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Pablo and Splash

Jan30
Pablo and Splash

Pablo and Splash

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pablo and Splash

Sheena Dempsey

Bloomsbury, 2024

240pp., graphic novel, RRP $A17.99

9781526662606

Pablo and Splash are two penguins, and even though they are very different in that Pablo loves his icy home and Splash is sick of the cold, they both agree that a holiday would be a good thing.  But it’s tricky when you live at the bottom of the planet in Antarctica and warm places are too far to swim and without wings, you can’t fly.

But Antarctica means there are scientists nearby and surely they have a solution… However on their way to visit them, they fall down a hole in the ice into the clutches of Professor O’Brain and her Timebender machine and before they know it they are on the beach they were dreaming of, but they are sharing it with dinosaurs.   Can these accidental explorers find their way home?  Or will they be stuck in the past, avoiding becoming the next meal for the locals?

With its classic theme of “be careful what you wish for” as well as the familiar time-travelling theme that takes readers to times past and future,  this is a full-colour graphic novel that will delight fans of this genre. Stories about penguins and dinosaurs individually are always favourites so combining the two into a story that engages while it educates will have broad appeal, and its undertones of the enduring friendship between two characters despite their differences will resonate with many. 

This is the first in this series that has the potential to not only appeal to its intended audience of young independent readers but also introduce them to times past that might spark an interest in further investigation.  I wonder where they will go next… Where would the reader like them to go? If they came to Australia at a particular time in our history, such as the gold rush, what hazards might they encounter? Perhaps an interesting story starter that could show you what the students know…

Einstein: The Case of the Fishy Detective

Jan23
The Case of the Fishy Detective

The Case of the Fishy Detective

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Einstein: The Case of the Fishy Detective

Iona Rangeley

David Tazzyman

HarperCollins, 2023

240pp., pbk., RRP $A16.99

9780008476038

Younger, independent readers first met Einstein the penguin in his first adventure in London , when after a visit to the zoon he turns up at the home of six-year-old Arthur and nine-year-old Imogen Stewart and their parents let him stay a while. But a fairy penguin from Sydney really has no place in London “where the days end early and forget to start on time” and so he is off home to Australia.

Imogen and Arthur miss him terribly and even though they still have regular video contact, it just isn’t the same. In an unusual twist, Imogen teams up with the disgraced Detective Bill Hunter who has now set up an agency for animals to appear in advertisements, to bring Einstein and his friend Isaac back to London.  But can he be trusted? Especially when Einstein is kidnapped?  The siblings learn a lot about their own relationship when they once again pull on their detective hats to discover what has happened to Einstein and who did it.

This is a worthy sequel to the original, introducing younger readers to the mystery/crime genre that may spark their interest in others in a similar vein.  Generally, children search for topic, author and series so this might be an opportunity to demonstrate that there are stories that follow a certain pattern, have similar types of plot development, themes and conclusions and if they enjoyed this one, then genre is a way to broaden their reading horizons while they wait for any sequels.  

 

 

The Littlest Penguin

Oct5
The Littlest Penguin

The Littlest Penguin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Littlest Penguin and the Phillip Island Penguin Parade

Jedda Robaard

Penguin Foundation

Puffin, 2023

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

9781761341830

Before the Europeans came to Millowl (Phillip Island) there were at least ten little penguin colonies there, but these days there is only one.  Protected by law now, it is the largest colony in the world, and, at the end of each day, hundreds of tourists come to watch some of those 40 000 adults gather together in “rafts” before they surf into the beach, waddle across it and head up the familiar tracks to their burrows, each looking for landmarks or listening for their partner’s voice to find their way.  

And, just maybe in that daily trek there will be Little Penguin, Scruffy, Cheeky and Big Chick who are the stars of this absorbing, beautifully illustrated novel for younger readers as they begin their lives as downy chicks and grow into adults ready to have chicks themselves. Just 33cm tall and less than a kilo as adults, there are many dangers facing the little penguins, particularly as they can be at sea for up to a year on that first journey, and Little Penguin, Scruffy, Cheeky and Big Chick are exposed to all of them making for an engaging read as we hope for a happy ending for all of them.

As well as their story, there is also an extensive information section to tell the reader more including the usual facts and figures that add the background as well as what happens when they are affected by oil slicks, itself an intriguing, heart-warming story, as is the story of another colony at St Kilda.. 

Produced by the Penguin Foundation which “raises funds to enhance Phillip Island’s natural environment and protect native wildlife through research, conservation and education programs”, and published by Penguin random House (who else? and who provide funding for the organisation), this is the ideal read-aloud or read-together to inspire interest in and awareness of these little birds as well as giving all those who are likely to make the trip to Phillip Island over the upcoming Christmas  break the knowledge and understanding of just what they are seeing. Maybe, as they learn more from both the Penguin Foundation and the Penguin Parade websites, they might even want to adopt a penguin for themselves. 

I adored it.

 

Penguin chick born in Eden for the first time in 30 years holds hopes in re-establishing colony 

Flipper and Finnegan – The True Story of How Tiny Jumpers Saved Little Penguins

Aug17
Flipper and Finnegan - The True Story of How Tiny Jumpers Saved Little Penguins

Flipper and Finnegan – The True Story of How Tiny Jumpers Saved Little Penguins

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Flipper and Finnegan – The True Story of How Tiny Jumpers Saved Little Penguins

Sophie Cunningham

Anil Tortop

Albert Street, 2022

24pp., hbk., RRP $A19.99

9781761180071

Flipper and Finnegan are two of the Little Penguins that live on a Phillip Island, fishing in the surrounding ocean by day and bringing delight and joy to the thousands of visitors who travel to see their evening parade as they waddle up to their burrows.

But one day, when Flipper comes up for air she gets covered in something that is black and smelly and sticky – and Finnegan is nowhere to be seen…

And, if you’re a rescuer how can you keep so many penguins warm and safe so they don’t die of hypothermia or ingesting the oil on their feathers, while you painstakingly clean them one by one?

Based on the true story of a 2001 oil spill in Port Phillip Bay that affected the Little Penguins, this is a heart-warming story of how a nation pulled together to save the colony by knitting little sweaters to protect them while they waited their turn.  In all, 438 Little Penguins were affected by that oil spill and of those, 96% were successfully saved with the help of penguin jumpers, rehabilitated at the Wildlife Clinic and released back into the wild.

From the team who created Tippy and Jellybean – The True Story of a Brave Koala who Saved her Baby from a Bushfire, young readers can again learn of the perils – natural and manmade – that threaten our precious wildlife and while the disasters might be unavoidable, there is something that can be done to mitigate their impact.  By focusing on just two penguins and telling their story as an example of the other 436 penguins affected, their plight becomes more real and immediate and the reader connects with it more readily.  

While the penguin jumper project has been running for over 20 years, there are many that aren’t really suitable for putting on the penguins and so these are sold on penguin toys to raise funds for wildlife conservation on Phillip Island. Since 2012 the sale of these jumpers has raised $287,700 , going towards the  protection and preservation of the colony.  

A charming story that will help raise awareness of the impact of humans on the landscape and to encourage our young readers to take only photographs and leave only (carefully placed) footprints. 

 

Einstein the Penguin

Mar12
Einstein the Penguin

Einstein the Penguin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Einstein the Penguin

Iona Rangeley

David Tazzyman

HarperCollins, 2021

224pp., hbk., RRP $A19.99

 9780008475963

December in London “where the days end early and forget to start on time” can be cold and miserable and so the Stewart family decide to spend the afternoon at London Zoo. Six-year-old Arthur and nine-year-old Imogen each have their favourites to see, but Arthur particularly wants to visit the penguins.  And while he is there, it seems he connects to one tiny one in particular, reluctant to leave, and so Mrs Stewart bids it farewell saying, “And you, Mr Penguin, must come and stay with us whenever you like.  Penguins are always very welcome at our house.”

So everyone is very surprised when Mr Penguin actually turns up on their doorstep that evening, with a rucksack labelled ‘Einstein’ on its back…

But what is a fairy penguin from Sydney, Australia doing in London in the first place?  Imogen, who fancies herself as a detective like her favourite book character, enlists Arthur’s help on a mission to find out… But will the discovery mean saying goodbye to Einstein forever?

This is a thoroughly enjoyable, very different story for newly independent young readers who will love the fact the Mr and Mrs Stewart are not only willing to go along with having Einstein stay but also enable the children to discover what’s going on.  Rarely are parents so amenable to their children’s wishes. But the story also throws up questions about keeping pets, and whether it’s fair to keep some creatures in captivity either as a pet or in a zoo, so it offers an opportunity for the reader to reflect on issues broader than the story itself. 

 

 

The Accidental Penguin Hotel

Oct11
The Accidental Penguin Hotel

The Accidental Penguin Hotel

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Accidental Penguin Hotel

Andrew Kelly

Dean A. Jones

Wild Dog, 2021

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

 9781742036281

For generations the little penguins have left their island home to hunt for the shoals of small fish in the rich waters of the bay and the mouth of the river.  And when they have had their fill they risk their lives navigating the rip   and the shipping to go back to their burrows on their island home.  The island has all they need to build their burrows but it is getting crowded and the young males are finding it tricky to find a place that is safe and that will attract a young female. But there is nowhere suitable to build a burrow on the bay.

And then changes start to happen to their feeding grounds – huge machinery is dumping rocks into the sea to build a breakwater to protect the boats and the beach, and over time the sand and silt build up in the cracks and crevices. Sometimes the penguins rest on the rocks but they always return home.  Until one day, one little penguin decides to stay…

Much is written about the impact on wildlife when humans change the landscape and it’s usually negative so to read a positive story is unusual.  For this is the story of how the penguin colony at St Kilda, Victoria emerged and is continuing to grow. While they still have to deal with the hazards of dogs, cats, ferrets, stoats, human vandals, plastic pollution, boat strikes, boat propellers, oil spills, the fragmentation and loss of habitat and climate change, nevertheless because of the conservation practices in place they have shown that it is possible for native wildlife to live side by side with humans. Using just one little penguin as its focus personalises the story and brings it into the realm of the young reader, so they are more able to relate to it and understand the situation.  

Told by the Yarra Riverkeeper and beautifully illustrated this is an uplifting story that shows that the relationship between humans and the natural world can be a positive one, as well as demonstrating how that world adapts to deal with issues such as overcrowding. But charming as it is as a standalone story, it is one that has enormous potential to be a springboard into further investigations both of the penguins (with comprehensive teachers’ notes) and then human impact generally.  If you “can’t stop progress” how can it be managed through environmental impact studies, local support groups and so forth?  Is there a development happening in the readers’ community that might be having a wider impact than is immediately visible?  The opportunity to “act locally, think globally” is very apparent and this book can fulfil the purpose of the author. “Let us walk gently together.”

The Greatest ShowPenguin

Mar26
The Greatest ShowPenguin

The Greatest ShowPenguin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Greatest ShowPenguin

Lucy Freegard

Pavilion, 2021 

32pp., pbk., RRP $A14.99

9781843654681

Poppy the Penguin comes from a long line of circus performers. Many skills have been passed down from penguin to penguin. However, Poppy soon decides that performing in the family circus is not for her as she prefers to feel calm and in control. But the hardest thing is not juggling, or riding a unicycle – it’s telling her mum that she doesn’t want to perform any more. The bravery is worth it when Poppy discovers a better role – organising and coordinating the whole show. And what a show it turns out to be!

So often, we, as parents, lead our children down the path of learning the things we like to do and expecting them to love them with a similar passion.  But it can be a road fraught with danger because our children always see us as the experts and that somehow they are never going to be quite good enough, which can lead to mental health and self-esteem issues.  Even though Poppy is very good as a performer and her parents are really proud of her, deep down inside she knows that the limelight is not for her and luckily she not only has the courage but also the relationship with her parents to express her unhappiness. Perhaps sharing this story might be the catalyst for our students to have similar conversations if they feel they have the need.

Freegard also brings up another element that often rears its head, particularly during class performances – that of “job snob”.  How often is the lead in the school play sought by the class’s leading light and both child and parents celebrate their celebrity?  Yet, as Poppy shows, the whole show cannot go on without those backstage workers, the support cast and everyone else who helps to make it happen.  Here is a great opportunity to demonstrate that no job is better or more important than another – they are just different and without one, others will flounder.  The school cannot function without all the admin staff making it easier for the teachers to do their thing.

Some big life lessons in one little book!