Wakefield Press, 2013. ISBN: 9781743051922.
(Age: 15+) Underground Road is the first novel by Adelaide
author Sharon Kernot. The novel tells the story of a group of people
who share the same street in a underprivileged socio-economic
suburban community. Whilst the stories of each of the main
protagonists are told in separate chapters, each of the events and
actions steadily become intertwined over the whole novel. Mary is
forced to do community work at the local community soup kitchen in
order to receive Centrelink benefits much to her recently
retired husband's disapproval. Meanwhile, Mary's good friend
struggles with an addiction to gambling on poker machines. At the
same time, a young boy Damien struggles to deal with his violent
step-father, Marcus, and a neighborhood bully. Incidentally, Tyson,
the neighbourhood bully, has been moved to live with his mother as
he is the product of a drug affected mother. This is all happening,
whilst a paranoid schizophrenic man, Kenneth, raids the letter boxes
of the people on the street stealing their mail, and overdue utility
bills. Underground Road is a gripping yet saddening novel, as it
describes in detail the way in which problems, such as mental
illness, gambling, domestic violence, bullying, as well as drug and
alcohol addiction, associated with poverty can manifest and interact
within the one local community. Whilst many worthwhile statements
are made in this novel about the lack of justice and equity in these
poorer socio-economic communities, it really struggles to propose
any real solutions. The language and violence themes in this novel
would suggest that this book would be most suited to older students
(15 years plus), however this is somewhat contradicted by one of the
main character being of primary school age.
Adam Fitzgerald
Battle Magic by Tamora Pierce
Circle reforged series, bk 3. Scholastic, 2013. ISBN:
9780439842976.
(Age: 12+) Recommended. War, friendship, fantasy, magic, courage,
loyalty, resilience.
While there is endless speculation about the world building of J. K
Rowling, Robert Jordan and even George R. R Martin, Tamora Pierce
quietly just keeps expanding hers. She writes spin-offs, switches
back and forth in time and has evolved one of the strongest canons
there is.
She does something quite interesting with Battle Magic. We
are taken back two years before Melting Stones, and catch up
with Evvy when she is only 12 and first meets Luvo. I wouldn't be
surprised if reading Battle Magic sends readers back to Melting
Stones to re-connect with an older and wiser Evvy. Because in
Battle Magic, she is young, contemptuous and impatient with
everything.
Readers are thrown right into the middle of an unfamiliar land,
Yanjing. The customs are strange, the shamans make magic
inexplicably, and all is not as peaceful as it seems. The evil
Emperor, Weishu, is truly wicked, although in outward appearance, he
is hospitable and generous. I sometimes felt in previous Pierce
books that the main characters have a pretty easy time of getting
out of trouble. But here, our little band of heroes really have to
struggle to defeat him.
When war threatens the tiny province of Gyongxi, our three mages
become entangled with political and social machinations. The
narrative is dense and complicated, and there are lots of deaths,
mostly minor characters, thankfully. Readers are shown quite clearly
how horrible war is, and how greedy people can be. Briar and
Rosethorn are wonderful, and we meet a warrior called Parahan who is
excellent, as is the young God-King and of course, Luvo.
This is an action-packed story, filled with insight and compassion.
Many of us have been reading Pierce books for many years, and it's
good to see that she continues to write quality fantasy that depicts
strong female characters. Her first books about Alanna are still one
of the best ways to introduce younger readers to fantasy, and as the
children grow, so too do the newer series, allowing them to
consistently find something that suits their maturity level. Battle Magic will please fans.
Trisha Buckley
Dragon loves Penguin by Debi Gliori
Bloomsbury, 2013. ISBN 9781408839492.
(Age: 0-5) Highly recommended. Picture book. Family. Offspring.
Parenting. What a delightful story. I was almost in tears when the
end came, bringing the whole tale to a completion rather like a
circle, the bold crayon illustrations sweeping me along with the
text. Like the glorious, Again!, the baby penguin is
exhorting his mother at the beginning of this book to read him the
tale in his own book, Dragon loves Penguin, his favourite
story.
When the dragons arrive near the penguin colony, they all huddled
around their eggs, except for one dragon who is eggless. He goes off
alone and finds an abandoned egg which he raises as his own. When it
hatches into a baby penguin, Dragon does everything with his chick,
ignoring the derision of the other dragons about his lack of ability
to fly or his lack of scales. When the nearby mountain begins to
roar, shooting out lava and hot ash, the other dragons fly away
leaving Little One by himself, and in the snow he finds an egg.
And so the story comes around full circle, with the one penguin, the
one raised by the dragon, and the other the egg found by the
penguin. It is a delight. The warmth and comfort of the penguin
snuggling into its mother for a bedtime story at the start is
replicated at the end when three generations are together reading
their story.
Fran Knight
Russian Roulette by Anthony Horowitz
Walker Books, 2013. ISBN 9781406350869.
(Ages: 11+). Highly recommended. Realistic fiction. This book starts
at about Chapter 17 of the first Alex Rider book (Stormbreaker). It
tells the story of the mysterious Yassen Gregorovich's past and what
made him who he is.
This begins with Yassen receiving a three word message from Scorpia;
'Kill Alex Rider'. Yassen is then struck by the similarities between
himself and Alex and starts reading his diary to find out why.
From Estrov to Moscow to Venice, this is Yassen's story of how he
came from a non-existent village to his family's killers' slave to
the assassin he is in the Alex Rider series. There are some violent
and somewhat grisly scenes, but all in all I recommend it highly.
Jos Alcorn (Student)
Starring Jules (in Drama-rama) by Beth Ain
Ill. by Anne Keenan Higgins. Allen and Unwin, 2013. ISBN:
9781743314555.
This series is aimed at 7-10 year old girls with dreams of being a
star. Jules Bloom is a 7 year old and potential movie star. Think a
younger Judy Moody, with acting ability, who mixes the dramas of
school with the vagaries of the professional acting world. Drama-rama follows on from Starring Jules (as Herself).
Jules is expecting to start filming her first film when the leading
man breaks a leg causing it to be postponed. Jules is back to school
with her new best friend Elinor and ex best friend Charlotte who
Jules is sure wants her to fail as a star.
When her teacher, Ms Leon, announces that the class is to put on a
little show for the moving up ceremony, Jules decides that she
should not be the star but the director which will satisfy her two
latest desires, to help Elinor be more outgoing and to boss
Charlotte around. Then she is offered a role as the youngest child
in a pilot for a family sitcom for television, the filming of which
clashes with the school show.
Jules needs to overcome her nerves about being able to play her
role, find a way to fit in with her new television family and accept
the fact that relations at school are not going as well as she
expects. She can only do her best, with a little pizzazz, and let
her friends be themselves.
Messages of confidence, resilience and individuality are woven
through the story as well as the value of friendship.
Sue Keane
Dance divas by Sheryl Berk
Bloomsbury Children's Books, 2013. ISBN 9781619631816.
Recommended for Upper Primary girls. A novel for younger readers,
mainly girls, centring around an American dance school. There's lots
of sparkle, both with the front cover and the glitzy descriptions of
the costumes. Miss Toni, a tough no nonsense teacher is the director
and the girls vie for leading positions. The action is seen through
Scarlett's eyes and she is caring and supportive of her friends,
Rochelle and Bria, both who share with the reader thoughts,
sometimes unkind and hurtful about Miss Toni and
Liberty, who is a talented but egocentric dancer aspiring to be the
main star. Scarlett's little sister Gracie, who is annoying in the
beginning becomes a star in her own right. Sisterly concern shows
through when Gracie gets stage struck and Scarlett supports
her.The mothers behave in varying supportive roles.
Themes of friendship, jealousy, kindness, dedicated practice time
and team work are strongly evident so besides a good story line
which young readers may dream about, there are many interesting
relationship issues about getting on with peers.The 'Glossary
of Dance Terms' is explanatory. A sequel is following.
Sue Nosworthy
Literature to support general capabilities by Fran Knight and Pat Pledger
Pledger
Consulting, 2013. ISBN 9781876678395.
(Teacher reference) Highly recommended. Another amazing, complete
and exciting compendium of novels. How exciting for a
teacher-librarian and teacher to find exactly what is wanted for a
particular strand in the very busy and time short teacher's life. To
have books of known quality and time tested to books in the very
current time is quite magical and so practical. It should be
in every classroom and library to support the curriculum. If only it
was available in earlier times! The book has quality and appropriate
literature from known and loved novels to new and respected titles.
Areas covered include: Literacy, Numeracy, Critical and creative
thinking, personal and social capability including: self awareness,
self management, social awareness, social management, ethical
understanding and Intercultural understanding. There is a long
and detailed Index.
It's a striking and amazing compendium.
Sue Nosworthy
We wish you a ripper Christmas by Colin Buchanan and Greg Champion
Ill. by Roland Harvey. Scholastic, 2013. ISBN 9781742837239.
(Age: 4+)Warmly recommended. Picture book. Christmas. Singing.
Australian animals. With a CD in the cover with which to sing along,
the rollicking stanzas of this beautifully illustrated book will
garner many fans. Customised to an Australian setting with plenty of
Australian animals taking part, the story about Santa Wombat losing
his naughty and nice list will draw readers and listeners
alike to find out how he retrieves his list. He searches everywhere,
in billabong and eucalypt, in the koala hung tinsel, and over the
windmill. But when the goanna steps forward with his music, the list
is found.
Using the framework of the carol, We wish you a merry Christmas,
children will easily recognise the feel of the carol, and sing along
with it, learning the words as they go. The rhyming words will make
it easy for them to do this and they will find much humour in some
of the rhymes ('thong' and 'billabong', for example)
All the fun of the search is remarkably illustrated by Harvey, as he
depicts many Australian animals in his drawings, filling the pages
with minute detail, which children (and older people), will love to
hunt down and pick out. Watch for the hiding place for the spare key
for example. His well known water colour illustrations are always
deftly done, evoking a range of characters, and nodding to some well
known Australian artists. The colours are evocative of the
Australian outback, and the whole is a beautifully presented
nostalgic look at Christmas in rural Australia.
Fran Knight
The naughtiest reindeer by Nicki Greenberg
Allen and Unwin, 2013. ISBN 9781743313046.
(Age: 3+) Picture book. Christmas. Humour. Verse. When Rudolph is
unable to lead Santa's sleigh on Christmas Eve, delivering presents
all over the world, it is his sister Ruby, who is offered as his
replacement. In rhyming stanzas of four lines each, fun develops as
the other reindeers learn who is to lead them.
'Ruby?!
cries Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and
Blitze.
Not Ruby!'
And I can imagine the listeners and the readers of this book
shouting that out, exclaiming all the frustration that the other
reindeers feel. Over the pages we see the mayhem that Ruby causes,
as she goes into and out of the houses and leaves them in a mess.
When Santa arrives home, he realises that he has missed one house,
and so sets off to get the presents there as quickly as possible.
The children on waking, find a sleeping Ruby in their house, and she
becomes their present. Santa is quite happy to leave Ruby with the
children and call back next year to see how she is.
A fun story about Christmas, readers will eagerly turn the pages
seeing what mayhem Ruby causes and how the story is resolved.
Fran Knight
Snugglepot and Cuddlepie Christmas by Mark MacLeod (text) and May Gibbs (illustrations)
Scholastic, 2013. ISBN 9781742830223.
(Age: 5+) Warmly recommended. Picture book, May Gibbs, Christmas.
Another in the series of books from Scholastic, using May Gibbs'
illustrations and pairing them with a text written by Mark McLeod
will be welcomed by readers and teachers alike. Parents and
grandparents will recognise the familiar illustrative technique in
the shops and will find it easy to purchase for their children and
grandchildren. Teachers and librarians will recognise the historic
appeal of the illustrator and perhaps pair these new hard cover
picture books with older versions of May Gibbs' work. I reviewed the
first one, Snugglepot and Cuddlepie sleepover several months
ago.
In this tale, Snugglepot and Cuddlepie both have lists of things to
do before Christmas Day, although one list seems longer than the
other! When Cuddlepie goes out on an errand, Snugglepot determines
to search for the present he knows is hidden somewhere. While he is
doing this, Mrs Snake comes by trying to take the star on top of the
Christmas Bush, but in failing to do so, knocks many of the
decorations down. Snugglepot must work hard to fix the bush before
Cuddlepie returns. And when he does, he has a surprise for his
friend.
Neatly resolved, full of allusions to an Australian Christmas and
the animals of our country, the illustrations are enhanced by the
tale.
Fran Knight
The Christmas Surprise by Yvette Poshoglian
Ella and Olivia bk. 9. Levelled Reader Ages 5-6. Ill. by
Danielle McDonald. Scholastic, 2013. ISBN: 9781742839219.
Recommended for 5-6 year old girls. Themes: Christmas, Family Life,
Sisters. Ella and Olivia are sisters and best friends. Ella is seven
years old and Olivia is five-and-a-half years old, they live with
their mum and dad and little brother Max. The girls are very excited
about the Christmas preparations and they are counting down to their
favourite time of the year. Both love the food especially Nanna's
pudding and they love decorating the big Christmas tree with their
family and Uncle Stu. Mum calls them her 'little angels' and most of
the time that is true. When they help with trimming the tree they
fight and tear the beautiful star that tops the tree. The girls are
so excited, they make a secret plan to stay up on Christmas Eve and
open up their presents early.
The Ella and Olivia series are specifically designed for
young girls who are beginning to read chapter books. They are
written in an uncomplicated, straightforward manner with simple
plots and relatable characters. The extremely large font and line
drawings support the transition from picture book to beginning
novel. This is the ninth book in the series.
Rhyllis Bignell
Where's Santa? Around the world by Louis Shea
Scholastic, 2013. ISBN 9781742836850.
(Age: 4+) Picture book, Where's Wally look alike, Travel.
Another in the seemingly never ending clones of Where's Wally,
this will be a neat addition to the Christmas selection for the
library. For kids who just love the books with things to count, or
look out for (there are 600 things to spot) or pointers to recognise
where Santa is in the world, this will prove an interesting filler
in the classroom, on Christmas Day at home, on holidays or in a
library.
Santa is about to travel the world on a holiday but he is being
pursued by Nat, a person who is out to steal his naughty and nice
list, which will impact upon all of those who expect to receive a
present at Christmas. Naughty Nat manages to get close to Santa as
they travel the world, and students will love finding the pair on
each double page spread, as well as search for those things listed
at the end of the book. All good fun, as Santa travels to the Eiffel
Tower in Paris, the Great Wall of China, the pyramids in Egypt and
Stonehenge in England to name a few.
Fran Knight
That boy, Jack by Janeen Brian
Walker Books, 2013. ISBN 9781922179005.
(Age: 10-13) Highly recommended. Life is hard in the 1870's for a 12
year old boy in a Moonta, a South Australian mining town. Jack goes
to school and enjoys studying but he has made a pact with his friend
Gilbert that they will both go down the copper mine together. The
problem for Jack is he is terrified of being underground and really
wants to continue with his education.
Life in the mines is harsh and tragic circumstances force Gilbert to
leave school and help support his family. Jack must decide whether
to choose the mine or school.
This story transports the reader to another time and way of life. It
is an insight into the everyday lives of Cornish mining families in
Moonta. Young Jack and Gilbert have to take on obligations that
today would only be considered adult responsibilities.
Scenes vary from the fun and inventiveness of Jack and Gilbert's
attempt at building a billycart to the dark and inhospitable world
of the mines. I felt claustrophobic when Jack ventured down the mine
for the first time!
Injury and childhood sickness are also highlighted as being life-
threatening occurrences in the 1870's. Even Jack's left-handedness
is dealt harshly by one of the teachers.
Janeen has accurately portrayed Jack's world and the indecisions he
has about his future. A promise to a friend or follow your heart?
A glossary at the back of the book will help the reader understand
some of the Cornish words and slang used.
This book is highly recommended for years 5 to 7 and will be a great
text to use in the current history curriculum.
Jane Moore
Rooftoppers by Katherine Rundell
Faber and Faber, 2013. ISBN 9780571280599.
(Age: 11+) Highly recommended. Mystery. Family. France. When Sophie
is plucked from the ocean, a baby adrift in a cello case after the
sinking of the ship, she is convinced that she heard her mother
whistling. Her adoptive parent, Charles Maxim, lives an
unconventional life, much to the chagrin of Miss Elliot from the
National Childcare Agency who makes a weekly visit. But brought up
on a diet of Shakespeare and roof sitting, the young girl resents
the machinations of the government department in trying to separate
her from Charles. And so indeed does the affable Charles. Finding an
address in the cello case, she and Charles head to Paris where
Sophie is convinced she will find her mother, and escape the
attention of Miss Elliot.
The gentle humour, lightness of touch in the writing and the
characters of Sophie and Charles will beguile the reader into
accepting the extraordinary things which happen: being found in a
cello case in the ocean, her unconventional upbringing, Charles'
house, her decision to go to Paris to seek her mother, and the
meeting with Mareo who seems to live in the sky as he leads Sophie
to meet the other homeless children living on the Paris rooftops to
escape the authorities. All through Sophie's confidence in finding
her mother is unquestioned and the wonderful Charles allows her to
lead the quest, with the words 'never ignore life's possibles'.
With all the magic and whimsy of a fable, and with the makings of a
modern classic, the delicious writing flows along, carrying the
reader with it to the end.
Fran Knight
What's Dad doing? by Susan Hall
Ill. by Cheryl Westenberg. National Library of Australia, 2013. ISBN
9780642277916.
(Age: 3-5) Recommended. Themes: Fathers, Family Life. This
delightful lift-the flap picture book tracks Pat Possum and his
friend Wesley Wombat as they spy on Pat's Dad. Each double page
spread follows the same questioning format 'I wonder if he's reading
the newspaper, watching TV or mowing the lawn'.
Wait don't lift the flap let the child or class predict possible
scenarios. Only after the discussion look under the flap and be
pleasantly surprised. Dad is a great help around the house, take an
active role in cleaning, cooking and entertaining Grandma. Wesley in
his super wombat outfit and Pat are fun characters, spying on Dad
from behind bushes and hanging from trees.
Cheryl Westenberg's quirky watercolour illustrations add humour to
the story. Her possums and wombats are unique, the expressive faces
add character to the simple text. Grandma's slippers and crochet rug
are so true to life they brought a smile to my adult family as well!
At the end of the story factual information about the ringtail
possum is written in an easy to understand format.
Recommended for children from 3-5 years. This book would be a great
addition to an Early Years class library, introducing Animal Reports
in an easy to understand format.
Rhyllis Bignell
