Reviews

Raymie Nightingale by Kate DiCamillo

Walker Books, 2017. ISBN 9781406373189
(Age: 9+) Highly recommended. Friendship, Grief, Single parents, Aged care, Competition. When her father leaves, Raymie is distraught. She joins a baton twirling class in the hope of winning Little Miss Central Florida Tire 1975, so having her picture in the paper to lure him back home. She knows that doing a good deed will sit well with the judges and tries to find one. But her soul does not seem to be getting much bigger. At the class she meets two other hopefuls, Louisiana and Beverley, each of whom have quite different reasons for being there. Beverley is a take it as you see it type of girl, no holds barred, straight talking and often abrasive, while her cynical comments about baton twirling, cat homes, families and the outrageous Ida Nee will have the reader laughing out loud. Louisiana is an orphan but quietly determined and lives with a very odd grandmother, always on the lookout for the authorities who may take her to a children's home. All three girls are quite different but come to work together to achieve their goals.
But the class does not turn out as it should, partly because of the antics of the very odd teacher, Ida Nee, and Raymie decides to read to someone at the aged centre instead of going to class, so embroiling Louisiana and Beverley in her attempts to retrieve the library book which she loses under one aged person's bed. Beverley wants to sabotage the baton competition, while all Louisiana wants is to get her cat, Archie back. Losing any possibility of winning the money for baton twirling, the girls decide to take matters into their own hands and go to the cat shelter to get Archie, making use of Beverley's skills.
A very funny, darkly humorous episode at the end sees Louisiana in hospital with an array of parents and caregivers arriving to tend to their girls. Raymie's soul becomes larger as she develops friendships and helps solve some of their problems, while accepting that her father is not returning.
Beautifully written, this tale is most appealing in detailing the lives of three young girls who do not quite fit in and are certainly not what they seem. The story evokes understanding and pathos, sympathy and humour as The Three Rancheros set out to right some wrongs.
Fran Knight

Animal activity: Cut, fold and make your own wild things by Isabel Thomas

Ill. by Nikalas Catlow. Bloomsbury, 2017. ISBN 9781408870068
(Age: Independent readers) Recommended. The subtitle 'Cut, fold and make your own wild things!' gives a good indication of what the user can find inside. Once opened the words 'This book will self-destruct' are sure to intrigue and make the reader wonder just what they are going to find inside and just how one makes a book destroy itself. The instructions on 'How to wreck this book' will take any user off on an adventure learning about the natural world. Choosing 'Make a flower explode' (page 37) gives instructions on pulling a flower apart and naming its parts. 'Turn paper back into a tree' gives instructions for making a paper tree, and peopling it with creatures. The reader will have fun going outside, shaking a tree and seeing what living creatures fall out!
There are many such activities in the book, each providing hours of fun while the user learns about the natural world and animal activity. Many require scissors, glue and paint and some need an adult to supervise, but all will keep the reader occupied and interested. Certainly the book will not be intact after children start using it.
This would be a wonderful book to have on hand for holiday enjoyment or to use to pry young children away from their screens. Teachers may also find that many of the activities could be useful in the classroom.
Pat Pledger

School daze by Zack Zombie

Diary of a Minecraft Zombie: Book 5. Scholastic, 2017. ISBN 9781743818312
(Age: 7+) Set in the intriguing location of Scare School and containing characters well known by all those enthralled with the game Minecraft; School daze follows the story of Zack Zombie and his aim of getting out of going on camp for the summer.
Zack tries every trick in the book to fail classes, hand in ridiculous science projects and present crazy history speeches - all in an attempt to make his parents so mad they cancel summer camp! But life for this Minecraft zombie is just not going to plan.
Written in a daily diary style, children will find this book easy to read and are sure to laugh at the funny banter recorded in Zack's diary and the classic occurrences that even us mere humans will relate to - such as school photo day and enlisting the help of your best friend (Steve Human) to help you really stuff up your Scare School work.
The book easily draws you into the life of Zack, and finishes off with lots of questions about the outcome of Zack's antics.
Readers will certainly be eager to start Book 6 in this series. It is felt that this would be a wonderful series to present to children who are either struggling or not interested in reading, but are interested in this game.
This unofficial Minecraft book would suit readers from ages 7 and up, or parents of younger children who just cannot get enough of the ever growing phenomenon - Minecraft!
Lauren Fountain

The pink snowman by Alan Horsfield

Ill. by Pat Kan. Big Sky Publishing. 2017. ISBN 9781925520439
(Age: 6-8) Snowmen. Blue Mountains NSW. Problem Solving. Krystal Clearwater is bored. She lives in the Blue Mountains and there is nothing to do. Outside there's a heavy blanket of snow covering the yard and inside her father is busy with his model train set. Dad is a joker; he's always telling stories and sometimes Krystal believes him. He suggests a bet: if she finds two matching snowflakes she will receive a fifteen dollar reward. Of course, her wise friend Jasper tells her the truth and she decides to build a snowman instead.
After building a rather disastrous looking snowman, Krystal jokingly challenges the creature to 'Stand up like a man!' Much to her surprise he does and soon the two friends are busy finding him some eyes and solving the problem of his strawberry coloured body.
Pat Kan's lively paint and ink drawings add to the fun of Alan Horsfield's narrative, suited to readers engaging with early chapter books.
Rhyllis Bignell

Disappearing off the face of the earth by David Cohen

Transit Lounge, 2017. ISBN 9780995359482
(Age: 15+) This contemporary story is set in a self storage business in Brisbane. Narrated in the first person by the owner Ken, it details the decline of the business where defaulters of the storage units disappear and Ken is able to sell the contents to recoup rental costs.
Bruce, his employee, appears to be mixed up in the disappearance and 'messing' with Ken's mind and view of what is happening.
Along with the decline of the business is the mental decline of both men.
While the story is engaging and I read it in one sitting to see what happens at the end, the ending is disappointing and somewhat inexplicable.
There are a few sub-plots that confuse the main story.
Ann Griffin

Dream little one, dream by Sally Morgan

Ill by Ambelin Kwaymullina. Viking, 2016. ISBN 9780670078868
"When Moon shines and earth breathes a breath of deepest night dream, little one, dream into the peace of a wonderful world."
As the first fingers of light of the rising sun bring new life to a new day, the creatures begin to stir and go about their business. The bird soars, the koala climbs, the dolphin glides - right through the day till the moon comes again and the lizards settle down to dream.
Written with the lyrical notes of a lullaby this is a soothing, gentle tale of lives not seen by busy, rushing people as the day passes through its phases. Creatures of the skies, land and water have their own rhythm that has nothing to do with school or work or sports training or music practice - they are in peace and harmony with the world that surrounds them, suggesting a sense of routine and calm that we might well envy, perhaps be persuaded to observe.
Sally Morgan has a gift for selecting words and putting them together in a way that reaches the soul and demands we take time to breathe, relax and reflect. Accompanied by bright, stunning, striking illustrations that are in direct contrast to the gentle vocabulary, rhythm and repetition of the text, just as nature's lives are in contrast to that of humans, this is the perfect bedtime story to draw the curtains on the day, to slow the heart and take little ones off to Dreamland.
Barbara Braxton

Wombat big, Puggle small by Renee Treml

Random House, 2017. ISBN 9780143782940
Wombat is big and puggle, the baby echidna is small. But that doesn't stop them having a lot of fun is this delightful new book by Renee Treml who brings Australian wildlife to life with her stunning illustrations. Having already delighted our youngest readers with Ten little owls, Once I heard a little wombat, One very tired wombat and Colour for curlews, she again brings charm and humour to a simple story of two friends playing and discovering the world together. Even with its minimal text, there is a story to be told that parent and child can tease out together and talk about.
In hardback, and soon in board format, it is perfect for new readers to share with themselves over and over, this is perfect for helping them the discover the joy of story and setting them on their lifelong reading journey.
Barbara Braxton

Wolfie an unlikely hero by Deborah Abela

Ill. by Connah Brecon. Random House Australia, 2017. ISBN 9780143781509
(Age: 5-8) Recommended. 'I, The Wolf, am sick of being the bad guy. I'm taking over this book.'
Wolfie is cross, more than a little peeved with the negative portrayal of wolf's characteristics and actions in fairytales. In Wolfie An Unlikely Hero, the narrator repeatedly tries to move the narrative down a familiar path, but Wolfie steps in and strongly opposes these introductions. He enjoys the build up of characteristics - he is sleek and strong, perfectly nice, however he does not sneak up on innocent rabbits and sweet little piglets. He takes over the storytelling and informs the reader he's really a hero who rescued his cousin from drowning. This a battle of wits, the narrator will not stop with the conventional storyline, and once more the tale shows the wolf sneaking up on the chicken coop ready for a midnight snack.
Finally the story changes, the perfectly nice, brave wolf races across the 'rivers of ravenous crocs to rescue the princess held in a high tower'. Will this be a perfect fairytale ending? Wolfie pleads to be written as a different character, perhaps a wolf in shining armour. With a delightful and unsuspected ending, Wolfie is granted his wish, to be part of a rescue!
Deborah Abela's hilarious story is perfect for sharing at story time as her style of writing with the back and forth banter between Wolfie and the narrator is fabulous to read aloud. Connah Brecon's over-the-top stylised illustrations perfectly show Wolfie's character, and his sleek physique, turned up nose and matchstick arms with bulging muscles. His comic fairytale settings are fun to explore. They show the range of emotions felt by the main character and his potential victims, and the princess shows her own strength of character refusing the wolf's help.
Deborah Abela's Wolfie story supports the Year 1 - Year 3 English Curriculum with its persuasive text, and through investigating the representation of ideas in picture books.
Rhyllis Bignell

Forever Geek by Holly Smale

Geek Girl series. HarperCollins, 2017. ISBN 9780007574667
(Age: 11+) Recommended. Humour. Feel good book. In the finale to the very popular Geek Girl series, Harriet Manners, the geek, the model and the control freak is on her way to Australia with her grandmother Bunty and her best friend Nat. She has said goodbye to Jasper, her not quite boyfriend at home and statistically, she believes that it is unlikely that she will bump into her Australian ex-boyfriend Nat in Sydney. She is completely unprepared to see Nick and she faces quite a few sticky situations that her list making and preparation can't help her with.
This is a very fitting conclusion to a humorous series that fans will be sad to see finish. Harriet is her usual self, inundating the reader with numerous strange facts about all sorts of things. Her witty comments will give many laugh out loud moments and there is a lot of good advice about fitting in, being yourself and having friends that the reader will appreciate as Harriet comes to grips with who she is and what she wants out of life.
Readers will be waiting for whatever Holly Smale writes next.
Pat Pledger

The things we promise by J.C Burke

Allen and Unwin, 2017. ISBN: 9781760290405
(Age: 15+) The Things We Promise describes the year of Gemma as she looks forward to her first school formal. Set in the 1990s this novel depicts the typical aspects of growing up as teenagers during this time period. Most notably is Gemma's obsession with going to the local pay phone box to call and catch-up with gossip from her friends (something the current generation of social media always connected teenagers might find different). Most notably and the main theme of the The Things We Promise is a personal recount of the AIDS epidemic which affected the early 1990s. This is described via Gemma's older brother who is gay and has been exposed to HIV. On this theme, the novel describes all the prejudices, discrimination and attitudes that were directed at Gemma and her family because Billy was homosexual and later HIV positive. In short, Gemma's problems with her friends, boyfriends and her formal dress become less of a priority as she deals with the social and emotional issues associated with HIV and AIDS. Later in the book, the themes are heavily associated with Gemma and her family's experience of terminal illness and ultimately grief.
The Things We Promise is easily related to other texts that feature similar themes of prejudice and discrimination, particularly those related to homophobia and AIDS and would be most suited to senior high school students. It is a great reflection on how far we have come to be more accepting of 'AIDS in the burbs.'
Adam Fitzgerald

The Catawampus Cat by Jason Carter Eaton

Ill. by Gus Gordon. Penguin, 2017. ISBN 9780143785583
(Ages: 4-7) Highly recommended. Cats, change, perspective. The back cover helpfully informs us that the word 'catawampus' means to be askew or at an angle. A Google search confirms that it is indeed a word, albeit usually considered a North American colloquialism. Unsurprisingly then, The Catawampus Cat has been written by an American author. While not particularly well known in Australia, Jason Carter Eaton has previously produced a small number of children's books. Here he teams up with the incredibly talented Gus Gordon (writer and illustrator of the successful Herman and Rosie, among others.)
The town Catawampus Cat walks into is super busy every day, even on a Tuesday (!), but when people start to see and do things differently amazing things happen. Miss Reade, the town librarian, accidentally pulls a book about boatbuilding off the shelf . . . and off she goes on her new boating adventure. Bushy Brows Billiam discovers he can see better if he looks at just the right angle. Soon everyone in town is tilting their head and they are all 'happy and slanty and catawampus'. The ending, in which the Catawampus Cat straightens up and walks out of town, is incredibly funny and thought provoking. It is a great discussion starter about how the cat has again become the catawampus one.
With The Catawampus Cat Gus Gordon lives up to the high expectations Herman and Rosie fans are sure to have. From the story map on the endpapers showing the cat's journey around the town to the humourous, busy and eclectic multimedia pictures within, this book is a visual feast. Each page begs the eye to travel, explore and enjoy. Repeated readings are never boring either, as new elements are just waiting to be discovered. The writing is also a joy; it is witty, uncomplicated and devoid of unnecessary detail. The overarching message is about slowing down and noticing things; it emphasises how looking at things from a different perspective can open our eyes to new opportunities or ways of doing things. Young primary school children and teachers will love this, especially if they are fans of Herman and Rosie.
Nicole Nelson

I don't know what to call my cat by Simon Philip

Ill. by Ella Bailey. Simon and Schuster, 2017. ISBN 9781471124129
(Age: 4+) Recommended. Cats, Family, Decision making. All readers will enjoy reading the covers of this inviting book, seeing the cats' names reflecting their attributes. I laughed out loud at Dali's moustache, Elton's eyes and Ziggy's scar, and readers will pick up the humour before they open the first page.
When a cat choses the protagonist as its owner, she has a lot of trouble finding a suitable name. She scrolls through many: Betty, Lorraine and Ethel and so on, until a visit to the vet shows her that she needs a boy's name. Then a similar scrolling through a number of boys' names occurs with the cat rejecting them with his bahviour. Readers will laugh out loud at the animal's antics, and sympathise when it appears to run away, doffing the clothes in which it has been dressed. Surprisingly the girl goes to the zoo, and selects an ape for her pet, but he destroys her house until the zoo keepers retrieve him.
When he disappears back to the zoo, her cat reappears resplendent with his name, Tricky on a plate around his neck. She is ecstatic and draws a line across the floor, delineating how they will now interreact with each other.
With detailed digital illustrations the relationships between the young girl and the animals will cause lots of laugh, as they work out their boundaries. Readers will have a great time finding the cat on the pages where he has run away, shouting out to the little girl where to find him.
As the children read this story they will assimilate information about how to look after a pet and some of the responsibilities in doing so.
Fran Knight

First Baby Days series

Toddler's world series

Hodder and Stoughton, 2017.
ABC. ISBN 9781526380029
123. ISBN 9781526380050
Animals. ISBN 9781526380036
Colours. ISBN 9781526380043
(Ages: 1-3) Recommended. Board books, concept books. Each of these bright, colourful board books has playful illustrations that toddlers will love to explore and big, interactive foldouts on their final page. Their simple format allows children to lead the exploration and encourages parent-child interaction. The books use toddler appropriate content to teach simple concepts and include things that toddlers love (balls, rockets, balloons, animals, vehicles, etc.). These are English publications so objects or things are not necessarily Australian (e.g., wood animals are badgers, hedgehogs, etc.) or are called something different (e.g., pepper instead of capsicum), but this doesn't greatly detract from their value. In Colours, ABC and Animals, which are separated into sections and have labelled pictures, toddlers will enjoy pointing out and naming things familiar to them. The counting book uses many number representations (figure, dots, number of items, written word, highlighted number in sequence), meaning children are exposed to number in its many forms.
The last foldout page in each of the books asks children to consolidate their learning (count how many, name the animals, etc.). All of the books are incredibly robust to withstand even the toughest toddler treatment.
Nicole Nelson

But then I came back by Estelle Laure

Orchard Books, 2017. ISBN 9781408342541
(Age: 14+) Recommended. Eden's life was all figured out - she was going to go to New York and dance with the Bolshoi, she was going to be a star!
After the accident however, all her plans are thrown into doubt. Having woken from a coma a month after falling into the river, Eden doesn't know whether she'll ever dance again. There goes fame, fortune, and college plans. Instead she is consumed by the depression of the displaced, and the mystery of her fellow coma girl, Jasmine, who she met on the 'other side'. Preoccupied by Jasmine and the mysterious black flowers, Eden finds herself neglecting her old life and her family in order to try and help this stranger come back. But is her determination solely because she feels close to the other girl, or because of the boy with the white roses and chocolate eyes? It seems that when everything is going so wrong, something has to be so right.
Sequel to This raging light, But then I came back can be read in addition or on its own. Intelligent and thoughtful, Estelle Laure (and Eden) make many literary references throughout the novel to the canon. It is a novel about recovery, discovery, and comfort with a pleasant possibility for what might be beyond the veil. A relatively easy read, the novel addressed issues surrounding family, depression, and future thinking. I would recommend this novel for students aged fourteen and up.
Kayla Gaskell, 21