Brilliant is a quirky new picture book that will offer the opportunity for a lively discussion with young readers about words, their meanings and how ingeniously they can be used to tell a story. Told using only 16 words, with 14 of them ending in ‘ant’, this delightfully simple and surprising story will become a popular read.
The story begins with a full page illustration of an ‘expectant’ queen ant with the word alongside. This is followed by more double page spreads showcasing ‘ant’ words in various stages in the life of an ant e.g. infant, militant, contestant, assistants. There are also words such as important, abundant, triumphant and vacant cleverly used to add to the story. A humorous twist introduces the word ‘elephant’ and the resulting ‘faceplant’ by the intrepid hero of the story will definitely raise a smile or two.
This picture book is a debut for Swazi-born, now Queensland-based writer, Rosi Ngwenya. The illustrations by Sandy Flett are bold and colourful, with the glossy paper adding extra pizazz to the text. Both author and illustrator have captured the essence of humour that will appeal to the Early Years age group. The gorgeous cover with the silver embossed letters, the front endpapers with multiple images of ants plus the final endpapers sharing more illustrated ‘ant’ words alongside the hero taking a bow, add so many more dimensions to this entertaining story. A thoughtful inclusion is the very welcome facts about ants and elephants in the final pages.
If only I had told her, the sequel to If he had been with me, is a love story told through three different perspectives – Finn, Jack and Autumn. It is a love story filled with authenticity, tragedy, and unanticipated connections that bring about healing.
This sequel complements the first book by offering Finn's perspective to Autumn's story, utilising flashbacks to focus on differing timelines. It's touching to witness the emotional depth from Finn's point of view, revealing the sadness and heartbreak both characters experience. Finn has always loved Autumn. She’s not just the girl next door or his mother’s best friend’s daughter, she is his everything. But she’s not his girlfriend. That’s Sylvie, and Finn would never hurt her, so there’s no way Autumn could know how he truly feels.
Autumn's journey of moving forward and coping with grief, especially as a teen mother, is portrayed excellently by Laura Nowlin. Autumn surrounds herself with books and wants to write her own destiny - but one doesn’t always get a new chapter and fate can be cruel to those in love.
The inclusion of Jack's point of view, though unexpected, adds another layer of depth that I found intriguing. Jack, Finn's closest confidant, has his doubts. Observing Finn and Autumn together, how could Autumn be unaware of Finn's feelings? Jack feels torn between supporting Finn and shielding him from the inevitable heartbreak.
The book imparts valuable lessons on loss, maintaining mental well-being during tough times, and the significance of healing to find peace. It's advisable to check for trigger warnings before delving into this emotionally challenging read.
For a reading of this book, go here. In short pithy sentences, Santos gives the readers a lot to think about with reference to their fathers. The narrator’s grandfather is no longer there and so Oliver tells us that he never met him, but neither did his father. So he tells us the things about his father that he would like his grandfather to know about his son.
He has the same number of arms, legs and eyes as any other dad, but he calls him octopus dad as he sees him, even when he is behind him, and always knows when to reach out a hand to help. He makes lots of jokes, and laughs a lot, ignoring others. He says that those who laugh, joke and love, live longer! He teaches him how to do things, rather than doing them for him.
He encourages him to read and says being without a book is like a house without a heart. When Oliver is angry he must count to ten, and although he cannot see the reason for this, when he gets to ten, he has forgotten why he was angry.
Hugs are food for the heart.
He always believes in Oliver, telling him he can be anything he wants. My grandfather never knew my dad but he would be proud of him, and my children will be proud of their grandfather.
Beautiful illustrations will entrance the readers as they hear the text and survey the pages.The soft palette of sepia colours embrace the mood of the story, making it at once magical and universal as well as talking of the here and now. Children will love looking at all the things their fathers do with them, making them feel included and special.
A wonderful story for the times, and with Father’s day coming up, one to be shared.
Themes Fathers, Childhood, Love, Grandfathers.
Fran Knight
The autist's guide to the galaxy by Clara Tornvall
Author Clara Törnvall was diagnosed with autism at the age of 42. Her first book, The Autists: women on the spectrum, is a memoir that shares her own story as well as offering an insight into how autistic women navigate the neurotypical world. Her second book The Autist’s Guide to the Galaxy: navigating the world of ‘normal people’ is a highly accessible information-style read for those autists who on a daily basis interact with neurotypical people or NT’s as they can be known.
For many autists, workplaces, schools, shops and family gatherings are often a source of confusion as to the expectations of behaviour and interaction. To be able to read this practical guide may provide a degree of understanding of what is actually happening to NT’s with words they use, in their actions and connections, and how this may impact on autists. For neurotypical people who regularly share each day with autists this small easy-to-digest book offers a valuable insight to the way of the world for those who view, say and think in other ways from NT people.
The Autist’s Guide to the Galaxy: navigating the world of ‘normal people’ is a handy reference offering explanations and ideas with examples and shared stories from autists. It is complete with tips, and facts as well as a good dose of humour. A worthwhile book to recommend and share with the neurotypical people and autists in your life.
Beautiful endpapers show the vista on a Western Australian beach, giving a wow to the reader as they open the book.
When Quokka hops to the beach he finds a seal pup sitting on a rock by itself. When Quokka meets Seal, he wants to be friends. Quokka thinks that making Seal smile would be a great way to start. But, despite his best efforts, Seal doesn’t smile. Quokka goes to great lengths to try to make Seal smile but to no avail. He makes a lot of fun faces, does tricks, uses seaweed and shells to decorate his body, but all failed. Eventually he falls into the sea, and he can’t swim. Seal dives into the water to rescue him. He offers to teach Quokka to swim, but Quoka does not want to learn to swim. He asks Seal if they can still be friends, and of course they can, even though they are quite different.
Can they be friends after all? A resounding yes is answered within the story, showing younger readers that people do not have to fit your mould of a friend. This latest picture book from children’s author Katie Stewart features well known Australian animals and uses her stories about animals to teach children the value of understanding each other’s differences.
Katie Stewart is an author and illustrator. She came to Australia at the age of nine. She has worked in a variety of positions, archaeologist, ethnohistorian, teacher and librarian, before using her skills as a illustrator to write and illustrate the stories, which now number five for Fremantle Press.
Themes Australian animals, Diversity, Quokka, Western Australia.
Fran Knight
Yarn quest: The search for the story realm by Brooke Scobie and Jade Goodwin
Penguin, 2024. ISBN: 9781761345227. (Age:8-10)
The search for the story realm is part of the Yarn Quest trilogy published by Penguin books. Before they were books, Yarn Quest was a first-nations led children's podcast, incorporating stories written by the Awesome Black team. AwesomeBlack is an agency that centres First Nations voices and stories and hence its support of Brooke Scobie, author of The Search for the story realm and Jade Goodwin the illustrator.
Brooke Scobie is a queer, auDHD, First Nations author. She is "passionate about creating stories and worlds where weird, wonderful kids of all shapes and sizes can see themselves in magical places on extraordinary adventures". This she achieves in The search for the story realm.
The two main characters, Tane and Sibyl, are loved real life children, to whom the book is dedicated, so there is an extra warmth about the story. Tane has difficulty finishing stories which causes him anxiety at school. The plot follows a magical adventure in the story realm of the Australian bush with a spirit called Fable. The sadness of the bush and the loss of the story spirit's energy could be an allegory for the loss of the Australian bush. Invasion is mentioned. The children have to save the spirit.
The search for the story realm exudes a warm-hearted, authentic voice which permeates the narrative and the dialogue. This is illustrated also in the warmth of the relationships with the aunties..."Of course you do, bub. Now, hats on before you leave, I don't want to see any sunburn on any of youse".
This story, The search for the story realm, and the other two books in the trilogy will be particularly enjoyed by First Nations children who will see the importance of story and feel the warmth of the narrator's voice speaking into their lives.
Themes Storytelling, Australian bush spirit magic, Truth and lies, First Nations.
It's rare to find a romance novel that is not only entertainingly funny but also rich in endearing, well-developed characters and intricate relationship dynamics.Ann Liang's talent shines through in both relatable character portrayal and development in I Hope This Doesn't Find You.
Protagonist Sadie Wen holds the titles of school captain, valedictorian, and is praised as a delight in class. Sadie has a coping mechanism to maintain her picture-perfect smile – she channels her frustrations into unsent email drafts. These emails allow her to vent about her power-hungry English teacher or classmates taking credit for her work, without causing any harm. Among her most strongly worded email drafts are those aimed at her infuriating co-captain, Julius Gong, whose arrogance and competitive nature have irritated Sadie since childhood. In these emails, Sadie expresses her true feelings without any filter, releasing her pent-up emotions.
When Sadie's emails unintentionally reach the entire school, she is confronted with the impending collapse of the facade she meticulously built - that of a perfect, diligent student who refrains from speaking ill of others. Liang uses this event to showcase Sadie's inner conflict, her struggle between shrinking herself to avoid conflict and the part of her longing to voice her thoughts. This sets the stage for her character growth. Initially a people-pleaser craving validation, Sadie gradually evolves over the story, prioritising her own feelings over others' approval. Amidst the turmoil, one unexpected person begins to appreciate the genuine Sadie – Julius, the very person she vowed to despise.
The story delves into who Sadie and Julius truly are, their motivations, fears, goals, dreams, and how these aspects intertwine.
I Hope This Doesn't Find You stands out as Ann Liang's finest romantic comedy. It's masterfully executed and beautifully crafted, a book I can envision revisiting multiple times.
Themes Romance, Contemporary Fiction, High School.
Ruth Tipping
Growing up Indian in Australia by Aarti Betigeri ed.
Black Inc Books, 2024. ISBN: 9781760644697. (Age:14+) Highly recommended.
This latest in the Growing up in Australia series, collects together the varied experiences of Australians from the South Asian continent, people we group together as Indian, yet who may originate from East Africa, Fiji, Pakistan, Malaysia and other places as well as mother India. Their religions vary also: Muslim, Hindu, Christian, Jewish and a follower of Sai Baba. They are diverse voices, dispelling stereotypical ideas of ‘Indian’, yet there is a common thread running through all the stories, that of feeling caught between two cultures, the Indian culture guarded by parents and the lived experience of Australian culture. This idea of ‘third culture’ Australians has a humorous treatment in Saman Shad’s recent novel The matchmaker (2023), highly recommended as a warm-hearted expose of the third culture dilemma.
Sadly the other common theme in this collection of stories is the experience of racism, of schoolyard bullying of the brown kid with the strange lunch food, to workplace harassment, to xenophobic riots. However the voices of these writers are strong and resilient, they have not only survived their experiences, they are carving out new identities, valuing the traditions they have come from, but also confident in the spaces they are creating for themselves.
There is a variety of styles: prose, an A-Z catalogue, a user guide, memoir, interview, verse, even a recipe! They are all interesting, but the story I most enjoyed was the joyously upbeat ‘The dance performance’ by Swagata Bapat, and her description of her childhood exhilaration, perfumed, bangled, and glittering in her costume, as she participates in a traditional dance at the community hall. 'I am not the boring, tongue-tied kid who is teased at school . . . I am just movement, colour, sound, joy and beauty; and I am held by the vibrant community that surrounds me.’ Her story is just so expressive of the vitality of the culture that she brings to Australia, sharing happiness and enriching life for all Australians.
The ‘Notes on Contributors’ at the end of the book provides brief details about each writer, a starting point for finding out more about those you particularly enjoy, both established authors and emerging new talent that you won’t want to miss.
Themes Short stories, Childhood, Identity, Cultural diversity, India.
Helen Eddy
I am Tree Rex! by Mo Davey
Berbay Books, 2024. ISBN: 9781922610669. (Age:3+)
Rex lived by a forest. He knew well all twenty one of the trees which he hugged everyday. But one day he only counted twenty. He searched everywhere to no avail. Returning home he found a visitor at his door. The small bird explained what had happened to the tree, and Rex made a space for him in his house. Rex heard a noise outside but was too late to stop the tree being destroyed. He went home and found that his first bird was not alone, there was a range of birds waiting for him. He tried to sleep that night in the small space he had left, but he worried all night as well. Hugging the trees he found restful, so went back inside to gather the birds together to make a plan.
They sewed a tree shape and dressed Rex in the costume. When the interlopers came to cut down another tree, he roared and shouted at them that he was Tree Rex until the tree takers ran away. After that Rex decided to plant more trees so his counting was just like before.
This is a heartening story about conservation, as Rex takes acton to stop the destruction of the forest around him.
Lu is an Afro-American kid who has discovered himself through athletics. His friends are part of his run club and together they work hard to make themselves faster and stronger. Lu also is lucky… lightning bolt lucky. Or that is what his mother calls it, because he is also blessed with albinism, which means he is a rare ‘white’ black guy. Lu is working towards a new event in the athletics meet, but the biggest deal in his life now is the news that he will soon be a big brother. As all of the following - running, family life and the discovery of his father’s history that led him to become a worker in drug rehabilitation - come together in Lu’s world, he must also find out what integrity means.
Set in a rough-and-ready USA environment where track meets are part of the sporting landscape, this Middle grades novel deals with big issues, but with a light touch and in a kid-friendly way. It starts with an ‘explosion-of-consciousness’ flow of language that is like being on the end of a personality catapult for the reader. But it instantly lets us know that we will be inside the head of the main character Lu, with all of his struggles thrown at us - with him being the brunt of a bully’s attacks, the uncertainty of being a big brother, the struggles with growing up and being fast. The language is also heavily impacted by the Afro-American street lingo that will be very foreign to Aussie readers. Even the names used are almost all nick-names, and this may be confusing for readers who come into this series in Book 4. I liked the way the author deals with serious issues eg drug addiction and rehabilitation, but these are never light issues for a children’s book. But there is also a powerful lesson on the connection of team, and the hard work and discipline of sport that will impress sport-loving readers. This is a book that young Aussie readers may struggle with unless they have some idea of USA culture and can get into the lingo of the street, but it has an appeal that is quite intriguing. But be aware - the drug culture history and impacts sit in parallel to the run-club experience.
Aimed at readers aged 10-12
Themes Athletics, Albinism, Friendship, Bullying, Drugs and rehabilitation.
Matt Stanton hardly needs an introduction to Australian children, parents and teachers. He is a best-selling Australian author and illustrator who has sold over a million books in Australia. The Funny Kid series (aimed at Middle Years students) has fans around the world. The Fluff series (aimed at Primary years students) is his latest.
Fluff: Mess up! is second in the series following Fluff:Bullies Beware! What a hoot this book is! All the good-natured comedy, the sweet (slightly naughty) characters and their shenanigans bring joy and laughter to kids. This sort of graphic novel turns reluctant readers into readers. The behaviours of the characters show that Matt Stanton is an acute observer of human nature. The reader must be able to read irony too because sometimes the illustrations deliberately do not match the words. This deliberate mismatch is where humour lies for the astute reader. An example is p.68 where the illustration depicts Stacey, the teenage sister with hair all over her face and eyes glued to her mobile phone. Gilbert, our hilarious main character, misreading as usual, says, 'Stacey...she's...also very busy being a teenager, and being a teenager appears quite stressful'.
Themes Finish what you start, Fix mistakes, Don't avoid tasks.
Fans of Penric and Desdemona (Penric’s travels) will be thrilled, as I was, to have another novella in the series. This time Penric is on the search for long lost treasure when he encounters Rozakajin in a country inn. Roz is an army deserter and bandit and believes that he has found the perfect victim especially when he spies him studying an ancient map and muttering about temple treasure. But Roz is in for a shock, the young, naïve man has many surprises up his sleeve. And the bloodthirsty bandit gang from whom Roz has stolen a string of mules is on his trail. Will Penric and Desdemona manage to stave off the bandit gang? And can they retrieve what they consider treasure in an abandoned cave?
Roz is astounded by the power that Penric demonstrates and the events that surround him. Readers will be engaged with the adventure and the tension as the bandits follow them. And they will relate to the struggles that Roz has – will he leave Penric to join the bandits again? Will he choose redemption over evil doing?
Bujold always packs a lot into her short novellas. There is humour, pathos, adventure and the struggle between good and evil. Pen and Desdemona are wonderful characters and I look forward to many more of their adventures. In the meantime I will turn to other favourites by this author, A civil contract and Flowers of Vashnoi.
Themes Fantasy, Demons, Redemption, Bandits.
Pat Pledger
Yanga mother by Cheryl Leavy. Illus. by Christopher Bassi
University of Queensland Press, 2024. ISBN: 9780702268311. (Age:3+) Highly recommended.
A story about a kangaroo and her joey sets the stage for much deeper understandings and discussions. Speaking of family, or nurturing, of mothers and the stolen generation, of culture and history the book opens with ‘Wandaguli Yanga. There is always Mother’, the Kooma words asking to be read out loud, the truth of the English words not lost on the reader.
From these stunning words, the book goes on ‘everywhere, everywhen, Mother is sun’; all the things that Mother is to her offspring are given words. Mother is everywhere, she is the cloud and the sky; the joey follows her everywhere. They do everything together. Even when she is a little way away, the joey knows she is there. And when she is far away, ‘there is always Mother’. The repeat of the opening line adds to its impact as the reader comes to understand that far away references the stolen generation, when Mothers and their children were separated by government forces. But this did nothing to cleave the love between them.
Artwork is from renowned Meriam and Yupungathi artist Christopher Bassi, his illustrations bring the kangaroo and her joey into sharp focus, their images are like portraits on each page, the focus of the words. The swathes of yellows recreate the desert area in which these animals live, the pages with grey/blue a softer image of togetherness and love between the two.
This wonderful picture book about the grey kangaroo and her joey is representative of the First Nations people and their being torn apart by colonisation and the deliberate separation of mothers and their children. A wonderful read aloud, a book to encourage discussion, a book to be read and reread, as it offers more to readers the more they ponder and discuss.
Look at the following clip to get help with the pronunciation of the Kooma words used in Yanga Mother.
Dr Jackie Huggins' review says: ‘A story of love, language and culture which speaks to the very essence of loss, colonisation, connection and resilience. This is not only an asset to preschool, kindergarten and older readers, but to all who open the first page of this exquisite book. Teacher's notes are available.
Plum is a very unhappy panda. She feels she is not good at anything. Her brother is good at climbing, so she tries too, but she falls back to the ground. Second brother loves to paint, so she tries too. But she gets herself covered in paint.
She snuggles sadly into her mother’s lap, and she is assured that she will find something she is good at.
One morning she wakes to lovely music just like the warmth of a stack of pancakes. She follows the music, and finds Old Panda playing the piano. He offers to teach her how to play. She is reticent, but he assures her that when her heart flips over like a pancake, she should try.
This is the hardest thing she has ever tried. Old Panda tells her to be gentle, as soft and light as a pancake. Week after week she tries, and finds that she is getting better and better.
Mama, Big Brother and Second Brother love her music, and invite everyone to hear her play. Plum tells them all that playing music makes her feel as happy as eating pancakes, perhaps even more.
Plum has pursued her dream, she has tried many things until finding the thing she loves. Her journey is likened all the time to her love of pancakes, keeping her aim close to the hearts of the readers. She initially follows the smell of a pancake, and at the end, she finds her niche, likening it to her love of pancakes. Her heart flips like a pancake, she must be gentle like a soft warm pancake, and in the end she is successful.
I love the illustrations, the number of pancakes on each page increasing as the story unfolds. Readers will love Plum’s pursuing her dream. She has obstacles to overcome, but keeps trying. The idea of the pancake is wonderful, and I am sure readers will want to try their hands at flipping them.
The Spooky Shipwreck is book six in the Mermaid School series, however this is the only one I have read and it was fabulous, definitely a series I would be looking at if my children were younger.
Marie Blue and her friends are going to CORAL, an activity centre with lots of fun things to do and they get to spend the weekend together playing with the water catapult, singing around the bubble fire and having midnight snacks. The only problem, Marnie is scared of the shipwreck that lies nearby as she has heard lots of ghostly, scary stories about it.
Although she is scared, Marnie heads off to camp with her friends hoping that there aren’t too many ghost stories or spooky happenings. This book helps children to see what happens when they face their fears and have a good friendship group. When Marnie is trapped in the 'haunted' shipwreck her friends help her to be brave and discover the secret of the shipwreck.
This is a great book and if this is any indication, a great series for young children. It would work as a read aloud, class novel or independent read. The book really looks at how some people can be nice normally but do mean things at times of stress or worry. It also shows that these people and their actions do not define you as a person but that good friends really help you when you need it and this is one of the reasons that I like the book. The author and illustrator have worked to create an easy chapter book with characters that will make the reader reflect on the people in their life and the magic of mermaids and undersea camp adventures. This is definitely a book worth having on your shelf and reading with all children.
