In the prologue Maxine Beneba Clarke quotes Nina Simone that “an artist’s duty . . . is to reflect the times” and that is what this body of poetry does, reflecting themes of climate change, bushfires, Black Lives Matter, Me Too, Covid 19, domestic violence, and other current political and social issues. The opening poem “when the decade broke” refers to many of these issues but provides hope with the concluding lines “suddenly, we were wide awake . . . faces tilted to the sky, watching revolution break”. Similarly the closing poem “fires move faster” recalls the many traumas of the last decade but at the same time finds the hope in the simple things, “zucchini plants flower, sharing a meal with friends”, concluding “we all will fight, to live”. So while there are many fierce and confronting issues that thread through this collection of poems, there is still the hope that we will rise up and take action.
These are powerful compelling poems that address issues that should be front of mind. They wake us up, put into words the issues at stake, and drive us to feel, think and act. The title “How decent folk behave” is a fitting admonition, the line coming from the poem “Something sure” about a mother exhorting her son to not be a bystander, to call things out, be a good man and “lead a bad man home”.
The words are strong and emotive, “the monsters are out”, they recall women's suffering and black people’s suffering; it is “blood-truth” that we need to confront. We feel the grief. The poems are vibrant, and thought provoking; there are many historical references that we need reminding about. It is a volume that has an immediate impact, and will be re-read and discussed and provide inspiration for social action.
Let's go swimming on Doomsday by Natalie C. Anderson
Rock the Boat, 2021. ISBN: 9781786079121. (Age:14+) Highly recommended.
Absolutely riveting! This is another gripping thriller by Natalie C. Anderson. If you enjoyed her previous novel City of saints and thieves, let me tell you, this one is even better. It is set in Somalia and is a story of the manipulation and exploitation of child soldiers by a ruthless extremist group. Abdi is a young boy caught in the notorious 'Hole' prison and coerced by American agents into infiltrating the Al Shebaab rebel militia group, in order to save the lives of his family. Despite the remembered warning by his father 'Don’t trust guys with guns', Abdi has no choice but to follow the path of his kidnapped elder brother Dahir, to infiltrate the ranks of Al Shebaab and betray their plans in exchange for his family’s freedom.
The story is told in two interleaving time frames until the past catches up and overtakes the present. It vividly conveys the inner conflict of boy soldiers who know that killing is wrong but who, for a variety of reasons, are drawn to the teachings of the 'Doctor' and the 'General'. Abdi himself is drawn into the daily rigours of military training, developing his physical skills and strategic thinking, working as a team with his troupe of fellow boy soldiers. And while the General is harsh, the Doctor lulls him with talk of holy mission. It seems a very realistic portrayal of the kind of mind manipulation that extremist groups use, and has a parallel in this story with deviant religious cults in America.
Anderson is the first to admit that her novel could be criticised for not being an authentic 'Own Voice', in the vein of books like Prize fighter the story of a Congolese boy soldier, but it is based on her long experience working with NGOs and the UN on refugee relief and development in Africa and draws on the many refugee stories she has heard. It is a believable portrayal of the brutality of fanatical militant groups and the crimes they perpetuate against men, women and children, told from the viewpoint of a teenage boy who has to find his own inner strength and work out what is right.
One of the interesting aspects of Anderson's novel is that there is good and evil on both sides; there are friendship bonds within the child soldier group and some of the values Abdi learns from the Doctor are good, whilst on the other side, many of the actions of the American organisation seem just as callous and ruthless as Al Shebaab. Abdi has to work out for himself what is the right thing to do. That makes for lots to think about and discuss after reading this novel!
Themes Child soldiers, Morals and ethics, Survivor guilt, Cults, Brainwashing.
Have you ever wanted a different future for yourself other than the one laid out for you? Twelve-year-old Tor Luna does. So, on Eve, when his village get a single wish, he wishes that his leadership mark gets replaced with that of a water-breather. He loved swimming, which he still found time to do though he was banned from it, to concentrate on his studies.
The following morning bought Tor unimaginable grief. His wish, or the coin he had touched, he wasn’t sure, had caused his three purple rings of leadership to disappear, but he did not have the water-breather symbol either. He had the curse of the eye which also shortened his lifeline. How could he tell his parents? He hadn’t told them what he had been thinking, and now they will be disappointed in him.
He didn’t have to show his friend, Engle, the sightseer, he saw the mark, and tried to get it off, but couldn’t. Melda thought she could help. Legend says if you touch the mark of the curse, you will also be cursed.
This is the start of their long, arduous journey together. They decided they needed to find the Night Witch, who legend has it is the only one to be able to break the curse. The trio must travel across the whole of Emblem Island and face the creatures they know from the book of Cuentos. They cannot afford to not pay attention to the details if they are to survive. But someone is helping them, who is it? They think it is the storyteller, the author of Cuentos, but is it? He must be long dead.
Their strength and stamina are tested, and their lives are often put at risk. Can they reach the Night Witch before their lifelines end, and get back to their village, where their families must be worrying about each of them?
This is the first book in the adventure series. It is full of action; I found it hard to put down. I can’t wait to read to read the next one.
As the title suggests Kate is a young amateur sleuth. She is on a train journey with her father and her pet mouse Rodney to meet her mother who is studying Arctic seaweed.
Kate takes her detective work very seriously and is inspired by her idol Catherine Rodriguez, and excerpts of Catherine’s advice are included in the novel.
Not long into the train trip it becomes apparent that many odd items are being stolen, gingernut biscuits, gymnastics trophies and ancient scrolls. Kate is very suspicious of cranky Madame Maude who is onboard the train with her cantankerous cat.
Is Madam Maude the culprit and how will Kate discover the truth?
The quirky ending was a surprise for me and I suspect every other reader too.
The novel has a vivid appealing cover and the text is accompanied by the many orange and black illustrations.
This is a fun story with a crime to solve and will be enjoyed by 7- to 10-year-olds.
DS Vera Stanhope strides confidently through Ann Cleeves' novels, taking charge, nutting things out, catching the killer, and this one, the ninth in the series is no different, except for the creeping thoughts about her past and the niggle of a small child that she thinks may be related to her, prompting a feeling not usually felt in her bones. But bones are chilled throughout this novel, set in the cold, blustery, snow filled days before Christmas, when Vera, taking a wrong turn during a blizzard, happens upon an abandoned car, a small child still strapped in its seat, the door left open to the wild weather.
She takes the child to the nearest house, Brockburn, a manor house where her father, Hector grew up, leaving under a cloud years before, leaving the family estranged.
Her frosty reception is tempered by the local farmer coming in to report a body out there in the cold, and police procedure moves into top gear. Vera’s cousin, Harriet lives with her daughter Juliet and her husband Mark, an arts director from Newcastle. The house is in disrepair and he is holding a party to encourage local moneyed people to invest in a scheme to revitalise both the house and the arts industry in the region. The guests make an interesting clutch of people for the team to interview and check. But it is the people living nearby that pique Vera’s interest: the tenant farmer and his wife, parents of the dead girl, the housekeeper, former lawyer Dorothy and her husband living in one of the estate cottages, while in the nearby village where Lorna lived with her baby, her mentor, Constance Browne, has disappeared. And over all the question of just who the father of the homeless child night be, brings up all manner of consequences to mull over.
A page turner, the character of Vera is a triumph, a many layered police officer, sure of herself, but with niggles of ‘what ifs’ occupying her few spare minutes, she never ceases to grab our attention. Not one to call for back up she finds herself in several heart stopping situations. This is a wonderful read, the background of Newcastle and the landscape nearby unfolding as the story is read, revealing a dark heart in the lives of this small group of people.
Themes Crime, Newcastle, Vera Stanhope, Succession.
Detective Matthew Venn is called to an arts community in a nearby village in the North Devon precinct of Barnstaple where he works. A number of artists work in studios supplied by local philanthropist, Francis Ley. He lives in the big house, while he rents out the cottages and sheds for private work. The peppercorn rents gives these people a place to work, and one of the cottages is rented by his niece, Sarah and her husband in return for farming the property.
One of the artists, glass blower Eve, stumbles across her father’s body in her studio, murdered with a shard of her glass, setting in motion a procedural crime novel revealing the amount of foot work the detectives do in building a case. Matthew’s two officers, Jen and Ross are filled out more in this story: we find Jen drunk at a party held by a newly arrived resident and her husband, a party where Ley tried to talk to her, but she went home. Ross, an ambitious police officer is learning all the time, taking in details, but a little exasperated by Matthew and his techniques. All is fascinating, the quirks of all involved revealed and dissected, and when another murder occurs, using the same methodology, Venn and his team must take urgent steps. Roger, the CEO of a organisation which seek to protect patients' rights, has links to a suicide at his previous workplace, and here he gains the ire of a family whose son has jumped from the cliff and drowned. Venn and his co workers, interview and reinterview, check out cars, houses and alibis, all intriguing, until the end comes like a battering ram. The truth is heart stopping, and the work done by one man manipulating would be suicides to their graves an appalling concept to take in.
Ann Cleeves' writes so convincingly that the North Devon countryside and its people seem as familiar as does Vera Stanhope and her surrounds in Newcastle.
Themes Crime, North Devon, Artists’ communities, Suicide.
Eyes stare at the reader from the cover, eyes that almost defy logic as the reader takes in its surrounds, the blocks of colour exciting fervent interest. Is it a cat? Opening the book will reveal the creature within.
A mother cat and her kitten pounce through their world, seeing galaxies, stars and comets in the house and garden. Worlds unfold as they reveal their surroundings: the moon a hammock, the round chair in the lounge a planet, the moon and stars reflected in their eyes. The pair plays in the foliage, pounce at things in the house, see asteroids and comets in the plants of the garden, drink deeply from the Milky Way before allowing gravity to pull them back to earth, ready to dream again.
In this quirky tale, imagination takes hold as the cats play within the confines of the house and garden but all the time viewing what is beyond their orbit. Words fly around, all the words that denote the objects in the sky above, looking into the space above our heads. What a wonderful introduction to the night sky and all it entails, seeing it through a cat’s eyes, but scaling it down to the glory that is all around, impelling younger readers to think and discuss the words in the context of space beyond them, but seeing it in the microcosm of their garden and house.
The wonderfully colour filled illustrations will enthral readers as they turn the pages, waiting to see what is offered overleaf.
Kids and adults will love the use of words common to the night sky encouraging discussion and observation as they peer into it for themselves.
Flying Eye Books (FEB, for short) is the children’s imprint of award-winning visual publishing house Nobrow. Established in early 2013, FEB sought to retain the same attention to detail in design and excellence in illustrated content as its parent publisher, but with a focus on the craft of children’s storytelling and non-fiction.
Their books add a layer of difference, of interest and intrigue to the trove of children’s books, and I look out for their new books, because I know I will be in for a treat, one that makes me stop and think deeply about what I am reading.
Themes Space, Night sky, Cats, Play, Humour.
Fran Knight
Jingle smells by Mark Sperring and Sophie Corrigan
From the author and illustrator of Mince Spies and Santa Jaws comes another hilarious offering for the festive season. Jingle is a little skunk who advises everyone to hold their noses as he passes by and is devastated when the town’s Christmas tree falls ‘with a giant, creaking crash,’ overcome by his smell. He believes that he has ruined Christmas, but when robbers capture Santa Claus, it is his stinky smell that saves the day.
Like his two previous Christmas stories this is a very funny tale that is a great read aloud with its rhythm and rhymes.
Jingle Smells, Jingle Smells Jingle all the way, Oh what fun it is to be a skunk on Santa's sleigh!
The inclusion of large print to emphasise words and ideas will help the reader, both adult and emergent, and adds to the fun. Children will be introduced to the little skunk and will have the opportunity to learn about this animal and its smell in funny situations. Meanwhile the way the robbers put things right is a subtle lesson that bad deeds can be atoned.
Sophie Corrigan’s illustrations are very appealing. Jingle, with his red cap and scarf is very cute, the robbers with their black masks are slightly scary and Santa of course, has a beautiful grin.
This is another great Christmas book to add to the collection, both family and library and will provide lots of laughs on rereading as more details are discovered.
Themes Christmas, Skunks, Smells, Humour.
Pat Pledger
Scaredy bath by Zoe Foster Blake. Illus. by Daniel Gray-Barnett
Zoe Foster Blake has come up with another hilarious story, following her very successful, No one likes a fart. Complemented by hilarious illustrations by Daniel Gray-Barnett, this is likely to be just as popular with young children.
Scaredy Bath dreads bath time with the two exuberant young children who invade the bathroom, screaming and carrying all sorts of toys and gooey stuff. Scaredy Bath even has to put up with the hairy one as well, but when the family goes on holiday boredom sets in. Then when a very tiny one appears, Scaredy Bath hopes that things will be calmer – but is in for a surprise!
The narrative moves along smoothly and is a joy to read aloud. It is such a funny story and youngsters will appreciate the bath time story being told from the point of view of the bath, a fabulous way for parents to help children overcome their fear of the water. Family life will be easily recognised – the children covered in dirt and spaghetti, sometimes running from Dad, but always caught and sometimes racing up to the bathroom, crashing and shouting on the way.
Set against a blue background, with black outlines, the illustrations are just wonderful. The joy and enthusiasm of the children having a bath are evident. There are splashes everywhere and an occasional comical naughty moment that children will pick up on. The expressions on the faces of the long-suffering Scaredy Bath and the toilet with a moustache and heavy black eyebrows, are priceless as well.
This book is a keeper for me and I can see it becoming a firm favourite with families, helping to make bath time as enjoyable for children as it is shown so energetically by the author and illustrator.
Themes Bath time, Family love, Humour.
Pat Pledger
The book that did not want to be read by David Sundin
The Book That Did Not Want To Be Read, created by Swedish author David Sundin is not your average book, by any stretch of the imagination. Just as the name suggests, this book definitely does not behave like your regular picture book. It is a cleverly created book that will keep everyone constantly in suspense and wondering what could possibly happen next. The audience will be enchanted and entranced, while the adult reader will be kept on their toes to improvise and entertain.
Upon reading the story – and this really should be done out loud for full effect – this misbehaving book has the reader using it as a steering wheel, making up new words, reading large, small and teeny tiny print, even patting a pet rabbit, singing, flapping, book turning and much, much more….. all those things that are highly entertaining for an audience! This ingenious story is an interactive and continually evolving one. It will have the audience enthralled, as the reader improvises and interacts throughout the book.
Showing a brilliance and flair for creativity, Sundin first wrote this book in Sweden in 2020, before it was translated into English in 2021. It will have children captivated and bring great joy as a unique read aloud, especially before bed. This is a book that will have the audience intrigued and begging for it to be read over and over again. Children will love with story, but adults will need to be prepared to think on your feet and expect the unexpected!
The Book That Did Not Want To Be Read is sure to a become a new favourite in every home!
Luke lives in an ordinary family on an ordinary street with parents running on the treadmill of capitalistic endeavour. Into this scenario a community of environmental activists arrive as squatters into the house across the road. Due for demolition, this house is in the way of the progress of an airport runway extension and the expansion of capitalistic and environmentally disastrous endeavours. Akin to The Castle in Australian folklore, the activists must fight against the ever-encroaching movement of progress and destruction. Luke’s sister, Rose, moves across the road to join the activists. Her father joins in too in the hope that Rose will return home, and Luke and his mother watch on in varying shades of desperation. Slowly the ‘cause’ takes over the whole street and mediocrity and apathy is replaced by endeavour and cooperation. Luke joins his new friend, Sky, and finds his voice to address his family division and the future of the planet.
This is a gentle environmental story exposing the actions and motivations of the environmental movement, with touches of humour added to lighten the activism. Woven within the distress of a family slowly fracturing within suburbia, there is still hope as they discover a common cause and work together. Luke is reflective and reserved and an endearing and modest heroic character. The delight of the book is seeing inside and discovering the plans of the eclectic and extraordinary community of climate activists who lurch from one issue to the next as they attempt to change the world.
Little Nic's big world by Nic Naitanui. Illus. by Fatima Anaya
Albert Street Books, 2021. ISBN: 9781761066061. (Age:5+) Highly recommended.
Little Nic's Big World is the second book written by well-known AFL West Coast Eagles footballer, Nic Naitanui, following Little Nic's big day. Once again, the author has created an entertaining read which celebrates the multi-cultural society that is Australia today. In this story, Nic’s school is having a fete with the theme, 'The World Comes to Us.' Students are encouraged to bring and share traditions from their own home and away cultures and Nic, who comes from a Fijian background, has chosen to bring his Bubu’s (grandmother) Cassava cake.
Before the fete begins Nic kicks the footy around with his friends and then rushes off to listen to the Acknowledgement of Country. Unfortunately, he leaves behind his backpack which contains the precious Cassava cake and spends time looking for it as it has disappeared. On his search for the missing backpack, Nic participates in a host of music, craft and sports from other cultures. The backpack is returned to Nic and his Cassava cake is very popular. The author has included a ‘Can you find...’ page at the back of the book with a list of items to search for. The colourful illustrations by Fatima Anaya are bright and bold and fill the page.
This highly engaging picture book with its clever rhyme will appeal to young readers. Little Nic's Big World shares an important message of how diverse our world is and how we can learn from each other’s traditions.
Themes Rhyming stories, Diversity, Multi-culturalism, Differences, School Fete.
Kathryn Beilby
The worst sleepover in the world by Sophie Dahl and Luciano Lozano
A book every child and perhaps parent can relate to, a must read! With the combination of a very fussy child and a parent who tries too hard and wants to join in to improve the mood of the sleepover, the reader will find the book hilarious.
Ramona is having her first sleepover with her friend Gracie. She dreams up all the wonderful things they are going to do and feast on. However, her best laid plans go down the drain. First, her mum upsets the plans, and then on the night, things go from bad to worse.
It’s as if Gracie doesn’t want to be there from the moment her mum drops her off. She says she’s fussy, but maybe it’s something else.
As the night goes on Ramona gets more and more upset because Gracie takes her bed, then her mum’s bed and she thinks her mum loves Gracie more than her. Finally, at midnight all have fallen asleep. In the morning things always look different, can the girls patch up their friendship?
I found the illustrations very colourful and depict the feelings of each of the characters accurately. With more words in this picture book than you would normally find, Luciano Lozano still crammed plenty of detail into his wonderful pictures. Teacher's notes are available.
The final book in the Serpent and Dove series sees Lou, Reid and their friends face greater challenges after their narrow escape from Cesarine at the end of Blood and Honey. Not completely recovered from their ordeal, Lou starts acting differently, almost like she isn't herself. The road they travel is treacherous, as their faces are plastered on posters all over Belterra, and Chasseurs are constantly on their trail, not to mention Morgane, hell-bent on capturing Lou at any cost. As Lou, Reid and the others travel, they learn more about their enemies and themselves, and Reid is faced with a terrible choice - sacrifice or the death of those he holds dear.
This intense fantasy completes the Serpent and Dove series and is a must read for those who have read the previous two and want to know how the series ends. High drama and plenty of action, Gods and Monsters will keep readers on the edge of their seats as they read the exciting conclusion to the series. The novel has a map of Belterra and the book is split into multiple parts. Mahurin has created relatable characters who face difficult situations and a written a series that covers a variety of mythical and magical creatures. In terms of the content, it is more suited for older readers, as some of the scenes become quite graphic, in particular intimate scenes. This being said, they do not dominate the book, and the series would suit fans of Sarah J. Maas' Court of Thorns and Roses series.
Themes Fantasy, Magic, Relationships, Love, Loss, Good versus Evil.
Melanie Pages
Endgame by Malorie Blackman
Penguin, 2021. ISBN: 9780241443996. (Age:16+ - Adult) Recommended for lovers of crime drama.
This is the last book of the Nought and Crosses series written by Malorie Blackman and I must apologise to all lovers of the series that this is the first book of the series I have read. Despite coming to the characters, alt-setting and storylines afresh in the ultimate book of the series, I have loved the journey into the intrigue of politics, the complex web of deception within the crime world mired by money and power grabs, and the family drama of life within a polarised society distinguishing Noughts as less than Crosses. And on top of those dramas there is romance, a kidnapping, murder, subterfuge, violence and lies. And the Prime Minister is twisted up in all of that. Knowing the backstory of each character may have helped enormously as I began the book, but it was not long before it was possible to understand the conflicting motivations of all the central characters in this political and crime conspiracy. This is a tour de force and an enjoyable dramatic adventure.
Written through the voice of multiple characters and with additional input via occasional reports and newspaper articles, there is plenty of opportunity to get inside the character’s heads and the permutations of this twisted plot revolving around the kidnapping of two teens and the murder of a crime lynchpin. For the uninitiated this may create some confusion, but it is a powerful narrative tool in this complex story at the end of a long series of books. Blackman manages to create a good stand-alone book and a powerful end to a saga. One of the communicating characters does even manage to speak in first person of their own death – a sometimes strange narrative ‘voice’ while dying. Overall, this is a mature crime and political adventure within the world of discrimination and bigotry of the Noughts and Crosses that is recognisable from our own world, even though it is not our world. Recommended for readers aged 16+ who enjoy crime drama.
Themes Political corruption, Crime, Discrimination, Kidnapping, Murder.
