Orchard, 2020. ISBN: 9781408347584.
(Age: 4+) Highly recommended. A new book by Lauren Child always
creates interest as the expectation of a challenging read is ever
present. She draws the reader into a false sense of security, lulls
them into thinking this is a story of sibling rivalry, but she
challenges us to see more than this, as it becomes an expose of
expectations, of labelling, of not seeing difference. And as with
many of her books, we are impelled to consider the wider issue where
children behave as they are expected to, labelled and boxed in by
that expectation.
Siblings, Chirton and Myrtle behave in the way they are expected to
behave. Chirton is good, reliable, dependable while Myrtle is
forgetful, naughty and a refuser.
Chirton eats up his broccoli, Myrtle isn't even given any as she
won't eat it, Chirton cleans the rabbit hutch every week because
Myrtle forgets, and Myrtle stays up late at night because she
doesn't want to sleep. All of the things Myrtle does, Chirton would
like to do, but he is seen as the goody in the family and so
expected to behave well without exception.
One night Chirton gets up to have a glass of water and finds his
sister eating choco puffs and watching TV. He would love to do this
too, and wonders why he is not allowed. The next day he decides that
he is a goody no longer and changes his behaviour, so much so that
he is not allowed to go to a birthday party. When Myrtle goes
instead, the birthday girl does not know of Myrtle's reputation and
treats her like anyone else, and Myrtle decides she likes being
treated thus. So the two come to see the advantages and
disadvantages of being labelled, deciding that there is a middle
road, and their parents are encouraged to see them as different
people with their own traits.
Child's illustrations are always a treat and these with their blocks
of patterns make a wonderful talking point for readers already most
amused by the story.
Themes: Siblings, Humour, Difference, Expectations, Image,
Behaviour, Family.
Fran Knight
Guinness World records 2021
Guinness World Records Limited, 2020. ISBN: 9781913484071.
(Age: 8+) Highly recommended. Readers will not need an introduction
to the fabulous Guinness World Records books and will find much to
amaze and interest in the latest edition for 2021. The book is one
that can be flicked through, with lots of great photos and
captivating captions to grab attention, but it is also one that has
a good Contents page that will direct the reader off to the right
section. It features the following: Solar system, Natural world,
Animals, Humans against the clock, Recordmania, Culture &
society, Adventurers, Technology, Gaming, Pop Culture and Sports.
All contain sub contents and page numbers and each one features one
person in the hall of fame, for example Greta Thunberg in Culture
and Society and Jane Goodall in Animals. There is also an Index and
acknowledgments at the back of the book.
Beginning with the enticing cover, which features lots of small
figures and intricate details, similar to Where's Wally?,
the reader will be grabbed by the great photos and easy to read
information. And they will find when they get to the end of the
book, information on the illustrator Rod Hunt and instructions to
find the 20 record holders that feature in his front and back
covers. A humorous photo on the title page of the fastest electric
ice-cream van (exuberant inventor Edd China, UK, reached 118.964
kmph in it) will grab attention and from then on the reader is sure
to be fascinated by the interesting, well laid out records. In Pop
Culture, one can find out who has the most followers on Instagram,
by using the contents page, with the section on Social Media pg. 204
(Ariana Grande has 182, 260, 250 followers). Another flick through
will show young achievers, with Jackson Oswalt became the youngest
person to achieve nuclear fusion before his 13th birthday.
The Guinness World Records was founded in 1955 and has proved to be
popular ever since. Visit https://guinnessworldrecords.com/
for more information about how to become part of the record-breaking
community and an answer to the original question (What's the fastest
game bird in Europe?) that sparked its origin.
Pat Pledger
Unravel the Dusk by Elizabeth Lim
The Blood of Stars duology. Random House, 2020. ISBN:
9780525647027.
(Young Adult). Recommended. Much has changed for Maia Tamarin since
the conclusion of the first novel in The Blood of Stars
duology. In Spin the Dawn, we watched Maia, a young woman
living in a patriarchal Chinese society, impersonate her brother in
order to enter a competition to become imperial tailor. Talented but
overlooked because of her gender, Maia manages to fulfil the
seemingly impossible task of weaving three magical dresses from the
sun, moon and stars. In Unravel the Dusk Maia returns from
her perilous journey to make the garments to find her kingdom
readying for war and that Edan, the boy that she loves, has
disappeared. If this is not enough for one character to deal with,
Maia is also forced to pretend to be the emperor's future bride in
an effort to stave off the coming conflict and also wrestle with the
demon Bandur, who is determined to take over her body.
Unsurprisingly, there are many plot lines, characters and
conflicting motivations woven into this book. Set at a much more
urgent pace than the first novel, Unravel the Dusk charts
Maia's rapid growth as both a woman and a protagonist. As in the
first novel, she is an enjoyable and worthy main character and is
supported by a well-fleshed out cast. Unravel the Dusk is darker in tone than its predecessor but
it provides a strong and entertaining end to the series. Readers
also interested in fiction influenced Ancient Chinese culture will
enjoy this book. Themes: Identity, Love, War, Magic, Demons,
Royalty.
Rose Tabeni
Migrants by Issa Watanabe
Gecko Press, 2020. ISBN: 9781776573134.
(Age: All) Highly recommended. With predecessors from Japan,
Switzerland and Spain, Peruvian born Watanabe is well placed to know
what it means to be an immigrant. And living in Mallorca in the
early 2000's, she became accustomed to the sight of refugees coming
across the Mediterranean looking for a better life, while having a
migrant living in her house gave her insight into his journey.
Thus the wordless picture book, Migrants was developed. With
a stream of animals in various guises making for the next page,
readers will follow their journey through the book, along with the
figure of death, always behind them, as they battle uncertainty,
privation, hope and despair.
Many are covered with an array of blankets given them along the way,
some have bags they hang on to, only to be abandoned, some are
accompanied by families, including children, but few are left at the
end of their trials.
The lack of words underlines the fact that these people do not need
words to tell us of their plight, it is obvious and our compassion
should be bubbling over with support.
Readers will empathise with the plight of these migrants, wanting to
leave their forest for whatever reason, coming to another place to
start anew. But the journey is horrific, arduous and taxing, death
is ever present, nibbling at their heals.
The illustrations are stunning, portraying a group of people as
animals, finding their way in the dark, unsignposted, sheltering
where they can in the trees and on the beach. The black colour is
continued throughout the book, giving an ominous, portentous and
foreboding overlay to the outcome of these migrants. Readers cannot
help but reflect on the images they have seen on the nightly news,
seeing parallels in Watanabe's images, so powerfully portrayed.
This is not an easy book to read, throwing up images of people like
you and me finding themselves in situations where they must flee. We
follow their journey with wet eyes.
To find out more about Issa Watanabe and how she came to write this
book, read this interview
with the author. Teacher's
notes are available.
Fran Knight
Metal fish, falling snow by Cath Moore
Text Publishing, 2020. ISBN: 9781922330079.
(Age: YA) Recommended. Dylan's French Mum is dead and now they will
never go to Paris together, instead she is left with Pat O'Brien,
her Mum's boyfriend who has his own issues. The outback Australian
town of Beyen is far from the sea where Dylan could find a ship to
take her Mum back to France, instead she is buried in the cemetery
and Dylan wonders "How can I be real without Mum?" p21. 14 year old
Dylan doesn't fit in, both for her brown skin and fuzzy hair and the
way she sees the world so acutely, she has been called "dumb as a
stump, or smart as a stick" or "a teabag: takes a while for things
to filter through" p7; we would put her on the autism spectrum but
she has the ability to see inside some people's lives. Pat and Dylan
set out on a road trip away from the town heading towards her
father's family she has never met. They travel from pub to pub, Pat
distributing promotional material for a brewery and gambling away
his money on the pokies. Dylan takes with her a tiny metal fish she
found while running away from one of her Dad's angry outbursts
before he left them forever, and a snow dome containing the Eiffel
Tower her Mum gave her, along with a photo of Dylan and her Mum in
happier times. Dylan blames herself for her Mum's death, and she is
travelling towards the Guyanan family associated with her violent
father but she courageously tries to make sense of her shifting
world and create a new story for herself. "Your heart can't grow
when it's hurting like that. I keep thinking of Mum, where the boat
is, who I can be without her" p86.
Told in the first person, from Dylan's very idiosyncratic
perspective, it took a while to adjust and let the story swirl
through the text. A second reading would be very rewarding because
the voice is consistent with an authentic edge suggesting the
author's own Irish/Afro-Caribbean heritage has informed the writing.
Viewed through her unique perspective Dylan struggles with grief,
identity and the prejudices she encounters growing up with a
coloured skin in Australia. In losing the mother she needed, Dylan
lost the only family she knew; in reconnecting with lost relatives
she finds someone who needs her. A sometimes funny, often profound
story that will reward the effort of reading Dylan's own voice
narrative, seeing the world through different eyes. "No point
running from yourself 'cause wherever you go, there you are" p244.
Recommended for young adult readers with Australian curriculum
detailed teaching
notes available from the publisher. Themes: Grief, Identity,
Mixed race heritage, Family.
Sue Speck
The funny life of sharks by James Campbell
Illus. by Rob Jones. Bloomsbury Children's Books, 2020. ISBN:
9781526615497.
(Age: 8+ years) Recommended. The funny life of sharks is the
third book in The funny life of . . . series by author
James Campbell and illustrator Rob Jones. Before reading, a warning
is given that this is not a fact book and it is a book for four
different types of people: People who love sharks; People who do not
like sharks; People who are sharks; People who have no interest in
sharks. The reader learns that this is not an ordinary read where
you read from front to back but a book where you can begin or end
where you want or follow the signposts throughout the book. Finally,
on Page 14 the book begins with signposts to other pages. There are
interesting shark facts spread throughout the book and clever use of
humour e.g. Nurse sharks have been given that name as they are used
in hospitals as a way of keeping patients quiet and you are more
likely to be killed by your toaster than a shark.
While this book claims that it is not a fact book, the author has a
strong environmental message regarding plastics in the oceans and
endangered animals. There are also other interesting facets of
information about things related to sharks or not related at all.
Adelaide, S.A., even has its own page of information based on great
white shark attacks. The clever illustrations by Rob Jones
complement the text perfectly.
This is both a humorous and enjoyable read that will entertain
readers both young and old. Themes: Sharks,
Environmental facts, Humour.
Kathryn Beilby
Four on the run by Sophie Masson
Illus. by Cheryl Orsini. Christmas Press, 2020. ISBN: 9780648194576.
(Age: 5-8 years) Four on the run is a simple and
entertaining story about four old and rusty friends living in a barn
on a farm after their owner Mrs Brown has saved them from the scrap
heap. Maxie is shaped like a beetle, Lady is long with fins, Flash
is a motorbike and Fergie a tractor. All have their own special
personalities. They are worried that Mrs Brown is having money
troubles and think she is going to sell them. The four decide to
escape from the barn and travel to the nearest town and find a job.
Their first attempt at being musicians does not go well and the
police car is after them. They are rounded up by a pack of dogs and
taken to the Monster Truck Show where Crusher befriends them for his
own dangerous purpose. Fortunately, the four friends cleverly outwit
the monster trucks and Mrs Brown comes to their rescue. A surprise
offer comes their way and the story ends happily.
This is a perfect read aloud for Junior Primary students as it is
short and will appeal to children who could easily imagine that
vehicles may be able to talk. Those younger readers who are
progressing to independently reading novels will find the larger
text and repetition of key words an asset to reading fluently. The
clever illustrations by Cheryl Orsini provide extra interest and
support to the reader. An activity
pack is available. Themes: Friendship, Humour, Adventure,
Farms.
Kathryn Beilby
Ruby Tuesday by Hayley Lawrence
Penguin Random House, 2020. ISBN: 9781760894894.
(Ages: 14+) Ruby Tuesday describes the life of an Australian
teenager, living in semi-rural Australia with her paraplegic mother,
with the story starting up at the funeral of her grandmother. Ruby
and her mother's lives revolve around music - for Ruby it's singing
and creating music, for her mother it's precision piano playing.
Given the start of the book (family funeral), Ruby is going through
a hard time, which is not made any easier by attending a party a few
weeks after the funeral. It was not a good party. All aspects of her
trust have been shattered. Ruby is faced with moving on, while
everyone around her insists on reminding her of that night.
This is a contemporary novel, covering issues that are still
impacting teenagers today: peer pressure, underage drinking, rape,
estranged friends, dealing with loss and dealing with unwanted
attention. While I understand that the author wanted to highlight
these issues, I find myself frustrated that women are continually at
a disadvantage in society, and while Ruby and her situation are
relatable, there are aspects of the story that some readers will
find frustrating. The story is evenly-paced but lacking any real
drive - it is simple enough to read though. Throughout the book Ruby
deals with anxiety, loss, love, trust, fear and the aftermath of a
sexual assault.
The author has written a contemporary novel which utilises social
media and YouTube, as well as deals with relevant issues.
Themes: Music, Relationships, Disability, Anxiety, Human
relationships, Facing fears, Trust.
Melanie Phillips
Alice, curiouser and curiouser edited by Kate Bailey and Simon Sladen
V and A Publishing, 2020. ISBN: 9781838510046.
(Age: All) Highly recommended. Described as 'a mind-bending journey
into the story of Wonderland', this sumptuous hard cover book has
been published to accompany the exhibition of the same name at the
Victoria and Albert Museum, an exhibition exploring the origins,
adaptations and reinventions over the years of Lewis Carroll's
original stories of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through
the Looking-Glass.
The first section of the book is a collection of beautiful and
intricately detailed illustrations by Kristjana S. Williams
that children and adults alike will enjoy exploring. They are
colourful scenes from the Alice stories decorated with plants and
flowers, strange creatures, timepieces and hidden mirrors to search
out.
Then follows the story of Lewis Carroll (Charles Dodgson) and his
creation of the fantasy stories for his young friend, Alice,
daughter of Henry Liddell, dean of Christ Church, Oxford, while
passing the time on rowing expeditions with her and her sisters.
Those stories of strange other worlds with nonsense verse and absurd
dialogue questioning reality and perception were to become a source
of delight for both adults and children, and an inspiration for many
later adaptations and interpretations in literature, art, film,
theatre, science and popular culture.
This book collects together iconic images from the early
illustrations by John Tenniel to surrealist art, to the fashion
statements of Vivenne Westwood, Viktor and Rolf, and Galliano for
Dior. An allegory of Alice's adventures has been used as an
introduction to the quantum world, and in a reference to her quest
to discover more about our universe, her name was given to the
'Large Ion Collider Experiment' at CERN, the European Organisaton
for Nuclear Research.
The legacy of Alice in Wonderland lives on in so many ways;
this book provides a wonderful insight into the amazing impact those
early stories have had, and is a volume that many will find much
pleasure in perusing.
Helen Eddy
You were made for me by Jenna Guillaume
Pan Macmillan, 2020. ISBN: 9781760559137.
(Age: 13+) Sixteen year old Katie wants to be a writer; she is also
good at art. Her best friend, Libby, wants to be a scientist or an
editor and together they tell a story of how they made the perfect
boy. Neither is in the "cool" group at school who call them mean
names; pretty girls who have real boyfriends, led by Mikayla
Fitzsimmons. For Katie, the perfect guy is Declan Bell Jones, the
gorgeous, sporty boy in her geography class but he happens to be
Mikayla's boyfriend. When Katie is hit in the head with a soccer
ball kicked by Declan she doesn't care about the concussion or her
broken glasses, just that he spoke to her and helped her up. Back
home the girls play a game called Silly orSerious with Katie's
neighbour and good friend, Theo and she admits that the most
embarrassing thing is that she has never been kissed. Katie wants
her first kiss to be perfect but her friends assert that nobody is
perfect. When Libby asks her what the perfect guy would look like
she produces a sculpture of him. As they finish the sculpture and
coat it with a mixture concocted by Libby, the girls discuss exactly
what the perfect boy would be like. What follows explores what it is
like to get what you wish for.
This light, teen romantic comedy is predictable in its premise but
the author uses it to explore issues of friendship, sexuality,
loyalty, bullying, grief, diversity and peer pressure with a light
touch and an Australian flavour. As Katie gets swept up in the
thrill of owning her own perfect boyfriend she forgets her friends
who she relies on for practical support. But real friends fight,
make up and accept each other. This is a journey of self-discovery
by characters still finding out who they are and what matters most
to them. A fun book suitable for younger YA audiences. There is some
adult content but nothing explicit. Teaching
notes are available.
Themes: Romantic comedy, friendship.
Sue Speck
Rowley Jefferson's awesome friendly adventure by Jeff Kinney
Puffin Books, 2020. ISBN: 9781760897888. 218pp.
(Ages: 8-12) Recommended. This is the second in a new series by Jeff
Kinney. It is written from the perspective of Rowley Jefferson, Greg
Heffley's more virtuous friend (Diary of a Wimpy Kid series).
Rowley has decided to write a fantasy adventure about flute-playing
Roland, who embarks on a mission to save his mother. She has been
kidnapped by the White Warlock and taken to the Ice Fortress. Rowley
is accompanied by his best friend Garg the barbarian. They meet many
characters from classic books along the way such as Sherlock Holmes,
Medusa and trolls and pixies. Many of the characters join them on
the journey. At the end of each chapter Greg advises Rowley to make
the story more "bad-ass" and appealing to a modern audience. Greg
thinks the book needs to be made into a movie with lucrative spin
offs like video games, action dolls and toys in fast food meals.
Rowley, always a stickler for doing the right thing, increasingly
doesn't agree with Greg's sexist, violent and wasteful suggestions.
This is pretty funny, clever material. I recognised semi-subtle
references to the highly popular blockbusters Game of Thrones
and the Twilight series, amongst others. There is a lot of
fun in the contrast between sweet nerdy Rowley and more worldly
Greg. The satirical look at the commercialisation of books and films
is bound to get readers thinking. I laughed out loud at Stephen the
half-man, half-cow, with an udder and Greg saying "Librarians will
go nuts for all the classic book characters." Cartoon-like
illustrations are integral to the humour of the Jeff Kinney brand.
This is enjoyable reading for reluctant through to well-seasoned
readers. Kinney's books play an important role in getting kids
reading.
Jo Marshall
Whine guide by Beck & Matt Stanton
Self-Help for Babies book 2. ABC Books, 2020. ISBN:
9780733341168.
(Age: All) Recommended. Another great addition to the series, Whine
guide will have adults grinning at the descriptions of all the
whines that a baby can make as well as the allusions to all the wine
that an adult could drink. The following passage on the back cover
gives the flavour of the book: Dear Baby Do you feel like you're speaking a million words a minute,
but no one truly understands you? Don't worry. A lot of babies feel this way. We're here to help you get your message across, when it
matters most. Chat soon!
The book starts with the instructions of how to match the right
whine to each occasion and follows with guides to the thirst
quencher, the bubbly, the glass half empty, the surprise party, the
nightcap, the fragrant drop, the bottom of the barrel and the sweet
whine all paired well with appropriate actions. Every parent will
recognise these familiar situations and will have fun identifying
the various whines that their infant makes.
Each double page spread contains simple black and white
illustrations on a coloured background, with the expressions on the
face of the baby an absolute delight to look at.
It is obvious that the authors are very familiar with small babies
and bring their expertise in illustration and humour to reassure
parents about their baby's behaviour while giving them something to
laugh about. A great series that would be a wonderful gift to new
parents.
Pat Pledger
Paul Kelly, the man, the music and the life in between by Stuart Coupe
Hachette, 2004, reprinted 2020. ISBN: 9780733642340.
(Age: Adult) Stuart Coupe, former manager of Paul Kelly, says he was
motivated to write this biography of the musician because there was
so much missed out of Kelly's autobiography How to make gravy,
published in 2010. Coupe's book fills in the early career, and
portrays a driven and ambitious artist who was totally focussed on
himself. "He had this philosophy of being true to yourself, which
basically meant ignoring everyone else". Kelly's years of heroin
addiction are also given plenty of attention, along with the whole
world of drugs and the music scene at that time.
In writing the book Coupe obviously had access to the confidence of
many fellow musicians and friends, including Kelly himself, though
the women in Kelly's life have been more reticent. It makes for a
long and detailed collection of snippets about the singer
songwriter's journey to success.
Interestingly the book does reveal the full circle of his life,
describing how Kelly came to seek out collaboration with new talent,
particularly Indigenous musicians; he helped to highlight the work
of people like Vika and Linda Bull, Archie Roach, and Kev Carmody.
Recognition of this led to Kelly being awarded the Order of
Australia in 2017 for his service to the performing arts and the
promotion of the national identity through contributions as a
singer, songwriter and musician. However Coupe's book neglects to
include Kelly's more recent encouragement of Dan Sultan.
If you are a serious fan of Paul Kelly and you want to look back at
every step along his career, or if you are interested in the rough
side of the music scene, this book has it all. However if you are
more interested in the inspiration and thoughts of the artist, How
to make gravy might be a better read.
Helen Eddy
Punching the air by Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam
HarperCollins, 2020. ISBN: 9780008422141.
(Age: 14+) Highly recommended. Amal's name means hope, but it is
hard to feel hope when you are a black kid that has been hauled in
for street fighting, and there is white kid in a coma in hospital.
Amal knows that he has already been shaped into a monster in
people's minds, and it doesn't matter what he says. He is innocent,
but everything is stacked against him.
The story is fictional but draws on the lived experience of
co-author Yusef Salaam, one of the 'Exonerated Five', the group of
black boys falsely convicted of assaulting and raping a young white
woman jogging in Manhattan's Central Park in 1989. The five boys
were victims of racial profiling by the police determined to find
their culprit and were all given lengthy prison sentences. Only
years later were they exonerated when the real offender admitted to
his crime, corroborated by DNA evidence. With their book, Punching
the air, authors Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam have collaborated
together to highlight ongoing issues of racial discrimination,
police violence and injustice still happening today.
The story is written in verse, similar to Manjeet Mann's Run,
rebel, with the same heart-felt rawness and honesty. We
feel Amal's fear, his retreat behind a stony-faced silence, his
confusion and desperation. His only relief is his art and his
poetry. The pages are illustrated with lines and smudges of black;
it is only when there a human connection with someone outside of the
prison, that his drawings become butterflies, because the flutter of
a butterfly's wings can have an impact around the world.
The story is bold and confronting with themes similar to the work of
Angie Thomas, The
hate U give, and On
the come up, but the book is easy to read; the verse
pages carry you along from the despair of the courtroom to the
harshness of prison and then finally the rediscovery of hope through
art, and the love of caring people.
Themes: Racism, Police brutality, Prison, Black Lives Matter, Social
justice.
Helen Eddy
Rocky Lobstar: Time travel tangle! by Rove McManus
Scholastic Australia, 2020. ISBN: 9781760665067.
Recommended for primary students. This is the second enjoyable and
'krilliant' book in the Rocky Lobstar series by comedian Rove
McManus. It is an ideal stepping stone for younger readers moving up
from early fiction - it has similar humour to the Treehouse
books but comes in at around 100 pages shorter.
Rocky Lobstar is part-boy, part-lobster. He is the star of Felidi's
Fabulous Sideshow Carnival which also boasts a bearded strong lady,
an alligator magician, a contortionist, a sword swallower and
others.
Rocky might burp too loud and use an array of silly lobster-themed
exclamations, but he is overall a likeable character with many
positive qualities. He is energetic, quick thinking, cheerful, a
responsible owner of his pet sea-pig, Bubbles, and is always polite
(even to machines). He has a great sense of daring and humour, is a
loyal friend and never gives up.
In this adventure Rocky and his best mate Goober accidentally break
a prized tea set belonging to Carnival boss, Mr Felidi. Luckily a
visiting celebrity professor happens to have left her new time
machine at the carnival. What follows is a journey that stretches
the imagination, tangles time and includes some great rhymes along
the way.
McManus holds a fine art qualification along with a lifelong passion
for drawing and animation, and he has packed humour and liveliness
into every page and drawing in this book. The story leads to a
wonderful double page illustration bursting with amusing characters,
where you find more fun details the longer you look. Themes:
Creatures, Travel, Friends.
Kylie Grant
