The young potential lovers do perhaps twist and weave like toreadors in the ring, but although there is an element of the innocent tease initially they are not completely virtuous. This is not a Dragon story for children. Together We Burn will be enjoyed by fantasy devotees aged 15+, but the romantic and sensual overtones perhaps will make this romance element too cloying for some male readers, despite the action-adventure of fighting dragons.
