The picture atlas, an incredible journey by Simon Holland
Ill. by Jill Calder. Bloomsbury, 2017. ISBN 9781408884867
(Age: 8+) Recommended. Atlas. Geography. Journey. I love atlases,
and this had me pouring over each page looking at the detail of the
people and places from all over the world. I can imagine younger
children getting a thrill out of the seventeen chapters covering
aspects of the world we live in. Bookended by an introduction and a
glossary and index at the back, children will delve into pages that
take their interest, discussing it with their neighboours.
Beginning with the Arctic, the page is turned to find out about
living in such a place, then the book moves onto Canada, USA, Mexico
and South America. Each double page introducing the chapters has a
colourful and informative map, bordered with illustrations about
animals, indigenous peoples, and major features. Kids will love
looking at the things pictured, and turning the page will find more
information about them. Each page has different fonts, different
font sizes, along with a range of illustrative techniques making
each page varied and inviting.
Some of the inclusions are different: Europe has a third double page
spread about their food, while South America has a third double page
about its jungles, and Africa similarly with an extra double page
about tis grasslands. A double page about the Indian Ocean follows
the four pages about Asia, and Australia includes a double page
about the Outback. Children will be intrigued with their incredible
journey as they read this book, presenting so many facts about the
world in which we live.
Fran Knight
The empty grave by Jonathan Stroud
Lockwood and Co. book 5. Corgi Books, 2017. ISBN 9780552575799
(Age: 11+) Highly recommended. Lockwood with his trusty cohort,
Lucy, George, Holly and Quill Kipps, not to mention the Skull in a
jar, are off on their most perilous adventure in The empty grave.
They are investigating the tomb of Marissa Fittes, trying to find
out whether it really is her body that lies there or whether
Penelope Fittes has succeeded in fooling everyone in London about
what is really happening with the ghosts that constantly appear. To
cap it all off, Penelope Fittes is on a mission to shut down all the
smaller agencies and Lockwood and Co is in her sights.
Stroud continues on his action filled adventure series and such is
the pace that the reader is keen to finish the 500+ pages of this
finale. There is plenty of sword fighting, much terror as ghosts are
vanquished and suspense as the reader follows the feelings that Lucy
has for Lockwood, hoping that he will reveal some of his background
and overcome his tendency to seek danger.
Stroud's witty asides and the Skull's sardonic dialogue gives the
narrative a sprinkle of laugh out loud moments which relieves the
sometimes scary moments as the group fight off their enemies and
walk through the land of the dead. Each of the group grows in
strength as they use their particular skills to fight the evil
pervading the land. I particularly liked the character of the Skull
whose role was crucial and fascinating and the bravery of Kipps and
Flo were a highlight too.
This was a most satisfying conclusion to an enthralling series and I
look forward to reading further books written by Stroud.
Pat Pledger
Excuse me! by Dave Hughes and Holly Ife
Ill. by Philip Bunting. Scholastic, 2017. ISBN 9781742765914
(Age: 3-8) Theme: Manners. Martha May is so well mannered. She
wouldn't dream of burping or farting. But when she takes part in the
Baked Bean Bonanza at school her tummy starts gurgling and bloating.
She holds it in. She absolutely will not fart. Not even when her
stomach, filled with gas, lifts her up and away, higher and higher
into the sky. When the man at the top of a tall building tells her
"It doesn't matter if no-one's close enough to mind, sometimes you
just have to let it out!" she lets out the most tremendous fart.
This is a book about how farting and being polite are not mutually
exclusive and that even the best mannered people have to pass wind
occasionally. As a society we are becoming much more open about our
bodily functions and this is just another in a long line of toilet
humour publications that are normalising subjects that were once a
little bit naughty. I especially love that the main character is a
little girl, femininely dressed and sporting a flower in her hair,
bucking the 'ladies don't fart' myth. There is also a tremendous
amount of synonyms for farting and many, many fart sounds. Young
children will love it.
Nicole Nelson
Soon by Lois Murphy
Transit Lounge, 2017. ISBN 9780995409804
(Age: Senior secondary - Adult) This is a deceptively complex and
very interesting book. While it seems, initially, to be about magic,
the real magic is the writer's subtle critique of the modern world.
Here we have simple days, calm, quiet, idyllic almost but surely
normal and predictable, in the Western Australian country town of
Nebulah. Yet the nights reveal the screams, the mist that becomes
figures that haunt the townspeople and force them to flee, killing
anyone who is not locked into their houses.
As the residents leave, the few remaining characters, who cannot
afford to leave, come together in a way that reflects the ancient
notion of human beings working together to survive, offering shared
toil and kindness - qualities that we come to see as lacking in the
world outside of the small country town.
So, as the story progresses, we come to see that this wonderfully
constructed narrative is perhaps not just about a weird, destructive
and vengeful wind and strange beings. Rather than simply being about
the paranormal, this beautifully written book is about the
ephemeral, ghosts in a sense, in a story that reflects the ills of
the modern world, the greed, the competitive nature of human beings
who have lost, in that strange 'mist' of time, the ideas of loving
friendship, collaboration, support, neighbourliness or simple
goodness. Deftly constructed, Murphy's world reveals its true spirit
as the narrative progresses, and we are slowly made aware of the
failings of the modern world, the sadness and greed that poison
friendships and families.
Considering that a nebulah is defined as a massive cloud of dust in
space, so the name of the town, Nebulah, aptly reflects the winds
and dust that haunt one little town, in an area of Western Australia
where the events of this novel take place. It seems vengeful, rather
than merely circumstantial, this wind and beings of destruction,
that wreaks havoc, and as time passes, its haunting seems to abate.
This is a powerfully constructed novel that is thought-provoking and
challenging, yet it is not about fear so much as it is about facing
up to the reality of the modern world, considering who we are as
individuals cooperatively sharing our little worlds with others,
ultimately thinking about what we do, what we say and how we treat
others. It is most suitable for older students, especially those who
would respond to the challenge, about how we live in our world
today, that Lois Murphy presents.
Liz Bondar
Slowly! Slowly! by T.M. Clark and Helene Magisson
Wombat Books, 2017. ISBN 9781925563221
(Age: 3-6) Recommended. Themes: Monkeys, Patience, Resilience,
Compassion. Bongani is a little boy who desperately wants to go to
school, but he is too young. Adapted from a South African saying,
"Softly, softly, catchee monkey", Slowly! Slowly! features
the same attributes as the motto: patience and perseverance.
Although Bongani is not big enough to go to school he is given the
job of looking after the crops and chasing the animals away.
Bongani's grandfather is there to give him advice about catching a
monkey when he decides to show his family that he is big and strong
enough to go to school. The trap he sets first doesn't capture the
monkey and Grandfather tells him to set it again, but this time the
monkey bares his teeth at Bongani who stops and waits. Finally
Grandfather comes up with a solution to catching the maize-munching
monkey.
The illustrations by Helene Magisson are in soft blues and greens,
highlighted with soft reds and purples, and bring the story
beautifully to life. Bongani's small size is emphasised against the
size of the huge tree trunks and Grandfather, while the cheeky
little monkey is a delight to follow as it gets the trap caught on
its paw.
The narrative reads aloud well, with a repetitive refrain that makes
the African tale stand out: Bongani stood tall.
'Dad, am I big enough?
Am I higher than the hyena?
Can I go to school?
When perusing Slowly! Slowly! a second time, the reader is
rewarded with a insight into African customs and family life as well
as the values of compassion and patience.
Pat Pledger
Merry Christmas from The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
Puffin, 2017. ISBN 9780141388281
Fans of The Very Hungry Caterpillar will like this
small-format book from Eric Carle despite its northern hemisphere
focus. While the Very Hungry Caterpillar doesn't play an active role
in the story, he does appear on each page sharing the precepts of
the Christmas season in simple text and classic Carle illustrations
which will focus their thinking.
Older children could use it as a compare and contrast exercise as
they place the northern hemisphere version alongside their summer
hemisphere experience and then discuss the common themes. It could
inspire some artwork and help develop the language of comparison, or
even spark a discussion about the proliferation of Christmas books
and songs featuring favourite characters and artists and who they
enjoy most.
Barbara Braxton
Rockabye Pirate by Timothy Knapman and Ada Grey
Bloomsbury, 2017. ISBN 9781408849392
A-haarr! It's always difficult to get busy pirates to hang up their
peg legs, cutlasses and eyepatches at the end of another eventful
day of adventures on the high seas. But even bloodthirsty Sea Dog
McPhail, Black Bearded Brewster and the others have to take a bath
and shampoo before eating their supper and huddling around Mummy
with her big story book.
This rocking rhyme about plucky pirates, with its captivating
illustrations, is a warm-hearted children's book, together with
easy-to-read text, that is sure to delight all who venture here.
J. Kerr-Smith
Refugee boy by Benjamin Zephaniah
Bloomsbury, 2017. ISBN 9781408894996
(Age: 13+) On the disputed border of the African countries Eritrea
and Ethiopia, armed militants from both sides terrorise villagers
for being from the other nation. Teenager Alem has an Ethiopian
father and an Eritrean mother and his family literally has nowhere
to go because of the hatred and intolerance soldiers from each
nation show for the citizens of the other.
Naively thinking that he is going on holiday, Alem accompanies his
father to England where he enjoys the marvels of London for a couple
of days before he wakens in their hotel room to find his father
gone. In a desperate bid to ensure his son's safety, Alem's father
had abandoned him and returned to his border village, in the hope
that Alem might be granted refugee status.
Whilst Alem experiences an understandable sense of bewilderment and
loneliness, he is remarkably resilient and mature for his years and
stoically endures the trials of his predicament, trusting in his
father and British civil service.
Placed into a refuge for teenagers, Alem finds himself alone amongst
boys who appear to be a mixture of young offenders and orphans,
inevitably becoming a target for moronic bullies who derive pleasure
from domination through violence.
Alem endures this hardship and struggles to understand mindless
behaviour and careless attitudes to education and self-improvement
at the school he attends. Coming from an austere background in a
dysfunctional country, Alem has high expectations of British society
and experiences disappointment when he realises that some citizens
have no awareness of their good fortune.
Eventually Alem's personal circumstances improve when he is placed
with a loving foster family whose only desire is to ensure his
happiness and safety. Sadly, letters from his father confirm a
rapidly deteriorating situation at home and he lives in constant
fear for his parents.
This revealing story explains the difficulties faced by both
refugees and those public servants and legal adjudicators whose task
it is to determine who deserves asylum and who must be repatriated.
As with other stories dealing with similar situations, I could not
help feeling a sense of despair that so much trauma is caused by
religious, political and territorial disputes. So many people are
currently displaced in the world that it seems unlikely they will be
granted asylum anywhere safe. This novel considers the role of
advocates, protesters, lawyers and the judiciary in dealing with a
situation which is often presented too simplistically by both sides
of the debate.
Rob Welsh
The bum book by Kate Mayes
Ill. by Andrew Joyner. Harper Collins, 2017. ISBN 9780733332197
(Ages 2-7) Themes: Bottoms. This is a fun book chock full of bums,
bums, nothing but bums. Queen bum, horsey bum, had too much sun bum,
let's all leave the room bum, wobbly bum... Bums of all shapes,
sizes, colours and smells are represented. As the text itself says
"Everyone has a bum" and this aims to normalise bums, both the word
and the physical bum itself.
Very young children will like all the different bums, older children
will think it is hilarious and there is even humour targeted more
towards adults.
Andrew Joyner's illustrations provide fantastic visual humour as
always. I imagine he had a great time with these bright, in your
face, larger than life bums.
This unique dictionary of bums will provide a chuckle for readers of
all ages.
Nicole Nelson
A cold case in Amsterdam Central by Anja de Jager
Constable, 2017. ISBN 9781472120649
(Age: Secondary to adult) Recommended. Themes: Crime. Amsterdam.
Cold case. World War Two. Sympathisers. This is a wonderful
concoction of a crime thriller set in a totally different
environment, Amsterdam, with its canals, polders and tulips.
Detective Lotte Meermon is back after four months off police work
after being shot. Some do not want her back, and actively encourage
her to go, while others are giving her the benefit of the doubt. But
here again, she rubs people up the wrong way, insisting that the
death of a painter at a building site was not an accident. When his
wife of six months finds a locker ticket Lotte is called to help but
finds the bag in the locker contains bones. Lotte is sure there is
more to the death that appears, even though her partner, Thomas is
unconvinced.
With a single-mindedeness seen in Saga Noren from 'The bridge',
Lotte ploughs on, following leads that seem to come from fresh air.
Forensic examination of the bones reveal them to be from the war,
and the DNA matches them to a public prosecutor, brought up on
stories of her heroic grandfather, killed by the Nazis for his work
with the resistance, but the forensic examiner has also found a
spare arm, the DNA linking him to a crime boss not seen for some
years. Thomas follows the leads in this part of the investigation,
eager to excel with such a big case, leaving Lotte to follow the
painter's death, but the two coincide, bringing in a range of people
from Lotte's youth when she helped find the killer of her friend
Anges, when she was ten. Now that her mother has broken her wrist
and is staying with her, the antipathy between them adds another
level of comment into the story, comparing it with the fate of
several other older parents involved in the case.
Lotte is a fascinating character through this book, revealing
snippets of herself, and her past, but certainly saying what she
thinks, to the sometimes astonishment of those around her.
This is an involving sequel to A cold death in Amsterdam
(2015) and a third book is about to be published. I love reading
crime novels set in new places, and with a character as complex as
Lotte, the series will please.
Fran Knight
Ultimate Lego Star Wars
DK, 2017. ISBN 9780241288443
(Ages: 8+) In 1999 the first LEGO Star Wars sets were released and
since then the collaboration has continued to grow. This is a
definitive, unrivalled encyclopaedic guide to every LEGO Star Wars
minifigure or set ever produced. Each of the three main sections
(characters and creatures; locations and vehicles and equipment) are
comprehensive visual galleries. It shows their evolution from the
very first creations to what technology allows the LEGO designers to
create today. Even non-fanatics will be interested in seeing the
progression from the old yellow mini-figures with minimal detail to
the intricate figures with personalised facial details available
today. While there is only one version of many of the figures and
models, some have up to a dozen variants. The text accompanying the
photographs of each model includes a little information about the
Star Wars character itself, but is mostly committed to the actual
design and differences between the variants. There are even some
quotes from a LEGO designer scattered throughout the book for some
added insight. All the important information is included for both
serious LEGO fans (year, set number) and serious Star Wars fans
(mini-figure homeworld and affiliation, vehicle and equipment type
and model, location sector and system, etc.). There is a lot of
information here, but large visuals, easy to read text and labelled
pictures make it accessible even for a young audience. This is
really for the most serious LEGO Star Wars fans and collectors but
is fascinating even for those who aren't.
Nicole Nelson
The birthday invitation by Lucy Rowland and Laura Hughes
Bloomsbury, 2017. ISBN 9781408862995
(Age: Junior primary) Recommended. Who would believe that losing
just one birthday invitation could lead to such surprising results?
Who will catch the invitation that Ella dropped? A wizard, a
princess, even a pilot flying high above.
Planning a birthday party is always so much fun, but never did Ella
anticipate such a colourful bunch of new friends turning up to help
her celebrate her special day, even a pirate's parrot.
This brilliantly illustrated book is a rollicking rhyme, skilfully
crafted and a delight to read.
I would recommend it for Junior Primary children who all enjoy a fun
and imaginative tale.
J Kerr-Smith
Pick a pine tree by Patricia Toht
Ill. by Jarvis. Walker Books, 2017. ISBN 9781406360608
"Pick a pine tree from the lot -
Slim and tall or short and squat.
Long, straight limbs
Or branches bent . . . .
Mmm! Just smell that piney scent!" Publisher
I absolutely loved this picture book. It bought back many wonderful
memories of my own childhood - my sister perched up the tree with
Mum directing her as to which branch to cut and then the difficult
task of trying to make the said branch stand somewhat nicely. This
book takes us all on a familiar journey that we all venture on at
this time of year. It starts with choosing the perfect tree and
strapping it to the roof to ensure it arrives home safely. On
arrival home, the arduous task of rearranging the furniture to allow
the tree to have pride of place. The beautiful rhyming in the book
will provide ample opportunities for prediction as it is read aloud.
Excitement is built as each stage is reached and then the spreading
of Christmas cheer reinforces the true meaning of this special time
of year. This will be a welcome addition to the Christmas collection
and it will be sure to catch the eye of the reader with the sparkly
writing on the cover. Many children will be able to connect to the
story with this yearly ritual being performed every year right
around the world.
Kathryn Schumacher
A very quacky Christmas by Frances Watts and Ann James
ABC Books, 2017. ISBN 9780733329623
(Ages: 3-7) Highly recommended. Themes: Christmas, Giving. Samantha
Duck is getting ready for Christmas. She's putting up tinsel around
the reeds, singing her favourite Christmas song ("We wish you a
quacky Christmas") and hanging her Christmas stocking. "Christmas is
not for animals", her tortoise friend Sebastian tells her. Samantha
carries on regardless. "Christmas is about giving and sharing isn't
it? And animals like to give and share, don't they?" she asks. Faced
with this infallible logic, Sebastian reluctantly agrees to help her
deliver presents to animals all over the world ("That's impossible!"
he exclaims). The other animals on the farm are impressed with
Samantha's idea, donating their wool, eggs and other products to be
made into Christmas gifts. Samantha and Sebastian work hard day and
night making and wrapping gifts, but the delivery is the hard part.
Donkey lends them his cart but how will they make it fly? It isn't
until Sebastian thinks of all the generous animals and starts
believing that Christmas is for animals that their running and
flapping help the cart take to the skies. "Christmas is for
animals", he says.
In a world where the true religious meaning of Christmas has been
all but lost this is welcome reassurance that even non-religious
Christmas is worthy as a time of giving and sharing. If you want or
need a story that celebrates the humanity and generosity of
Christmas without harking on the religious tradition, this is
fantastic. It echoes the Santa Claus narrative but focuses on the
ability of everyone to be generous and make someone else happy. It
is also about how believing in the impossible makes it possible: the
true magic of Christmas.
The text seems effortless in its simplicity and reads exceptionally
well. The black line and watercolour illustrations from the talented
Ann James (I'm a Hungry Dinosaur, It's a Miracool, Shutting
the Chooks In) are stunning and Samantha and Sebastian are
very endearing characters.
Nicole Nelson
A Christmas wish by Beatrix Potter
Puffin, 2017. ISBN 9780241291757
Board book. It's Christmas Eve and Peter Rabbit and his sisters are
excited, but Peter is worried too. They have all wished for a
special present but Peter can't sleep, and he knows Father Christmas
won't visit if he's still awake. As the hours drag by anxious Peter
hears a little creak here, and a little bump there, so now he's even
less likely to fall asleep, especially as he is convinced each noise
must be Santa and he gets up to investigate. Then he decides to sit
and gaze at the lights on the Christmas tree . .
. will Santa come while he's there?
The charm and delight of Beatrix Potter's tales about Peter Rabbit
have endured over decades and this adaptation is no exception.
Perfect for that final sleep on the BIG night, little ones will
empathise with Peter as they share his excitement and find it just
as tricky to get to sleep it will become a classic part of the
annual Christmas Countdown.
Barbara Braxton
