Flight of the Drakkonbarq

Flight of the Drakkonbarq

Sarah Giddy

Riveted Press, 2025

288pp., pbk., RRP $A19.00

9781764007146

Imagine being so small that a raindrop feels like a waterbolt, you live in a snail shell cottage and your school uniform was made from a caterpillar’s shed skin!

Even though he is 12 years old, Bat Brikson is less than two centimetres tall—but his dreams are bigger than the sky.

Tired of feeling like a misfit because he has such big dreams, Bat hitches a ride on his newly hatched moth Oddity, and takes off on a daring quest. His mission? To fly beyond the grass, find the legendary enemy dragonfly-riders, and finally discover where he belongs. But the world above is nothing like he imagined.

From riding beetles and exploring treetop villages to joining sky-high honey quests and befriending a fierce young warrior named Elfrida, Bat is swept into a world of wonder—and danger. The dragonfly-riders, known as the Drakkonbarqs, aren’t the villains he was raised to fear. In fact, some of them feel more like home than the classmates he left behind.

As Bat navigates battles, secrets, and shifting loyalties, he begins to realise that being different doesn’t mean you don’t belong. And that sometimes, the greatest quest isn’t to change yourself—but to see others more clearly.

Fantasy adventures are the choice of so many readers right now, regardless of their age, and this is an ideal introduction to the genre for those independent readers who have the confidence and competence to tackle something a bit more challenging while still having the support of shorter chapters and plenty of illustrations to help visualise the world and inhabitants of Groundlands. Yet, despite its characters and setting, it has a familiar theme of needing to belong, to find your place in the world and to be comfortable in it – exactly what many of our students are feeling right now as they straddle childhood and adolescence, and are facing big changes like moving on to high school. Thus, they will resonate with Bat’s restlessness, to want to know and grow, maybe even be their own equivalent of a Drakkonbarq. But, at the same time as finding their own feet, they are taken out of that egocentric world of childhood and learn how to tread their own path whilst not stepping on the toes of others – that those around them also have dreams and desires beyond their current circumstances and situations and it can be a delicate dance to negotiate everyone and everything. Maybe some of their real-world Drakkonbarqs will surprise them just as Bat was surprised. And as he discovered, the view of the world changes depending on the lens you see it through. Perhaps a raindrop is not a waterbolt.

In a Q & A with Brenton Cullen, the author discusses the background and processes (and time) that go into creating a book such as this – it began life as a final assignment for her Bachelor of Visual Art and Design, Even if some students prefer to draw rather than read, read them just the first chapter and challenge them to create Bat’s world. Set their imaginations soaring… … maybe even consider what adventures might be waiting in the world they imagine

She also discloses that she is currently working on a new one “about a girl with a magic bottle of ink and an annoying dragon friend” which promises to be just as intriguing.

The Cockatoo Crew (series)

Nov7

The Cockatoo Crew (series)

The Cockatoo Crew (series)

Elif’s Itchy Palm

9781760803148

Sambu Won’t Grow

9781760803155

Lora Inak

Kruti Desai

UWAP, 2025

90pp., pbk., RRP $A15.99

As this school year draws to a close, we all recognise the gamut of feelings some students are experiencing as they face a move to a new school, whether it’s because it’s the natural next step in their education, family circumstances or something else that is uprooting them from their comfort zone. Anticipation, expectation, trepidation, anxiety, fear – all underpinned by the common concern about will they be liked and will they make friends. Then compound those feelings by being in a new country, knowing no one except your family and scarcely speaking a word of English. All you know are the few words you learned in school in Türkiye and yet, here you are, in a new country, quieter, greener, wider, bigger and cleaner than what you are used to with no familiar sights, sounds or smells .

It’s Elif’s first day at Cockatoo Hill English Language School and despite her dede reassuring her that it won’t be long before she feels she belongs, Elif is very nervous. She meets her special helper who speaks both Turkish and English and who will be by her side at school helping her until she has the confidence to cope but how long will that be? And then she meets the Cockatoo Crew, her eight classmates each from a different part of the world, and each with different beliefs, perspectives and stories. Could these be the friends she has been craving?

This is the first in this new series that is for those who are newly independent readers, whether they are like Elif and just mastering this new language, or just mastering reading or both, And from the get-go where the front pages greet you with a range of “portraits’ of kids welcoming you in their own language, you know that this is going to be a stand-above series because it is filling a gap in the collection by putting the reader directly into the shoes of Elif and Sambu and the others so they can view the world through the lens of those not born here, who don’t speak the language, are unfamiliar with the food and games, and don’t necessarily understand the quirky things that Australians do. Yet, at the same time as learning to appreciate the challenges such children face, it is soon clear through the stories that despite the differences all children share the same hopes, aspirations and fears. Elif is worried that she has lost the special $2 coin here dede gave her; Sambu that even though he is about to be 10 he is not tall like his Kenyan Massai Warrior ancestors… And just as the English-speaking child learns that, so too, the non-English speaking child sees a story about themselves and their first experiences as they put their foot in the door of the Introductory English Centre for the first time… and learn that you do not have to be the same as everyone else to fit in and belong.

With all the supports these children need, including familiar characters and situations, uncomplicated storylines, shorter chapters, larger fonts and plenty of illustrations to illuminate unfamiliar concepts and vocabulary, the production crew has nailed the formatting, while the critical issue of a well–written, engaging story remains central.

Throughout my time in schools, including an IEC, and particularly on a gazillion playground duties, if I’ve learned anything, it is that despite any differences they might have on the surface, kids will find a work-around so they can play together, enjoy each other’s company, and have fun. Everything else is irrelevant because after all, we all smile in the same language. And this series captures that perfectly, making it a must-have in any school where there is anyone from elsewhere who needs some support and reassurance – with the language or otherwise.

A simple way to welcome all out students and their families – the kids had to dress themselves in one of the variations of our school uniform! The chatter to ensure they had an original combo was exciting to eavesdrop on…

Mega Rich Guinea Pigs

Oct28

Mega Rich Guinea Pigs

Mega Rich Guinea Pigs

Kate and Jol Temple

HarperCollins, 2025

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

9781460767207

The world’s richest man, Magnus McAloon, has tragically died in a rocket experiment gone wrong. The sole heirs to his estate are his four beloved pet guinea pigs: Hot Head, Lunk, G-Chip and Big Pig (who is actually a capybara, but don’t tell him that).

Not everyone is happy – especially the members of the McAloon family, who are determined to get back the fortune that they feel belongs to them, and not the newly mega rich guinea pigs.

This is the first in a new series from the team that entertained newly-independent readers with the Frog Squad series, and is likely to be welcomed by a similar cohort. Like many who win the lottery, they go on a mad shopping spree (paying for their purchases using a microchip embedded in their butts) but as they make their way back to their limousine they realise that perhaps unlimited, unfettered shopping isn’t all that they thought it would be. And so they decide to invest in a Great Idea. But it can be tricky working out what is really a Great Idea and what is an elaborate swindle by Magnus’s brother Morris, his two wives Lomarti and Rubella, and their children, Barrett and Ellarea. Thank goodness for kind-hearted, smart Sylvester.

Like many of the new releases aimed at capturing those who are venturing into the world of novels, this one moves along at a fast clip that is reflected in its format with a larger font, short chapters, lots of illustrations and a narrator who speaks directly to the reader. Guinea pigs and capybaras are currently popular pets among that age group and so creating a series with them as the key characters who live the dreams of extraordinary wealth, madcap humour embedded with the tropes of good and evil, and generosity and greed is going to appeal, especially when the ending sets up the certainty of a sequel.

Rowley Jefferson’s Awesome Friendly Spooky Stories

Oct24

Rowley Jefferson’s Awesome Friendly Spooky Stories

Rowley Jefferson’s Awesome Friendly Spooky Stories

Jeff Kinney

Puffin, 2025

224pp., pbk., RRP $A17.99

9781761357787

There would be few primary school readers (and even those a little older) who do not know the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series , one of the pivotal series to get boys reading that I’ve encountered throughout my teaching career and the companion series written by Greg Heffley’s best friend, Rowley Jefferson. Kinney , identified as one of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World because he creates characters that kids relate to – the ones that are often on the outside looking in because they are awkward un-heroes who are the targets of pranksters and bullies, who make bad decisions but with the best intentions, but despite the dubious outcomes of some of their ideas, right always wins over wrong. And both Greg and Rowley and the reader learn something along the way.

In this new special addition, readers are taken into the world of Rowley Jefferson’s imagination. where they meet zombies, vampires, ghosts, and much more in these comically terrifying tales – just in time for that one night of the year when such creatures roam the planet one last time before being consigned to heaven or hell and homes are awash with items like jack-o-lanterns to ward them off. Even for those who do not acknowledge Hallowe’en, the stories continue the current fascination with these sorts of characters, while for those who relate to Rowley, it puts them in charge because the imagination is a place where the pranksters and bullies can’t invade.

Short stories, first-person narration that immediately engages the reader easy-to-read font, cartoon drawings and topical characters mean this is another that will encourage even the most reluctant reader to pick it up. And with 20 in the Wimpy Kid series who knows where it might lead as they get a boost from knowing they can read and there is pleasure in print. This is one that is not so much about the content but its potential to lead to other things.

Frog, Log and Dave A Brush with Evil

Oct21

Frog, Log and Dave A Brush with Evil

Frog, Log and Dave A Brush with Evil

Brent Wilson

Trent Jamieson

Penguin, 2025

168pp., graphic novel., RRP $A18.99

9781761347085

Frog is a speed fiend, D.I.Y. mechanic and the Queen of Guitar Shredding. Log is strong and silent, hates termites and sings, while Dave is friendly and loyal, can fetch anything and is known as the King of Bass Slapping. Together they form a group called The Tricycles who are driven from gig to gig in a van they call Excalivan by their one fan, Jeremy, a pigeon.

But when they lose their instruments to a lightning strike in a storm, they have to become delivery drivers in order to earn some money to replace them, and this time they are required to deliver a hungry shark to the Toothbrush Instruction Company – which just so happens to be under the new ownership of Count Evil von Evil, who bears a serious grudge against Town Hall because he was fired by them, and is seeking revenge on the friends for thwarting his plan in their first adventure. . But have they bitten off more than they can chew? One thing’s for sure, toothbrushing has never been so dangerous.

For those newly independent readers who love graphic novels that are full of energy, action, humour and chaos while still having relatable underlying themes of friendship, acceptance and good versus evil, this fills the bill. With so much of the plot and the character of the characters and the relationships between them embedded in the illustrations rather than the text, readers really have to engage as they unpack who’s who and what’s happening as they have to combine both words and pictures to extract the story – and it’s their inner voice that builds the story in their own words, rather than just those of the author. As well as building bridges between picture books where the illustrations are vital to the story but the text carries it and novels where readers have the experiences to create their own mental images, having to analyse and interpret both the visual and textual storytelling helps build deeper understanding and thus, stories with madcap personalities like Frog, Log, Dave and even Jeremy, who get involved in adventures that the readers themselves would like to have as they imagine themselves as the heroes, can form a really valuable part of their literary and literacy growth.

The Story Writer’s Handbook

Oct18

The Story Writer’s Handbook

The Story Writer’s Handbook

Adventures in Creative Writing

Katrina Nannestad

Cheryl Orsini

ABC Books, 2025

192pp., pbk., RRP $A26.99

9780733344008

Whether it’s stories about Mim and her travelling bookshop, or Olive who is a square peg in a round hole at boarding school, or one of her other award-winning stories for slightly older readers, we all know that Katrina Nannestad can write an engaging story that will keep us absorbed for hours. But now, she has turned her hand to helping others write similar stories in this interactive handbook to encourage young readers to “play with words, scribble freely without a destination in mind, daydream, plan, problem solve and create stories” and feel welcome in “the world of word lovers, storytellers, and daydreamers.”

But this is not a prescriptive text of “how to write a story from a-z” but rather “a playground” to be used as the reader/writer fancies, as they involve themselves in the sorts of activities that help gather the ideas, and develop the plots and characters that can lead to a story. Speaking directly to the user, Nannestad shares her ideas with examples and then there are blank frames for the budding writer to fill in for themselves with headings like Writing Goals, Be an Ideas Bowerbird, Writing Wreaths, Splashes of Colour, Dreams and Schemes and many more. With clever artistry by Cheryl Orsini, they are invited to imagine what might be in Ms Prune’s desk drawer, River Milson’s rucksack, Daphne Dupont’s handbag, and Professor Himmlich’s briefcase – all of which can become the germ of an idea – and we know how germs multiply rapidly…

Whether this is given to an aspiring author or used by a teacher as a guide for helping students enrich and enhance their own efforts, it is superb. My brain is ticking already – I wish it had been available when I was in the classroom situation – both as a student and a teacher!

Pablo and Splash: Roman Holiday

Oct17

Pablo and Splash: Roman Holiday

Pablo and Splash: Roman Holiday

Sheena Dempsey

Bloomsbury, 2025

240pp., graphic novel., RRP $A18.99

9781526662859

Pablo and Splash are two penguins, living in the icy waters of Antarctica – best friends but very different because Splash loves adventure while Pablo is more content in his familiar world. Since falling down a hole in the ice into the clutches of Professor O’Brain and her Timebender machine and finding themselves on a beach which they shared with dinosaurs, and then having to rescue the professor from being trapped in the Ice Age, they have become friendly with her so when they are challenged by Benji to go back in time to the Roman Empire and prove that they can travel through time and that they do indeed visit Rome by bringing back a gladiator’s helmet during a lesson about the era, it’s a dare they can’t resist, even if Pablo is a little reticent to begin with.

While Splash wants to explore the sites and sensations, and Pablo just wants to get the helmet and get back, they run into trouble when meet an emperor with a passion for collecting exotic birds, only some quick thinking – and emergency time travel – can save them from the fate that awaits them in the Colosseum!

With its graphic novel format, endearing characters and factual information mixed with time-travel adventure and humour, this is a series that both entertains and educates, as its young readers learn about past practices and traditions as well as how some birds, and indeed animals, became endangered or even extinct. There is further information about some of the things the friends encounter at the end of the book, inspiring those with an interest to delve deeper.

Full colour illustrations which cleverly convey the characters, expressions and emotions of birds that are usually portrayed as the opposite, and the fast-paced plot carried along entirely in dialogue and speech bubbles, this is one that will entice not only the reluctant reader to immerse themselves in a book but also show those who believe history has no place in the present or future to discover that there is much to discover!

Everything Under the Sun

Oct16

Everything Under the Sun

Everything Under the Sun

Molly Oldfield

Ladybird, 2025

256pp., hbk., RRP $A39.99

9780241619124

The subtitle of this book is “A curious question for every day of the year” and it is exactly that!

Inspired by the questions that children from around the world have sent into her podcast, and in particular the one that asked, “why do children ask so many questions?” the author has posed a question to explore for each day of the year encouraging them to explore their world, feed their constant curiosity and inspire their imagination.

How were rollerskates invented?
How do boats float?
Do snails go upside down?
Where is the happiest place in the world?

Divided into months but not defined by geographic or seasonal events which would limit its applicability, the author has drawn on the knowledge of a wide range of experts in each field to answer in text that younger independent readers can not only easily understand but which stimulates further questions and investigations, inspiring them to use their information literacy skills to delve deeper and further.

This has a place in the home bookshelf, the school library and the teacher’s toolkit as it shows children that adults don’t know everything but together, they can find out honing their skills of choosing, locating and navigating the best resource, interpreting and synthesising what they discover with what they already know and deciding if what they now know is enough or if they want to find out more. In the classroom it would be invaluable as an adjunct to “Word of the Week” for those who like to take their learning further while also giving a platform to those with their own expertise to share their knowledge. (I will never forget the turnaround in both behaviour and acceptance by peers when I gave two “likely lads” the chance to share what they knew about bats and bees – their respective obsessions – 40 years ago. No one had any inkling they were so knowledgeable and so much more than the labels they had been given.)

But as well as answering the child’s question and motivating them to discover more, it could also inspire them to begin asking their own as they encounter new and different things in their everyday life, particularly those that are open-ended and need more than a yes/no response or have more than one answer depending on the perspective taken. Imagine having a place where a student could pose a question that intrigues them and then watch and learn as others post their answers and opinions, especially if the respondents are required to justify their answers and cite sources. Purposeful, contextual, interactive information literacy at its best!

Caring for Country: First Knowledges for younger readers

Oct14

Caring for Country: First Knowledges for younger readers

Caring for Country: First Knowledges for younger readers

Bruce Pascoe & Bill Gammage

Adapted by Jasmin McGaughey with illustrations by Savi Ross

Thames & Hudson, 2025

148pp., hbk., RRP $A26.99

9781760763572

For tens of thousands of years, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples have cared for this country sustaining and maintaining it through the generations. through careful custodianship working in careful collaboration with nature. They farmed without fences, relied on indigenous flora and fauna rather than introduced species, harvested only what they needed and left the small to grow, and cared for Country in a way that non-Indigenous peoples are beginning to understand and appreciate.

Using a conversational tone that begins by inviting readers to investigate whose Country they are living on, and some of the natural features and inhabitants, this is an adaptation of the original by Bill Gammage and Bruce Pascoe whose books Dark Emu and Young Dark Emu have changed a lot of earlier perceptions about Indigenous farming practices that encourages them to understand the interdependence and symbiosis of habitants and their inhabitants and consider how to take better care of our environment today by using more traditional methods. Beginning with a chapter that explores the land before and after 1788, how it has changed and why, connections are made between then and now with questions and activities that promote understanding, respect and a desire to do better.

This is the third in this series that is an adaptation of that written for older readers which includes Astronomy, Innovation, Plants, Health, Design and Law so our younger readers have a better understanding of First Nations Peoples and their history and beliefs, wisdom, innovation and ingenuity and it would be an excellent extension to Prayer for a River and other books that focus on Connection to Country and traditional practices.

Like its predecessors, Songlines and Design & Building on Country, this one is also likely to be among the awards lists this year.

Funny Kid Seriously Soccer

Oct11

Funny Kid Seriously Soccer

Funny Kid Seriously Soccer

Matt Stanton

ABC Books, 2025

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

9780733342028

It’s been eight years since we first met Max, the funny kid, the class clown, the one who will make you laugh when you need one. And here we have the 14th episode in this series about a young lad who is not the fastest, smartest or the prettiest but who has not only made a lot of kids laugh over the years, but has also encouraged them to become readers as he has got himself in and out of pickles and scrapes that not only resonate with the reader but show a compassionate, more mature side of him that adults might not see because it is masked by the humour. For many, they are Max.

In this new adventure, Max is alarmed that his mates are more interested in watching soccer than in his comedy routine as he tries to build his career as a stand-up comedian, starting by standing on the street corner trying to catch a crowd. So how he is going to distract them so his friend Hugo can get enough video footage to compile a clip that will go viral on the internet? Of course, Max has plenty of ideas but things don’t always go according to plan…

Believing that “books inspire the imagination, imagination births creativity and creativity changes the world” Stanton deliberately sets out to engage the reader in something they can relate to and enjoy, and while those readers of the early stories may now be absorbed in other stories, this is a timeless series that will attract new fans constantly and with 14 in the series, they can enjoy the antics of Max and his mates and his duck over and over. Despite having 250+ pages, newly independent readers who are ready to tackle something a bit meatier but still with the support of short chapters and plenty of graphics, which showcase Stanton’s talent as a cartoonist as well as a writer, will manage its content and its length as they enjoy the achievement of being a “real reader”. And who knows where that might lead…

The Bottom Shelf

Great books for little people

Archives

Flight of the Drakkonbarq

The Cockatoo Crew (series)

Mega Rich Guinea Pigs

Rowley Jefferson’s Awesome Friendly Spooky Stories

Frog, Log and Dave A Brush with Evil

The Story Writer’s Handbook

Pablo and Splash: Roman Holiday

Everything Under the Sun

Caring for Country: First Knowledges for younger readers

Funny Kid Seriously Soccer

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