Archives

Here Comes a Merry Christmas

Dec4

 

 

 

Here Comes a Merry Christmas

Here Comes a Merry Christmas

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here Comes a Merry Christmas

Justine Clarke

Arthur Baysting & Peter Dasent

Heath McKenzie

Puffin, 2023

32pp., hbk., RRP $A19.99

9781761049521

There’s a feeling in the air,
We’ve been waiting all the year…

Heath McKenzie has used his iconic stylised digital illustrations to bring to life this cheerful song about the excitement and anticipation of families on Christmas Eve as preparations are made. for the big day.. There are all the things that we associate with the celebration – Christmas lights, special food, the tree, decorations, traditional songs – all bound together like a tangle of lights in the love, joy and fun shared by the family. and all overseen by a new bright star “like the angel sitting on top of the tree, looking down from above, shining her love”. 

As well as learning the words to the song, little ones will love seeing all those things that are so familiar to their family as much as they are to the book family, but they might like to talk about those things they do, say and eat that are different too.  

One to share after your family night of decorations and preparations. 

 

 

Where are all the Christmas Beetles?

Dec3

 

 

 

Where are all the Christmas Beetles?

Where are all the Christmas Beetles?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Where are all the Christmas Beetles?

Suzanne Houghton

CSIRO Publishing, 2023

32pp., hbk., RRP $A24.99

9781486317905

Once upon a time, not so long ago, our kids looked forward to summer barbecues because it meant they were going to be bombarded by those shimmering green and gold beetles with the sharp little feet that clung to skin and clothes.  And rather than being afraid or squealing in surprise, they knew they were Santa’s special messengers and if they whispered what they wanted for Christmas, the beetle would take the request straight back to Santa. 

But now those kids want to share that Christmas ritual with their kids and there are fewer and fewer beetles to be seen!  There are no tell-tale dead patches in the grass where the grubs have eaten the roots,  they aren’t high in the gum trees either and they’re not even buzzing around the street lamps like they used to do.  Where have they all gone?  

In this beautifully illustrated book that brought back so many memories of Christmases past, the author/illustrator speculates on what might have happened to them.  Could it be the changing weather? The drought? The floods? The loss of habitat?  Scientists don’t know for sure yet and have initiated the Christmas Beetle Count for sightings and photos to be shared but before students get involved in that there are really useful notes at the back of the book as well as teachers’ notes that can help them become junior scientists and help solve the mystery.

After all, what’s Christmas in Australia without Christmas beetles and how will Santa ever know just what to leave underneath the tree? 

The First Christmas

Dec2
The First Christmas

The First Christmas

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The First Christmas

Jan Pienkowski

Random House Childrens, 1984

32pp., hbk.

9780385755184

Regardless of one’s religious beliefs or lack of them, I believe that it is an important part of our role as teachers to enable students to understand the origins of a time of year that claims our attention like no other.  This book which uses the text from the King James version of the Bible is the perfect introduction. Superbly illustrated by Jan Pienkowski using silhouettes against the most stunning backdrops, it portrays the story in a unique way that does not interfere with any preconceived, more classical images the reader might have.

The illustrations bring the text to life, giving it meaning where there may have been none because of the unfamiliar syntax of such long-ago words. Pienkowski has interpreted the text in his own way with much detail that even being in silhouette form evoke emotion and movement and intrigue. And there is whimsy such as  the two small figures on the poop deck of the Wise Men’s ship, who are pointing in different directions and plainly arguing about which way is East. As well as the exquisite illustrations, the pages are embellished with all sorts of delightful touches that make the reader feel they have one of those illuminated books of old in their hands.

This is the perfect book for beginning the Christmas Countdown – as classic as sharing ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas on Christmas Eve.

Bluey Advent Calendar Book Collection

Dec1

 

 

 

Bluey Advent Calendar Book Collection

Bluey Advent Calendar Book Collection

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bluey Advent Calendar Book Collection

Bluey

Puffin, 2023

576pp (24 books), pbk., RRP $A39.99

9781761342240

What better way to start this year’s Christmas Countdown than with a countdown for the youngest readers of one of their own all-time favourite characters?

There are 24 special mini Bluey books from story books to colouring in, bundled together in this Advent calendar which will keep kids entertained all the way through December finishing with a very special edition of Verandah Santa for Christmas Eve. Starting with Meet Bluey and Bingo, and then Meet Mum and Dad, this is a collection for all the Bluey fans as they revisit some of the popular episodes of the television series while also being able to engage with the characters in the colouring books.  

What a way to inspire the excitement and joy of reading – Bluey  AND Christmas.    

 

Five Little Penguins

Jan4
Five Little Penguins

Five Little Penguins

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Five Little Penguins

Lily Murray

Holly Surplice

Templar, 2022

24pp., pbk., RRP $A15.99

9781800782907

Five little penguins went out one day
Over the hills and far away.
Mamma Penguin said “Hurry back to me!”
How many penguins can you see?

Combine a familiar ditty with rhyme, rhythm and repetition, add in bright, appealing illustrations and include the interactivity of a lift-the-flap format and you have the perfect recipe for a book that is going to engage our youngest readers.  Not only will they be taken to a winter wonderland where there is so much to see as Mamma Penguin and her chicks waddle through a frosty forest, skate down an icy river and toboggan down snowy slopes meeting all kinds of festive animals playing in the snow but because both the environment and the creatures are not those they are used to seeing, there is all sorts of scope for discussion and building vocabulary.

Most importantly though, this is one that they can return to again and again independently empowering their independence and consolidating their belief and expectation they they, too, can be “real readers”. 

 

The Fairies’ Night Before Christmas

Dec24

 

 

 

 

The Fairies' Night Before Christmas

The Fairies’ Night Before Christmas

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Fairies’ Night Before Christmas

Sarina Dickson

Sarah Grieg

Hachette NZ, 2021

32pp., pbk., RRP $A15.99

9781869714468

What is Christmas Eve without a “night before Christmas” story? 

‘Tis the day before Christmas
And all through the trees
The fairies are working
As busy as bees…

Christmas for the fairies is just as busy for them as it is for everyone else, and young readers will delight in seeing that so many of the fairies’ preparations echo their own.  But when a storm blows in and ruins everything, it seems impossible that the little ones will wake to the magic they are expecting until…

With the familiar rhythm of  Clement C. Moore’s A Night Before Christmas, this is one to charm little ones to sleep to dream of all the magic happening everywhere as they sleep. And if they wake up to discover The Fairies’ Night Before Christmas Activity Book in their Santa Sacks, then they will know that the magic is real! 

 

Little Bilby’s Aussie Bush Christmas

Dec23

 

 

 

 

Little Bilby's Aussie Bush Christmas

Little Bilby’s Aussie Bush Christmas

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Little Bilby’s Aussie Bush Christmas

Yvonne Mes

Jody Pratt

Lothian Children’s, 2021

32pp., hbk., RRP $A19.99

9780734420404 

A group of little bilbies are hunting for decorations to turn their Australian bush home into a magical Christmas wonderland. As they dance and jump and flap through the bush, they meet a number of other iconic Australian animals, each of which has something to offer to decorate the tree.

With its repetitive refrain and action-packed storyline, this is an Australian story that will get young readers actively involved in its telling bringing it alive for them.  They could speculate on what other creatures the bilby band might meet and what else might be added to the Christmas tree, perhaps even decorate their own unique Aussie Christmas tree with things they find in nature.

Where’s My Christmas Tree?

Dec22

 

 

 

 

Where's My Christmas Tree?

Where’s My Christmas Tree?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Where’s My Christmas Tree?

Bob Holt

Worthy Kids. 2022

12pp., board book, RRP $A12.99

 9781546013877

It’s almost Christmas time and Little Penguin is stumped when Narwhal asks if he has his Christmas tree yet.  For not only are there no trees in the cold Antarctic where Little Penguin lives, but there are no forests to find one either.  What is he to do?  Luckily, Seagull and his friends have an answer.

This is a charming board book for our youngest readers who can not only learn a little about the frozen parts of this planet but also think how, in such an environment, Little Penguin’s problem can be solved. With its unique storyline and bold pictures this is one they will be able to read to themselves over and over. 

 

The Gift Shop Bear

Dec21

 

 

 

 

The Gift Shop Bear

The Gift Shop Bear

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Gift Shop Bear

Phyllis Harris

Worthy Kids, 2022

32pp., hbk., RRP $A24.99

9781546013891 

From a cosy box in the attic of the Nana’s Gift Shop, Bear watches the seasons pass waiting for the last leaf to fall because he knew that’s when Annie would come to get him and place him in pride of place at the bottom of the Christmas tree in the shop window. He knew that for the next few weeks he would do all sorts of things with Annie to mark the coming of Christmas but this year was different – the shop was closing for good and Bear was really worried about never seeing Annie again…

This is one of those feel-good, traditional Christmas stories that is timeless and thus likely to be one that endures for generations as a family favourite.  It features all the elements that we think about at Christmas, regardless of it being set in the northern hemisphere with snow and carolers and people rugged up in their winter woolly warms. It leaves a feeling as warm as a teddy bear’s snuggle. 

 

The Chaos Before Christmas

Dec20

 

 

 

 

The Chaos Before Christmas

The Chaos Before Christmas

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Chaos Before Christmas

Sarina Dickson

Lily Elmo

Hachette NZ, 2022

32pp., pbk., RRP $A15.99

9781869714741

Tis the run up to Christmas
and there is so much to do!
At Elf School we are learning
how we can help too.

Elroy McChristmas and his friends are about to sit their final test before Santa decides the best job for each elf. But when it’s time to show off their skills, Elroy’s nerves get the better of him and he casts the wrong spell, sending the classroom  into chaos! Can Elroy and his classmates restore calm before Santa arrives?

Although this has the familiar rhyming style of Clement C. Moore’s classic A Night Before Christmas, this is a unique story that young children will want to hear over and over as they delight in discovering the detail in the pictures, each reading adding something new. And, at a time when awards are being given for this, that and the other, it offers an opportunity for those not in the limelight to think about their own best attributes and skills and consider what job Santa might give them if they were in Elf School.  Because even though Elroy causes such chaos, Santa still finds the perfect place for him!