Camp Canberra by Krys Saclier. Illus. by Cathy Wilcox

A school trip to Canberra for older primary students is almost a rite of passage in Australia. It is the trip the children talk about in their preceding years and the one they most look forward to. This new release by the author and illustrator of Vote 4 Me, which explained Australia’s preferential voting system, is a fun, fact-filled adventure for a class from a fictional school.

From the cleverly presented endpapers to the day-by-day account of the trip, readers will be engaged by the information accompanying the photographs that are overlayed with detailed graphic images of the students. This is book full of humour, interesting facts and visits to an array of well know Canberra tourist destinations including the Australian War Memorial, Mount Stromlo Observatory, Questacon, Aboriginal Tent Embassy, National Portrait Gallery, Royal Australian Mint, High Court and Parliament House.

The three-day itinerary is clearly set out at the beginning of the book and the children are divided into three groups named after famous Prime Ministers: Menzies, Holt and Gillard. Throughout the trip, the students have the opportunity to role play, engage, interact and learn about important people and significant events in Australia’s history. There are anecdotal asides on the pages that will appeal to the age of the readers.

My 12-year-old granddaughter snaffled up this book as soon as I brought it home, bemoaning the fact that her school trip to Canberra had been cancelled due to Covid. She loved reading through it and showing me the places she would have visited! An excellent resource for school and public libraries.

Themes: Australia, Canberra, Schools, Camp, Friends, Tourism, Places of Interest.

Kathryn Beilby