Cricket, I Just Love It!

Alister Nicholson

Tom Jellett

A&U Children’s, 2021

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

9781760526801

The ICC T20 World Cup is being played; the Women’s Big Bash League is well underway; and community cricket is back! Summer’s on its way and backyard cricket is not far behind. The timing of the release of this book could not be better.

Cricket, I just love it! It really is the best.
Batting, bowling, fielding, Twenty20 or a test.
I watch it or I listen and of course I always play.
Cricket is my favourite part of every single day.

Cricket is Australia’s national sport with its national captain’s name known more widely than that of any politician and so many childhood memories are bound up games played on the beach, in the backyard or even in the street with the nearest garbage bin commandeered as the wickets and :over the fence is out” a universal rule. So this rollicking ode to cricket in all its forms with all it perks and quirks is just the greatest fun . Written in rhyme by  one of the most well-known voices on ABC Sport’s AFL and cricket coverage, Alister Nicholson has the expertise and experience  to explain the game that baffles many and for the uninitiated there are not only clues of the terms in the text and illustrations, but also the endpapers. Because the main theme of this book, apart from the joy of the game, is that it is a game for everyone from the top professional tournaments to the Saturday kids’ games and all stops in between, male or female, a fact emphasised by Jellett’s illustrations with their iconic style and bold colour.

Beyond the story there is the opportunity to scan a QR code to hear it read by the author, and watch it in Auslan so all abilities are catered for. It will inspire the next Elyse Perry, Meg Lanning or Tim Payne. The perfect gift for the cricket lover, or the person who wants to understand what all this fuss is about!