Reviews

Akarnae by Lynette Noni

Pantera Press, 2015. ISBN: 9781921997501
Recommended. Much to her dismay, Alexandra Jennings is being shipped off to boarding school while her archaeologist parents make their next big discovery. But Alex is taken by surprise when she walks into the principal's office on her first day and instead finds herself in Medora, a futuristic other world, where she must remain until the missing Professor Marselle can send her home. Surrounded by advanced technology and students with special gifts, Alex embraces the wonder that the Akarnae Academy has to offer, and forms some unlikely friendships along the way. Alex may be from another world but she is far from normal, and little does she know that the fate of Medora and those she has grown to care for, may very well rest in her hands.
Noni's debut novel is a fantasy whirlwind filled with loveable and charismatic characters. Her writing is simplistic yet beautiful, and she constructs the world of Medora so eloquently that the reader is pulled in from the first page, experiencing all that Akarnae has to offer. Although this is primarily a fantasy novel, readers of dystopian and science fiction are sure to take pleasure in the fast-paced action and futuristic technology that Noni describes. Akarnae is the first in a series and the cliff-hanger ending will leave readers needing to know what happens next. This story of adventure, friendship, wonder, and sacrifice is sure to entice middle school students and all readers with a wandering imagination.
Emma Gay

Big Digger ABC by Margaret Mayo

For the forest of a bird by Sue Saliba

Penguin, 2015. ISBN 9780143571780
(Age: 12+) Highly recommended. Change. Perception. Divorce. Environment. Nella has a secret vigil. She waits by the creek for the return of the swallows in spring, believing that her father, like the swallows, will return home. At home, her mother's mental illness has become worse since the divorce and Nella and her older brother have found it very difficult to cope. When her father has a heart attack, Nella is convinced that this is the right time for him to return home and prepares a room for him. But life has unexpected twists and turns, as Nella discovers.
Sue Saliba's writing is beautiful. Each page is a lyrical journey into the feelings of a teen who desperately believes that her father wouldn't abandon her. The reader discovers the bleakness of her home life with a mother who can't cope at all and a brother who is angry and doesn't communicate. It is easy to empathize with Nella as she journeys to Phillip Island where her father has been living and uncovers the life that he now lives. The reader gains a deep insight into the nature of perception and change and how people can have a very different slant on the same thing. This is a message that is important for the reader as well as Nella to uncover.
The beauty of Phillip Island rings out with the descriptions of the wildlife and forests and people aspiring to help the environment will be inspired by the actions of the girl that Nella meets on the island. It is this friendship that ultimately helps Nella to understand about loss and abandonment.
This is a lyrical coming of age story, beautifully and evocatively written. It is not very long, but it covers many themes in a unique way that I have found impossible to describe in a review. I believe that it would be a wonderful class novel or book for a literature circle to explore.
Pat Pledger

Fish out of water by Natalie Whipple

Hot Key Books, 2015. ISBN 9781471404306
(Age: 16+) "People like to think fish don't have feelings - it's easier that way - but as I watch the last guppy squirm in his bag, his eyes seem to plead with me. I get the sense that it knows just as well as I do that bad things are on the horizon."
Mika loves fish but her plans for the summer holidays come awry when her estranged grandmother arrives unannounced. This sets the scene for a difficult family reunion as old grievances resurface and conflict ensues. The characters are lightly drawn, yet the reader can relate to the complications life presents them.
The characters in this novel are all fish out of water. Alzheimers, cultural differences, socioeconomic differences, and educational differences are all explored in this novel. While it lacks complexity, and can be predictable at times, this novel does show the power of forgiveness in resolving difficulties in relationships.
While there is, of course, a love interest in this book, the most nuanced relationship is that between Mika and her grandmother. It is these segments that bring the book to life and allow the reader to experience the complexities of Alzheimers.
Linda Guthrie

This is a ball by Beck and Matt Stanton

ABC Books, 2015. ISBN 9780733334351
(Age: 5-8) Recommended. Humourous stories. Beck and Matt Stanton's picture book This is a ball is similar in style to BJ Novak's bestseller The book with no pictures. From the greeting and questions at the beginning through to the range of simple statements and totally different illustrations - ball and cube, dog and elephant, the reader is drawn in. If an adult is reading, the audience is immediately involved, laughing and commenting, pointing out their mistakes.
The bold black outlines, simple stylised illustrations, strong use of colour placed on white backgrounds make this visually appealing. The text begins simply, adding characters and actions as it builds the story from simple statements - this is a kite, to the monster telling the story of the princess flying her kite at the beach with her dog. A conversation with the reader continues in smaller font, questioning what is really being seen on each page. This book stretches the imagination and causes the reader not to take the book at face value. An entertaining story to share, one that will be loved by children more than adults!
Rhyllis Bignell

A bed for Bear by Clive McFarland

HarperCollins, 2014. ISBN 9780062237057
(Age: Preschool - Yr 2) Winter is coming and it is time for bears to hibernate. But Bernard Bear did not want to sleep in the bear cave. It was too noisy, too big and too crowded. But he must find somewhere . . . and soon. So he sets out to find a bed that is just right for him.
Frog's lilypad looks nice but it is not made for a bear and wet is not comfortable. And Bird's bed is too windy and Rabbit's is too small. Will Bear ever find a bed that is just right for bears? And how will a teeny, tiny mouse help a big bear find a bed?
Even though the theme of creatures looking for that which is just right for them and trying all sorts of options is common, this is a charming tale that has a sense of newness and novelty about it. Illustrated with no extraneous detail apart from the focus of the text, the characters take centre stage, each one original and quirky. The text has a repetitive element that young children will join in with and they will delight in trying to find Mouse in the pictures. It could be a great introduction to investigating where animals live as well as challenging them to think of the characteristics that a bear's bed should have before Mouse solves the problem.
There is also the issue of Bear destroying all the beds he tries without apologising or helping to fix them which could set up some discussion about ethical behaviour at the child's level.
An intriguing debut for this author/illustrator that, like good picture books do, offers more than initially meets the eye.
Barbara Braxton

Hooray! It's a new royal baby! by Martha Mumford

Ill. by Ada Grey. Bloomsbury, 2015. ISBN 97814088 65712
(Age: 4-7) Royal family, Children, Siblings, Humour. The third book in the series of stories following the royal offspring born in the United Kingdom, is full of fun and promise just as the other two, with a parallel theme of how an older child will deal with the birth of a sibling.
The palace is in heightened anticipation, the nursery is being readied, with the mobile being hung, the teddies all put in order and the bassinet rocking horse polished. Royal Baby George helps his aunt and uncle hang balloons on the royal gate but he begins to wonder about the New Royal Baby playing with his toys. He is not so sure that he wants someone else playing with his dinosaur and when the New Royal Baby arrives home, George is a little underwhelmed. His mother gives him a goldfish of his very own, but the changes in the New Royal Baby begin to interest him as well. This book gently leads the readers to see just how the two children will get along, underlining the ways they can play together, and the role of the parents in facilitating this. By the end of the book George is happy to play with the New Royal Baby as it is much more interesting than the goldfish. The last few pages will have parents laughing as well.
Boldly illustrated the fun of being parents is very much apparent with a few side issues being gently dealt with. The euphoria of the birth of a royal baby is infectious and this book will be just as popular in Australia as in the UK, along with the other two, Shhh! Don't wake the royal baby, and Happy birthday, royal baby!
Fran Knight

A Small Madness by Dianne Touchell

Allen & Unwin, 2015. ISBN 9781760110789
(Age: 16+) Highly recommended. This book is impossible to put down. This novel tackles the issues of teen pregnancy and the power of denial. Each character in this novel is etched in detail - being both believable and raw.
Rose and Michael are in love. Their families think the best of them. They are regarded as the 'good kids'. Liv (Rose's friend from the first day of school) comes from a more permissive family. Liv called Rose a late starter.
'Rose didn't tell anyone about it. She wondered if it showed. She looked at herself in the mirror and turned this way and then that way.'
Be prepared for an emotional journey as the powerful writing has you confronted by the ways Rose, Michael and Rose's mother deny the undeniable.
'Liv's mother had a saying: no good deed goes unpunished.' Liv, in trying to help Rose and Michael face the reality of their situation, becomes ostracised and yet is the person able to manage a tragic and life threatening situation at the end of the novel.
This novel deals with shade of grey in relationships. It challenges the reader to consider if Rose is indeed a monster or is experiencing a small kind of madness. Is Rose's mother (Violet) also experiencing this madness or is she negligent as a parent?
Linda Guthrie

The Reign by Lynne Stringer

Verindon bk 3. Wombat Book, 2014. ISBN 9781921632709
In the third and final book of the Verindon series Lynne Stringer keeps the action ramped as star-crossed lovers, Keridan and Sarah finally get together, but for how long?
The book opens with Overlord, Lady Sarah, reluctantly choosing her consort. Sarah has begun to accept her responsibilities as Overlord though still with anger and resentment at being denied the man she loves. It is not until a near successful attempt on her life, which Sarah herself, in the most unexpected way foils, that she is able to be with her true love.
Yet nothing is simple on Verindon. Even as Sarah's hopes and dreams are fulfilled, the machinations of Denzik continue to plague her and soon she, Keridan, their friends and those that they are sworn to protect confront danger on every front. Even Sarah's newly discovered abilities don't promise safety.
Though the ultimate outcome is positive, the reader must bid farewell to two familiar characters, which in one case was surprisingly sad. However, at the very end, in the midst of an idyllic picnic, the reader is left wondering if Stringer has just laid the background for a future series on Verindon.
Stringer has provided and managed many resolutions in this final book with an adroitness that promises continued success.
R. Lange

Any questions? by Marie-Louise Gay

Allen & Unwin, 2015. ISBN 9781760113179
(Age: 6+) Writing, Imagination. The process of writing is given a wildly funny and unusual outing in this heavily illustrated book by Canadian author, Marie-Louise Gay. She tells of the amazing range of questions asked by a class of children, and leads them through the process of writing a book. From the blank page she adds colour and characters, asking the children for their ideas and suggestions. Each suggestion leads to a page of illustrations suggesting a story, so the white paper and the questions about polar bears may lead to a story of a polar bear in a snowstorm, or the purple paper may lead the children in another direction entirely. The colour of the paper is important in pushing ideas forward. From there different ways of adding words to the paper are exposed. Some write down a series of words, some phrases, these are added to the paper as ideas spawn and the story develops. Illustrations fill the pages adding to the excitement of the developing story as Gay encourages children to write.
This colour filled picture book encourages teachers and students to write, giving them a scaffold to do it, while being an entertaining read as well. The story which this class develops is told at the end with all the additions by each child involved. As a model for use in the classroom, it has merit, and may encourage members in the classroom to try their hand at writing.
Fran Knight

Book of the Dead by Michael Northrop

Tombquest series, Book 1. Scholastic, 2015. ISBN 9781743629246
(Age: 10+) Themes: Egyptology, Adventure stories, Good & Evil, Museums. Another series from Scholastic where the reader has to wait patiently for the next instalment to be published. This is a dark story more suited to readers over 10 than the recommended Year 3 audience. Over five novels the two young protagonists are caught in a dark adventure, as an ancient Egyptian evil is unleashed, mummies are awakened and a plague of scarabs invades the underground tunnels.
Alex Sennefer's suffering from a fatal illness, nothing can help him. He leaves the hospital and very quickly is embroiled in the mysteries at his mother's work place, the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She is an Egyptologist, involved in a secret society, who carries a powerful magic amulet at all times. She knows that the answers to Alex's getting better is hidden in the Lost Spells of the Egyptian Book of the Dead.
Alex and his best friend Ren are drawn in to fight a Death Walker, who has 3000 years to plan his revenge. There is a real darkness to this story, as they fight evil, are confronted by a thousands of stinging scarabs killing the animals in Central Park and engage in a battle in abandoned underground railway tunnels.
This a confronting story, the bad guys are violent and scary and Alex and Ren are so caught up in the battle, the reader knows little about their characters and their friendship.
For readers over 10 years.
Rhyllis Bignell

Alice's food A-Z: edible adventures by Alice Zaslavsky

Ill. by Kat Chadwick. Walker Books, 2015. ISBN 9781922179388
(Age: 8-80) Highly recommended. Fruit. Vegetables. Healthy Cooking. Recipes for children. Alice Zaslavsky is known for her promotion of healthy eating and great recipes, from her time as a contestant on the 2012 Master Chef program and her current role as a children's TV quiz show host in Kitchen Whiz and as the official Face of Prahan Markets. Her first foray into publishing, Alice's food A-Z: edible adventures brings to life an amazing array of foods, everything from apples to zucchini.
What in the world did she find for X? X-cellent Alice discovered coconuts belong to the Xylocarp family - a fruit with a hard, woody exterior! Each entry includes fun facts, photos, food history, tips and recipes that are child-friendly. Alice includes her babushka's borsch recipe, a delicious after school snack in her Russian home. Kitchen safety tips are included even Hi Jean - hygiene is included. The healthy recipes range from easy grilled haloumi and watermelon skewers to carrot cake.
Kat Chadwick's stylish designs including colourful backgrounds, peeling notes attached by sticky tape, food styling, close-up photos, layered text and fun sketches, add excitement to Alice's edible adventures.
A wonderful addition to the recipe collection of a young cook or for a family who love to create healthy meals and snacks.
Rhyllis Bignell

Love and other perishable items by Laura Buzo

Allen & Unwin. 2015. ISBN 9781760112424
(Age: 14-18) Highly recommended. Young adult fiction. Originally this debut novel from Laura Buzo was published as Good oil and commended in the CBC Older Readers offerings of 2011. It was further shortlisted in the 2011 Prime Minister's Literary Awards. Now re-issued with a new title, this is a wonderfully funny, tender and compellingly engaging read. Buzo has a marvellous knack of writing real life with a completely authentic and convincing voice which resonates strongly throughout her novels.
When 16 year old Amelia lands herself her first job - part-time at her local Woolies - as so many young people do, she meets 21 year old Chris, final year uni student. Outwardly a gauche awkward teen and an extroverted 'class clown' with a six-year age gap that seems an insurmountable chasm, these two 'click' with immediacy as they discuss every conceivable topic from quality literature to feminism to pulp movies with gusto and passion. And of course, fall in love - though not without obstacles. Amelia is smitten from the start but despairs of Chris ever regarding her as more than the quirky 'young 'un', while Chris stumbles from fantasy perfect woman to unsuccessful pursuit, all the while falling more and more convincingly for Amelia.
Not only the main characters but those secondary and even on the periphery of this story are drawn so utterly real and the plot unravels with warmth and wit, absorbing the reader who is drawn into this melee of personalities with ease.
There is an intriguing and subtle comparison of the two personalities revealed through their alternate narrations. Apparently 'uncool' Amelia has in fact developed far more sophisticated coping mechanisms to deal with her stresses with family life and school than the generally perceived 'cool' Chris, who resorts to over-indulgence in alcohol and recreational drugs to escape from his own troubles.
The parallels which can be drawn between Amelia's English reading list (and frustrations with the curriculum and her teacher) and the gradually evolving relationship between herself and Chris are also delightful, as the reader is invited to predict the eventual outcome between these two distinctly likeable characters.
Highly recommended for mature readers of around 15 and up, you won't go wrong with this one.
Sue Warren

The Hueys in none the number by Oliver Jeffers

HarperCollins, 2014. ISBN 9780007420698
(Age: 3-6) Recommended. How do you explain the concept of none, nothing, zero? That something that isn't even there is something? This is one of the most difficult mathematical concepts for very young children to understand, given that they are still very much in the concrete stage of development, yet given its importance in maths it is one of the most critical. And in this charming counting book Oliver Jeffers manages it perfectly.
Using his quirky characters The Hueys, he builds up the idea by adding one to none to get a blue telephone and then two beds until the big day building up to a crescendo of items that are suddenly taken away leaving none. Jeffers doesn't confine himself to the usual objects found in counting books - each collection is a story in itself like the seven oranges being balanced on things. Why would you try to balance an orange on something? Or the teddy-shaped parcel that becomes everything from a tennis racquet to a train set. And the nine seagulls that steal Frank's chips just invite the young listeners to share their own stories.
Oliver Jeffers has a knack and a reputation for making the ordinary extraordinary and this third adventure of these lovable characters is no exception.
Barbara Braxton

Shine: A story about saying goodbye by Trace Balla

Allen & Unwin, 2015. ISBN 9781743316344
(Age: Preschool + ) 'Far, far away and long, long ago, on a beautiful planet, amongst the golden stars there lived a young horse. He was so kind and bright, so sparkly and shimmery, that everyone called him Shine.' Shine galloped with the other horses under the smiling moon until one day he met Glitter, the loveliest horse he had ever seen and soon Sparky and Shimmer had come to make a beautiful family. But sadly and too soon, Shine had to return to the stars and Glitter, Sparky and Shimmer are heartbroken, crying an ocean of golden tears and climbing the high mountain of grief until they finally see and understand the overwhelming size of the love they shared. And far above, the brightest star of all shines on them and brings them peace.
Trace Balla wrote this book for her niece and nephew when they lost their dad, suddenly and unexpectedly. Even though it is so difficult to explain the inexplicable to young children, it gave them a moment of peace and beauty and moments are sometimes all you can get at such a difficult time. But it also gave them reassurance that they were still surrounded by love, and hope that, in time, they would see their Shine shining down on them.
We tend to think of death as adult-business but whenever an adult dies there is so often a young child deeply affected and trying to come to terms with the loss, not quite understanding the finality and perhaps blaming themselves for not being good enough. Whatever the circumstances of the death, it is essential that the child knows they were loved deeply and will continue to be so, and this story not only shows that but celebrates it. It acknowledges and allows the sadness of all those left behind, the grieving process is accurately depicted as a huge, steep mountain to climb that will take time but it also shows that it can be conquered and that there is still joy in the world. Little people don't have the vision to see beyond the horizon and so a story like this gives them some comfort that eventually the hurt starts to heal and the love shines through. They have not been abandoned, they are not lost and they are still loved.
Because school is often the one constant in the child's life at this time and particularly if the child is not involved in the final farewell process, it often falls to the teacher to provide the support that is needed and having a story like Shine to share gives them a starting point to share and talk with the child. It is gentle, it is reassuring and based on the belief that 'We all come from the stars, we all go back to the stars' it can be shared without risk of contradicting any religious beliefs.
Sadly, this particular copy will not be added to the collection at my school - it is on its way to a little person who needs it right now and who will get great comfort from it. I thank Carolyn Walsh from Allen & Unwin for making that possible.
Barbara Braxton