Ill. by Matt Gauldie. Tortoise Shell Press, 2015. ISBN 9780473318949
(Age: 5-8) Recommended. Matthew and Marama loved playing soldiers in
the backyard of the old big, old house they had just moved into.
Using water pistols and plums as weapons, there were plenty of
bushes and shrubs to hide in or seek shelter. But most of all,
Marama liked to attend to any wounds using the medical set she had
been given for Christmas. It even had fake blood!
One day their games lead them to a hole in the hedge and when they
crawled through it, they found themselves in a neat, manicured
garden that had lawn as soft as carpet. And in the middle of the
lawn, a strange creature was munching on dandelions. But rather than
being the baby dinosaur they thought it was, it turned out to be
Kemal an ancient tortoise with an amazing story - a story the
children find themselves in when they touch the tortoise and find
themselves transported back to the battlefields of World War I.
The centennial commemorations of World War I have inspired many to
delve into their family histories to explore what part their
relatives played in it, and from this many unique and unusual
stories have emerged. The
Tale of the Anzac Tortoise is one such story. It is based on
the
true story of Peter discovered in the trenches of the Western
Front by a wounded soldier who popped him in his pocket for safe
keeping. After being evacuated to the Middle east for treatment,
Pete was given to Nora, a New Zealand nurse stationed there, and
she, in turn, took him back to New Zealand where he lived as a
family pet until his death in 1994.
Told by Nora's great-great niece and illustrated by a former former
NZ Defence Force artist, this is yet another previously unknown but
utterly intriguing story to emerge from World War I that helps to
put a human face to the tragedies of so long ago that are so
important to our nations' histories but hard for little people to
comprehend. The final pages in the book tell a little of the story
behind the story but since the book was written it has become more
widely known and there is much online that the curious can explore.
If for no other reason than it helps to illuminate to Australian
children who put the NZ in ANZAC, this book deserves a place in your
Anzac Day collection.
Barbara Braxton
Lightning men by Thomas Mullen
Little, Brown, 2017. ISBN 9781408710623
(Age: Senior secondary-adult) Highly recommended. Themes: Crime,
Atlanta, USA, Historical novel, Racism, Jim Crow laws. Atlanta,
Georgia in the 1950's is laid bare for all to see in this stunning
new crime story by Thomas Mullen.
Listening to him at the recent Adelaide Writers' Week ensured buying
the book, finding another friend already had his first book, Darktown
(2016), set in Atlanta just two years before, and exposing the
conflicts within the police department, only just admitting eight
Negro policemen. For many, this is the last straw, and those in the
force who are Klansmen or who sympathise with their aims, make sure
these newcomers never forget their place. They are only allowed to
patrol the Negro neighbourhoods, not allowed to arrest white men,
and for Boggs and Smith, coming across a drug transfer, which
results in the death of a white man, the consequences prove to be
dangerous.
This is an unequivocal look at 1950's USA, where Negroes returning
from Europe after World War Two, enthused by the freedom and
responsibility they had as soldiers, expect better treatment back
home. But for many it is back to being the lowest paid workers,
ineligible for GI loans to buy a house, few opportunities, living
under the Jim Crow Laws and the overarching racism of the Ku Klux
Klan and its offshoot, the Columbians (the Lightningmen) to deal
with. For the lucky few able to buy a house in the transition areas
where Negroes are buying into white areas, notices appear on the
street poles, vicious letters are sent to their homes, some are
beaten and neighbourhood groups mobilise to keep them out.
For Tommy Boggs his life as a policeman and as a family member come
together when his girlfriend's ex lover turns up newly released form
jail, stretching Bogs' belief in her. He tries to find out more
about Jeremiah but attracts the attention of the federal agency.
And his investigations collide with a sympathetic white detective,
Rake when his brother in law admits to doing the bidding of a
klansman, resulting in a death.
In Rake's neighbourhood, his wife is happy to support a group
collecting money to buy the Negro family out and one night when this
money is stolen, all blame is leveled at the Negro household, where
Smith's sister lives.
Rake follows the clues from afar, realising that the men who stole
the money were much closer to home, but proving this means defending
the Negro household, raking up the ire of his brother in law.
Calling to see his sister's husband, the last chapters of the book
bring all the threads together as Rake becomes involved in a shoot
out in the white neighbourhood.
A gritty crime novel, the moral edges are blurred as each of the
main protagonists both white and black make decisions which cause
them grief and sleepless nights.
The novel gives an amazing insight into the issues of Atlanta at
this time, and reflects serious research into the times through
archives and newspaper accounts. It was reading one such newspaper
article about Negro police being appointed in Atlanta that started
Mullen on this series of books.
Not only does this book reflect the division between black and white
in the USA of the time, it will impel Australian readers to think
about such injustice here.
Fran Knight
Trans mission : My quest to a beard by Alex Bertie
Hachette, 2017. ISBN 9781526360687
(Age: Adolescent) This well written and easy to understand
autobiography goes a long way to helping you understand the
struggles facing transgender men and women.
Bertie's honest account of his childhood, the difficulties he faced
with family, peers and professionals is eye opening and informative.
Born and raised as a girl, Alex Bertie enjoyed his childhood as a
tomboy, unaware of the gender conflict that grew with him as he got
older and for a long time unable to put a name to the pain it was
causing within him.
A keen youtube blogger, Bertie shares his journey of self-discovery
and how he had to navigate the medical system in the UK to find
doctors who were at least knowledgeable and even sympathetic about
his condition. Waiting until he was legally an adult to access the
drugs and surgery that would help to make his body more masculine.
Only in his early 20s, Bertie's advice is sound and mature as only
those who have experienced personal trauma and come through with a
positive outlook, can give.
Written in a pragmatic and uplifting tone, I found Bertie's story
interesting and educational. He uses everyday language to explain
the medical procedures available and the correct terminology that
helped him name his feelings as he came to terms with being trapped
in the wrong body.
Although I believe everyone would benefit by reading this
autobiography, I think his writing style and the layout is targeting
adolescents.
Joyce Crawford
A garden of lilies: Improving tales for young minds by Judith Rossell
ABC Books, 2017. ISBN 9780733338229
(Ages: 9+) Recommended. Themes: Morality tales, Social life and
customs, Manners, Alphabet books. Judith Rossell's award-winning
novel Wormwood Mire, referenced the cautionary tales of the
fictional Victorian writer Prudence A. Goodchild. Young Stella
Montgomery's aunts had gifted her with this little book 'full of
depressing stories of children who did wrong and met with tragedy.'
Reminiscent of Hilaire Belloc's witty parodies containing sage
advice on children's manners and life skills, Rossell's short volume
written in alphabetical order is beautifully written and beautifully
presented. From the black hardcover with the title debossed in gold,
surrounded by a bouquet of lilies to the marbled endpapers and
detailed sketches of Victorian life, this is a visual delight. Each
of the children are given delightful Victorian names, Drusilla,
Zenobia, Yaxley and Hubert and the settings redolent with period
features.
Each tale begins with a large letter entwined with foliage and ends
with a witty and pertinent moral. When Florence and Gilbert wander
off the path to the way to their grandmother's cottage, they are
'unexpectedly eaten by an escaped tiger from a nearby circus.' The
moral reflects their untimely choices:
'Always go the way you should
When you are walking through a wood.'
Horatio's untidiness and grubby clothing sends him below deck to
change and unable to advise the ship's captain of impending
disaster, a crash with an iceberg. Euphemia's dreadful table manners
and her inability to use the correct cutlery lead to her
disappearance, tumbling into an oubliette, a secret dungeon.
Rossell's dark humour is creatively demonstrated by the choice of
the children's fates, gobbled by an enormous fish, whirled away in a
waterspout and squashed by a marble bust of Prince Albert. As a
counterpoint, the author includes household hints, recipes, crafts
and parlour games perfect for the nineteenth century child.
Stella Montgomery read this 'vivid and rather unpleasant book' three
times on her long train journey to the boarding school. Judith
Rossell's A Garden of Lilies: Improving Tales for Young Minds
opens up conversations and discussions comparing children's lives
and their social life, etiquette and customs with current norms and
lifestyles. Inspirational, humorous, a little tongue in cheek,
Judith Rossell's Victorian short novel is picture-perfect, just
right to share across the generations.
Rhyllis Bignell
The lost puppy by Clara Vulliamy
Dotty Detective series. Harper Collins Children's Books,
2017. ISBN 9780008248376
(Age: 6+) Recommended. Themes: Detectives; Pets. Dot is an amateur
detective - she uses clues to join the dots to solve her cases. In
fact her detective agency is called: "Join the Dots Detectives"!
With the help of her friends and her very special assistant,
McClusky (her pet dog), she is engaged in solving the mystery of the
missing dachshund, just before the summer fair and her class's Pets
Corner stall.
Written in a very simple style with cartoon style drawings, this is
a cute and easy to read school-based story. It will appeal to young
readers just finding their feet with chapter books.
Carolyn Hull
A boat of stars: New poems to inspire and enchant ed. by Margaret Connolly and Natalie Jane Prior
ABC, 2018. ISBN 9780733337932 A boat of stars came down tonight
and sailed around my bed -
it sprinkled stardust on my eyes,
put dreams inside my head . . .
Poetry, with its vocabulary, rhythm and sometimes rhyme, and its
nuances that are the sounds of our spoken language is a critical
part of helping our young readers not only learn to speak but also
to fire their imaginations and create dreams. Sadly, though, it has
been a long time since we have had a new anthology of children's
poems that is appealing enough to attract the eyes and ears of our
younger generation and so, to them, poems have become something you
dissect for structure and syllables and struggle to emulate, missing
the magic and meaning in the poet's words.
In this new collection put together by Margaret Connolly &
Natalie Jane Prior because, like many parents and teachers, they
struggled to find something that would engage, many of Australia's
renowned writers and illustrators have plied their craft with words
and media to bring a joyful, diverse, and thoroughly engaging posse
of poems that will re-ignite the beauty of the format and have
children feeling satisfied that despite the brevity, they have
visited a new place, thought new thoughts and heard a story.
With topics ranging from zucchinis to giraffes to balls and beyond,
each one is different in topic and structure and each reaches out to
the everyday lives of our children, drawing them into something they
are familiar with but told in a brand new way. Something as common
as a new baby coming into the family is given a whole new spin by
Sophie Masson and Julie Vivas; as ordinary as getting a new hat
(Alexa Moses and Matt Shanks) or even just digging a hole (Kate
Mayes and Matt Shanks) are brought to life in a way that inspires
the imagination and suggests that poetry really does have a special
place in their reading menu. Being able to tell a story in just a
few words and even fewer lines is a gift that few have but to the
listener/reader it highlights the beauty of our language and shows
how it is possible to make every word work hard to stir the brain
and the heart.
This really is "a boat of stars" for the imagination and dreams, one
that is accessible to all as a shared experience and a welcome
addition to a critical area of literature and language that has been
neglected for too long.
Barbara Braxton
Clover's big ideas by Georgie Donaghey
Ill. by Emma Middleton. Little Pink Dog Books, 2017. ISBN
9780994626967
(Ages: 3-6) Themes: Perception. This book contains a classic message
about how looks can be deceiving and how intelligence is often more
effective than strength. Clover, a lamb, is small but has big ideas.
Angus the bull looks fierce but is as gentle as a lamb. Three other
young lambs, a bit of a gang who tease and jeer at everyone around
them, learn a valuable lesson when one of them becomes stuck in the
fence. Everyone thinks the bull is fierce - even Clover's mother -
but only Clover knows the truth. And only the bull knows Clover's
true worth.
The illustrations, while showing soft, pretty landscapes and cute
baby animals, are quite flat on the page and some pages lack finesse
or proportion. The text is fairly well written but at times the
author's intended meaning is lost and the word choice is sometimes
odd ("fleece wobbling", for example). There are also some moments
where the text doesn't link well, jumping from one idea to another
very quickly, leaving the reader disoriented. It also doesn't sit
well that Clover's mother tells her to stay this side of the fence
but she disobeys this warning, making friends with the bull in the
next paddock. The last page shows her cuddled up asleep next to the
bull. This may be confusing to young children (why is she doing what
her mum said not to?) and be seen by adults to be a disconcerting
message. It is all very well to encourage thinking outside the
square as Clover does, but disobeying her mother to make friends
with someone her mother doesn't think she should be spending time
with might be taking it too far.
Nicole Nelson
Dingo by Claire Saxby
Ill. by Tannya Harricks. Nature Storybooks series. Walker Books,
2018. ISBN 9781925381283
(Age: 4+) Highly recommended. Themes: Dingoes. Non fiction.
Australian outback. Survival. This beautifully crafted picturebook
tells of the life and environment of a mother dingo as she looks
after her pups, going out at night hunting for food for them,
watching over them as they sleep, keeping warm with her pack.
Through one night of hunting, Saxby reveals how she survives this
seemingly barren land, taking smaller animals, using her incredible
skills to hunt down and kill a rabbit before it is even aware it is
being watched. She watches the other animals foraging in the night,
an owl searching from above, kangaroos too big for her to bother
with grazing in the evening shadows.
The bold brush strokes make the pictures dance, as the dingo goes
about its tasks. Layered oil paint brings the animal and its
environment close to the reader, making them aware of the skills the
dingo needs to survive, its long rangy legs, lean sleek body, bright
eyes and alert ears. Brush strokes outline the gum trees and rolling
hills, the sweep of the hill tops, the darkening sky. Every
page will make readers draw in their breath as another vista is
shown, recognisably Australian. Several times readers are asked to
find the dingo hidden in the woods, forcing younger readers to
ponder the usefulness of the patchy colouring of the dingo.
I found each page a delight to look at and ponder, and the index at
the end with a brief summary of the dingo helped me learn more about
this animal which creates such divided opinions. As with all the
wonderful series from Walker, each page has a story line in one font
and information in a different font, allowing readers to see the
book from two different perspectives, but each allowing the reader
to gain greater insight.
Saxby has successfully written two other books in this series: Big
Red Kangaroo, and Emu, which I loved, while I saw Harricks' bold
style at the Waterhouse Natural History Art Prize Exhibition in
Adelaide and have watched out for her work since.
This book is worth seeking out for your library.
Fran Knight
Bill Baillie: The life and adventures of a pet bilby by Ellis Rowan
National Library of Australia, 2018. ISBN 9780642279200
(Age: 8+) Recommended. Tabitha held out her hands for the baby
creature with the large ears and the long hind legs. He was a bilby
and Tabitha named him Bill Baillie. From this moment, they were
together - forever.
Tabitha liked to go to interesting places to paint pictures of
wildflowers, and Bill Baillie always went with her. Bill's life was
full of adventures - he escaped and got lost, he travelled on
wagons, trains and ships, he was threatened by a cat and chased by
dogs, and he became wedged upside down inside a jug.
But, no matter who he met and what dangers he faced, 'His Highness
Master Bill Baillie' always found his way back to Tabitha.
I found this book a great read. The book is presented with a mix of
text and illustrations and is a great insight into the early times
of Australia. It clearly shows the strong relationships that can be
formed between animal and human. This book was originally written in
1908. You can not help but like the mischievous Bill and the trouble
that he gets himself into and his innate ability to always find his
way back to Tabitha. It also provides an insight into the plight of
the bilby and the challenges it faced as civilisation and introduced
species encroached on its habitat. I found the added information at
the back of the book informative and welcome addition to the book to
educate people about the plight of the bilby.
It is a book for children aged 8 and up and for those that love
animals, a great read.
Kathryn Schumacher
Teacher's dead by Benjamin Zephaniah
Bloomsbury Books, 2018. Reprint. ISBN 9781408895016
(Age: 11+) When Jackson witnesses the murder of a teacher by two of
the pupils at his school, his life becomes inextricably linked with
that of the dead teacher's wife, and surprisingly, the killers.
Refusing the counselling offered by the school, he decides that the
best way he can deal with what he has seen is to ask questions, and
try to work out why the boys took the extraordinary step of murder.
He enlists the help of Mary Joseph, the dead man's wife, and goes to
the houses of the two boys to ask questions. The reader will
identify with his need, but be aware that he is stepping into
territory where anything could happen.
An involving story of one boy's search for the truth, Teacher's
dead is often uncomfortable as Jackson takes steps which take
him to places where harm can and does befall him. Written by British
poet, Benjamin Zephaniah, the story is poignant and enthralling as
we follow Jackson's path to find the truth. A most realistic story
set in the schoolyard against a background of bullying, violence and
intimidation.
Fran Knight
What the light reveals by Mick McCoy
Transit Lounge Publishing, 2018. ISBN 9780995409873
Mick McCoy details the everyday lives of an Australian couple who,
having refused to hide their dedication to communism in the middle
years of the 20th century, conclude that the only way they can find
work, given their unacceptable beliefs and commitment, is to move to
the USSR. His narrative is realistic, true to its time and place, I
believe, both in climate and in the descriptions of the everyday
lives of the Russian people. That the majority of Russian people
were better off under the rule of communism, even with its attendant
hardships, than they had been previously, is a given in this
narrative, at least for that period in history.
Mick McCoy has written his work to reflect both the aspect of strong
political and personal beliefs, and that of the lived reality of the
time, in his clear descriptions of the deeply challenging decision
to move to live in a foreign country at such a time in history - and
to a place with such a harsh winter climate. Yet we are aware of the
sustaining force of the parents' strong beliefs in the rightness of
their decision, and of their love for their two children. While both
are challenged, their faith in the deep truths of communism and
their love for their family, sustains them. The inevitable
frustration of living in a place where all residents must live
harmoniously in their little apartments, following the ideals of
communism, where they, like all others, will be watched daily, spied
upon for any slight mistake against the communal ways, or even a
slight error in judgement, takes its toll. In this fine work,
McCoy's 'light' does indeed reveal the reality of the time and
place, and of the lives of people such as this family.
Elizabeth Bondar
1984 and Animal Farm by George Orwell
Text Publishing, 2017. ISBN 9781925603040
(Age: secondary) Recommended. Themes: Tyranny. Satire. Classic
novels. Classic novels, 1984 and Animal Farm have
been reprinted in one volume for another generation to grapple with
the stories that have reached a status all of their own in twentieth
century literature. Both novels rail against tyranny and injustice,
showing a society where the individual is made subordinate to the
power of the government machine, where individuality is quashed, and
doublespeak abounds. A fitting reprint for today's world. 1984 has an informative introduction by author, Charlotte
Wood (The natural way of things and The writer's room)
which sets the book in its time, showing how so many of the phrases
Orwell wrote have become currency within the English language, while
some of his predictions about totalitarian states have become all
too real. Animal Farm has an introduction by author and commentator,
Don Watson (Death sentence and Recollections of a
bleeding heart amongst others) who tells us about Orwell's
background. His participation in the Spanish Civil War galvanised
his attitude to Russia, where the Russian Revolution has fallen into
despotism, and his experiences during World War Two led him to doubt
the future of civilisation, in turn leading to the development of
his 'fairy story', Animal Farm, warning us all of the
dangers of totalitarianism.
When people catalogue the most influential and inspiring books they
have read, these two figure high up in the list, warning as they do
of the corruption of society, the tyranny of government and the
restricting of the individual, and in these times his warnings are
chillingly real.
A pair of novels published for those who wish to read and appraise
their relevance to today, these novels have stood the test of time,
being read and reread, acknowledging that things do not change,
perhaps called by a different name, but tyranny, repression and
injustice still abound.
Fran Knight
Little whale by Jo Weaver
Hachette, 2018. ISBN 9781444937503
(Age: 4+) Highly recommended. Themes: Whales. Ocean. Home. Family.
Little whale and her mother are going home, home to where the calf
will meet her relatives, and rest and feed in the rich northern
waters, far from where she was born.
This beautifully presented book with its lovely spare language and
inviting illustrations underlines the feeling of home and its call
to us all. Everybody reading it will feel the tug of their own home
and what it means to them as the calf sees her home for the first
time.
The pair leave the shallower waters and head out into the Southern
Ocean. Most of the others have already left and our pair must make
their way north alone. They pass the coral reef and see many other
fish, they travel many miles, into colder waters, passed by large
ships, and then a pod of orca. Little whale feels scared and moves
in more closely to her mother. She is tired but assured that it is
only a little way to go. Finally they hear the whale song through
the water, calling them home to the northern snow capped peaks and
the other grey whales.
The blue hues on every page contain a variety of fish for eager eyes
to spot and recognise, while the skies above change as they swim
north, revealing a change in where they are in the world.
Fran Knight
Ninja Kid: From nerd to ninja by Anh Do
Ill. by Jeremy Ley. Ninja Kid book 1. Scholastic, 2018. ISBN
9781742993263
(Age: 7+) Recommended. Themes: Superheroes. Inventions.
Nelson does not seem like a Superhero. In fact, he can only be
described as a 'Nerd'... until his 10th birthday. Nelson's family
are not wealthy - they even live in a junkyard. His Dad is no longer
on the scene and his grandmother is an inventor and recycler with
unique talents. On his 10th birthday, Nelson is transformed in
amazing ways and although he is not prepared to become a Superhero,
his new talents will be needed. He may even be needed to save the
world! (Initially he may also need some extra help from his
perpetually hungry cousin, Kenny.)
This is a simply written adventure that will appeal to Anh Do's fan
base. With comic illustrations by Jeremy Ley dotted through the
narrative, the book will not challenge a capable reader, but will
appeal to early chapter book readers and those wanting an amusing
'quick read'.
Carolyn Hull
An unsuitable match by Joanna Trollope
Pan Macmillan, 2018. ISBN 9781509855636
(Age; Senior secondary - Adult) When Tyler proposes to Rose, he is
as stunned as she is bemused. Her husband has recently left his
thriving medical practice in London for a new life with his
long-time mistress (about whom his wife had known nothing) working
in Australia. Shocked and determined to protect her grown-up
children from the collapse of the family, Rose had been growing
accustomed to the reality of being by herself, no longer supported
and protected by her husband, although he had left her the family
home.
Tyler had been married to a very rich woman in the United States for
many years, being a faithful husband and a quietly calm father, yet
strangely disconnected from the world of his wife, and of his
children. His wife had not sought his company, and neither had her
father, whose opinion she valued above all else. When his wife died,
he returned to London, seeking to recapture a sense of himself in
his former, familiar world.
The children of both families are shocked at the news of Rose and
Tyler's proposed marriage, considering whether it will even work. We
are aware that there is nothing 'wrong' with Tyler, and Rose likes
him a lot, yet she is unsure of her commitment to a new marriage, or
to the kind, thoughtful, gentle man who adores her, as are the
children of both families.
Delightfully written, in Trollope's easy, gentle prose, faultless
and lyrical, this story, and the proposal of a new life, seem to be
perfect, yet the underlying tensions cause some heightening of
mistrust, in both reader and family, and Joanna Trollope holds us to
the very end. That slight tension depicts so well her understanding
of human nature, families, and the demands of living in the modern
world.
Suitable for adult and older adolescent reading.
Elizabeth Bondar
