Reviews

My life and other failed experiments by Tristan Bancks and Gus Gordon

Tom Weekly Book 6. Penguin, 2018. ISBN 9780143781615
(Age: 8-11) Recommended. Themes: Pets. Brothers and sisters. Humour. What's next for Tom Weekly, his sister torturing his guinea pig, taking on the most annoying ice-cream man and dealing with a killer possum attack? Tom has a new motto 'never give up, never give in' and he's determined to survive the crazy situations he encounters. Tristan Bancks continues to raise the bar for Tom whose goals include eating a car and most importantly getting your parents off social media - there's photos of baby poo!
Older sister Tanya dangles Tom's guinea pig out of his open window demanding all his birthday money for Gus's safe return, and Tom needs to take quick action. A quick pull on his bedroom rug sees Tanya fall, land in the compost bin and unfortunately Gus poops pellets in her mouth. That's just the first of many laugh out loud incidents. In 'Razorblade Fruitcake' there are fruitcake frisbees, and Tom is chased by a mad woman in a hot-pink granny cart. He won't be helping his Nan again anytime soon. Tom's personal problems are aired in 'Buttman', his Mum says 'his bum makes unpleasant odours on a far too regular basis.' Tom's solutions involve either a total butt removal or inventing a chemical freshener 'Buttfresh' that will sell to millions of people and save the world from the methane emissions of cows. Tom's Santa suit experience and unfortunate candy cane regurgitation end this novel with a reality check for this relatable character, no special Christmas kiss for him!
My life and other failed experiments is a hilarious novel. Bancks includes humour, jokes, cartoons, gross body anecdotes, weird facts and lists of thought-provoking questions such as 'Who would you rather be?' Gus Gordon's cartoons add to the fun and craziness that is Tom Bank's life. This extremely popular series is perfect for middle primary readers and for a class read aloud novel.
Rhyllis Bignell

Scaredy Cat by Heather Gallagher and Anil Tortop

New Frontier, 2018. ISBN 9781925594171
(Age: 3-6) Themes: Pets.
"Have you seen my Scaredy Cat?
He's afraid of this and afraid of that!"
Scaredy Cat's gorgeous covers decorated with shiny hearts and a cute little girl with just a hint of her missing pet are delightful drawcards. Heather Gallagher's fun rhyming refrain is a perfect picture book to share with toddlers and pre-schoolers, and they'll soon join in responding to the rhymes and discovering where scaredy cat is hiding! Take time to observe the scene from the tower, as each of these characters appear throughout this delightful story.
Scaredy Cat's afraid of many things: bees, trees and Granny's super-duper sneeze, muck and quacking ducks. Luckily for this loved pet, the little girl is 'brave like this and BRAVE like that!' She's there to rescue her friend from all the dangerous situations, the sights, the smells and the sounds. Her brave actions rid the beach of pirates and then her karate skills remove the creeping crooks. With a final unexpected twist, she is reunited with her Scaredy Cat.
Anil Tortop's gorgeous digital illustrations provide the visual clues that perfectly underpin Gallagher's rhyming story. His bright palette of colours and designs sweeps across the endpapers and is creatively utilised in each fun scene. Heather Gallagher's sense of rhyme and rhythm and her understanding of the special bond of a child and her pet makes this a joyful story, one to be shared over and over again.
Rhyllis Bignell

Antidote to a curse by James Cristina

Transit Lounge, 2018. ISBN 9781925760033
(Age: Adult) Following a sexual encounter Silvio Portelli finds himself increasingly drawn to the Bosnian immigrant Zlatko, whilst waiting to learn the results of his test for HIV. Portelli wants to write, and the mystery of Zlatko's life may be his story. Chapters of his Melbourne cafe meetings with Zlatko are interwoven with dream passages that seem to predict the unravelling story of what happened in Bosnia Herzegovina.
The characters take hold of the author and he follows where they lead. The novel itself is a reflection on the art of writing - Portelli tells Zlatko that he has no plot outline, he does not know where the story will go; but his dreams take hold of him and bring it together. The reader has to trust and follow along too. It is nevertheless a well crafted novel.
It makes for an interesting, at times challenging, read - I felt I needed to know more of the history of the Bosnian war. Some relevant works are acknowledged at the end of the novel and could make for further reading for those who are interested.
Helen Eddy

From Twinkle with love by Sandhya Menon

Hodder, 2018. ISBN 9781473678736
(Age 13+) Highly recommended. Twinkle, a 16 year old high school student, dreams of being a movie director. When she hears about an up and coming film festival, she is determined to make her mark on the industry and direct an amazing movie for everyone to see. When Sahil Roy asks her to be his partner for the festival, she eagerly accepts his offer, knowing it will bring her closer to Sahil's twin brother Neil, who she has a crush on. But little does she realise that Sahil has liked her since they were 11 and is hoping she will notice him instead. As Sahil and Twinkle start to work together, Twinkle realises they have more in common that she first thought and finds herself conflicted in her feelings for the wrong brother. What will she do, which brother will show her their true colours?
The book is written in the form of a diary, with each entry being a letter to one of Twinkle's favourite movie directors. This format was different to your average chapter book and easy to follow. The characters have an authentic feel to their personality, each one I found I could relate to in their feelings and the choices they were faced with as teenagers. The story touches on themes of friendship, conflict, loyalty and the trials we all encounter as we are growing up. Twinkle makes many choices in her attempt to define who she really is and learns a big lesson along the way.
"From Twinkle with love" is an inspiring and engaging read, full of humour, at times sadness and the emotional ups and downs of growing up. I highly recommend this read.
Mia Rice (Student)

The Smoke Thieves by Sally Green

Penguin Books, 2018. ISBN 9780141375397
(Age: 12+) Recommended. A princess, a soldier, a hunter, a traitor, and a thief. Following the paths of Princess Catherine, Ambrose, March, Edyon, and Tash; these five people will soon come to find their futures are connected by a mysterious bottle of demon smoke. Who will unlock its secrets? These five young people are trying to survive as much as everyone else is but with their kingdoms at war, they are all facing their own demons. Unwanted marriages, revenge, crossroad decisions and literal demons, they will have to have all of these problems and more.
Sally Green has crafted a character-driven story with the themes of war, social classes, forbidden love, mystery and a dash of the fantasy. Her characters are fleshed out, and uniquely expressive and driven in their own ways, each so different from the other. With it being a lengthy story, the plot is somewhat slow but pulls the reader back in with its action, suspense and surprising plot twists. And with that, it kicked off a series of events that kept me clinging to the book wanting more. Green spares no detail in this encapturing story of kings and kingdoms, love and loss, and demon smoke. I would recommend this to young and young adult readers.
Kayla Raphael

Let's visit the Olobobs by Leigh Hodgkinson and Steve Smith

Bloomsbury, 2018. ISBN 9781408897621
(Age: 1-4) Board book, Lift-the-flaps, Shapes. Based on the English children's television show "Olobob Top", as seen on ABC, this early learning book about shape has been created by Leigh Hodgkinson ("Are You Sitting Comfortably?") and Steve Smith. There are four Olobob Top titles planned for release this year and another four in 2019: some sticker activity books and some board books. Olobob Top is about the adventures of three friends, Tib, Lalloo and Boble, who live in the biggest and best tree in Olobob Forest. Their world is made up of all sorts of shapes and in each television episode they build new characters who come to life. "Let's Visit the Olobobs" begins by introducing the Olobob characters and each page features a shape that the reader is asked to find within the accompanying picture (e.g., "Can you spot a triangle?"). There is more than one of the shape within each picture but the target shape can be identified because of its colour, pattern, or other specifics. The reader is spoken to directly ("Yes! It's Lalloo's dress. It's a very spotty dress Lalloo"), making it sound like the television narration on shows like Tellytubbies.
Young children will like pointing out all the other shapes they can see within the illustrations, with varying levels of entry depending on children's shape knowledge and vocabulary. Other concepts are also scattered throughout, including counting (numbers), size (long, big) and position (around). What is especially great about this is how there are shapes within shapes and sometimes the shapes are even obstructed or overlapping, requiring children to understand layering and position (e.g. the semi-circle of Gurdy's shell is partly hidden behind his head) in order to correctly locate the shapes. Bright colours and interesting smiley characters make this easy on the eye and will appeal to young ones even if they haven't seen the show.
Nicole Nelson

Bohemia Beach by Justine Ettler

Transit Lounge, 2018. ISBN 9781925760002
(Age: Adult) Themes: Addiction; Musical career; Counselling. Catherine Bell is a renowned Concert musician, but everything in her life seems to be swirling in the swill of painful experience. Her 'self-medication' with regular consumption of alcohol and her affair with the somewhat capricious Tomas, while preparing for performance in Prague seems set to lead her further into the abyss . . . but she cannot see it. Ettler reveals the sad despair of the addict - completely oblivious to the poor pathway she is following and the impacts that this path will have on her career and relationships. The fact that her husband appears to be seeking a divorce, her mother is coping with a terminal illness, and a recording deal is teetering, are just side-notes in the discordant and badly played symphony of her life. At every turn, Catherine seems to be creating more problems for herself through a series of self-destructive choices. The voice of a trusted counsellor remains the only voice of stability in her life, but it is seldom loud enough for Catherine to make significant changes. Woven into this sad tale is the story of Catherine's childhood and her family dilemmas which seem to provide a link to the plot-line and setting in Prague. A destructive flood in Prague itself creates a subtle literary parallel to Catherine's alcoholic deluge, but seems to also bring her to a point of possible rescue.
With flashbacks and counselling reminiscences, the trauma of Catherine's life is revealed. Throughout the book, the author manages to deftly communicate the alcoholic's haze and driven circumstances with powerful pathos. Written with incredible skill from an accomplished writer, there are numerous literary references to other works including "Wuthering Heights" and a classic Czech tale. The author's own musical understanding and academic prowess in creative writing are evident in this very adult story. Not easily read because misery of the central character, still it is cautionary in its revelations of the powerful grip of addictive behaviour and the awful toll that this takes.
For adult readers only.
Carolyn Hull

Can I touch your hair? by Irene Latham and Charles Waters

Iguana Boy saves the world with a triple cheese pizza by James Bishop and Rikin Paresh

Hachette, 2018. ISBN 9781444939347
(Age: 8-12) Themes: Superheroes, Brothers and sisters, Bullying. James Bishop's preteen novel introduces a new group of superheroes, an evil super villain, militant platypuses and a young boy who longs for his own super skills. What happens when an older brother and sister use their superpowers to bully their younger brother? This is the situation that Dylan Spencer finds himself in at the beginning of "Iguana Boy". His older brother Sam, (aka Arctic Thunder) can control the weather and uses it for his own gain and on Mondays, his older sister Millie (aka Millie Monday) can defeat any enemy with her very powerful laser eyes. Both are members of the 'Super Hero Collective', an organisation for superheroes that Dylan longs to join. Then just after his ninth birthday, Dylan finds that he can communicate with iguanas - just iguanas.
After Dylan and Paul (his brother's abandoned pet iguana) get to know each other, they undertake a mission to rescue Paul's friends from the pet shop. With this team of four Dylan has decided that his team of iguanas could be possibly be useful when saving the world. When his brother and sister, along with others members of the Super Hero Collective start to go missing, Dylan rightly perceives that something sinister is about to happen. Supervillain Celina Shufflebottom, aka Platypus Kid, makes an appearance and it becomes apparent that Iguana Boy and his team of iguanas must come up with a plan to save the world.
Bishop's narrative is filled with quirky conversations, unusual characters with some gross superpowers and talking animals with attitude. Rikin Parekh's fun and quirky illustrations add to the drama and comedy of Dylan's adventures. "Iguana Boy saves the world with a triple cheese pizza" is just right for primary school readers who enjoy humorous novels.
Rhyllis Bignell

The Lily and the Rose by Jackie French

Angus and Robertson, 2018. ISBN 9781460753590
(Age: 16+) Recommended. Themes: Post-World War 1 History; Independence - Women;  Romance; Peace. Set in the aftermath of World War 1, The Lily and the Rose follows Sophie Higgs, an heiress from an Australian corned beef producer who is also well-schooled in the finer things (including charm and subterfuge). She now stands at the crossroads as the war comes to a conclusion. What will her role in the world entail - marriage and the cultural subservience of the married woman of the times (even if she marries someone with money) or independence, using the skills and talents that were nurtured through hardship and service during the war? This book is a sequel to Miss Lily's Lovely Ladies and it reveals the incredible social changes that impacted women as they struggle to find their place and see what the future holds in the new world of peace. This book is essentially a romantic saga that weaves the characters from the first book into a new phase of life. For Sophie there are many decisions to be made. Will the advice of the unusual Miss Lily, the Charm School instructor, be able to carry her through the upheaval of her life, and will the decisions she makes upset her romantic future too?
Although some aspects of this book would be better understood having met the characters and heard the story from Miss Lily's Lovely Ladies, this is an epic tale and is expansive in highlighting the significant detail needed to put this book into context. It can quite easily be read on its own. However, the character of Miss Lily, whose quoted words appear at the start of many chapters, would be better understood if the first book in the series has also been read.
This book is written for a mature audience - more adult intimacies and relationship dilemmas necessarily make this unsuitable for readers that are too young. Jackie French's light touch though means that there is not too much detail compared to some contemporary writers. The historical nature of the book is appealing as it gives a social history context with links to Australia and the British aristocracy, but it is essentially a romance story with twists and turns as an intelligent and independent woman explores love and independence.
Recommended for mature readers aged 16+.
Carolyn Hull

Peg + Cat : The lemonade problem by Jennifer Oxley and Billy Aronson

Candlewick Entertainment, 2018. ISBN 9781536200614
(Age: 3-6) Themes: Problem Solving, STEM, Mathematics, Cats. Lemonade stands outside one's house is harking back to a time when neighbours knew each other, when they supported their kids' endeavours and there were no worries about drinking from an offered cup.
Still, that aside, the idea that Peg and Cat set up a stall to try and sell drinks of lemonade to the local teens in exchange for marbles, is a step to teaching younger readers about problem solving, negotiation and maths. This picture book version taken from the very popular television series, will please younger readers. It is brightly illustrated, invitingly told, and features numbers and mathematical symbols throughout the text and pictures. Humour underlines the simple story of negotiating your way through a problem, while the illustrations cleverly support the text using laugh out loud situations that children will recognise.
This will appeal to younger readers wanting a simple introduction to the numbers from one to ten.
Fran Knight

Under my bed by John Dickson

Berbay Publishing, 2018. ISBN 9780994384133
(Age: 7+) Highly recommended. Under my bed is a fun picture book all about those monsters hiding in the dark places of a child's bedroom. What if the monsters had a party? Would you be invited? It is your room after all. Imagine lying in your bed while monsters move around your room. Our main character is doing just that! He can hear them making sandwiches and crushing snails. He can see the shapes of their bodies in the dark but enough is enough. If he has to lay here listening then he may as well join in! Will the monsters let him?
Under my bed is all about overcoming your fears because those fears might actually be a lot of fun. The illustrations are cast in shadows, making them seem scary in the dark. The white monster eyes add to this but they aren't scary, they are fun, especially as you read about what is going on. The story also rhymes, reading like a poem but with the elements of a story. It is descriptive and engaging, making it a great read aloud story for parents and in classrooms. The rhyming element is great for older children learning to write their own rhymes or if writing about their fears and changing them to seem fun and harmless.
Under my bed would also be good for the Child Protection Curriculum, supporting children to talk about and identifying feelings. This story is highly recommended for readers aged 7+.
Kylie Kempster

It's hard to love a tiger by Anna Pignataro

Scholastic, 2018. ISBN 9781743817582
(Age: 4+) Recommended. Themes: Tigers. Friendship. Difference. Pets. Our sweet heroine would love to have a tiger to love, just like the one in the zoo. In pairs of rhyming lines, the story is laid out from the first page, as the ominous word, 'but' appears along the bottom. Turning the page the reader hears of the negative things about owning a tiger, all in rhyme and all very funny, using repetition, prediction and humour to involve and delight the readers.
Walking down the street, she finds that others are rather worried when the tiger greets them with a roar. Brushing his teeth at night takes a lot of patience when he growls like a bear. Or trying to love him when you are a pastry shop and he covers himself with a sticky mess. And in the ballet class where he gallops rather fetchingly in her pink tutu.
Each double page presents the tiger in a hilariously funny situation, absolutely the opposite of what children will expect a tiger to be.
It will be a neat segue into ideas about what a tiger really does do, and where he lives and what he eats, using the places shown in the book.
Colourful watercolour, pen and charcoal illustrations full of movement and interest are on every page and its fun to watch the expressions on the children's faces as they become quite disheartened with having a tiger to stay. But by the end he is so much fun, that everyone is delighted with having a tiger as a pet, even with his animal friends popping around. Children will respond with stories of their own pets and friends to this book filled with fun and a delight to read aloud.
Fran Knight

Sweet adversity by Sheryl Gwyther

Angus and Robertson 2018. ISBN 9781460755105
Themes: Acting. Friendship. Australian history. April 1930 finds 12 year-old Adversity McAllister in Emu Swamp Children's Home where her parents left her temporarily while they sought work for their theatrical troupe. She and her pet cockatiel Macbeth like to perform for the other children and are often in trouble for flaunting the rules. Matron Maddock tolerates Addie as she is good with the younger children and she has an award winning voice which matron aims to exploit. She tells Addie that her parents are dead and that she is her guardian. The Depression has left many impoverished and seeking work. Times are hard and the children in the home are poorly fed and have to do many chores including work in the laundry which has a faulty boiler. When Addie learns of a plan by Matron to sell her to an entrepreneur who will make her perform she decides to run away. The staff help her, providing food and a horse drawn caravan for her escape. She gets as far as a nearby secret children's camp where she is welcomed by some but not all and she has to move on, finding a sympathetic inn owner who allows her to work for food and care for her horse. Unfortunately the entrepreneur notices her and she is kidnapped and taken back to the home. Money changes hands and she is whisked off to Sydney but not before she picks up her friend little orphaned Joe and manages to take him with her. Against the backdrop of Sydney during the Depression, under the shadow of the part completed Harbour Bridge Addie continues her adventures, experiencing the excitement of performing on the stage while trying to find the truth about her parents and escape from slavery.
Younger readers will enjoy this adventure with a strong heroine courageously triumphing over corrupt people in power while looking after her friends and sharing her love of the stage and performance.
Sue Speck

The way back from broken by Amber J. Keyser

Carolrhoda Lab, 2018. ISBN 9781541514881
(Age: 14+) Recommended. Themes: Sibling death. Grief. Wilderness. Survival. Rakmen's baby sister died and the family is working through the tragedy in their own ways. He and his mother attend weekly meetings at Promise House, a support group where the mothers cry and the children do art therapy downstairs. His father won't go, like others he goes to the bar and bottles up the grief. Rakmen helps out with the other damaged kids, including some his age, Molly, who survived a car crash that killed her sister, D'Veray and D'Mareay, identical twins whose brother D'Shawn died of cancer. Their shared experiences help them to understand each other, unlike Rakmen's best friend Juan, who can't understand why he has lost interest in sport, girls and the excitement of finishing school. When his Biology teacher, Mrs Tatlas, turns up at the support group consumed with grief over her stillborn son, Rakmen's mother befriends her and he is thrust together with her young daughter Jacey. His own parents are going through troubled times and so when he is invited to spend the summer at a remote Canadian lake they ask him to go, not only to look after Jacey and her mum but to give them space to find a way forward. The lake is very remote and the family's cabin run down but it is very beautiful and Mrs Tatlas, Leah, decides on a canoe camping trip 'au large' in the wilderness. The trip is very challenging but they gradually find a rhythm to their days, paddling, carrying the canoe and setting up camp to collapse exhausted at the end of the day, an escape from the exhaustion of grief. When Leah breaks her ankle four days away from anywhere Rakmen and Jacey have to go for help. Loaded with responsibility Rakmen exceeds his own expectations and dramatically opts for survival and the living, moving on from blaming himself for his sister's loss.
This sensitive exploration of grief and healing acknowledges the complexity of the issue; the triggers, the depression and volatile behaviour, the self-blame, family breakdown and damage to relationships caused by the death of a child. The finely drawn description of the beautiful, scary and dangerous wilderness is a real strength, powerfully asserting that life is larger than grief, allowing the characters to discover resilience counteracting the hopelessness at the start of the book. Recommended for students looking for a serious read to engage the emotions or anyone dealing with, or wishing to understand, aspects of grieving.
Sue Speck