Penelope the Mountain Pygmy Possum by Gordon Winch
New Frontier Publishing, 2016. ISBN 9781925059595
(Age: 7+) Highly recommended. Penelope the Mountain Pygmy Possum
is a beautifully illustrated picture book about a pygmy possum.
Readers will want to look at the details in the illustrations as
they read about Penelope and her problem. It is the end of winter
and Penelope is waiting for her mate Percy to return. Unfortunately,
over winter, a new road was started and Percy and the other male
possums can't cross safely. How will they get home?
Penelope the Mountain Pygmy Possum is a tale of how changes
to the land affect the lives of wildlife. It is a tale of how humans
step into help (I especially like the part when Percy and his
friends go and chat to the ranger). It is about animal conversation
and the struggles animals face.
This book would be great for the classroom, especially in a Science
of Geography lesson. It would also be good when discussing the
elements of a narrative and would look great deconstructed as a
storyboard.
This book is highly recommended for young readers and their parents
as well as readers aged 7+ who can read it independently.
Kylie Kempster