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Muttonfish Magic

Feb25
Muttonfish Magic

Muttonfish Magic

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Muttonfish Magic

Aunty Ruth Simmons & Lucy Robertson

Jasmine Seymour

Magabala Books, 2026

32pp., hbk., RRP $A27.99

9781922864130

It is one of those days that in itself, is unremarkable, but which leaves an imprint on the mind that lingers decades later as childhood memories are revisited and warm, fuzzy feelings are evoked.

Mummy has loaded up the old cane pram with its wobbly wooden wheels with supplies and Ruth and her brothers set off on the long walk from their home in La Perouse to the cliffs and rock pools of Cruwee Cove on a mission to gather muttonfish. for their evening meal.  It’s lunchtime by the time they get there and so Mummy shows them how to twist a fish hook and sinker onto a ropy line of fish intestines, and it’s not long before there is a speckled spiny muckendy flapping at their feet, ready to be the basis of a delicious soup.

But it is the muttonfish that are their prize, notoriously tricky to prise from the rocks of the rock pools while all the time watching for the razor-sharp teeth of the eels who also enjoy them.  But with success, just enough muttonfish for the evening meal and a tummy full of the delicious soup, it’s time to make the long walk home again.

Born in 1941 on The Reserve in La Perouse, Aunty Ruth Simms is now a Bidjigal Elder working as an Aboriginal Education Officer and this is her story of her lived experience as a child at a time when being self-sufficient was a way of life. even if it did take a whole day just to gather the evening meal. For apart from gathering their food, there was much else to be learned about traditional foods, medicines, stories and practices as her mother shared her knowledge with her and her siblings – knowledge that she remains passionate about sharing with today’s children. 

Like Going for Pippies, this became a trip back in time and nostalgia for me as I read and recalled a similar childhood – although I was at the very south of the South Island of New Zealand, the walk to the beach was just across the road, and the muttonfish (which Australians call abalone) were ‘paua’ to Kiwis. 

Between them, Aunty Ruth, Lucy Robertson and Jasmine Seymour have created a book that not only celebrates a slower, simpler way of life but shows how sometimes the basic and necessary chores such as feeding the family can form critical connections between generations, and pass on “invisible” knowledge and understandings that just become part of who they are. Creating the magic of memories.

While the Geography strand of the Australian HASS Curriculum for the early years focuses specifically on that special connection that First Nations Australians have to Country, as with Going for Pippies, this book not only addresses that but also offers the chance for young readers to share their experiences of the particular things that their families do that have always been done, foods that are always eaten at special times, stories always told and so on. Unlike me, few will relate directly to Aunty Ruth’s stories – unless they are lucky enough to live where they too, can explore the rockpools at tide-turn – but they will have their own stories to relate, and perhaps one day share with their little ones. 

 

Amanda Commander: The Great Orange Bake-Off

Feb19
Amanda Commander: The Great Orange Bake-Off

Amanda Commander: The Great Orange Bake-Off

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Amanda Commander: The Great Orange Bake-Off

Coral Vass

Heidi Cooper Smith

Wombat Books, 2025

62pp., pbk., RRP $A12.99

9781761112195

Amanda Caomhánach (aka Amanda Commander)  is nearly nine and likes nothing more than hanging out with her two best friends Lucia Cazzoli (aka Rainbow Fudge) and Mai Le (aka Plum Flower). Together they make up the Dolphin Squad meeting at their beachside HQ and solving problems like why Amanda didn’t receive an invitation to Eve’s birthday, the only one in the class not to have one, and other relationship issues that girls of that age face.  

Now in this, the latest in this colour-coded series for young independent readers, Amanda and her friends have been looking forward to the Year Three Bake-Off for weeks, planning what they, as a team, will make. So when Ms Tran pairs Amanda with Eve, whom she neither likes nor trusts, instead of her friends, Amanda is devastated. As is Eve, who would much rather be with her friends Charlotte and Lucy.  But how are they to convince Ms Tran that teams should be three, not two?  Or is there a twist when Amanda sees the recipe eve has planned that contains the mandatory orange? And how will Lucia and Mai react when they discover the new plan?

This is a race-along read that has strong themes of both competition and friendship with plenty of formatting interest that makes it an ideal stepping stone to more complex reads, as well as offering some life lessons about co-operation and compromise. Did Ms Tran deliberately choose teams of two so the friendship cliques would be split?  How would they feel if they were teamed with someone they didn’t like?  How might they make the combination work? Are competitions always all about winning? What do you think Coral Vass wanted you to learn from this story? What would you make if you had to bake something that included an orange?  

There are several others in the series, but there is also a special offer on the entire series which, IMO, would be welcomed by those newly independent readers who are expanding their friendship horizons beyond family, just as Amanda is.

Bun

Feb2
Bun

Bun

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bun

Hana Kinoshita Thomson

A &  U Children’s, 2026

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

9781761182396

Bun is a bunny who loves gardening, baking and visiting her friends. And today is a special day because Daisy, Buttercup and Walnut are coming for afternoon tea, so there is much to be done before they get here.

Our youngest readers are going to love this story because of its simplicity as they follow Bun through the task of baking a special carrot cake for her friends, from gathering the carrots from her own vegetable patch, through to getting the other ingredients she needs from to grocer, to actually baking the cake and sharing it with her friends.  The text is a simple narrative but therein lies its beauty because the reader is encouraged to use the pictures to fill in the gaps.  How does Bun’s day start like theirs? What does she grow in her garden? What vegetables do they recognise? What’s your favourite? If she likes baking, what might she be going to pick? What might she be going to make? If you were going to have friends over for afternoon tea, who would you invite?  What would you make them? The astute adult will ask those sorts of questions throughout, so that the child not only engages more deeply with the story, but learns that by searching the pictures they can tell themselves the story – another critical step in those early reading behaviours to encourage.  They might even use the carrot cake recipe to bake together…

This one is definitely at the top of the pile to share with the preschoolers this term…

A peek inside...

A peek inside…

 

 

Monster Post

Jan13
Monster Post

Monster Post

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Monster Post

Emma Yarlett

Walker Books, 2024

32pp., pbk., RRP $A16.99

9781529512083

Monster has found a tasty dinner, and he’s written to all his friends – Sir Gutguzzler, Madame Gargoyle, Giant Grumbo, and Hairy Fairy –  to invite them to a feast.  Each responds saying they would be delighted but each has explicit dietary requirements. Dinner has to be plump, salted, muddied and chilled.

But, unfortunately, Dinner is a child who very much does not want to be eaten.  What can be done to prevent this terrible fate?

Originally published elsewhere as Beast Feast, young readers who have already enjoyed Santa Post, and Unicorn Post will enjoy opening the beasts’ responses to their invitations in carefully folded letters, and having read the demands, predict what Dinner’s suggestion might be, as well as how the seemingly inevitable ending might be avoided. Can they be as quick-thinking and imaginative as Dinner?

This is one to read literally from cover to cover as there are recipes to share and while some like Eyeball Sushi  are not recommended, others like Salted Popcorn could be fun to try.

A fun read to share and perhaps even start a little one on their own cooking adventure.  

 

 

Sundays Under the Lemon Tree

Nov1
Sundays Under the Lemon Tree

Sundays Under the Lemon Tree

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sundays Under the Lemon Tree

Julia Busuttil Nishimura

Myo Yim

Scribble, 2025

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

9781761381485

On Sundays, our family gets together to eat good things under the lemon tree in the backyard.” 

But before they eat, there is the cooking to be done and everyone pitches in to help- except for the littlest one, also the narrator, who  is deemed too small to help.  But when Dad can’t carry three buckets at once to collect seawater which is the secret ingredient to making ricotta, things change and the reader is taken on a journey that not only takes them through the park, up and down a big hill, across a busy street down the 67 wooden steps to the beach (and back again) but also involves them in the making of a special handed-down-through -generations recipe that becomes the hit of the meal. 

Drawing on her Maltese heritage and her broad experience as a cook and a cookbook author, this is one that will reflect the experiences of many of our students, not only as they gather for family dinners but also learn those traditional foods and recipes that bind and bond families together in unique ways.  While some of the budding cooks might like to try making the Apple, Lemon and Ricotta cake from the recipe supplied, others might like to share their own family events that bring them together regularly and the foods they share, especially as the upcoming celebrations seasons, in all its manifestations, is almost upon us again.  It offers the opportunity to share what happens in their families and why, investigate the origins of the observances, discover those passed-on recipes so strengthening intergenerational relationships,  but also engage in instructional writing as they share recipes, maths as they make them and developing a general awareness of the ties that bind us no matter where we are from.

Not to mention the memories it evokes and makes!

At a time when “Peace on Earth” seems to be the catchcry – although not the reality – stories and activities that bring people together can only help to promote it.  

And to kick start proceedings, here is my family’s recipe for pavlova, passed on through six Kiwi generations so far and eaten at every Christmas dinner I can recall… even when sugar was in short supply, post-war. It’s taken from the Edmonds Cookery Book that has been passed through the family since my Great-Gran got a copy for my Nanna in the early 20th century! (And my Nanna only had a wood stove till the 50s, as did we –how posh we were when we moved to Christchurch in 1960 and had an electric one.  And a fridge!!!) 

Ingredients

  • 3 egg whites
  • 2 tbsp cold water
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 cup  caster sugar
  • 1 tsp vinegar
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence
  • 3 tsp Edmonds Fielder’s Cornflour
  • whipped cream and fresh fruit – kiwifruit, strawberries and passionfruit

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 150˚C. Line a baking tray with baking paper and draw a 20cm circle on it.. Flip the baking paper so that the pencil line doesn’t transfer to your pavlova. Make sure there is enough baking paper to be able to grasp the edges to flip the pavlova when cooked.
  2. Beat the egg whites with the salt until stiff, add cold water and beat again.
  3. Add the sugar very gradually while still beating. Keep beating for 5 minutes to dissolve the sugar. (My Great-Gran and Nanna swore by doing it by hand but my mum had an electric mixer. All mod cons in the 50s.)
  4. Slowly add the vinegar, vanilla and cornflour.
  5. Pile the meringue in the centre of the circle and gently spread it out to the edge of the circle keeping it as round and even as possible. (The littlest one gets to lick the bowl, and the next in line the beaters. )
  6. Bake for 45 minutes, then leave to cool and dry in the oven overnight. That gives it its crusty shell.
  7. Gently place  a serving plate on top and flip the tray over so the marshmallow side is uppermost.  Peel away the baking paper. Cover with whipped cream  with whipped cream and fresh fruit.  (Or you can leave it crunchy side up and just decorate the top.)
Our family pavlova recipe.

Our family pavlova recipe – but not my photo because the resident chef (son) was too busy to cook for me this weekend.

Going for Pippies

Sep25
Going for Pippies

Going for Pippies

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Going for Pippies

Wilaaran Hunter Laurie

Tori-Jay Mordey

Magabala Books, 2025

32pp., hbk.,  RRP $A27.99

9781922864147

That particular time of day when the tide is on the turn and  all the family members gather at the beach to search for seafood.  And for five-year-old Wilaaran, it is time to learn the special knowledge that has been passed through generations for thousands of years – how to do the pippi dance, which is not some new craze learned on Tik Tok but a feet-squishing, heel-digging, hip-twisting set of moves in the shallows where the waves break that will detect the shellfish ready to be gathered.  Wilaaran is unsure about the waves so he sits on the shore waiting to collect what the others find in his bucket. Soon his bucket contains enough to feed the whole family and, after returning the small ones to the ocean so they have more time to grow, they head home for a meal of pipi fritters…

Written when he was just five himself, this is an authentic story that many other readers and reviewers will comment about its literary and artistic merit, but. for me, it brought back special memories of doing just what Wilaaran did when I was his age but thousands of kilometres away on Oreti Beach at the tip of New Zealand’s South Island in the post-war years of the early 1950s. Led by a group of dads who had all served overseas in World War II (and, in hindsight it was probably therapeutic for them to process their PTSD because they never spoke about it with their wives – “If you weren’t there, you wouldn’t understand and you don’t need to know”), families would gather at a certain part of the beach at a certain time of the month, laden down with gear because few had cars in those days and prepare to hunt for tea, just as Wilaaran’s mob did.  The men themselves would venture into deeper water armed with flounder nets to catch the delicious flatfish while the women and children would do the pipi dance just in case the nets were empty when they were dragged in.  And, on occasions, instead of pipis we would get toheroa, an even greater delicacy because Oreti Beach was one of a handful of places they lived beyond the North Island. 

But this book brings back more than just memories for me – for just as it tells of a tradition that goes back so many generations for Wilaaran’s family using knowledge passed down and across from one to another, and reinforcing their connection to Country, it also shows that other cultures pass on similar knowledge to their upcoming generation.  How did those men know which days to go to Oreti Beach and where,  along its 26lm length, to cast their nets?  So while the Geography strand of the Australian HASS Curriculum for the early years focuses specifically on that special connection that First Nations Australians have to Country, this beguiling book not only addresses that but also offers the chance for young readers to share their experiences of the particular things that their families do that have always been done, especially recipes for foods that are commonly shared at important times for them.  

For me, the best books for little ones offer ways that they can connect to the story, and while they might not relate directly to Wilaaran’s memory, they will have a story of their own to tell. That, alone, makes it an essential addition to the collection.

Kevin in a Stew

Jul22
Kevin in a Stew

Kevin in a Stew

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kevin in a Stew

Jacqueline Harvey

Kate Isobel Scott

Puffin, 2025

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

9781761048975

Shaun, Shauna, Sheryl and Shane are sheep – and are as predictable in their sheepish behaviour as the alliteration of their names.  Along with the rest of the flock, they are happy doing the same things over and over, day after day in their fields of green grass and clover.

But Kevin is different.  To start with, he’s allergic to grass and would much prefer a bowl of soup (sprinkled with chives) and then, instead of subjecting himself to the regular shearing, he prefers to keep his locks long, and have painted purple hooves! 

So no one is really surprised when he decides to make his childhood dream of having his own vegetarian restaurant come true.  His friends are all willing to help out but who will be the chef?  Surely not Wolf who is not known for preferring vegetables over meat, particularly lamb, even though he is adamant that he has changed his ways! But he IS the only applicant!

This is the third in this adorable series by the very talented Jacqueline Harvey and the equally talented Kate Isobel Scott who interprets Harvey’s words into the most appealing pictures that add so much more.  Because they know that young readers respond to rhyme, rhythm and repetition, many authors decide to tell their stories in rhyming text but few manage to achieve the standard that Harvey does.  While others often seem to have to manipulate both vocabulary and syntax to achieve the rhyme, making it all seem rather contrived, Harvey gets a flow that is so natural you can’t imagine the story not being in rhyme, and where it might get a bit tricky, Scott’s illustrations fill in the gaps so both words and pictures form an integrated whole that not only delights the reader but allows them to tell themselves the story as they continue to develop those essential early reading behaviours. 

They will gasp at the drama of the climax as Shaun, Shauna, Sheryl and Shane fail to appear on time on opening night – could they really be bubbling in Wolf’s pot on the stove? Where might they be? What might have happened to them?  And after they breathe a sigh of relief when the mystery is explained, what do they think of the ending?  Can they suggest other recipes that Wolf could put on the menu apart from the one he is considering?

There are frequent reports that literacy standards in Australia are dropping, that we are reading less, particularly young men. and that “something needs to be done about it”.  

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2024, April 16). How Australian generations spent their time on recreation and leisure. ABS. https://www.abs.gov.au/articles/how-australian-generations-spent-their-time-recreation-and-leisure.

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2024, April 16). How Australian generations spent their time on recreation and leisure. ABS. https://www.abs.gov.au/articles/how-australian-generations-spent-their-time-recreation-and-leisure.

IMO, apart from developing the mechanics of reading, we as parents, teachers, teacher librarians and significant adults in their young lives need to demonstrate that reading is not only a valid, valuable and valued way to spend our time but it is also fun.  Authors like Jacqueline Harvey (who seems to be able to write effortlessly for all ages) who create such delightful stories and series like this are certainly doing their part by helping capture them from an early age.  Can’t wait to share this (and leave it) with the preschoolers I read to on Fridays! 

Croc Candy

Feb17
Croc Candy

Croc Candy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Croc Candy

Claire Thompson

Deborah Brown

Woodslane, 2025

32pp., hbk., RRP $A27.99

9781922800817

Seven-year-old Angus Copelin-Walters is like so many little lads that we all know – he would much rather be outside doing the boy-things that he loves than inside the classroom struggling with reading and maths, especially when the numbers jumble and the letters twist and tumble.

But that could be where the similarity ends because for Angus, who lives in Australia’s Top End, his favourite thing is interacting with the many crocodiles at his local fun park, preferring to wrestle with them than the marks and squiggles on a page that seem to make no sense.  As his self-esteem and belief in himself goes into a downward spiral, despite his mother’s wise words to do things his own way, Angus sees a television doco about homeless people and suddenly his life is changed for ever…

Inspired by a desire to do something, he finds both a purpose and a product, and even though the numbers still jumble and the letters twist and tumble, he perseveres because now he has a need and a reason to tame them.

This is the most uplifting true story of yet another child hero who sees a problem and tries to fix it – in this case, by creating special croc-shaped lollipops that are based on traditional First Nations bush tucker. Now, at 14, an ambassador for global charity Made by Dyslexia, and acknowledged by dignitaries such as the  late HM Queen Elizabeth II and Sir Richard Branson, his story is told and his name known so that he can stand alongside peers like Campbell Remess who is continuing to change the world “one teddy bear at a time” and other Australian child heroes who continue to prove that not only not all superheroes wear capes, but that success can be defined by so much more than a mark on an assignment or a score on a test.

As the new Australian school year gets underway and some students are embracing it while others are dreading it, this is a must-share. Not only does it demonstrate that success takes many forms, that doing things in your own way and wanting to make a difference and believing that you can can have great rewards and “numbers that jumble and letters that twist and tumble” or any other learning challenges can be overcome, it encourages children to identify their own hopes and dreams,  set their goals and pathways to them, and understand that trial and error, practice and patience are all part of the journey.  They can learn to harness their personal superpower that, as Sir Richard Branson says, “helps us to see the world differently and come up with new and exciting ideas.”

How many green ant lollipops will they have to taste-test until they find the combination that is just right?

 

Good Housekeeping The Ultimate Kids Christmas Book: Crafts, Recipes, & Fun!

Dec1

 

 

 

Good Housekeeping The Ultimate Kids Christmas Book

Good Housekeeping The Ultimate Kids Christmas Book

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good Housekeeping The Ultimate Kids Christmas Book

Hearst Home Kids, 2023

192pp., hbk., RRP $A49.99

9781958395998

What makes Christmas, Christmas for kids?  That was the question that the authors of this book asked themselves to kickstart their thinking and they came up with three key elements – festivities. decorations and food. 

Created by the editors and Test Kitchen chefs at Good Housekeeping, it begins with a quick trip around the world to discover the ways kids in different countries celebrate the time, including Australia, offering an opportunity for students to share the traditions that make celebrations in their households unique and then this is followed by an advent calendar with 24 suggestions of different activities that could be done each day from taking a walk outside and enjoying what Nature has to offer to creating a Christmas time capsule using memories of the family’s favourite moments to be opened in 12 months’ time.  

There are further chapters that focus on the origins and development of the Christmas tree, hosting a gift swap and many more practical ideas that mean this is the ideal starter resource for Christmas celebrations in the classroom, especially for those students in the 8-12 age range who are a little more independent and demanding something new.  Even though many of the activities and recipes are winter-based,  even they are an opportunity to explore why so much of what we continue to do here in Australia reflects those northern hemisphere traditions.

This is an excellent way to begin the 2024 Christmas Countdown as it offers ideas that can be planned in advance to make the most of this time and for years to come.

 

 

Mini and Milo: The Last Plum

Oct3
Mini and Milo: The Last Plum

Mini and Milo: The Last Plum

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mini and Milo: The Last Plum

Venita Dimos

Natasha Curtin

Walker Books, 2024

32pp., hbk., RRP $A25.99

9781760656171

Mini the elephant is gathering together the ingredients for her plum pie, her entry into the Annual Delicious and Delightful Cooking Competition but, much to her dismay, she has only nine plums and the recipe requires ten. Having been the winner for the last three years, the only thing Mini likes better than plums is winning – and that won’t happen with a pie with only nine plums.  

But she knows that Milo has plums on his plum tree so she asks him for one, but Milo only has one left and he’s been waiting ages for it to ripen so there is no way he is giving it to Mini, even if she is his best friend and offers to make him a pavlova, pudding and pancakes.  Things get desperate when Mini discovers that even the fruit shop has no plums and so she hatches a cunning plan… But sometimes plan go astray and this one has disastrous consequences…. or does it???

The tag on this book is “Big Skills for Mini People” and it is a series written for our youngest readers to not only help them manage their own emotions but help them navigate their way through relationships as they venture into the world of friendships beyond family and have to learn about competitiveness, managing inner voices, learning to listen, and communicating effectively. Learning to negotiate, compromise and consider others as they emerge from that egocentric world of toddlerhood can be tricky and so books like these, read with sensitive adults who can ask questions like “What could Mini have done instead of doing what she did? ” can help develop skills and strategies that will provide well for the future. 

While using animals as the main characters to portray human behaviour, particularly that of young children, is a common trope in these sorts of stories, doing so enables a lot of humour and unexpectedness to be injected into the story so it doesn’t become didactic and overbearing, and that is the case with this one.  Imagine – an elephant wearing a mask as a disguise climbing a ladder under the cover of darkness versus a young child doing the same.  Which will have the greater impact and memorability?  So as well as being a story for little ones to help them be a better friend, this could also be one for budding young writers to consider as they start to develop their own characters. 

Teachers’ notes and storytime kits to help teachers and parents make the most of the book and the series are available.