Ill. by Claire Richards. Wombat Books, 2016. ISBN 9781925139730
Before Mia moved in next door, Jack was lonely. But Mia brought
rainbows, jungles, concerts and lots and lots of giggles. Even their
mums thought they were 'two sides of the one coin' and 'fit together
like a puzzle.' Mia's amazing imagination took them on adventures
that Jack had never dreamed of and when they both got sick at the
same time, they were each given a book about making and doing,
make-believe and play that allowed them to continue the fun from
their beds.
When they were better they kept using their books, snipping, gluing,
taping and tying a magnificent cardboard castle. They each wore
crowns and royal robes and ruled over their kingdom with wisdom and
kindness. They were as close as the materials that held that castle
together. Until one day Mia moves far away with her family and Jack
is back into the isolation and desolation that he felt before Mia
entered his life. Nothing was the same any more.
Across the sea, Mia had also given up. She was missing Jack just as
much. But then Jack found Mia's book in his toybox and...
There is nothing like the deep friendships forged in childhood where
there are no distractions beyond deciding what today's fun will be
about. Jack and Mia is a charming story that focuses on such a
friendship and how it can continue even after separation has
intervened. It will resonate with children who have moved away from
familiar surroundings and friends and show them that there are
plenty of ways of keeping in touch to relive old memories and make
new ones. The technology of today gives them so much more than that
of previous generations and the world can come to you with just a
few clicks.
The illustrations enrich the storyline as Jack and Mia do not share
the same skin colour but neither notice - it's all about who each
child is, how they connect and the fun that can be had when kids get
together, just as it is in any playground. In fact, I'd proffer that
the readers will not even notice the difference. Racism and all that
it entails is very definitely a concept learned from adults.
Heartwarming and positive.
Barbara Braxton
Cobweb Christmas: the tradition of tinsel by Shirley Climo
Ill. by Jane Manning. Harper Collins, 2001. ISBN 9780060290337
Tante is so little she has to stand on a stool to climb into bed and
so old she can't count all the Christmases she has seen. She lived
at the edge of a pine forest in Germany in a tiny cottage with her
canary, her cat and her dog. Beside the cottage was a barn with a
donkey, a goat, a rooster and a hen - so she had all she needed.
Usually Tante wasn't too fussed about having a spic and span house
but at Christmas time when the days were short and the nights long,
she cleaned her house from top to bottom and corner to corner
sweeping even the tiniest cobwebs and their inhabitants from the
rafters. She would chop down the best Christmas tree she could find
and decorated it with sugar cookies and gingerbread and put special
presents under it for her animals. She invited the village children
in to see her tree and share its goodies - there was something for
everyone including her animals, except the spiders who had all been
swept out the door.
But still Tante wasn't really happy - all her life she had heard
about the marvellous things that happened on Christmas Eve like
animals talking or bees humming carols. So she sat down to wait for
the Christmas magic but soon fell asleep so she never knew whether
it happened or not. She certainly did not hear tiny little voices
begging to be let in out of the cold - but Kriss Kringle did so he
opened the door a crack and in went all the spiders who had been
swept outside.
And the next morning Tante woke to find that Christmas magic had
really happened...
Based on an old European folktale, Shirley Climo and Jane Manning
have brought this story to the 21st century in a superb retelling
with charming illustrations. Tinsel - originally shiny strands of
brass or copper - has been part of traditional Christmas decorations
since the end of the 19th century as people tried to bring light and
sparkle into their homes at a dark time of the year in the northern
hemisphere. Anyone who has seen a cobweb dipped in dew in the early
morning and gleaming as the sun catches it can easily make the
connection between the spiders' work and the sparkly loops of foil
we use today.
This is a story worth tracking down to add to your Christmas
collection - well-written and adding just a bit more to the story of
this special time, it will be one to read every Christmas Countdown.
Barbara Braxton
Christmas songbook by Sam Taplin
Ill. by Richard Johnson. Usborne, 2016. ISBN 9781474921244
In certain countries and to certain generations, the images of carol
singers going door to door at this time of the year sharing their
music is not far from the mind. More recently, the school-based
Carols by Candlelight was always a sign that the festive season was
here as neighbourhoods joined together to herald this fun time in
song, sentiment and a sausage sizzle. Classes practised those
traditional songs in preparation for the annual Christmas concert
and there were few who did not know all the verses of 'Away in a
manger' and 'Silent night'.
So to find a new illustrated volume of these well-known tunes
arranged for voice, piano and guitar is a delight as yet a new
Christmas season is here and another generation needs to know the
music that binds this time. Some are very familiar, others not so,
but each is presented on a clear double page spread with all the
verses and music as well as an illustration that makes this more
than just a book of sheet music. Even the extra original verses of
'Jingle bells' - nothing to do with Batman or even a rusty Holden
ute - are there right alongside 'I saw three ships', the first song
my sea-loving grandfather ever taught me!
Vision Australia's Carols by Candlelight at the Sidney Myer Music
Bowl remains one of the most watched television broadcasts on
Christmas Eve - how wonderful if our children could fully
participate because the tunes are familiar and the words are known!
A perfect addition to both your private and professional collection.
Barbara Braxton
All I want for Christmas is you by Mariah Carey
Ill. by Colleen Madden. Doubleday, 2015. ISBN 9780399551390
It is more than 20 years since Mariah Carey wrote and released the
song in 1994 but it wasn't until December 2015 that the song peaked
at 11 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it its highest peak since its
original release. Now it is one of the most iconic tunes of the
season.
So it seems fitting that it become a picture book with bright bold
pictures, all the lyrics and a special twist at the end that makes
it particularly suitable for young readers although the clues are
there in the pictures from the beginning. The little girl's wish is
clear for the astute to find because she manages to drop her hint
into every part of the Christmas preparations. Making cookies and
decorations, hanging stockings, even out playing in the snow she
clings to her dream. Then, amidst all the presents for all the
family, there is one special gift... one that so many little ones
wish for!!! This video is an
interpretation that will make this a favourite in your family too -
and you will have an earworm for the rest of the day!
Barbara Braxton
The cat who ate Christmas by Lil Chase and Thomas Docherty
Little Brown Books, 2016. ISBN 9781510200821
(Age: 5+) Recommended. Christmas, Chapter book, Family, humour.
Written for younger readers new to chapter books, the story of
Jingles, the cat and his escapades at Christmas time is highly
entertaining, with every page having a wonderfully Christmassy
illustration to pore over.
On Christmas Eve, Rose attempts to tie a piece of tinsel to Jingle's
tail. This results in the tipping over of the Christmas Tree and
from then on, things happen in the most unexpected ways.
The family wakes the next morning to find that the cat has pulled
apart all the gifts left by Santa, and taken down all the
decorations. But when Mum takes the turkey out of the oven and
leaves it on top of the stove, while they collect Grandma, they
arrive home to find the turkey almost eaten.
It's no wonder the cat cannot be found, but the next day at the
supermarket Jingles is found again, all is forgiven and Christmas is
what it should be, full of fun and family being together.
This lovely story subtly detailing the customs of Christmas, is
wonderfully illustrated, bringing a close family feel to every page.
Each page has between a few lines and a paragraph of two and with
the illustrations makes this a fabulous read for newly competent
readers who can tackle chapter books. The last few pages contain
some truly awful Christmas jokes which will cause huge laughter
amongst the target audience, a recipe and an angel to make.
Fran Knight
Beck by Mal Peet with Meg Rosoff
Walker Books, 2016. ISBN 9781406331127
(Age: Adults - senior secondary). Highly recommended. Warning:
Violent sex scene. Reading this novel is like being plunged deep
into a maelstrom. The writers take us back in time to the
devastatingly poor world of the early 1900s. Here a woman and a man
come together briefly, she using her body simply to make enough
money to feed her child and herself, he a lonely sailor in a foreign
port. This is unflinchingly told - as we learn that she is not a
prostitute, but her body was the only means left to enable her
survival.
This is a bald tale, as the writers establish from the start. After
his mothers death and his horrifyingly harsh early years, Beck is
put on a boat that will take him to Canada, for what reason he is
utterly unaware. The Catholic brothers, who take in the orphans, are
apparently generous and kind, feeding and clothing the boys in
readiness for their going out into the world to find work. At this
point it seems to be a world of some degree of decency. However, the
one scene, so vividly described it feels like one is watching it on
stage, and indeed plays back in the mind like one - reverberated in
the days following my reading. The child Beck, with little knowledge
of anything in the world, is treated so horrifyingly that it stayed
vivid, coloured by deep emotions, disgust and anger.
The scene is left as a dread noose that colours Becks life. Yet,
bravely told, this tale, of the potential for immense human cruelty
and indeed of disdain for others, is a new genre of a literary story
that leaps away from the heart-warming story genre into the reality
genre. The writers lift the story up from this point, and draw
vividly, the dark world of early European settlement in the wilds of
Canada, where the struggle to survive is hard enough, while to do
more, to thrive, seems an impossibility, especially for a young
black boy who is utterly alone in the world.
This novel is a tale of a harsh world, offering almost no hope for
the protagonist, but somehow the writers manage to keep us
entranced, desperate as we might be to find a glow of goodness that
is not fake, and indeed keep us reading with hope through to the
end. Our hero's life begins, towards the end, to be turn, and indeed
the end is a balm for the bruised spirit.
I could not recommend it for young readers. It is far too brutal,
too shocking in its revelations of our human capacity for evil, for
young readers. It took me days to stop replaying some of the scenes,
and I ached for days afterwards in thinking about the characters and
the world of this text, its absolutely grueling severity and the
harsh struggle to survive. As I write I notice that Canada and the
northern US states are plunged into another polar vortex, with
temperatures of up to minus 20C. I have been in that part of the
world in minus 45C - in the modern world this is bearable, but back
in the days of this novel, it would have been almost impossible to
survive. It is a book one lives through and it is worthwhile,
perhaps transformative, in the end.
Liz Bondar
Signal loss by Garry Disher
Inspector Challis bk 7. Text Publishing, 2016. ISBN
9781925355260
(Age: 15+) Recommended. The seventh book in the Inspector
Challis series, set on the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria,
sees Hal investigating not only the spread of the drug ice, but the
reason that two hit men from Sydney are found in a burnt-out
Mercedes after a bushfire. Meanwhile Ellen Destry, head of the sex
crimes unit, is investigating a serial rapist who breaks into the
homes of young women.
It is not necessary to have read all the previous books in the
series to enjoy Signal Loss - although of course, a reader would
have a fuller picture of the background and personalities of the
main character if the books had been read. Disher is a master of the
written word and he fleshes out his detectives very well even for a
newcomer to the series.
The reader will find plenty of complexity and interest as each of
the detectives investigates the difficult situations that confront
them. Detective Constable Pam Murphy has to confront her beliefs as
she gets to know one of the suspects in the drug case. The dangers
of the ice trade and how it is conducted are frightening and the
reader becomes aware of the problems surrounding sex crimes.
Excellent descriptions of the people, the landscape and emotions
provide a great background to the tightly written plot, and the
reader is left wanting to read more novels about Hal and Ellen and
the police force on the Mornington Peninsula.
A must read for people who like crime novels.
Pat Pledger
Sachiko: A Nagasaki bomb survivor's story by Caren Stelson
Carolrhoda Books, 2016. ISBN 9781467789035
(Aged 12+) Highly recommended. Themes: War; Conflict; Resilience;
Peace; Nagasaki. If war was only about winning and losing, we would
not know this story. Sachiko's story is the story of loss, of
finding a voice in the face of incredible difficulty, of survival
despite the overwhelming weight of the impossible cloud of despair
and it is a story of resilience. Sachiko is one of the few who
survived the Nuclear holocaust that resulted when the nuclear bomb
was dropped on Nagasaki. Why she survived is a mystery considering
how close she was to its epicentre, but the opportunity we have is
to hear her words and wisdom, and to grow in our understanding of
the personal cost at the individual level when war is waged against
nations. Sachiko's tale is a painful yet uplifting story of her
personal growth in the face of adversity, of the consolation and
wisdom she gained from her family and the words of Gandhi, Dr Martin
Luther-King and even of Helen Keller. These influences infiltrated
her own response to the tragedies that did not just touch her, but
swamped her life in ways that defy our ability to understand. It is
our responsibility as we hear her story to consider our own response
to world issues and to ponder how we can protect other children from
the devastation that conflict brings. Sachiko took a long time to
find her voice after the events of 1945 . . . it is a story that is
worth hearing. It is also a testament to those that did not survive.
Caren Stelson has written this book as a narrative non-fiction, with
Sachiko's story told with historical excerpts and analysis scattered
alongside the personal accounts. These non-fiction accounts are
well-referenced, and written with simple clarity to make this
history accessible for a younger reader, as well as interested
adults. Stelson has used transcripts from Sachiko's memories and
added her own research to confirm details of the events of this
time. Sachiko (through Caren Stelson) is an honourable contributor
to the history of World War II and its conclusion, and her accounts
are worthy of our respect. Current younger readers and students
could read this book alongside the well-known story of Sadako
and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr. This book
contains excellent photographs including some from Sachiko's own
personal history.
Carolyn Hull
The great barbie disaster by Tania Ingram
Ill. by Christina Miesen. Mates series. Omnibus, 2016. ISBN
9781742991245
(Age: 6+) Highly recommended. Humour. I love the Mates series
of books, giving newly independent readers short easy read chapters,
copiously illustrated, with some words in a different font to mull
over.
In this funny tale, Dad is one of a long line of do it yourselfers,
and when it comes to the backyard barbie, he wants to try out his
skills. But he is not like his brothers who are legendary in the
things they build. In this tale, Dad tries three different ways to
build a barbie,but each attempt ends in disaster.
Readers will laugh out loud at his various attempts and the results
of his dubious carpentry.
His first attempt uses an old metal box which he attaches to a old
table. The barbie ends up in flames. His second attempt uses some
old tyres and most children would be able to predict what happens
when tyres accidentally catch alight. His third attempt sees him
using an old wheelbarrow, and so convinced is he that this will work
that the family is invited around the next day. But of course an
amazing series of events sees this barbie end in chaos, and without
drawing breath, Dad is planning the next. A very funny look at
families and how they interact forms the background of this tale.
Fran Knight
Island of Glass by Nora Roberts
The Guardians trilogy, bk. 3. Piatkus, 2016. ISBN
9780349407906
(Age: Adult) Romance. Fantasy. The third in The Guardians series
see Roberts return to Ireland as her setting where Doyle, the
immortal, must come to grips with his past when he finds that the
house they are living in has been built on the exact spot where he
grew up centuries before. As they begin to search Irish history and
landscape for the final star and the Island of Glass, both Doyle and
Riley must come to grips with the attraction that they feel towards
each other and be courageous enough to admit their love. Island of
glass is not a stand-alone novel, readers should read the others in
the series, Stars of fortune and Bay of sighs,
before reading this.
Roberts' love of Ireland is evident in her telling of this tale. The
soft landscape, misty mornings, green fields and ancient monuments
provide a background to Doyle and Riley's story. The other four
protagonists - Annika the effervescent mermaid, Sawyer the time
traveller, Bran the Irish sorcerer and Sasha the seer, all play an
important role, but it is Doyle and Riley who dominate the story in
Island of Glass. There are dramatic moments, action packed incidents
and a beautiful fantasy island for the seekers of the stars and
readers will be swept along for the quest.
Fans of Roberts will be very familiar with the way she pairs off six
people, giving them a seemingly impossible task to perform, while
finding love on the way, but her novels always provide a great deal
of escapism and ease of reading that brings fans back for more.
Pat Pledger
Owl Bat Bat Owl by Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick
Walker Books, 2016. ISBN 9781406364392
Themes: Wordless Picture Book; Differences. A family of owls (is
that a small 'parliament'?) settles for the day in a tree. Their
rest is interrupted by the arrival of a family of bats. There is
room for them all as one group is up, and the other down, but owl
mother creates some distance by moving her family away from the
intruders. The smallest of each animal species seems to connect to
one another to the distress of the parents. A wild wind disturbs
their rest and both parents realise that they are alike in being
concerned for their family's safety. Over a series of pages, the two
family groups connect again, with the two youngest forging the way
to a nocturnal friendship.
All of this action happens through simple illustrations involving
the wide eyed owls and inverted bats (or are they the right way up,
and the owls are inverted?) As with many wordless picture books,
this book is one where a pre-reader could tell the story to an adult
listener; which makes this a great book to encourage conversation
and observation. (Speech therapists might like to add this book to
their collection.) On a more mature level, this could be used to
begin a discussion about migration and what keeps us apart and draws
us together in human society.
Carolyn Hull
Chronologica compiled by the Whittaker's Almanack Team
Bloomsbury, 2016. ISBN 9781472932945
(Age: 10+) Recommended, History, Non fiction. Subtitled The
incredible years that defined history, this massive tome is a
fascinating book to dip into and read about an event which readers
may not know a lot about. Beginning with 753 BC, and travelling
through the execution of Joan of Arc in 1431, shipwreck of the
Batavia in 1629, the first hot air balloon in 1783, to the Fall of
the Berlin Wall in 1989, each year covered, and there are a hundred
of them, has several pages devoted to it. The topics covered are as
varied as they are different, as interesting as they are
entertaining, and they all point to the importance of that year.
Each page offers an illustration pertinent to the text, and a page
of text for kids to read, giving a potted overview of the topic.
Each of the one hundred dates chosen represents an incredible year
in world history, be it the Cornish Rebellion of 1497, 1796 and the
first vaccinations, 1895 seeing the first Nobel Peace Prizes being
awarded, or 1846 when the first saxophone is patented. The list of
things recounted is so varied, it is hard to put a finger on why
each is included, or what may follow. But always interesting,
intriguing and informative, this book will be read by those kids who
hang out looking for facts to read and entertain themselves and
others. There was always a bunch of them looking at the almanacks
and Guinness books of Records and so on in my library, and this will
be eagerly included.
Fran Knight
The nutcracker by E.T.A. Hoffman
Ill. by Robert Ingpen. Walker Books, 2016. ISBN 9781922244550
(Age: all) Highly recommended. Christmas, Classic tale, The
Nutcracker, Friendship. This wonderful edition of the well known
story, the basis for Tchaikovsky's loved Christmas ballet, The
Nutcracker, is given in its entirety, translated from
Hoffman's original German story by Anthea Bell and given a
brilliantly enticing new set of illustrations by the marvelous
Robert Ingpen, to celebrate its bicentenary. Children and adults
alike will thrill to the complete story offered here, set alongside
seventy glorious illustrations, reminding them of Christmases long
past, of half remembered stories of the nutcracker.
When her parents' good friend, Mr Drosselmeier gives Marie and her
brother a nutcracker for Christmas, Marie loves the little figure.
Her impatient brother throws it in the corner when one of his big
teeth is cracked, but Marie cradles him and puts him in the special
place with her other toys.
Unbeknownst to her, Mr Drosselmeier has given the figure to Marie
for a reason, one he cannot tell anyone. He once built a mousetrap
so well that all the mice in the town had been trapped and removed
from the place. The mice then cursed his nephew and only he knows
what can take away that curse.
When Marie is about to go to bed, mice invade the room with her
toys, demanding she feed them or they will eat up her nutcracker.
She complies but when she runs out of food, she turns to see the
nutcracker and the other toys lined up to defeat the mice. She wakes
the next morning, confused and upset to see that her nutcracker has
gone. But Mr Drosselmeier returns that day with his nephew and Marie
realises who he is and takes him as her friend.
This beautiful story of friendship is complemented with Ingpen's
sumptuous illustrations, soft edged and glowingly detailed.
This is a beautiful story to read at Christmas, reminding children
that love and friendship are precious and will outlive all the toys
they are given. This edition includes a biography of Hoffman and
celebrates his influence on fantasy writing, while the tale written
in 1816, includes a story rarely seen, The story of the hard nut,
which tells the reader how the nutcracker came to be.
This is a magical production and deserves to be shared.
Fran Knight
The anti-Boredom Christmas book by Andy Seed
Bloomsbury Publishing Place, 2016. ISBN 9781408870105
(Age: 8+) Highly recommended. The Anti-Boredom Christmas Book is
full of activities to make sure readers do not get bored over
Christmas. It has some hilarious activities and is full of jokes,
facts, quizzes and other stuff. Each chapter is themed and readers
can learn how to make some simple Christmas crafts, challenge their
sister to a Christmas quiz or make dad laugh with some Christmas
jokes. There are plenty of discussion pages as well which will make
for some fun conversations. They include asking questions of family
members and getting them to choose Christmas things they prefer.
Readers can learn some new games like 'Table Tinker' where someone
makes changes to the Christmas table and the other guests have to
guess what is different. Try a game of Fangman (a take on the
traditional Hangman) where players draw a vampire face to 'hang' the
players as they guess the wrong letters. Highly recommended for all
readers aged 8+. This book would make a great stocking filler and
could also be used in the classroom. Students or teachers could
choose an activity to do each day in the lead up to the end of the
school year and Christmas.
Kylie Kempster
Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo
Six of Crows bk 2. Indigo, 2016. ISBN 9781780622309
(Age: 14+) Highly recommended. Fantasy. Goodreads Choice Award
Nominee for Young Adult Fantasy and Science Fiction (2016). The
stunning sequel to Six of crows, see Kaz Brekker and his
crew fighting for their lives. They have been double-crossed and Kaz
is determined to have his revenge. In a series of daring heists,
they are fighting for their lives and Kaz needs every bit of his
cunning and intelligence to find out about the deadly drug known as
jurda parem and to bring some peace to his team.
Once again the world building in Crooked Kingdom is
outstanding. The city of Ketterdam is brought to life, with its
canals, warehouses, merchants and people making a fabulous
background to the adventures of the six young people.
The daring exploits of the crew keep the reader totally engrossed as
they break into houses, fool dangerous people and fight off their
foes. The action is breathtaking but so is the characterisation.
Each chapter is told by one of the six characters and it is done so
well that the reader has no problem following such a large group of
main characters as well as a plethora of minor ones.
The characteristics of each person are richly elaborated, with
details of each person's background and reason for being in
Ketterdam gradually evolving as their story is told. Kaz of course
is central to the story and Bardugo leaves us very satisfied with
how he evolves. Of course with such a large cast and with so much
danger to contend with, there are some casualties on the way and
lots of surprising twists as well.
This is an excellent sequel to Six of crows and I look
forward to reading anything else that Leigh Bardugo writes in the
future.
Pat Pledger
