Bravelands series, book 2. HarperCollins, 2018. ISBN
9781460756287
(Age: 9-14) Recommended. Themes: African animals. Lions, Baboons,
Elephants, Quests, Survival. Code of Honor is the second
book in the Bravelands series from the creative Erin Hunter
team (Clarissa Hutton and Gillian Philip), well-known for their
popular Spirit Animals and Wings of Fire books. The
African savannah comes alive with beautiful descriptive imagery, as
the forces of nature test the wildlife to their limits. The plot
masterfully weaves a tale of murder, treachery and the fight for
survival. The interwoven narrative is told from three different
viewpoints, Thorn Middleleaf a young baboon, Fearless the lion cub
and Sky the elephant.
When the Great Mother elephant who wisely ruled the Bravelands is
murdered and her body left in the waterhole, trouble unfolds. As the
Great Flock, the Strider elephant herd, Brightforest baboon troop
and other animals gather here, all are questioning who is best to
take on the leadership. The Great Mother didn't have time to train a
successor and pass on the Great Spirit's voice. As the torrential
rain pours, Stronghide the rhino steps forward to claim the role.
Sky from the Strider elephant herd slips away with her cousin Moon
to search for answers in the Plain of Our Ancestors, taking a
fragment of her Great Mother grandmother's tusk along with her.
Meanwhile, the Brightforest baboon troop leader Stinger restructures
the group, causing problems which young Thorn realises is really a
devious plot to dominate his troop and stir up trouble in the
Bravelands. Attacks by the marauding green monkeys and vervet
monkeys drives the troop into dangerous paths as they search for
shelter.
Titan leader of Titan pride also plans for complete control of the
Bravelands by killing a large amount of predators, breaking the code
of only killing to survive. Disillusioned and forgotten cub Fearless
seeks advice from his friend Stinger the baboon.
Each of the protagonists show courage and resilience as they search
for the truth and stand up for what is right. Code of Honor
delivers exciting action, high levels of drama,
and convincing characters who are multi-dimensional. The savannah
setting, the natural environment, the drought and floods and animal
habitats are richly and realistically portrayed. The themes are
dark, treachery, murder, deceit, destruction and survival, with
complex conspiracies and intrigue. The misuse of power and its
consequences are an overarching theme. Fans will be keen to read the
third novel in the series, after the cliffhanger ending.
Rhyllis Bignell
The dam by David Almond
Ill. by Levi Pinfold. Walker Studio, 2018. ISBN 9781406304879
(Age: 6+) Highly recommended. Themes: Music. Dams. Loss. Hope.
Picture book for older readers. Based on a true story told to Almond
by Kathryn and Mike Tickells, two musicians, The dam
celebrates the power of the human spirit and the beauty of music. In
the 1980's, Keider Water in Northumberland, the largest artificial
lake in the UK, was created. Farms and houses were submerged and a
village drowned, but before that happened a father and his daughter
visited the houses and in each, the girl played her fiddle for the
last time. Then the valley disappeared and a huge dam and lake took
its place. When the water rose and covered everything, it left a
beautiful lake and Behind the dam
Within the water the music stays,
Will never be gone.
Beautifully illustrated by Levi Pinfold, this poignant picture book
will linger in the memory. The text is sparse and beautiful and the
accompanying illustrations, first in sepia tones, and then gradually
becoming more colourful, are stunning and beg to be examined again
and again. The father and his daughter come alive on the pages, the
love between the two and for music shining through the pages, with
people singing and dancing on the banks of the lake as the
continuation of music is celebrated even though great changes have
been made in the landscape.
This is an unforgettable picture book, with author and illustrator
combining to give the reader a lyrical story with wonderful imagery,
truly a showcase of art.
Pat Pledger
How not to be a twit and other wisdom from Roald Dahl
Ill. by Quentin Blake, Puffin. ISBN 9780241330821
(Age: 6+) Themes: Roald Dahl. Witticisms. Sayings. In this unusual
offering from The Roald Dahl Story Company Ltd, children can read
witticisms and sayings taken from Dahl's books. Based around one of
his most popular books, The Twits, the introduction tells us
that not being a twit is something to be aimed for and this little
volume will help you avoid the trap (of growing up).
With quotes from his broad acreage of books, and references to where
the quotes are from, this inviting volume of sayings will push
readers to search out the books from which the quotes came,
reacquainting themselves with the humour contained in Dahl's books.
To quote just a few: "What's so wonderful about being a little boy
anyway? Why is that necessarily any better than being a mouse?
Little boys have to go to school. Mice don't." (The Witches)
"It's impossible to make your eyes twinkly if you aren't feeling
twinkly yourself" (Danny the Champion of the World) "Life is
made up of a great number of small incidents and a small number of
great ones" (Going Solo)
And all illustrated with the dancing pen of Quentin Blake, the
familiar lines of his technique will enthral the reader, recognising
his drawings form other Dahl books they have read.
A sure fire book to reinvigorate interest in Dahl's stories and
Blake's illustrations, this volume, designed to fit comfortably in a
small hand, will be bought by those with fond memories of their
work, designed to pass it on to their children and grandchildren.
Fran Knight
Boats: fast and slow by Iris Volant
Ill. by Jarom Vogel. Flying Eye Books, 2018. ISBN 9781911171522
(Age: 5+) Highly recommended. Themes: Boats, Non fiction, History,
Survival, Exploration, Migration. The history of boats is entwined
with the history of people around the world, as people look for
food, conquer other countries, build boats as a sign of their power
and influence, explore, migrate to new worlds, and use boats for
festivals and races.
From the beginning of this beautifully presented non fiction book,
readers will eagerly read of the ways boats have developed and
changed according to what is required by the population. The first
few pages are devoted to a definition of a boat: a vessel to carry
people across water, and then to elaborate on the different sorts of
boats that we may see. From there the book divides into four
sections: "The first boats", "War boats", "Work boats" and "Leisure
boats" with a double page between each section showcasing one
particular boat that is well known.
Each section gives detail about the style of boat and what it is
used for and where and when. In "War boats", for example is a page
on Viking longships and Pirates, while "Work boats" introduces the Cutty
Sark as well as steam boats. Double pages are devoted to
famous boats, like the legendary Nautilius and Ra's
barge, HMS Beagle and Spray.
Readers will love reading of these famous ships and how they
influenced our lives. After a fascinating read, children will find
two pages outlining the Semaphore flags and then a further double
page offers an illustrated index. Each of the endpapers has a map of
the world with illustrations showing where some fo the boats
resided.
All in all a wonderful read to educate and entertain, making sure
children and adults will know what they are looking at when they
visit some of these magnificent boats.
Fran Knight
Careless Love by Peter Robinson
DCI Banks series. Hachette, 2018. ISBN 9781444786989
(Age: senior/adult) Themes: Crime, Yorkshire Robinson's latest DCI
Banks Novel, Careless Love is the 25th in the series. The
Yorkshire setting will be familiar to those who have read the books
and seen the TV adaptations. This new novel involves the discovery
of three bodies, two in Banks' area and one in the neighbouring
jurisdiction. There are problems about each of the deaths and the
scenes of the crimes. There is a definite lack of anything to
identify the bodies, no mobile phones, wallets, purses, credit cards
or keys. They are all well dressed, as if on a swanky night out, not
for a hike on the moors, while one appears to have committed
suicide.
The novel eventually reaches the point many readers probably guessed
at quite early in the narrative, that sex is the contributing factor
not drugs. It is now just the detail that needs expanding and
explaining to keep the audience attentive and reading.
Fans of DCI Banks will find the read satisfying, with the constant
references to his music knowledge and choices attempting to make him
more human and adding to the characteristics fans already know about
the man, but all it did for me was to make the reading easier by
skipping all those music citations. The most interesting addition is
Annie's father's partner Zelda, an eastern European woman much
younger than Ray. She has had a number of very nasty experiences
with sex traffickers and now, because of her photographic memory
recall works in London on occasions for one of the government
surveillance agencies. It is her piece of information that directs
Banks and Annie down a path towards an old adversary, one who will
stop at nothing. He has already tried to kill Banks, so fans will
eagerly follow the storyline to see how Banks extricates himself.
It is an easy read, but its satisfaction level may not please
everyone. A click on https://
www.inspectorbanks.com/ will tell you all you need to know
about Banks and the other 24 novels detailing his investigations.
Mark Knight
You can't let an elephant drive a digger by Patricia Cleveland-Peck
Ill. by David Tazzyman. Bloomsbury, 2018. ISBN 9781408879146
(Age: 4+) Recommended. Themes: STEM. Probability. Humour. Verse. A
range of improbably domesticated animals are given impossible things
to do, inviting every reader to simply laugh out loud at the antics
shown. Each double page shows an improbable scene: a shark in the
bath, a polar bear cutting hair, a seal acting as a chef, brushing
your teeth with a crocodile and more, all illustrated with gusto,
hinting at the possible things which may happen with the animal
doing something he is simply not designed to do.
Told in four line rhyming stanzas, each page invites the reader to
predict the last word of each line and many adults will find
children learning the stanza detailing the animal they like best.
Kids will love the looks on their faces as they try out their
impossible tasks, and the corresponding looks on the children's
faces as a shark appears in the bath or an octopus helps with
dressing or a wolf offers to read a bedtime story. Each page
bristles with laughter and kids will love looking at the detail
where other things are happening: mice carrying away the mousetrap,
a cat under the table eating the fish dropped by the seal or the
elephant's poo dropping onto one of the workers.
Full to the brim with hilarity, children will relish this unusual
tale, another from the duo who created "You can't take an elephant
on a bus". David Tazzyman is new to me and I found out more about
him here.
Initially a commercial illustrator, he illustrated the "Mr Gum"
books for Egmont in 2006 and has illustrated children's books ever
since. Patricia Cleveland-Peck has written some 14 books and more
information can be found here.
Fran Knight
Oscar the hungry unicorn by Lou Carter
Ill. by Nikki Dyson. Orchard, 2018. ISBN 9781408355756
(Age: 3+) Recommended. Themes: Unicorns. Fairy tales. Food. Home.
Humour. Oscar loves to eat and despite what he eats, he is still
hungry. He eats his stable, the gingerbread house, the pirate ship,
the toadstools which house the fairies and the dragon's pizza. The
dragon points out that the pizza is to share, but Oscar takes no
notice. But at the giant's table, he finds that he is part of the
food going into the giant's mouth so runs away, despairing that he
will never find a home. He crosses the troll bridge eating it as he
goes, and just as the trolls begin to exact their revenge, Princess
Oola comes by with her boat. She scoops him up, telling how she
loves unicorns and takes him to her castle, where food is never
ending and Oscar finds a home. But he still looks at the moon with
avaricious eyes.
This lovely story about eating reflects many fairy tales which
readers will be familiar with. They will love the references to
these stories, spying the illustrations to see what parts of the
fairy story is mentioned. The fun illustrations suit the tone of the
story well, and younger readers will love peering into each picture
to see the details.
Teachers and parents will be able to use the story to talk about the
place of food in our lives, and the appropriateness of some of the
food available against a funny and inviting story.
Fran Knight
Dino diggers: Dumper truck danger by Rose Impey
Ill. by Chris Chatterton. Bloomsbury, 2018. ISBN 9781408872482
(Age: 4+) Recommended. Dinosaurs, Technology, Accidents. In
Dino-Town, the Dino Diggers are all ready for action. Dressed in
their hard hats and fluoro jackets, they can take on any problem
which comes long, so when the town bridge collapses after a heavy
rain storm, they are ready with their machines to clear the path and
help rebuild the bridge.
Young readers will adore the five friends, Terri,Tyrone, Bruno, Ricky
and Stacey, working out just why each has that particular name,
their size and physical attributes eagerly recognised by dinosaur
hunters. The problem of the bridge and the baker's van stuck beneath
causes the team some headaches as Tyrone takes his digger down into
the river bed to get the van out. He does this successfully but they
both end up on the wrong side of the bridge. Another problem creates
another solution, and all ends happily, with the dinosaurs reopening
the bridge in time for traffic. The Dino Diggers have done their
work.
Young readers will love looking at the array of work done by each of
the trucks illustrated, recognising these implements from seeing
them on their streets. The illustrations give a streamlined image of
each of them allowing kids to point out the features of each.
Recognisable work safety measures are included, alluding to the
possible dangers of this work, and showing readers what needs to
happen to keep themselves safe. In the last few pages is a cardboard
cutout of Stacey's dump truck with instructions on how to put it
together, continuing the fun of the book.
Fran Knight
Mummy Fairy and me : Fairy in waiting by Sophie Kinsella
Penguin, 2018. ISBN 9780141377896
(Ages: 5 - 7) Recommended. Themes: Fairies. Humour. "Ella's
family has a big secret - her Mummy is a fairy. She can do amazing
spells with her computawand. Only, sometimes the spells go a bit
wrong, and that's when Ella steps in to the rescue.
In this brand-new book of magical adventures, there are very naughty
monkeys, a swimming pool filled with ice-cream, and the best
birthday party ever - complete with giant cakes and fairy dust."
(Publisher)
And after so much fun and adventure, will Ella get her wish and
become a magical fairy, just like her Mum?
The magic and mayhem in this young chapter book make it a sweet and
funny series for 5-7 year-old's. There are lots of messy adventures
and parents who do silly things.
Donna Isgar
Melowy : The ice enchantment by Danielle Star
Ill. by Danielle Stern. Melowy series book 4. Scholastic,
2018, ISBN 9781338151800
(Age: 6-8) Themes: Unicorns, Fantasy, Friendship, Courage. In the
Castle of Destiny hidden by a sea of clouds, Melowies, winged horses
with gorgeous colourings, gather to be schooled in magic. Cleo,
Electra, Maya, Cora and Selena wake to a beautiful morning eager to
begin their classes in the Art of Powers. Cleo's destiny is unsure,
she hasn't received her place in a realm yet: will she be a Winter,
Spring, Day or Night? To find the nature of the young filly's power
she needs to attend all the classes with her friends. This proves to
be difficult for her, as she suffers sunburn in the Day Tower,
tangles herself up in plants in the Spring Tower, and has candle
problems in the Night Tower.
Cleo seeks advice from Theodora the friend who raised her after she
was left on the castle steps as a baby. She needs encouragement to
keep on with her lessons. Mysteries and problems abound, with a
stolen magic book, a classmate casting a forbidden spell and
problems in creating ice sculptures from the magic waterfall. Little
by little, Cleo learns the power of friendship and patience.
Bright colours, pretty embellishments and beautiful creatures adorn
the pages, making this junior novel sparkle. Danielle Star's magical
fantasy series are just right for newly independent readers.
Rhyllis Bignell
Ruby's worry by Tom Percival
Bloomsbury, 2018. ISBN 9781408892152
(Age: 3+) Recommended. Themes: Anxiety. Depression. Sharing.
Friendship. Ruby's life is carefree and happy, but one day a worry
finds her. At first it is a very small worry and can be hidden
behind her, or even ignored. But as time goes on the worry increases
in size, becoming a constant shadow next to her as she goes to bed
at night, eats her breakfast and catches the bus to school. She
tries to work at school, but the worry sits next to her, invading
her thoughts. The worry gets bigger, staring at her over the
breakfast table, sitting on the swing besides her. She realises that
no-one else can see her worry, until one day she sees a young boy
sitting in the park. He too has a worry and this time, Ruby can see
his worry. He is sad and reflects just how she feels, so she sits
down next to him and they talk about their worries. As they do this
their worries become smaller, and lift from their shoulders. They
are aware that by sharing their worries they become smaller, and
Ruby knows that although her shadow is still there, much smaller
than it was, she now has the skill to keep it under control.
This story, like Mr
Huff (Anna Walker, 2015) is most useful at a time where
mental ill health has become a problem amongst younger children.
Children will instantly recognise the background to the story, many
knowing someone who suffers from anxiety, and see that having a
worry is not unusual and there are steps they can take to help
themselves not be overwhelmed by the feeling.
Fran Knight
Uncle Shawn and Bill and the pajimminy-crimminy unusual adventure by A.L. Kennedy
Ill. by Gemma Correll. Walker Books Ltd, 2018. ISBN 9781406360509
(Ages: 6-9) Recommended. Themes: Friendship. Humour. Bonkers
story of friendship, llamas and total evil.
Uncle Shawn and Bill are back, and so are the llamas. In a book that
could stand alone or work as a sequel, they have settled into a
happy life at their llama farm in Scotland with their new llama
friends. But all is not right on the horizon as someone new to their
village is stirring up trouble, and encouraging anything 'unusual'
to be vilified and the perpetrators locked up...
This contains great hilarious posters, comic style illustrations and
informative chapter headings evoking old Victorian novels. It is a
very visual story, with plenty to read around the words themselves.
The theme of celebrating difference and not being afraid of who you
are, is well covered by a vast number of different habits and
hobbies of the people in Pandrumdroochit. They get involved in an
exciting adventure as Bill and the llamas (as well as some other
friends) work together to defeat the evil threatening them all.
The story is totally bonkers, but such good fun and has a lesson of
friendship at its heart.
This is a great series, with lovely short chapters, lots of action
and silliness and full of things to look at.
Donna Isgar
Princess Swashbuckle by Hollie Hughes
Ill. by Deborah Allwright. Bloomsbury, 2018. ISBN 9781408862803
(Age: 4+) Recommended. Themes: Princesses, Stereotypes, Adventure,
Frogs, Family, Verse, Humour. All Princess Swashbuckle wants to do
is be a pirate queen, to sail away on a pirate ship and be the ruler
of the waves. But her parents want her to marry a frog and settle
down. How can she marry Hubert who lives in a bog or Gerald who
lives beneath a log? She packs her bag and steals away one night,
boarding the Stinky Fish. Finding its crew is upset at seeing their
captain swim for shore, she is the perfect replacement.
Together the princess and the crew have incredible adventures,
sailing the seven seas, meeting a range of other people, helping out
where they can. They teach a mouse to be brave, and show a snake how
to make a cake, but once all their adventures are done, Princess
Swashbuckle feels a little out of sorts. She writes to her parents
and receives a reply which apologises for their insistence that she
marry, and invite her back to Frogland. Without hesitation she makes
her way back home, allowing her parents to retire while she takes
over ruling the kingdom, albeit with a pirate flavour.
This charming story full of whimsy and humour, will appeal to
younger readers, lapping up the allusions to fairy stories with a
reversal of the usual roles, and parallels to frogs which they will
perfectly understand.
The detailed illustrations attract the eyes drawing them into
perusing the things in the background, referencing things that
pirates do and adventures associated with this group of people.
Readers will thrill at the kingdom's seawall, shaped like a dragon's
body, or the watchful eye of the ship, or the pirate's flag. All
good fun.
Fran Knight
Norman the Knight gets a fright! by Mark Sperring
Ill. by Ed Eaves. Bloomsbury, 2108. ISBN 9781408873991
(Age: 4+) Recommended. Themes: Knights, Dragons, Employment. When
the four children and their cat apply for the job of helping Norman
the Brave, a knight of renown, they are surprised at what he expects
them to do. Their work involves darning his large pile of socks,
ironing his pants, cleaning his armour and scrubbing him in the bath
after fetching loads of hot water. They must then squeeze him into
his armour, and use a hoist to lift him into his horse's saddle,
after first catching the unresponsive animal. They are all ready to
go to the Royal Parade, Norman looking very brave and shiny after
all the efforts of his knaves, our four friends by contrast looking
shabby and weary. At the parade the knights are set upon by a group
of brigands and bandits, while trying to deal with a fire breathing
dragon. Norman and the other knights cower in the background while
the four knaves take charge, putting out the dragon's fire and
seeing off the brigands and thieves.
Norman then puts his knaves further off side by bragging about his
exploits at saving the day whereas the knaves know what really
happened, making the readers laugh at the knight's duplicity. The
work might not be the job for our four friends, and at the end of
the story, another workplace seems to be before them, making sure
the readers will want to see the next book when the four try out
working with a magician.
Told in rhyming pairs of lines, readers will love predicting the
rhyming word as each line is read, and be intrigued with some of the
new words offered: knave, brigand, bandit, which they may not have
come across before. There are hilarious illustrations with lots of
detail to look at, funny faces and situations to laugh at, as well
as a lesson to be discussed about humility, and information included
giving readers an insight into the lives of knights and knaves
during Medieval times.
Fran Knight
The afterlife of Holly Chase by Cynthia Hand
Harper Collins Publishers, 2017. ISBN 9781460754283
(Ages: 12+) Highly recommended. A heart-warming and emotional tale
of the importance of generosity, family, love and compassion. When
Holly Chase is visited on Christmas Eve by three spirits warning her
of the imminent consequences of her selfish actions, she elects to
ignore their advice, doing nothing to mend her ways. Six days later,
she dies. Awakening in an office, Holly learns that she will be
working for a top-secret company called 'Project Scrooge' to help
other 'Scrooges' like her change their behaviour before it's too
late. She is appointed to the position of the Ghost of Christmas
Past and accepts this as her fate; forced to redeem herself through
encouraging others to do what she could not - change for the better.
Five years after her death, however, she is faced with a Scrooge
that she feels a connection to: Ethan Winters III, a
seventeen-year-old who is similarly spoilt, materialistic and
grieving the loss of a parent. For the first time since her death,
Holly finds that she has something to be hopeful for.
Through her authentic and genuine characters, beautiful writing
style and valuable moral, New York Times bestselling author Cynthia
Hand provides a sweet, unforgettable and thought-provoking novel
that will touch the heart of its reader, and fill them with hope,
happiness and gratitude. A book that is impossible to put down, and
even harder to stop thinking about, "The Afterlife of Holly Chase"
is not a novel to miss and is a wonderful read all year round.
Daniella Chiarolli (university student)
