Archive | May 2020

Rusty Runs Away

May15
Rusty Runs Away

Rusty Runs Away

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rusty Runs Away

Sally Scudamore

Lexie Watt

Little Steps, 2020

32pp., pbk., RRP $A16.95

9781925839777

When the family go on their beach holiday without him,  Rusty the Australian terrier is perplexed,  but when Farmer Gruff and Grandma Jude whose care he has been left in are too busy to care, Rusty decides he will have a holiday anyway.  

But when he hitches a ride on a truck to escape the fast cars and sore paws, he doesn’t realise that he will end up far away from his home in Goondiwindi, Queensland – in Snowtown, South Australia!

Told in rhyme with different fonts distinguishing the different characters, this is based on the true story of a little dog on a big adventure.  Accompanied by clever, detailed illustrations, the reader is taken on a remarkable journey through some of Australia’s most isolated landscapes that will encourage young readers to get out the atlas and track his trail and with some calculations, determine just how far this little dog travelled.  

First-time author Sally Scudamore has continued the family tradition of storytelling, particularly now she lives in the UK and they are in Australia,  a tradition a lot of families may have implemented during these days of social distancing. Her debut book speaks of more to come. 

 

This Is a Ball and Other Books That Drive Kids Crazy!

May14
This Is a Ball and Other Books That Drive Kids Crazy!

This Is a Ball and Other Books That Drive Kids Crazy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This Is a Ball and Other Books That Drive Kids Crazy!

Beck & Matt Stanton

ABC Books, 2020

176 pp., hbk., RRP $A35.00

9780733341076

Five years ago we were introduced to a book called This is a ball, a book guaranteed to engage because of its intriguing cover which promised something offbeat and delivered it!

This is a ball

Since then, Beck & Matt Stanton have gone on to create four other books in the series, including Did you take the B from my -ook?,  The Red Book, Wait ! and The Book that never ends , and now they are all together in this one collection.  Using block colour, large font, line drawings and text that appears simple but in reality, makes the reader read and re-read it and try to refute its truth because the brain is not reading what the eyes are seeing, these stories are worth reading over and over again across the years, 

Compendia like these are always good value and this is an opportunity to have a collection that will intrigue and entertain again and again, while engaging young readers in the power and fun of print.

You Are Positively Awesome: Good Vibes And Self-Care Prompts For All Life’s Ups And Downs

May13
You Are Positively Awesome

You Are Positively Awesome

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You Are Positively Awesome: Good Vibes And Self-Care Prompts For All Life’s Ups And Downs

Stacie Swift

Pavilion, 2020

144pp., hbk., RRP $A24.99

9781911641995

One of the greatest concerns of this pandemic that has engulfed the globe is the mental health of those who have been in lockdown for some time.  Humans are sociable creatures, particularly our young folk who haven’t yet developed the wherewithal to be comfortable in their own company for long periods and who need the contact with their peers to validate and boost their sense of self-worth. Even though governments may have offered millions of dollars to help with the crisis, including for organisations like Kids Helpline , not all will reach out to such bodies and so books like this that talk directly to them and offer positive affirmations such as 

  • we are all in this together
  • we all need a bit of TLC 
  • we have all survived every bad day and overcome every obstacle we’ve faced

can be very valuable in the hands of those who can help. With chapters that include headings such as 

  • Hey, you’re awesome!
  • Why is this stuff important?
  • We all have times when life is a bit rainy
  • It’s okay
  • Self-love matters
  • You can be a good person with a kind heart and still say ‘NO’
  • Say yes to self-care

each page has an affirmation, information and often an activity that can offer a pathway forward.  For example, in chapter 7 which focuses on self-care, the advice goes much deeper than temporary fixes like bath bombs and candles and offers some strategies for a 5-minute self care as well as identifying those things  that matter to the individual so they can build their own circle of self-care and make sure they complete it each day.  

As well as being an essential tool in the teacher’s well-being box so that students consciously learn the strategies of mindfulness and taking care of their own mental health, this could also be a gift to a young one who might be adrift because of the loss of their immediate peer support at this time.  Even as students gradually return to school, that return is different from coming back from school holidays because families will have had to have faced a whole range of unprecedented experiences unique to them, some might feel shame or anxiety about the loss of income or whatever, and so working through the things in this book should form part of each child’s learning over the next weeks.  Help them to understand that while each has had a unique set of circumstances to deal with and these will continue to be endured for some time to come, we are in this together and  together we can survive and thrive. That said though, help them build the mindset and strategies that will build resilience and help them to help themselves when those difficulties arise. 

Rocky and Louie

May12
Rocky and Louie

Rocky and Louie

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rocky and Louie

Phil Walleystack & Raewyn Caisley

Dub Leffler

Puffin, 2020

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

 9780143786528

Rocky is a star Aussie Rules player and his little brother Louie adores him.  Rocky has taught Louie all sorts of footballing skills but more than that, he has taught him about their country and how to engage with it to both use it and protect it.  After they made a proper hunting boomerang together, Rocky taught him how to respect the animals and even though they might kill them for food, how to think about where that food comes from.  Rocky taught and Louie learned the legends and lessons of the land, forging a strong bond that would ensure that they would endure.

But Rocky has a dream to become more than just a local football star and to do that he must leave.  Louie is devastated but Rocky knows that he must go, just as Louie must stay.  What could Louie offer him to make sure that Rocky doesn’t forget him or his roots despite the pull and the attractions of the city.

While this is a powerful story about the love and bonds shared between brothers, it has an even stronger message about being connected to our heritage whatever that may be.  In this case it is that of Australia’s indigenous people and the lessons Rocky teaches Louie will help the reader understand that deep connection to country that our Aboriginal peoples have, helping them appreciate why they felt so bereft when so many were uprooted ruthlessly from families, events commemorated on  National Sorry Day on May 26. The theme of responsibility and respect for what has gone before that has shaped us into who we are now is very strong, but it also opens up the prospect of having to deal with change, with having to be unselfish and let others follow their destiny regardless of the impact on our comfort zone, and accepting and acknowledging that we are who we are because of those around us and we must be the best we can be to honour that and them. 

Co-written with Noongar man and emerging elder, Phil Walleystack, Raewyn Caisley (who has already given us the hauntingly beautiful Hello from Nowhere and Something Wonderful ) views this as her legacy with “the power to change our nation”.  For so many reasons, she could well be right.

All About Friends

May11
All About Friends

All About Friends

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All About Friends

Felicity Brooks

Mar Ferrero

Usborne, 2020

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

9781474968386

It can be fun to spend time by yourself, You can play whatever you want and you don’t have to share your toys or your snacks…

But what every one of us has learned over the isolation of the last few months is that friends are critical and a crucial part of our mental well-being.  As schools gradually return to full-time face-to-face teaching, some little ones may have been at home for so long that they have forgotten what it is like to work and play with others and how to be a friend, so this beautifully designed book will be the perfect platform for getting things back on an even keel.  Each double page spread focuses on an issue such as what are friends, why we need them,  what makes a good friend, who can be friends and so on, offering lots of scope for sharing personal stories and contributing to discussions in a way they haven’t done for some time. There are also pages devoted to how friendships grow and change, how they can be destroyed and how they can be mended so that the children realise that there will be ups and downs and part of growing up is knowing what to do and doing it, developing tolerance, understanding, forgiveness and resilience.

The final pages include a “friendship puzzle” offering the reader a few scenarios for which they have to select the most appropriate behaviour, and two pages of information for new parents about their children’s friendships, skills and strategies to help them develop and some reassuring words about imaginary friends and dealing with conflict. – the most important being to give the child time to try to sort it out.  That perspective alone tells me that this author knows her stuff and her advice is sound.

Cinders and Sparks (series)

May8
Cinders and Sparks (series)

Cinders and Sparks (series)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cinders and Sparks (series)

Magic at Midnight

 9780008292119

Fairies in the Forest

9780008292140

Goblins and Gold

9780008292171

Lindsay Kelk

Pippa Curnick

HarperCollins, 2019-2020

176pp., pbk., RRP $A12.99

Cinders lives a boring life with her selfish stepsisters and mean stepmother, doing the chores and tending to their every need, just like her traditional counterpart.  While they prefer to stay indoors all day listening to their mother read, Cinders would dearly love to be outside playing and although they can’t see the value of that she is allowed to do so once her chores are completed.  But something strange happens while she is outside –  her dog Sparks starts talking to her, her wishes start coming true and her fairy godmother, Brian, materialises.  (It’s been hard to track Cinders down because she is not on social media.)

And so begins a new series for young independent girls who are ready for a solid adventure story but still believe in magic and the characters of their childhood.  Easy to read, engaging and funny in parts,familiar characters and an ongoing quest make this a great read but at the same time, it has an underlying message that celebrates diversity and reaffirms that it is OK to be different. 

Miss 9 asked for The Worst Witch series for her birthday six weeks ago, and she is going to be thrilled when she discovers this series in her letterbox as a follow up because it will be perfect for her.  Thoroughly modern, thoroughly entertaining and just right for a winter read.

 

Scientists who changed the world (series)

May7
Scientists who changed the world

Scientists who changed the world

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scientists who changed the world(series)

Charles Darwin

9781925820706

Rachel Carson

 9781925820690

Sir Isaac Newton

9781925820713 

Anita Grey

EK Books, 2020

64pp., hbk., RRP $A24.99

It could be said that never before in the lives of our young students, has science been at the forefront as it is at the moment.  Every night on the news and in other programs they have access to, science is featured along with the obligatory white-coated scientist as there are reports of progress in the race to a vaccine and treatment for Covid-19, the disease keeping them trapped inside. The importance of research, testing, trials and all the other vocabulary associated with the discipline is becoming a natural part of their vocabulary and there would be more than one little one who now has aspirations of finding that one thing that will save mankind.

So this new series about the scientists on whose shoulders today’s generation stands is timely, Apart from anything else, it demonstrates there are almost as many fields of science as there are people investigating and so if immunology and epidemiology don’t appeal, then there are endless other facets that might. The first three in the series introduce us to a physicist, a marine biologist and an anthropologist, all of whom changed the world’s thinking with their discoveries .

Using accessible text, colour illustrations and an appealing layout, young readers are introduced to each including not just their discoveries but also their early life that influenced the paths they took. With at least three more in the series planned (Albert Einstein, Galileo Galilei and Stephen Hawking) this is a series that will be a most useful addition to the library’s collection because of its modern presentation and timely release as children return to the classroom with big dreams of adding their names to the list of world-changers.

 

How to Be a Pirate

May6
How to Be a Pirate

How to Be a Pirate

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How to Be a Pirate

Isaac Fitzgerald

Brigette Barrager

Bloomsbury, 2020

40pp., hbk., RRP $A25.99

9781681197784

Ticked off that the neighbourhood boys refuse to let her join their game telling her she can’t be a pirate, presumably, because she is a girl, CeCe decides to talk to her grandfather about what it takes to be one.  After all, he has been on a ship, unlike those boys, and he has lots of tattoos.

And of course Grandpa knows.  Using his tattoos to take her on adventures and share his stories, he tells CeCe the qualities she needs to be a pirate.  She has to be brave, be quick, be independent and be fun. But the most important thing a pirate can have is love.  Will knowing this be enough to let CeCe join the boys in their pirate games?

This is a joyous celebration of the relationship between a little girl and her grandfather and the power of story and love.  Each adventure that Grandpa shares is just a glorious burst of colour with lots of detail enabling the reader to put the words to the story Grandpa is telling, engaging them in a special way that helps them reflect on how they too, could be brave, independent, quick and fun, while teasing them with the veracity of Grandpa’s recollections.  Was he really a pirate? One thing that is true is the love between the two, and really, that’s all that matters.

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Dugong Magic

May5
Dugong Magic

Dugong Magic

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dugong Magic

Deborah Kelly

Lisa Stewart

Lothian Children’s, 2020

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

9780734419965 |

In the warm waters of a shallow bay, a dugong calf is born…and as she learns to swim and eat and pull up the seagrasses of her diet, she learns the stories of long ago, the legends of mermaids. She learns the dangers of reef predators and what to do when they are near, but nothing can teach her about the dangers posed by the humans who treat her home as their personal playground…

With illustrations and a colour palette as soft and gentle as the underwater world. this is a wonderful introduction to one of our least-known creatures that is so mysterious and in need of protection.  As well as the fact page at the end, it has a strong environmental message, offering a new topic on which to kickstart an investigation into our impact on the environment with comprehensive teachers’ notes available to assist with this.  With winter knocking on the door, this might not be the time we are thinking about the ocean and its creatures, but that just means there is more time to think and act before next summer.  Maybe the dugongs will be able to tell their young of the stories and legends, because of the consideration of our young, and maybe dugongs won’t be just part of the stories and legends we tell.

Old Enough to Save the Planet

May4
Old Enough to Save the Planet

Old Enough to Save the Planet

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Old Enough to Save the Planet

Loll Kirby

Adelina Lirius

Magic Cat, 2020

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

9781916180529

Before this virus sent the world off on a different track, climate change was the global issue receiving the most attention, exacerbated by the worst bushfire season in history.  Our kids were concerned and worried about the future of the planet and themselves within it, yet feeling somewhat powerless about what they could do to change the course.  In this new publication, we meet 12 children from around the globe who have identified an issue and then worked to redress it. 

Each double-page spread features a child like 9-year-old Eunita from Kenya whose mission is to save the bees and with a minimum of text her work is depicted in pictures, demonstrating how simple some things can be to do locally while having a global impact.

 

A peek inside...

A peek inside…

This is accompanied by some suggestions that even our youngest readers can adopt such as walking or using public transport, mending things instead of throwing them away, or even just buying less stuff – things that are within their control and which can make a difference. There are also suggestions for how they can make their voices heard, and given that the planet has had a bit of a breather with this virus and has healed a little with less pollution, now is the time to maintain that impetus. 

For some months now, and more to come, our little ones have been directed by adults with few freedoms to give them any sense of control, but this book shows that even while we are in such constraints and restraints, it’s possible to do something. Perhaps their home-project could be to plant a tub of flowers that will be ready to welcome the bees back when Spring comes again – just as Eunita did. At the very least, as they watch the progress they will be reassured that Spring will come again.