Illus. by Kim Gamble. Allen & Unwin, 2020. Tashi: The book of spells and secrets. ISBN: 9781760525149. Tashi: The book of magnificent monsters. ISBN: 9781760525217.
(Age: 7-9) Highly recommended. Allen & Unwin have republished
many of the Tashi stories written between 1995 and 2009 in four
volumes, richly illustrated by Gamble. Selling over a million copies
worldwide, Tashi is now a TV series and there have been many other
books featuring this wonderful character.
Republished in volumes of eight stories compiled under titles such
as The book of spells and secrets and The book of
magnificent monsters, younger readers will have the thrill of
reading about Tashi for the first time, while older readers will
pick up a volume to be reacquainted with an old friend.
Each of these two volumes contain a clutch of stories, all about
thirty pages long accompanied by Gamble's readily recognised
illustrations of the tall hatted hero. Each is followed by its
companion story. In The book of spells and secrets can be
found Tashi lost in the city, published with another story, On
the way home, in 2004.
In The book of magnificent monsters appears the tale, Tashi
and the phoenix, followed by An unexpected letter,
published together in 2006.
Tashi and the Baba Yaga as with many other stories begins with Jack
telling his family about his friend, Tashi and the wonderful
adventures he has. In this one, Tashi tells Jack about the time he
finds a house that has arrived in the woods near his home after a
fearful storm. Invited in he realises that he is to become dinner
and cleverly gets himself out of the pot, by tricking the young
girl. Gone follows telling of the chickens being lost from
the hen coup in the garden.
Each of the stories tells an adventure and also gives a precept for
life: being kind, being careful of strangers, helping others, being
kind to your friends and so on.
With their bright new covers, the stories will be wonderful read
alouds as well as being most attractive for younger readers to pick
up. Themes: Tashi, Adventure.
Fran Knight
Wonderscape by Jennifer Bell
Walker Books, 2020. ISBN: 9781406391725.
(Ages: 10+). Highly recommended. Wonderscape author,
Jennifer Bell, has written an exciting and intriguing gaming
adventure set primarily in the future. Her three main characters,
Arthur, Ren and Cecily, are all thirteen years old and from the 21st
century. They are all very different, have no real connection to
each other except attending the same high school and bring their own
special qualities to the eventual quest they must undertake. An
explosion in Peacepoint Estate leads to the three being transported
through a Wonderway (portal) to a wooden ship, Principia, where they
meet the first of the many historical figures, Isaac Newton. They
also are exposed to the mimics (robots) which play a pivotal role
throughout the story. On the ship the children are given
Wondercloaks which have amazing attributes that assist them on their
complex and dangerous journey. Wonderscape is actually an
I-RAG - an in-reality adventure game where players known as
wanderers complete challenges for rewards and to be able to progress
to another realm. Every realm is themed around a different hero from
History and there is a riddle to be solved. The realms are hazardous
and in order to find their way back to the 21st Century, the three
travellers must go through a number of them to search for a missing
person and the time-key that will unlock the Wonderway to home - all
within fifty six hours or they will become in Arthur's words
"slime". Travelling with the three children is a dog named Cloud who
is full of surprises and is crucial to the overall outcome of the
quest. The Wonderscape game was designed by three adopted
siblings, Tiburon Nox, Valeria Mal'fey and Milo Hertz, who each took
on different roles. There is conflict within the family which has
led to a change of the initial principles of the game which is now
on a self-destructive path.
The amazing plot and story-telling in Wonderscape keeps the
reader wanting more. Those who are gamers will readily identify with
many of the terms and concepts in the story and those who are not
gamers will learn a little bit more about this 21st century
phenomenon. Themes: Gaming, Time travel, Danger, History, Mystery,
STEM, Friendship, Trust, Problem solving.
Kathryn Beilby
Spellhacker by M.K. England
Harper Teen, 2020. ISBN: 9780062657701. 402p.
(Age: 14+) Fans of high fantasy thrillers will think they have died
and gone to heaven - or at least Kyrkarta. The action starts almost
immediately with an earthquake. Brave spell weavers and tech witches
spontaneously assemble in the street to minimise the damage and it's
wickedly intense.
Kyrkarta has a history of such disasters - the last quake unleashed
something. Maz or magic used to be plentiful, but since the
earthquakes released the spellplague killing thousands, Maz is no
longer common. Maz takes many forms and a Periodic Table of Maz
prefaces Chapter One. We aren't given the atomic weights so the list
is basically a ready reference or glossary of terms. There are three
categories of Maz strains - Core, Perceptual and Augmenting.
Categorised under these strains are the 14 types of Spells. Wataz
Maz is "Core" and produces water and flowing effects, while Magnaz
is used for amplification or "Augmenting".
Maz has become so expensive that Diz and her three friends created
their own black market for Maz - illegally siphoning it off and
selling it. Ania is a Techwitch, Remi a Spellweaver and Jaesin,
Diz's "ex", is a Mundie like Diz. They've planned one last heist,
but they become mixed up in a dangerous conspiracy.
Diz's love interest, Remi, is referred to in gender-neutral pronouns
providing us with recognisable reference points, welcomed because
the level of fantasy is difficult to delve into at first. Thanks to
the group of L.G.B.T.Q.I.A. teens who are very likeable, sarcastic
and flirty, the appeal of Spellhacker is characterisation in
addition to the novelty, which breaks with traditional expectations
of books about magic. If you like Sci-Fi mixed with fantasy and
action, you'll get more than you can handle in the future realm of
Kyrkarta. Spellhacker is available as a downloadable audio.
Themes: High fantasy. Magic.
Deborah Robins
A knock at the door by Tom Wood (writing as T. W. Ellis)
Hachette, 2020. ISBN: 9780751575934.
(Age: Senior secondary/adult) Highly recommended. When two
government agents knock at Jem Talhoffer's door her life is turned
upside down. They ask for her husband Leo and suggest he is involved
in organised crime. She cannot believe that her handsome perfect
partner would have anything to do with such things. While the agents
are questioning and searching she receives a call from an Agent
Carlson, which casts doubt on the identity of the Feds. She is urged
to leave her home and make a run for it.
Jem and Leo have moved from the city for the peace and calm of small
town America. They have found the perfect house isolated from its
neighbours but not too far from the town's amenities. Jem takes yoga
classes, but tends to keep to herself while Leo a wine merchant
takes care of business and often travels overseas.
Jem takes off through the woods, but hasn't thought through her
escape. She is bare footed and has bought nothing with her. She
makes it to the road, feet cut, scratched, bruised and flags down an
old man in a pickup truck. It seems as if luck has changed, Trevor
the driver, is straight as the day is long. He is one of the many in
the USA that has no trust in the government or people in suits, he
has no phone and is self reliant.
They head into town where Jem decides she will confide in the local
police chief, Rusty, an eminently sensible and trustworthy woman.
However when she arrives she is dismayed to find the two agents are
already at the police building. She makes a move to leave when a car
pulls up with Agent Carlson at the wheel; he urges her to get in and
he assures her she will be safe. But Jem doesn't know who to trust
and heads for the police building. She ends up being driven back to
her home by the two agents, but things then really take a turn for
the worse.
Tom Woods is writing here as T. W. Ellis, and has the narrative
delivered by Jem and Rusty (the police chief). The reader is
naturally sympathetic with Jem's story and the dilemma in which she
finds herself. The question is always: what would you do if you
found yourself in the same situation? The narrative provided by
Rusty is very different. The reader is allowed into her life, a
strange mixture of the very private and the very public, but there
is a feeling of dependability and trust.
There are many twists in the plot and you are left feeling very much
like Jem. Who do you believe, who can you trust. There are also
moments of shock when the most unforeseen actions take place. Whilst
not always quite believable Ellis provides a roller coaster ride,
that has perceptions overturned and personalities questioned. A
thoroughly recommended read.
Themes. USA, Crime, Thriller, Conspiracy.
Mark Knight
Greek Myths by Jean Menzies
Illus. by Katie Ponder. Dorling Kindersley, 2020. ISBN:
9780241397459. 160pp.
(Ages: 8 - 12) Recommended. Greek Myths is a beautifully
presented, simply written, thorough compendium. Although it is
non-fiction, with an index, it helps to begin reading it from the
beginning. In this way you understand how Gaia created the world and
then subsequent Olympian Gods and Goddesses such as Zeus, Hera,
Hades and Poseidon came to be. This section is followed by nine
myths of Gods and Humans such as the myth of Pandora's Jar. Nine
well known tales of heroes such as Jason and the Argonauts follow.
There's much treachery, trickery and violence amongst the Gods and
you realize the extent to which we refer to these characters and
tales in everyday life, e.g. The Trojan War, Icarus and Midas.
Throughout these sections are single fact pages devoted to each of
the main Gods and Goddesses. This helps the reader consolidate who
is who. A reference section has further useful pages explaining how
we know about this Ancient History, more information about mythical
creatures and monsters and how the Greek names were used to name
planets, animals and plants. There is a particularly useful
pronunciation guide as well.
Katie Ponder's many digitally created illustrations are well suited
to the myths. The whole design of the book, with quality buff paper
in a large hard covered volume, is very appealing. This book will be
useful in schools where Ancient History is part of the Australian
Curriculum in the middle years. It will also be of interest to young
readers who love books like Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson
series. There have been many anthologies of Greek Myths over the
years but I think the design, large font and easy to read style will
help connect these myths with today's audience.
Jo Marshall
Oi puppies! by Kes Gray and Jim Field
Hachette, 2020. ISBN: 9781444937367.
(Age: 4+) Highly recommended. Another in the wildly funny series of
books, Oi
frog, Oi
cat, Oi
dog and Oi
duck-billed platypus, comes another which follows the
same storyline, thus instantly gathering together its enormous
retinue of fans, eager to participate, predict and laugh out loud.
The front cover alerts the reader to the stunned dog; eyes wide and
staring, urging the reader to offer help as it is overwhelmed by
seven puppies all in different stages of excitement. Both Cat and
Frog try to help Dog, offering advice while ordering the puppies to
sit. But of course, none do. Each of the puppies is named and each
name reflects a trait shown by the puppy, giving the illustrator
wonderful comic license to show them in all their glory. The puppies
jump and crawl, climb, use the cat's whiskers as a swing, tug the
Frog's shorts, the exasperated looks on the animals' faces adding to
the fun of the story.
At his wit's end, Frog calls the Oi Animals Seating Supply Company,
and the next few pages shows each of the puppies aligned to a
rhyming seat. So Buster gets a duster, Jock a sock and Tiddles a
fiddle. Each page shows an animal and its name with a rhyming word,
all augmented with wonderful funny illustrations, sure to evoke
laughter from the reader. They will love predicting the rhyming
word, making suggestions of their own, and laugh out loud at the
twist that comes at the end of the tale.
And the very last page hints at number six in the series coming
along soon.
Themes: Puppies, Dogs, Humour, Verse, Pets.
Fran Knight
Puffin Little Environmentalist: Composting
Penguin Random House Australia, 2020. ISBN: 9781760897017. 96pp.
(Age: 6 +) Highly recommended. This small format book is just right
for any child (or indeed adult) who is interested in doing something
about the amount of waste that goes into landfill. How to make
compost is explained in simple, easy to understand language that
will appeal to young children who are becoming independent readers.
It will also appeal to an adult who may be reading to a child as
this book gives great hints about composting that they could do
together.
Commencing with an introduction to what a compost bin is, the book
continues on with information about compost, what can be done with
it, why we should compost and best of all, it gives a detailed way
of making a small compost bin that would fit in a backyard or on a
balcony. This small compost bin consists of a plastic bin with holes
in it and shows children how to make compost themselves, just
requiring a small amount of help from adults, by purchasing the bin
and drilling holes in it.
The simple language, easy to follow instructions and rationale will
provide the newly independent reader with enough information to get
started. A good Contents page, Fast Facts page, Glossary and Quiz
complete this very useful book. Illustrations and the little puffin
that parades throughout the book also add to its appeal.
This would be ideal as a present for young children who wish to help
the planet and will provide children and adults alike enough
information to have a go at composting.
Pat Pledger
Shapes and colours by John Canty
Berbay Publishing, 2020. ISBN: 9780648529187. 32pp.
(Age: 0)+) Highly recommended. All the colours of the rainbow and
many different shapes are beautifully illustrated in this lovely
picture book from John Canty, the award-winning author/illustrator
of the Heads
and tails series.
Right from the beginning as the reader turns the cover, bright
shapes appear, with the words, What's red? What's orange? What's
yellow? What's green? and What's blue? Each sentence appears in a
shape that matches the colour, so we see, for example, a green frog
and a yellow banana, all designed for the young child to guess what
the object is. Turning the page, the frontispiece has What's indigo?
and What's Violet, and then the reader will guess that these are the
seven colours that this carefully designed book will contain.
The shapes for each colour are coloured on a double page spread with
the question in one big drawing in the centre. The child needs to
guess what each picture is, and then when the page is turned, finds
a detailed multi-coloured picture of each shape, with the main
colour as the background. I especially liked the colour indigo, with
its vivid picture of a beetle gracing the page.
New words will be introduced to the young child. For example on the
page featuring What's orange, there are a couple of difficult
shapes, and when the page is turned, the reader will find a picture
of a popsicle, orange, safety vest, autumn leaf, pumpkin, traffic
cone and carrot all surrounding a large picture of a goldfish.
This is an imaginative way of introducing different colours and
shapes and is a book that will prove to be a keeper and one that may
well be treasured and handed down to the next generation.
Pat Pledger
The Extraordinaries by T.J. Klune
Hachette, 2020. ISBN: 9781473693050.
(Age: Adolescent - Adult) This is a story about ordinary people who
can sometimes be extraordinary, inhabiting a world that, for them,
is different. They have powers of observation, movement,
understanding and power that enable them to move in space, to
create situations in which different things can happen. They can be
outside of the world that we normally inhabit, and act in a capacity
that may save people from disaster. While focusing on adolescence,
this narrative is very much about the real world of today, a world
that is somewhat fraught with anxiety, and one in which it is still
important to love and find love, to spend time with family and
friends, and to seek to understand those close to us, as well as the
outside world.
Essentially this story has an 'added reality' that reflects that
which used to be called 'science fiction'. The powers possessed by
the Extraordinaries are much envied by their peers, while actually
often causing the Extraordinaries to experience emotional angst that
causes them to suffer. The narrative takes place in a country that
reflects much of the modern world, that raises issues pertinent to
this current world and that highlights the emotional world of
adolescence, particularly that of the 'queer' world of the text,
that controversial issue of sexual preference for one's own gender.
The protagonist is yearning for love, and is lonely because of his
situation, the loss of his mother, and living with a father who is
yearning for his wife, and desperate to love and care for his son.
Yet the father's job often keeps him at work late and the boy is
left alone, at home.
At its heart, this narrative reflects the issues of adolescents in
the world of today, that of planning a future in a world that often
appears to be unstable to the young, and of a world in which they
are hoping to find a place or a group to which they belong, and to find
a pathway that will be fulfilling. This is essentially a story about
love, particularly in families where it is sometimes forgotten. It
is about the compassion felt for those who struggle for whatever
reason. Klune subtly suggests that we consider 'difference' as
something that exists, that we strive to continue to love and
support those people in our own worlds, offering loving and
compassionate understanding. The novel is suitable for both adult
and adolescent readers.
Elizabeth Bondar
The teeny weeny genie by Julia Donaldson
Illus. by Anna Currey. Macmillan, 2020. ISBN: 9781509843602.
(Age: 4+) Highly recommended. When Old MacDonald on his farm finds a
genie in his teapot, things happen. He wishes for a new tractor and
it appears, then a wife to help with the farm, and she comes along.
She wishes for tools and wood to make a cupboard to store her
clothes, then has some left over to make a cradle and wishes for a
baby. But he is crying so a rattle is needed to quell him, then he
wants a dog, the dog wants a cat and on and on it goes, getting more
and more complicated and very funny as the wishes come along thick
and fast.
This beautiful read aloud will be a treat for a young audience as
they can call out the noises each of the wishes makes: the noise of
the tractor, the howl of the baby, the woof of the dog and so on.
Each page is a delight of fun and noise.
And the wonderfully lively and colourful illustrations, will have
the readers recognising the animals they see and spotting known
things in the farmyard, asking a myriad of questions about what they
do not know.
The blue genie gets a little annoyed with the wishes on the farm,
and wants it all to go away, but he cannot make his wish come true,
only those for other people. He attempts to get back into the
teapot, but finds a green genie there instead. The two wish for each
other, the teapot grows wings and the two are whisked away to a
lonely beach where all they can hear are the waves while they drink
their tea. Then they climb into the teapot and rest happily.
Be careful what you wish for is the basis of this funny tale,
cautioning readers not to take wishes lightly because the results of
this may be more than they bargained for.
This is a wonderfully funny, noisy tale which will have readers
jumping with joy.
Themes: Farmyard, Cautionary tale, Humour, Animals, Parody, Read
aloud.
Fran Knight
The Martian by Andy Weir
Crown, 2014. ISBN: 9780091956141.
(Age: Secondary/Adult) Highly recommended. Astronaut Mark Watney, one
of the team sent to Mars, is abandoned when a storm forces the leader
to make an instant decision. They see Mark being swept away by the
storm and their data shows he is no longer alive.
But, he is alive and busting to keep alive until he can be rescued
in four years time when the next Mars landing occurs. Trouble is
that there is only so much food and water in the Hab, the tent-like
construction built for the team of six. He assesses his chances
objectively, deciding to eat part meals to conserve food, designing
a way to reuse all the water he can and make some more using parts
from the abandoned module. He devises a way to grow potatoes using
those sent with them for Thanksgiving, using his own waste as soil.
He sets himself up well, and because he is such a likeable narrator,
the reader accepts all the science. This wonderful read, science
fiction at its best, a survival story that defies the imagination
will keep everyone reading to the last page. Full of NASA speak,
acronyms abound, but we learn a little of the minutiae of the life
of an astronaut and marvel at Watney's adaptability.
The book is divided into 26 chapters, most of which are the log
written by Watney as he charts his days, telling whoever finds his
body exactly what he has done to survive, but hopeful, of course,
that he will be rescued. Between these chapters are those set in
NASA as one of the technicians notices that tents have moved on
Mars' surface. She alerts those in charge and this unleashes a crowd
of experts all vying for their voice to be heard. The questions
asked within this room are mesmerising: should they tell the press,
should they tell his parents, or tell the other five now returning
to Earth, all the while having all of their expertise concentrated
on finding a way to bring him home. It is a riveting read, we listen
to the arguments made by those at NASA, and their attempts at
communicating with him, while working with Watney on the planet Mars
in his efforts to survive. A stunning science fiction novel in the
tradition of the Robinson Crusoe novels, (Robinsonade)
where someone is marooned and must survive, this book is a stunner,
made into a film in 2015 starring Matt Damon.
I listened to this as an audio book. Themes: STEM, Science fiction,
Survival, Robinsonade, Communication.
Fran Knight
Fierce, fearless and free: Girls in myths and legends from around the world by Lari Don
Illus. by Eilidh Muldoon. Bloomsbury, 2020. ISBN: 9781472967138.
158pp.
(Ages: 8-10) Recommended. This enjoyable, diverse anthology of
thirteen myths and folktales, stars young women from different times
and across different continents. There is a 4000 year old Sumerian
myth about the Goddess Innana who outwitted a mountain god intent on
destroying the world. In another folk tale, with a Chinese origin,
Sister Lace is able to make lace creatures and bring them to life in
order to escape marriage to an evil emperor. We are introduced to
the notion of feetwater in an Irish folk tale about getting rid of
witches from your cottage and in a Nigerian legend Nana Miriam
successfully uses her magic to defeat a monster hippo.
These stories are very concise and simply told with touches of
humour. The author, Lari Don, makes them very approachable for
young, newly independent readers but they will also work well read
aloud. The collection is a good resource for teachers to use with
their students to study myths and folktales and the common links
that folk tales around the world have. For example the Italian story
of Petrosinella could be compared to the more well-known Rapunzel.
In addition Lari Don provides interesting notes on the derivation of
each of the stories and lets us know that such tales of strong and
smart girls are genuinely old and important. The cover is modern and
inviting and each story has a one page black and white illustration.
Jo Marshall
Partition voices by Kavita Puri
Bloomsbury, 2019. ISBN: 9781408899083.
(Age: secondary/adult) Highly recommended. The partition of India
along religious lines in 1947 will be remembered as a monumental
disaster as 10 million people tried to get to the country of their
religious majority with about 2 million losing their lives. Many
fled the place they were born, and of these, thousands came to
England where they buried what had happened and made a new life for
themselves. Until recently their voices had not been heard. Two
years ago award-winning journalist and broadcaster Kavita Puri
produced a three-part series, Partition Voices for BBC Radio
4, winning the Royal Historical Society's Radio and Podcast Award
and its overall Public History Prize. This has now been made into a
book, "to remember the time before separation, so future generations
understand that there were Hindus in Lahore, and Muslims in
Amritsar".
Puri has divided the book into three sections, End of Empire in
which she summarises the British Raj and its place in India along
with the growing resentment of British rule, Partition, and Legacy.
Each story is unique, from Muslim, Hindu, Sikh and Christian, all
keeping silent for seventy years about what they had been involved
in or had witnessed, many wanting to forget.
Ken from an English family which owned a jute mill, now living in
Dundee, recalls seeing body parts blocking the waterways, and twelve
year old Ramen, a Hindu living in Dhaka calling out 'hunt the
British' with others in the streets, Muslim Bashir having to leave
his house in the Punjab, knowing it would be looted as soon as they
left, but after seeing the train carriages full of dead bodies in
Lahore Railway Station, he knew he could not stay.
Story after story crowd around the reader, and anger about partition
increases, but I was surprised to find that some of the interviewees
thought it a good thing.
Some girls were killed by their male relatives saving them from rape
and murder but also forced marriage. It was estimated that some
30,0000 women and girls were removed by Hindu and Muslim men, many
ending up in the Ashrams set up across Northern India for destitute
women, those whose families would not longer accept them, and those
orphaned by the violence.
In the midst of the violence and mayhem some acts stand out as
beacons of humanity. A Muslim family, the Begums, took weeks to get
to the refugee camp at Behram there to be helped by a friend, a
Hindu teacher, to get across to Pakistan.
Mohindra Dhall recalls his father rushing in to get them packed and
away. He had opted to stay in Pakistan but seeing violence escalate,
they headed for the railway station. There the train was crowded so
they waited for the next, realising in a few days that they would
all be dead if they had taken that first train.
Getting to the basics of why these people chose to emigrate to
Britain after Partition is difficult; some hate Britain for what it
did, dividing the country, but still chose to live there, some
thought Partition a bad idea, some a good idea, some want to return,
while others have returned often to the place of their birth. The
book is enthralling in showing such a range of stories and
experiences, a range of opinions and points of view about an event
put into effect with little planning and unforeseen, far reaching
consequences. Themes: India, Partition, Religious conflict,
Massacre, British Raj, Migration.
Fran Knight
Inventors : Incredible stories of the world's most ingenious inventions by Robert Winston
Illus. by Jessamy Hawke. Dorling Kindersley, 2020. ISBN:
9780241412466.
(Age: 8-12) Highly recommended. Inventors looks at
over 100 inventors and the wonderful things they have brought to
society to improve our lives. Each page details one inventor and
tells a little about their lives and how they came to invent what
they did to help improve our world. Written a little as short
stories, each page contains facts and illustrations to really show
the inventions and the impact they had on people's lives.
The book is divided into four major topics - "Making things go";
which covers inventions that impacted transport and travel; "Caring
for people" is the next section which includes inventions that help
people, cure diseases, help communications and improve lives
overall. The next section is all about "Helping at home", inventions
which assist us with household tasks or just entertainment. The last
chapter is called "Bang! Whizz! Whirr!" and covers a myriad of other
inventions that have helped human beings to live in our complex
world and made our live easier and safer.
This book is a great resource because it brings the inventors to
life for the reader. A class could use the information in this book
as a springboard for further investigation into some of the
inventors and the lives they led. It contains information about
contemporary inventors that are still living, and this is something
not done by many other books on this topic in recent years. There is
also a list of inventors that were not covered at the back of the
book. The glossary and index are well executed. A great resource for
every school library. Themes: Inventors, Technology.
Gabrielle Anderson
Fabio the world's greatest flamingo detective: Peril at Lizard Lake by Laura James
Bloomsbury, 2020. ISBN: 9781408889374. 128pp., pbk.
In a small town on the banks of Lake Laloozee lives Fabio, the
world's greatest flamingo detective. He's not tall or strong, but
slight and pink. And he's very, very clever.
Most of the time. But when an unusual lapse of judgement leads Fabio
to accept a ride in his associate Gilbert's plane, little does he
know he'll be nose-diving into a new mystery!
When the tiny plane crash-lands near a remote village in the
savannah, all Fabio wants is a pink lemonade to calm his nerves. But
the town well has dried up, and the water didn't just disappear on
its own! Fabio's on the case, and it's going to take a daring sting
operation to set things right.
With its hot pink and citrus yellow colour scheme in both the
illustrations and pages, this is a series that will appeal to newly
independent readers who like something a bit wacky in their reading
diet. Flamingoes are up there with unicorns on the popularity charts
right now, so for that reason alone it will be appealing but as the
third in the series, it offers more than just offbeat characters
with a mystery to solve through an engaging storyline while still
supporting readers who are transitioning to the complexity of
novels.
Barbara Braxton
