In Cub and Brown, whimsical storytelling by Edwina Wyatt (The Secrets of Magnolia Moon) is perfectly complemented by detailed and classic black and white illustrations by Evie Barrow (Horatio Squeak). There are nostalgic nods here to Paddington and Winnie the Pooh, especially in Brown's tendency to take the spoken word very literally (with humorous Amelia Bedelia type results). Cub is a Scout who's come to the woods to camp with his group. Imagine his surprise when he comes across a bear, and an angry one at that. But as Cub quickly finds out, Brown is only grumpy because he is tangled in his own shoelaces and the two quickly become firm friends.
Separated into twelve short chapters (labelled as Tip #1: Be Prepared, etc), each is a standalone short story about Cub and Brown. In each one Cub uses his Scout prowess to help Brown in some way, from helping him understand the concept of time to stopping him from sucking his thumb. Cub is practical, while Brown is a little impetuous and the dialogue between the two is humorous. Some standout stories are when Brown tries to catch Cub a fish for his birthday and is told by a bird to use his head and his stalling when it is time for Cub to go home is just glorious: 'One last thing,' said Brown. 'Have you got a pocketmouse?'. His efforts to catch the culprit who has been making an almighty mess in his house is also very funny. Fans of gentle books will adore this with its pop of humour and fabulous characters. It would work wonderfully as a class read aloud with lots of areas for discussion, particularly in regards to language use and character development. The illustrations throughout and short chapters that can standalone also make it approachable for newly independent readers and those who may struggle to focus on a longer novel or chapters that follow on from each other.
What a brilliant book by the amazing Matt Stanton. I was expecting this to be a bit of lighthearted “fluff”, but instead I read a book about dealing with bullies. Matt Stanton has delivered a book that will resonate with children and their fluffy protectors.
When Gilbert’s underpants are hung from the school gate and around his neighborhood by Carl the school bully, he decides that revenge is needed, after all the bully needs to be taught a lesson. Together, with his best and fluffiest friend, Fluff, Gilbert plots his revenge and what follows is a series of ill-advised revenge plans enacted by Gilbert and Carl until a truck load of Parmesan cheese is dumped on a caravan.
Gilbert’s mum has faith that he will work this out and solve the problem, no intervention by the mum occurs and Gilbert must resolve this himself.
This book is a great look at bullies, revenge, and the power of “not feeding the turtle”. It will become a family favourite with its easy-to-read story and its fast-paced action. Gilbert’s underdog status will appeal to the reader and Fluff and Gilbert’s goldfish add a comedic dialogue that keeps the story moving and the reader laughing.
This is a book that would be great as a book for a newly independent reader but also as a class read aloud, I am sure that students will be wanting to hear about the escapades of Gilbert, Fluff and the bully, Carl. It is also a great way to talk about bullying and the fact that there will always be bullies and people who are mean for one reason or another, but that revenge might not always be the best option.
I am really looking forward to Book 2 in this series as I can see it becoming a favourite with parents, teachers, and young readers.
Themes Friendship, Bullying, Revenge, School stories.
In Some desperate glory, Emily Tesh, the author of the award-winning Silver in the wood (World Fantasy Award for Novella, 2020), moves into space with a thought provoking and challenging look at life on the Gaea Station. Earth has been destroyed by the Majoda and the inhabitants of the Station have vowed to avenge the loss of their homeland. Kyr is a young woman, a strong and skilled warrior who expects to fight for her ideals. Instead, she is assigned to the Nursery to bear sons and her brother Magnus is sent off to certain death. She is determined to avenge the death of her planet, rescue Magnus and face the Wisdom, an all-seeing weapon used by the Majoda. She seeks out Avi, a talented friend of her brother, who understands the station’s operations, and together with an alien prisoner she escapes from everything that she has known.
Initially Kyr is not very likeable; her crew mates believe she is a bully and she is fixated on making them the best group on the ship. However, as she faces danger and explores a world outside of the space station, she grows in understanding and empathy, and begins to question everything that she has been taught. The adventures she faces are exciting and it is easy to become involved in her quest and to relate to the people around her.
Life aboard Gaea Station is brutal and those in command are lacking in compassion and are abusive, depriving the young of food and encouraging unhealthy competition.Tesh does not flinch from describing scenes aboard the station and themes including fascism, racism and abuse underpin the story. Sources she includes in her Acknowledgements are Fascists, Spartans and Scientology.
The tense action, the interesting science of time slips and AI all make for an engaging space opera, while the underlying themes add a level of complexity that many readers will find engrossing.
Themes Space opera, Racism, Coming of age, Abuse, Revenge.
Robert Runs is written by Mariah Sweetman, a proud descendant of Ugarapul people and the 2022 winner of the Daisy Utemorrah Award presented annually for an outstanding unpublished manuscript of junior or YA fiction by an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander writer. This deeply moving and compelling novel shares themes of despair, loss and extreme cruelty but also friendship, family and hope. With brutal honesty, it tells of Australia’s shameful past, the inhumane treatment of First Nations people and their long search for a place of safety and peace.
This book shares the story of Robert ‘Goupong’ Anderson who lives in the orphan section of Deebing Creek Mission. Goupong, with good friend Jonathan, are two of the older boys and are looked up to by the younger children but also bullied by their peers. Goupong in particular has a nasty temper and lashes back frequently. The sadistic ‘Boss Man’ punishes the children regularly and ultimately commits a brutal and heinous crime known as the Deebing Creek Massacre. Throughout the book, we read about the love of running for the children with Goupong’s greatest joy the opportunity to win every race. After he is ‘discovered’ he has the opportunity to race against the fastest white man, Arthur Postle known as 'The Crimson Flash', whom he defeats.
While this book interweaves fact and fiction, it delves deeply into the history of the First Nations people and the horrific conditions they were forced to endure. It tells poignantly of the struggles the children living on the mission had in trying to maintain a connection to their family and traditions. Robert Runs is a powerful and important novel about a time in Australia’s past that should not be forgotten. It will be a worthy addition to secondary schools and public libraries. Teacher's notes are available.
Themes First Nations people, First Nations Language and Culture, Injustice, Family, Colonialism, Stolen Generations, Identity, Religion, Missions, History, Racism.
In 1920s Sydney, in Farmer’s department store, in the rosy hued ‘Ladies Rest and Writing Room’, Dotty pens a letter to her beloved Digs, but the address is “c/- Wherever You Are, Somewhere in the World, My Heart Pieces: 1,000,000”. Dotty is only just holding things together; her love is ‘missing in action’ and though she clings to hope that he might yet return, she finds herself lost in grief and anger. ‘She was breaking and breaking’. . . She could not continue to live like this. Unliving.’ She darts out in front of trams, spends compulsively, her mind is a whirl, there’s no telling what she might do.
In the same ‘Ladies Rest and Writing Room’ the attendant Clarinda, a former schoolmate, also struggles with grief and the aftermath of loss. The lives of the two women become entwined, when Clarinda comes to Dotty’s aid, amid the frenetic bustle of post-war Christmas shopping. When they step outside, the noise, the traffic, the jostling crowds threaten to overwhelm them both, like pushing against a fierce tide.
Within the pages of this novella Kim Kelly brings to life the loneliness and grief of two women, at a time of renewed fervour, hope and celebration following the end of the war. For Clarinda, reaching out to Dotty is an act of compassion and forgiveness, and for Dotty it is a moment of stepping outside herself and becoming aware of the misfortune of others.
The story is beautifully written, the sounds and sensations of bustling Sydney life swirl around the two solitary figures adrift in the chaos. The 1920s shopping scene is presented in all its historical accuracy, but the references are not intrusive. It is all part of the picture of life as it was then, and a part of the lives of two women overcoming barriers to find the solace they need.
Kim Kelly’s Ladies’ rest and writing room is a well-deserving winner of the inaugural 20/40 Publishing Prize awarded by Finlay Lloyd, 2023.
Ruby's rescue by Elizabeth Mary Cummings. Illus. by Cheri Hughes
Big Sky, 2023. ISBN: 9781922896285. (Age:5-8)
Ruby was riding her horse Rusty when the terrible bushfire appeared. Now sporting a cast and a wheelchair (although it isn't really clear if she was already using a wheelchair) Ruby is desperate to help with the bushfire cleanup. But it's hard to move herself in the chair and her mum won't let her ride Rusty to go out looking for injured animals. She feels completely useless until an encounter with a possum with burnt paws gives her a clever idea: special gloves for the injured animals. The following pages show her brainstorming: possible names, required research, fabric considerations and patterns. There is also a copy of her letter she sends to the mayor asking for help and the flyers she puts up to get the community on board. Before long 'Everyone is happy to be working together to help the animals.'
This is a lovely story about community working together to help out when things are tough and mirrors what actually happens in our society after events such as bushfires. It shows that one person's idea and their determination to make it happen can lead to real results. It's a great example for children of their own agency even when faced with things that might make them feel anxious or helpless. Simple text makes this suitable for independent readers but makes a great classroom text, especially if looking at how to take ideas and put them into action. This is a lovely story that is relevant to many Australian children and will be especially useful for children who worry about natural disasters and their implications. At the end of the book is a list of how to protect your home from bushfires (taken from NSW Rural Fire Service Online Guide).
Themes Bushfire, Ideas into Action, Compassion.
Nicole Nelson
Wollemi: Saving a Dinosaur Tree by Samantha Tidy. Illus. by Rachel Gyan
Imagine if, in the course of your daily work, you discovered something so significant that only a handful of people were ever allowed to know where you had been and even they were sworn to secrecy.
This is the story of the discovery of the Wollemi pine, a tree that can grow to over 40 metres tall but whose existence was unknown until just 30 years ago, when Ranger David Noble found a clutch of them growing in a deep gorge in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney. A tree so old that it dates back to the dinosaur period and so rare that there were less than 100 in existence at the time. No wonder its location remains a secret so that sightseers can't traipse in and bring in diseases on their shoes, damage the site and perhaps wipe out those remaining so it is gone forever.
Sadly, though, humans aren't the only threat to this ancient species and this is the story not just of the tree but the remarkable efforts that were made to protect the grove and the gorge during one of NSW infamous fire seasons, for surely, something that has descended from a family of trees going back 200 million years, and has survived ice, fire and the passing of many generations deserves to be saved no matter what.
This is another remarkable publication from CSIRO Publishing shining the spotlight on yet another unique Australian creature so that our youngest readers can start to build their awareness and knowledge or the amazing things we share this landscape with, and hopefully, with that knowledge and awareness, become its protectors. Introducing Mia, the schoolgirl daughter of botanist Kate, brings the story right into their realm and when Mia suggests that her class plant a seedling to help conserve the Wollemi, they might be inspired to do the same thing as they explore the story further through the teachers' notes.
In a series of anecdotal stories, we are given a glimpse inside the lives of classmates and school attendees in a USA Middle School. Each story focuses on a separate child, and their stories are loosely linked. But this is a funny collection of insights into the joys and dramas of being a pre-teen. From friends who discuss boogers (bogies); an eclectic group of kids who ‘shake coin’ from others, but whose hearts have been softened and yet scarred because of difficult family circumstances; a skater who prefers to skate out of school and avoid human contact; to the child of the school crossing supervisor who is battling anxiety – all of these anecdotes have humour woven through them. There are some serious issues that are touched on, but the naive humanity of the young participants shines through.
This is a book set within a community of Afro-American students with limited financial resources and their voices reflect the vernacular and dialect permutations and grammar of this community. This may confuse some Australian readers, but exposure to USA television should have prepared them for some of these language oddities. But for some Australian readers in the pre-Secondary years this may create confusion, but it is interesting to see how language becomes distorted in different environments. The stories are easy to read and each one follows a different route from school to home and reveals the personal struggles and joys for each of the characters. I can recommend this book for readers aged 10-13 who enjoy short stories that make them think (a little), but never too much, and who like to laugh at kids their own age. For those who have enjoyed Diary of a Wimpy Kid this is a short story collection with more text, but a light-hearted touch to some quite difficult personal circumstances.
Recommended (for those who can cope with the non-Aussie setting and language use).
Themes School - USA, Friendship, Family, Short stories.
Carolyn Hull
Alight: A story of fire and nature by Sam Lloyd. Illus. by Samantha Metcalfe
We are introduced to five things which will be the focus of this entertaining and informative book about fire and its use in the Australian bush. The Eucalypt tree, the Wallum Banksia, Christmas Bells, Wallum Sedge Frog and Antechinus have the tale of the fire woven around them and their behaviour during a bush fire.
The eucalypt watches over the people lighting a spot fire, knowing it will be controlled by them and necessary for the animals to smell the smoke and find a hiding place, while being a reminder to plants that this means a time for new growth to appear. So the Wallum Banksia divests itself of the seed pods waiting for the fire to open them, the Christmas bells wait for the fire to initiate the splendid bells to appear, dragonflies and damsel-flies shelter amongst the sedges while the frog looks for a place to hide. The antechinus burrows into the tiny tree hollow, and smaller animals, ants and beetles live under the topsoil, protected from the fire, while seeds that have lain dormant for years wait to be germinated by the fire. As the fire passes, it rains, helping the bush to recover and germinate. Fungi begins to grow at the base of the trees, seeds germinate, small animals reappear, larger animals hunt for food, Christmas Bells appear and these attract honeyeaters, bees and ants. The cycle of fire and regrowth has come full circle as the bush recovers.
Stunning illustrations accompany the story making sure readers will understand the flora and fauna mentioned in the text. The delicate small insects and animals, larger trees plants, and larger animals are all shown with detailed accuracy, ensuring every reader will watch out for them next time they venture into the bush.
The endpapers will grab their attention as they spot things read about in the book, while the glossary will inform and educate the readers. Teacher's notes are available and the author has shared why fire management and healthy fire is so important.
Themes Australian bush, Australian flora and fauna, Fire, Regeneration.
Fran Knight
Palazzo by Danielle Steel
Pan Macmillan, 2023. ISBN: 9781529022421. (Age:Adult - Senior secondary)
The title refers to a Venetian palace owned for centuries by the main character’s family – the Saverios, owners of an Italian haute couture leather goods family business.
The contemporary story focuses on the eldest daughter, in her early twenties, becoming responsible for the business and her younger brother and sister on the sudden death of their parents 15 years earlier. The story basically details the trials and tribulations of Cosimo Saverio’s battle to keep the business and the palazzo in the face of the brother’s treachery.
The romantic element is somewhat predictable and the characters appear somewhat as stereotypes and not always believable.
A book for light reading entertainment with the main theme being dealing with family conflict while maintaining standards and values. The modern day settings of Venice, Rome, Paris add interest as do the comparisons of the family business with Hermes.
Themes Fashion industry - Italy, Leatherwork, Venice, Death, Gambling.
Ann Griffin
Giant-sized butterflies on my first day of school by Justin Roberts. Illus. by Paola Escobar
Putnam, 2023. ISBN: 9780525516446.
When a little girl wakes up on the first day of school, the butterflies in her stomach feel positively giant-sized! She really wants her mom to stay with her, on this first day. As she and her mother make their way to school, her mother explains how the butterflies are a good thing. Everyone gets them (including parents) and they are a sign of something exciting happening - that we're about to learn and grow from a new experience and they can help us through it. So with the butterflies as her guide, the girl soars into her first day.
As little ones' thoughts turn to the next big step in their lives - moving from preschool to big school - it is natural that there are going to be nerves and anxiety as the transition will be daunting for many. So this is another one to add to that collection to share to reassure them that their feelings are natural but they can be managed if they look through a positive lens. Even though it is American, it carries the universal message that everyone shares a fear of the unknown to some degree and that, in itself, can bring peace and calm. It also reassures them that they are old enough and brave enough to take this step, and it will only be a short time with new and familiar friends before their butterflies have disappeared.
Barbara Braxton
The Disney Book New Edition. A Celebration of the World of Disney: Centenary Edition by Jim Fanning and Tracey Miller-Zarneke
Dorling Kindersley, 2023. ISBN: 9780241573686.
On October 16, 1923, two brothers began a company that has brought immeasurable joy to millions of people throughout the world for a century! Those brothers were Walt Disney and Roy Disney and their company was known as the Disney Brothers Studio.
At a time when black-and-white silent films were state of the art, Walt Disney had a vision to create "a novel entertainment that was uniquely engaging" and for the Disney name to represent quality. Nearly 50 years since his death in December 1966, one wonders if he could ever have imagined that company being what it is today. From a young lad who loved to draw cartoons that appeared to move as he flipped the pages quickly, to his first animated image in 1927 - a rabbit named Oswald - and his belief that "cartoon animation offers a medium of story telling and visual entertainment which can bring pleasure and information to people of all ages around the world" the name Disney has become synonymous with family entertainment that is engaging and enchanting with memories and moments that last long after a particular feature has ended. How many of us of a certain generation recall that special time at 6.30 on a Sunday evening, curling up in front of the television to see whether we would go to Frontierland, Tomorrowland, Fantasyland, Adventureland or Main Street USA for the next hour? How many of today's children view a trip to Disneyland as their must-have life experience?
And all this history and wonder is encapsulated in this new centenary edition of The Disney Book, a glossy tome incorporating beautiful art and artefacts from The Walt Disney Company's vast historical collections, with a decade by decade illustrated timeline spanning 12 pages offering an incredible archive of all that the name Disney conjures up.
Updated from the 90th anniversary version, it includes all that has been achieved between 2012-2023 making it the most comprehensive collector's item for Disney fans as well as those with an interest in animation, film-making, children's entertainment or aspirations of being the new Disney, themselves.
For me, this is 256 pages of memories of childhood - mine, my son's, and my granddaughters' - so this will have a special place in our family library.
Known for her YA fiction (see Beyond Evie, 2011), in this award-winning novella Rebecca Burton instead frames her story as an adult looking back on memories of adolescence, in the 1980s. It is Frankie’s voice, remembering as a 14 year-old watching her older sister Justine succumb to anorexia, and trying to find her own sense of self amongst it all. The angst of that period in life will resonate with adults and younger readers alike.
The language is pared back, there are comments and silences, a feeling of so much unsaid. Frankie is always on the edge of crying, unable to express the turmoil within. She is trying to understand what is happening in her family while at the same time dealing with her own sense of grief and insufficiency. When Justine goes into the Eating Disorders Unit, and tosses out an invitation to Frankie to visit, she doesn’t know if it’s a genuine invitation or not, but it becomes a way to fill her holiday time after her best friend Narelle deserts her, moving on with a job and new friends. The time Frankie shares with Justine braiding her hair become a reassuring memory of affection, amidst the aching loneliness she feels.
Frankie seeks out anorexia survivor stories with their uplifting endings. But that is not every anorexic person’s story. Life can be more complicated. Burton’s novella brilliantly captures the frictions within a family, and the unresolved awkwardness between mother, elder daughter and younger daughter. For me, having grown up with two anorexic friends at different times, the heartache in this story just resonates with so much authenticity. I am sure it will have a readership in the YA section as well as for adults.
Rebecca Burton’s Ravenous girls is a well-deserving winner of the inaugural 20/40 Publishing Prize awarded by Finlay Lloyd, 2023.
Themes Anorexia, Loneliness, Sadness, Identity.
Helen Eddy
In my blood it runs by Dujuan Hoosan, Margaret Anderson and Carol Turner
Pan Macmillan, 2023. ISBN: 9781761263774. (Age:10-Adult) Highly recommended.
The book In My Blood It Runs, is based on the award -winning film of the same name. The book begins with the story of the rainbow serpent forming the land and the water around the area of Mparntwe (Alice Springs). This is 10 year old Dujuan’s story, his journey through some very challenging times and unjust experiences, and the story of those that chose to guide him along the way. Dujuan has Ngangkere (healing power) which does not work so well in town but is strong out bush. He is a spirited child who struggles with the school system and escapes to a life of petty crime on the streets but is eventually sent to live with his father to learn the ways and history of his Ancestors. Throughout In My Blood It Runs the language of the Arrernte people is shared and as well as ways of culture. Dujuan voices his thoughts about school, the prejudiced justice system, colonialism, his joy at being with family and his love of Country. The bold and colourful illustrations by Blak Douglas are dramatic with a modern edge and perfectly complement with the words.
This is an honest and heartfelt account of Dujuan Hoosan who was the youngest person at 12 to address the Human Rights Council at the United Nations. At the UN, he asks the leaders 'to support Australia to raise the minimum age of criminal responsibility from 10-14 years…allow his peoples to control their own education systems…First Nations languages to be taught in schools.'
Themes First Nations people, First Nations Language and Culture, Injustice, Care of Country, Family, Colonialism.
Kathryn Beilby
Strangely enough: Short stories for strange times by Gillian Hagenus, ed.
MidnightSun Publishing, 2023. ISBN: 9781922858313. (Age:Adult young adult) Recommended.
This collection of Australian short stories for strange times was quite appropriate to be reading at Halloween, the ideas behind some in Strangely Enough are truly strange. For tricks, try the puzzling appearance of the giant crocodile headed god of the Nile, inhabiting the wastewater system of a modern city in Mathew Hooton’s 'Visions of the Afterlife', or the manifestations of dream simulacra existing in Marian Matta’s 'Those Forgotten Dreams'. For a treat try the clever transition from owner to owned in Deborah Frenkel’s 'Cat/Lady', or the very trippy 'Noodles at 8' by Shaeden Berry. Victoria Griffin’s 'The Builder/Dreamer' channels Tom Waits’ 1999 recording 'What’s He Building' introducing modern surveillance into the paranoid mix, to protect corporate market dominance from a possible innovation, and for something completely different there is Mycelium Bride. R.T. Wenzel immerses us with Sister Agnes in the moist dark world of fungi, whose 'thready rasping voices slid in her ear and wormed through her brain', whose vocation is clear as she thinks about those tumescent fruiting bodies and tendrils that wrap her safe and tight.
After each story there is a short piece about the author and often a link to other works. None of the stories are very long, most about 10 pages and there will be something to pique the interest of the most jaded reader. Selected stories might make a good study of the form for senior students or a read aloud treat for Halloween.
