Cicada sing song by Pat Simmons. Illus. by Katrin Dreiling
Little Steps, 2022. ISBN: 9781922358462. (Age:4+) Highly recommended.
Who doesn’t love the sound on a warm summer’s night, when the cicadas fill the air with their beautiful melodies?
Cicada Sing Song is a celebration of those special moments when you can lay back and enjoy the symphony. But is it classical, rap, hip hop, rock, country, jazz or soul? The cicadas are all very talented!
This is a lovely picture book, filled with poetic text. It celebrates the sounds of individual cicadas coming together to create a festival of music. As the winds warm with Summertime, the cicadas make their unique music. The text is filled with rhyme and rhythm, with each playful verse creating a vivid image. Adding to this are the delightful and captivating illustrations.
Pat Simmons has created a charming melodical story. Creating verse for different characters and activities, it distinguishes their skills and move through the story seamlessly. Adding to the narrative are the exquisite illustrations by Katrin Dreiling which capture the essence of the story. Each bold and colourful page brings intrigue and interest to the text.
Cute, colourful and creative… This cacophony of cicadas is clever! Teacher's notes are available.
Themes Insects, Music, Sounds, Performing.
Michelle O'Connell
The Last Firedog by Ian Boyd and Gary Luck
Spirit of the Earth Books, 2022. ISBN: 9780648905745. (Age:8-12) Highly recommended.
The Last Firedog is the second eco-fantasy novel by Ian Boyd and Gary Luck, following the popular release of Melody Finch in 2020.
This time the story follows bullied but resourceful young cricketer, Reynold, who suddenly becomes a Tasmanian devil when a terrifying bushfire breaks out in his parents’ devil refuge. He must make fast decisions and juggle competing priorities to survive and get home safely. These priorities include saving another devil who is vital for the eradication of a terrible face cancer, helping other animals escape the fire, fulfilling the dying wish of a mother quoll, and unravelling the mystery of the mythical firedog, all while navigating new and old relationships.
The story races along with plenty of humour and a cast of great characters - both human and animal. During the adventure we learn interesting information about bushfires, the environment, and a huge variety of Tasmanian wildlife. We also learn about friendships, family, and love, as well as resilience, bravery and doing the right thing even when it's tough.
The pairing of Ian Boyd and Gary Luck brings together the best of their two backgrounds. Boyd is a South Australian author with experience in children’s entertainment, gardening and landscape design. He is passionate about the outdoors and fascinated with the idea of seeing life through the eyes of animals. Luck is a wildlife ecologist with a special interest and focus on conservation and sustainability in Tasmania.
Together these two have crafted a wonderful second novel which is engaging, magical and undeniably Australian/Tasmanian.
Have you ever wondered how books think? Well now is your chance to find out! This is an entertaining story of a shy, unwanted book written by actor, writer and director, Richard Ayoade, best known for his role as Maurice Moss in the comedy series The IT crowd. He has chosen to write his first book for young readers narrated by a book, giving them an insight into what it might mean to be a book; judged by its cover, left lying around, neglected and dog-eared by uncaring readers. Ayoade’s flippantly humorous voice comes through clearly as he covers all things book related, including how libraries organise them and what it means when a reader finds their perfect book. He then shrewdly encourages young writers to take a pen and write the story for this book themselves. The text is written partly in playscript style so could be a shared read for adults and children or an opportunity to dramatize parts of the book. The comic style illustrations support the story and extend the humour, providing much for the reader to explore and enjoy long after reading.
Themes Books, Reading, Writing.
Gabrielle Anderson
Rosie and the friendship angel by Lucinda Riley and Harry Whittaker. Illus. by Jane Ray
Mother and son team, Lucinda Riley and Harry Whittaker has created a series of books called, Guardian Angels, this being number three. Rose is starting a new school and Daddy drops her off to her new teacher Miss Marshall. All looks well but the girl Miss Marshall has nominated as Rosie’s buddy is resentful and mean to her. She does not take her role with the new student seriously and leaves Rosie on the outer. Rosie’s first day is not what she expected and lying in bed that night she says, ‘I wish I didn’t feel all by myself'.’Her cry is heard by the Friendship Angel, Frederick and he takes action. He knows just how important friends are.
The next day he swirls up the snow with his wings, making it impossible for Daddy to be on time to pick up Rosie. While waiting for him, she talks to another girl in her class Indira who is waiting for her mother. A friendship blossoms. Frederick has done his job well.
This engaging text, stunningly illustrated, will delight newly emerging readers. The large size looks like a picture book but is enticingly older with more text than usual encouraging early readers to tackle it by themselves. The vibrant illustrations are full of detail and interest. For Australian readers the image of snow lying on the ground and the brick school buildings with fenced playgrounds and a small town blanketed in snow, will be a treat. The detailed classroom will draw their interest, looking at similarities and differences from their own experience. I loved the technique used to quieten the class, and felt the cold as Rosie snuggled into her bed, and shivered at the images of the snow covering the car outside. Each page is a treat with text and image, the one supporting the other. The gentle text engaged me from the start as the idea of a Guardian Angel took shape.
Themes Angels, Bullying, School, First day, Friendship.
Fran Knight
You are 25% banana by Susie Brooks. Illus. by Josy Bloggs
Red Shed, 2022. ISBN: 9781405299084. (Age:5+) Highly recommended.
What a title to get young grades interested and involved from the start. Non fiction at its best the story of genetics is told with laughter and merriment as basic information is given linking us all through our genes. Each double page brings to light another arresting and astonishing set of facts.
Using the analogy of a recipe book, we are told about our recipes or genes and so 25% of those recipes are shared by humans and banana. These recipes determine what we look like, what colour our hair is, how tall we will be, whether we have two or four legs, or exist on a stalk. Half of our genes come from our dad, and half from mum. Some genes are bossier than others which explains why more humans have brown eyes, and most tigers are orange. The book goes on telling us who and what we are related to. Some, like daffodils, dogs and dung beetles, will surprise while others like chimps may not. Reading through the book, the percentages increase as we get closer to the chimp (99%) on the second to last page, and along the way percentages continue to surprise. Who would have thought we share 60% of our genes with fruit flies, which explain why they were sent into orbit. Or that we share 80% with cows, another animal like us that relies on milk from its mother when young, or we share 90% of our genes with cats. The very last page shows that every human in the world shares 99.9% of their genes with every other human and it is one gene in every thousand that makes each an individual.
This masterful look at genes and genetics for young readers had me hooked from page one, and there are many active minds out there waiting for information that is relevant, informative, funny and engaging. Illustrations in bright bold colours inform and intrigue as does the layout of each page, drawing the eye to take another look before ht pages are turned.
Susie Brooks travels and develops ideas for her writing that are different and thought provoking. Learn more about her here.
Josy Bloggs is an illustrator who specialises in non fiction, and is from the UK. More can be found out about her here. Her particular interest is in layout and design and this is echoed in her distinctive work.
The inside of the back cover retells the information on each page.
The slow movement is spreading its influence. From its beginnings in promoting slow food it advocates a cultural shift to slowing down life’s pace, pointing out that all our needs are the same and do not require to be met at a faster step.
This beautiful book exemplifies this movement, advocating a slower pace of life, turning off the digital world as we reconnect with each other and the world we live in.
In seemingly simple rhyming lines, the family resolves to take things nice and slow, to stay longer in bed and forget their worries, have breakfast together with their favourite - pancakes, lounge about spending time together to rediscover what we like about each other, to revisit old toys, do things that have been postponed and dance with loud music or just relax. Each activity is shown with several of the family doing things together, underlining the sense of togetherness and family, making the slowness a house hold theme.
With a strong emphasis on chilling out, the illustrations show a family relaxing together, doing all sorts of things that people hear about but perhaps do not try for themselves; building a fort in the lounge with cushions, meditate, watch a line of ants, cook a meal together, relax under the stars. Using a soft and warm palette of colours, Purnell captures the essence of a family caught up in relaxation and ease, a sense of dreaminess oozes from the page as the family takes life nice and slow.
Every parent’s wish, of sleeping through the night materialises in this disarming rhyming tale of why humans need children to sleep. Hopefully the sleepy verses and calming repetitive words will help the child along its way, and the reasons behind the necessity of sleep will form the reason behind this nightly ritual.
The authors cleverly compare our species with others, creating a platform of facts which emphasise that all creatures need their sleep, but not all in the same way.
So we see possums on the rood - a nocturnal animal which does its sleeping in the day, horses sleeping standing up, contrasting with humans who need to be prone, sea creatures sleeping with their eyes open, meerkats sleeping tumbled together, large flying birds that sleep on the wing, giraffes that are quick naps, while some creatures sleep upside down. Each creature has a different way of sleeping and the text often tells the reader why this is so. Giraffes need to be aware of predators, flying birds cover large distance, meerkats seem to need to bond. While other animals’ need for sleep in a different way begs the question from younger readers - why?
Each creature is different and children will become aware of these differences through the verse and the illustration accompanying it. In this way they will get a double take at how other species sleep, underscoring their own need for sleep. A sleeping child picture on each page further stresses this important part of our daily routine. And all the rituals of bedtime are there to help the child see this as an important part of its routine: a comfortable bed, parents reading a story, it is evening and the stuffed toys are waiting.
A Youtube clip of Teeny Tiny Stevies song which incorporates part of this book can be accessed here.
Byll amd Beth Stephen have a media presence with their website which can be found here.
Themes Sleep, Family, Animal traits, Rituals.
Fran Knight
One book was all it took by Wenda Shurety. Illus. by Amy Calautti
EK Books, 2022. ISBN: 9781922539137. (Age:3+) Highly recommended.
In searching for a book to read that she had not read before, Violet grabs the one book holding up the kitchen table and sets in motion a chain of happenings that result in her one wish coming true; getting a library in her town.
When the table falls over, dad messes his shirt which needs changing and so he is late for his bus to work. Next door the woman asks him for a new cake recipe and he gives her one, but the resultant cake makes her feel ill so she dumps it in the bin, where her cat eats it. Feeling ill, the cat takes her from her job of repairing the town hall roof which now leaks, causing the clerk to fall down the stairs, spilling the bunch of letters he has in his hand. One drops by the Mayor’s feet and picking it up she reads the letter sent by Violet asking for a town library.
The Mayor smiles recalling the library of her youth and so sets in place the building of a new library for the town.
This neatly resolved story will cause much laughter from the reader, most of whom will know the value of their own community or school library and so feel sympathetic to Violet’s wish. The chain of events set in place, like the old woman who swallowed a fly, come thick and fast, one leading to another. Readers will love seeing the link between each event.
They will certainly enjoy the funny, character filled illustrations. Each person illustrated is quite individual, sparking recognisable attributes which children will enjoy. The book parade the Mayor recalls will have children predicting the book from which each character comes, and the library itself will spark stories of their own use of a library.
Born in London but now living in Brisbane, Wenda enjoys writing for children. Amy, an illustrator from Western Australia enjoys dealing with a fun story creating illuminating illustrations as her Facebook page attests.
Three years of living with COVID has seen a resurgence of holidays in our own backyards, as people and particularly families have taken to the roads which wind around Australia. Once the habitat of the grey nomad, now many younger people and families are making the trip, often taking many months to complete their circumnavigation of this island.
One family to do so is that of the Parry-Valentines, setting off in their van, their home on wheels. Along with their young daughter, Hunter, the family explores our continent from Perth and in a clockwise direction taking in many sites around Australia.
In rhyming stanzas the trio makes their way through some very well known spots, taking in the outback, Broome, crocodiles in the Top End, Uluru, hot springs in Queensland, the Great Barrier Reef, hot air ballooning in Sydney, the Great Ocean Road, then across the sea to Tasmania, where they encounter a lavender farm, an underground motel in Coober Pedy, across the Nullarbor Plain, then Esperance and home.
Each spot they visit is shown in detail and children will delight in pointing out the animals and features depicted at each site.
Many they will recognise but some will be more unfamiliar, and they will be able to share common experiences of their travels to these places. Classes will have great fun plotting the route taken around Australia, marking the sites seen and finding out more information about each place. Perhaps some teachers might encourage the class to think about places that could be included on a such a trip. And incorporate those on a map in the classroom.
Alongside such classics as Are we there yet (Alison Lester, 2004) and To the Top End; our trip across Australia (Roland Harvey, 2009) a class unit could be developed using these books as a step into the geography of Australia.
A map of Australia with the places visited is situated on each of the endpapers adding another level of interest for the reader as they track the family’s journey.
A scattering of the family’s photos of their journey too will encourage readers to recognise the place they are visiting in the photograph.
Themes Travel, Journeys, Australia, Tourism.
Fran Knight
Tom Clancy Red Winter by Marc Cameron
Hachette, 2022. ISBN: 9781408727812. (Age:Adult - Young adult)
Set in 1985 this is a prequel to Tom Clancy’s book Red Rabbit featuring CIA agent Jack Ryan. At the time West Germany was communist and there is a helpful map of Cold War Europe and a list of principal characters and “useful terms” at the start of the book to help the reader keep track of abbreviations. The story starts with a note passed to a young State Department Foreign Services officer in Berlin during a bag snatch. The mysterious woman who passed the note disappears and the bag snatcher dies, poisoned. The note offers the US secret information in return for defection. Scene shift and we find Jack Ryan, CIA Liaison to M16 living a luxury life in London with his attractive, sexy wife and family. The phone rings and Jack is suddenly recalled to the US. Scene shift again to the desert testing site where an experimental F117 Nighthawk top secret radar evading US jet crashes, observed by a number of UFO spotters. Unknown to them one of their number is a Soviet spy who, after casually murdering two people, is able to obtain a piece of the crashed jet and sets off with it pursued by all the forces the US can muster. The story shifts back and forth between the search, Ryan and the potential defector so that by page 104 the orienting chapter heading "Moscow” was a relief. The acronyms, code names, nicknames (“clearly something that had to be earned” p. 28) secrecy and paranoia become tiring after a while as does the stereotyping of the East Germans "as if actors hired to play a role” p. 109. There is a lot of detail about guns, cars and the makeup of the various spy networks along with random acts of violence, feeding nostalgia in to American audiences, but by page 155 I had lost track of who was who and I didn’t care. 20 years after Red Rabbit author Marc Cameron revisits Tom Clancy’s style and I am sure fans will welcome this addition to the many that have been written since Clancy’s death but it did not stand alone and was a disappointing read.
Celebrated paper cut out artist Chihiro Takeuchi displays his talents for a younger audience. And with dinosaurs as his theme, the book will win many fans. Each quartet of pages begins with the same question, ‘whose dinosaur bones?’, along with the question is a set of footprints and some food giving clues as to the animal concerned. Facing is a page of scattered bones which show its head shape and a few other clues children may spy. Once the page is turned the bones are assembled into an image of the animal, while the facing page shows what it would have looked like when alive. Each four pages will be well perused for clues and the pages turned back to hunt for clues they may have missed after seeing the complete image. A wonderful group of pages encouraging close inspection, prediction, hunting for clues, assembling of information and so on. Younger children will pursue these pages with determination, discussing with each other what they have noticed, drawing on their knowledge of dinosaurs and clue spotting. The last two pages give some fun facts about the dinosaurs shown in the book, which will delight, inform and amaze younger readers.
A little more about the artist can be found here, and it also includes a list of her books.
And the book begs children to try out their own paper cutting techniques, emulating Takeuchi and her incredible skill.
Themes STEM, Dinosaurs, Prediction, Problem solving, Humour.
Fran Knight
What do you think? by Matthew Syed
Wren & Rook, 2022. ISBN: 9781526364937. (Age:11+)
Matthew Syed, mindset consultant and author of Dare to Be You: Defy Self-Doubt, Fearlessly Follow Your Own Path and Be Confidently You! and You Are Awesome: Find Your Confidence and Dare to be Brilliant at (Almost) Anything, has written his third practical non-fiction book for children encouraging effective social communication, confidence and kindness. The sub-heading of the latest release, What Do YOU Think?, is How to Agree to Disagree and Still Be Friends. The book aims to give positive strategies to children to navigate successful relationships with peers and adults in their daily interactions.
The contents page highlights seven chapters beginning with the chapter one title Are you A jumper? referring to someone who jumps to conclusions and ending with the final chapter, The Battle of ideas: How to argue and stay friends. Following the Contents page is the introduction which discusses personal thoughts, the thoughts of others and how do we let people know what we think. With an interesting layout, accessible text, graphic images, highlighted key words, quirky tips and shared stories especially from the author, this humourous book will appeal to those upper middle grade and early high school readers who are looking for ideas and support to confidently find their place in the world.
Themes Communication, Feelings, Critical Thinking, Social Skills, Confidence.
Set in a dystopian future, not too distant from the present, Our missing hearts is set in an America that has been through a national economic and social ‘Crisis’, with people losing their jobs and homes, and blaming China ‘that perilous, yellow menace’. Suspicion turns to the Chinese, or Asian looking Americans, in their midst, those with ‘foreign faces, foreign names’. The Protecting American Culture and Traditions Act, or PACT, is introduced to protect American values, report potential threats, and protect children from environments espousing harmful views. Child removal becomes a means of political control. America has a long history of child removals: the separation of enslaved famiies, and of American Indian families, inequities in the foster care system, and separation of migrant families at the U.S. border. It also has a resonance in Australia’s stolen generations. So the world Ng creates has its roots in history, and could be a heightened version of times past, and ongoing.
Bird is the child of an American father and a Chinese American poet. All he knows is that his mother has left them, her books are no longer held in the library, and he has to keep his head down, and not draw attention, because it is just not safe. His only friend, Sadie, is a runaway foster child, removed from a mixed race family. Sadie encourages him to find out what has happened to his mother.
Our missing hearts is a challenge to the reader to think of how they would act in such an environment. So many times in history, people have turned in suspicion against each other with a brooding distrust of those who look different, speak a different language, or follow a different religion. There has been betrayal of neighbours and internment of foreign nationals. How can the individual act with courage and integrity? What can the ordinary person do when any act could put their own family at risk?
For Celeste Ng, there is hope in art, poetry and literature. Folk tales teach us moral lessons. And public art provokes empathy and compassion. Finally, the real heroes of the novel are librarians, guardians of knowledge and protectors of books. Librarians share information, and help the seeker to find what they need. ‘The brain of a librarian [is] a capacious place’ – they collect information, ‘collating it with the Rolodex in their minds’.
Our missing hearts is a kind of quest. Bird has to avoid the constant danger, follow the clues, find the right people to trust, and venture forth to find the truth about his missing mother. Along the journey, the reader is reminded of the cruelties of history and the need to learn from the past, not repeat the same mistakes. It takes courage, trust, friendship and love.
Themes Xenophobia, Racism, Political control, Propaganda, Child removal, Social activism, Protest, Libraries.
Cashore’s brings readers another challenging fantasy in Seasparrow which follows on immediately after the events in Winterkeep. Queen Bitterblue and her half-sister Hava are travelling back to Monsea by ship, carrying with them the notes that Hava had copied about zilfium and its ability to be turned into a deadly weapon. Hava’s Grace lets her disappear in plain sight and has been instrumental in making her the perfect spy for her secret half-sister. On board the ship she notices that a crew member is acting suspiciously, but before her fears are resolved, they are shipwrecked and forced to walk through the ice in an attempt of get home.
This is a harrowing survival story as the party rows through a freezing sea surrounded by icebergs as well as being threatened by bears. Once they reach land, the journey is treacherous, and each must draw on their resilience and inner strength to survive, while also looking after each other on the perilous journey. Not only is it a physical survival story, but it is also the story of Hava’s inner struggle to come to terms with the life that King Leck had forced on her and her mother. Her reflections on her mother who had to hide her from the King until she died when Hava was eight and the accounts of her life afterwards always hiding from people are often difficult to read but compelling, nonetheless. I found myself hoping that Hava would eventually be able to express her feelings without turning into stone. Other characters in the story are exceptionally portrayed, particularly Annet, the captain of the ship and the sailor who had stored a secret in the hold. The one bright spot in the story was the descriptions of the blue foxes, who all had unique characteristics.
With themes of survival of mind and body, a slow burning romance, court intrigue, problems with the use of deadly weapons and vivid imagery, Seasparrow will be welcomed by readers of the series.
Themes Fantasy, Survival, Post traumatic stress, Weapons, Seafaring.
Jack and Twitch are good friends, and since they solved a crime mystery (recorded in Twitch) they have been ready for more birdwatching and perhaps more crime solving. Jack is new to birdwatching and is yet to find his ‘spark bird’ the one that drives the desire and passion to become an avid avian watcher, but he would really like to solve another mystery. When he discovers a wounded cat and realises there is someone in his community who is shooting cats, it sparks his desire to solve the crime. But Twitch’s attention is diverted by the reported potential sighting of the very rare bird – a Bearded Vulture, and Jack is having difficulty getting Twitch to engage as a mystery solver because of the rare bird possibility. A violent storm, the local bullies, Halloween and a grand event hosted by a woman who has nefarious interests in the rare bird all complicate Jack’s attempts to foil the cat shooters and stop an attack on the rare bird. With other friends using their talents to help, and even zombies used to unveil the truth, this story has many twists and turns. Friendship is the winner.
The first book in this series, Twitch, was delightful, and this follow-up story has continued the charming focus on a group of friends in a small English community with an interest in Birdwatching. Although this is probably not a hobby many young Australians have discovered, the desire to protect wildlife must first start with knowing what is there, and so this book will perhaps open the eyes of young Aussie readers. This mystery and adventure will appeal to any reader who likes fast-paced crime-solving antics with curious children leading the way. I loved the story and having an avid birdwatcher in my family means that I recognised the focused and passionate spark that drives many to watch the skies and fields for a new sighting. This is a great book to recommend to readers aged 9-12 who love an adventure.
