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Lexie Moon (series)

Jun17
Lexie Moon (series)

Lexie Moon (series)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lexie Moon 

The Word-Burgling Bundle

9781763526037

The Space Day Disaster

9781764007115

The Remote Control Catastrophe

9781764256766

Melissa Garside

Lauren Mullinder

Riveted Press, 2025- 2026

96pp., pbk., RRP $A12.99

Above 10-year-old Lexie Moon’s desk is a shelf crammed with notebooks, textbooks and scrapbooks and each of those is, itself, crammed with diagrams, sticky notes and pictures that inspire her because Lexie likes nothing better than using her tools to invent things. and build them with her Grandad. Wherever you looked in her bedroom, there were strange machines stuffed away, the results of her work over the last two years since her grandfather moved in with them. 

In the first episode, Lexie invents a machine to help people like her little sister say tricky words like ‘spaghetti”; in the second it’s a way to see the stars during the day time for the school’s Space Day, and in the third, she has built  a scrap-box remote-control car she hopes will win second prize in the local competition—a Mega-Boost signal amplifier she desperately wants.

But things don’t always go to plan and the infamous gadget thief, Gizmo Lightfinger who has been banned for life from the Inventor’s Guild, is always lurking nearby to try to steal her inventions and gain the glory for himself.

Short chapters, clever wordplay and text broken up by illustrations make this is an ideal series for newly independent readers who have an interest in science and inventions, but also like the sort of tension that is built by having an antagonist who has to be overcome to prevent havoc and mayhem in the town. But at the same time as the fast-paced action evolves, there are underlying issues such as using someone else’s ideas and calling them your own to consider which could then lead into discussions about the ethical use of information and images generally – important in an era where copy-and-paste is so simple – as well as moral dilemmas about the use of technology.  Just because Lexie’s invention achieves her goal of seeing stars in the daytime, does that make it okay for Gizmo Lightfinger to plunge the world into darkness? Just because you can get AI to do something nasty like create fake images of someone you don’t like, does that make it right to do so?  

 

Something different for those seeking something different, and with three books published in the series already, the opportunity for a satisfying binge-read under the covers on these cold winter nights. 

Design & Building on Country

Apr1
Design & Building on Country

Design & Building on Country

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Design & Building on Country

Alison Page & Paul Memmott

Blak Douglas

Thames & Hudson, 2024

152pp., pbk., RRP $A26.99

9781760763565

Whenever our young people hear the now familiar Welcome to Country or recite their school’s Acknowledgement of Country, are they just hearing or saying words or do they have an understanding of the meaning and purpose behind them?

Ever since 1835 when NSW Governor Richard Bourke implemented the legal principle of terra nullius in Australian law as the basis for British settlement until its repeal in 1992 by the High Court’s Mabo Decision that recognised Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ continuing connection and rights to land through Native Title., there was a legally perpetuated belief that Australia was, indeed, a  “land belonging to no one”, having “a complete absence of people and additionally the absence of ‘civilised’ people capable of land ownership” and thus, was used to justify and legitimise the dispossession, dispersal, and inhumane treatment of First Nations peoples.

But in this book, shortlisted for the CBCA 2025 Eve Pownall Award for Information Books, the authors and illustrators have provided a critical insight into the culture and history that underpins those  statements and helping them better appreciate what they are hearing and saying.  With easily accessible language, impactful illustrations and an appealing layout, they show that not only was the land populated by a culture that has been here for 65 000 years at least – making it the longest continuing culture in the world – but that there were amazing homes and buildings constructed, as well as incredible science, technology and design knowledge  ensuring both its continuation and development.

A peek inside...

A peek inside…

Speaking directly to the reader, they start with an explanation of the difference between ‘country” and “Country’ as it forms such an integral part of who the Aboriginal person is, their heritage, beliefs, values and identity. Using their own cultural heritage as well as their professional expertise in design and development to show that this country was anything but terra nullius, readers learn about how the need for food and shelter were satisfied by the invention, development and refinement of tools and structures that were unique to the land and landscape around them as well as contributing to that deep connection to the land and their spirituality. But as well as offering the information itself, the reader is also encouraged to consider how their own environment determines and impacts how their lives are lived.  While modern technology and transport might mean that our food needs and availability are fairly generic, how does my mountain landscape change my life compared to that of my brother on the Queensland coast?  How does what those who have lived thousands of years before us influence how we live now?

Originally published as a book for adults in the First Knowledges series edited by Margo Neale which include: Astronomy, Country, Innovation, Plants, Health, Songlines. Design and Law, this is the second from that series that has been developed for young readers, the first being Songlines. itself a CBCA Notable Book for the Eve Pownall Award in 2024. Both, and any future adaptations deserve a prominent place in any primary or secondary school collection supporting First Nations studies.

Brobot

Aug4
Brobot

Brobot

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Brobot

James Foley

Fremantle Press, 2024

192pp., graphic novel, RRP $A17.99

9781760993115

Sally Tinker is the world’s foremost inventor under the age of twelve, and she just knows she can build a better brother than the messy, smelly version she has. Sally’s invention – Brobot – is fantastic … until the remote breaks and Brobot careens out of control. Sally realises that maybe there’s more to a sibling than just inconveniences.

One of the most popular activities I did during my face-to-face teaching days was to share Shel Silverstein’s poem, Sister for Sale  and get students to not only create an advertisement to sell their sibling – ensuring they pointed out all the good things so it would seem like an attractive buy – but also to then advertise for a new one.  They had to consider what would be the essentials, non-negotiables and compromises they would accept and were often surprised to discover that what they wanted was what they already had!

The premise of this graphic novel for independent readers is somewhat similar – students could design their own brobot (or sisbot) using either their imaginations or the activity sheet, perhaps discovering, as Sally did, that their relationships with their siblings is deeper and more important than they thought. 

Super Sloth: Revenge of the Chick-Oats

Apr10
Super Sloth: Revenge of the Chick-Oats

Super Sloth: Revenge of the Chick-Oats

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Super Sloth: Revenge of the Chick-Oats

Aleesah Darlison

Cheri Hughes

Big Sky, 2024

140pp., pbk., RRP $A14.99

9781923004948

On a remote itty-bitty island off the coast of Panama there is an itty-bitty community of itty-bitty creatures. And while the rest of these pygmy sloths are content to dwell in the trees and move around “as slow as a rainy winter weekend”, Romeo Fortez, is different.  At his naming ceremony, the heavens do spectacular and amazing things and  Romeo is imbibed with powers of speed, intelligence, and irresistibly hypnotic good looks. As he grows up, Romeo craves speed and adventure and even his parents know that Escudo Island would never be big enough for him. But then he overhears a reference to New York – the city that never sleeps – and he knows that that is where he must be…

In the second episode of this action-packed series for newly independent young readers, ,Romeo’s nemesis, the unhinged Professor Ian Weird-Warp, is at it again. Bent on revenge, he concocts a quirky catastrophe. Mixing chicken and goat genes, he spawns a gang of eccentric chick-oats and they’re on the loose in the Big Apple, destroying everything in their path all the while chanting, ‘Berk-berk-baa!’

As the team faces off against Professor Weird-Warp’s sinister demands for Romeo’s surrender, they must hatch a brilliant plan to thwart the mad professor’s wicked schemes once and for all. Can this unlikely crew save the city from the clutches of the chick-oats?

Apart from being a fun read, it ends with the professor obviously intending more shenanigans so readers might like to have fun imagining what his next mutations might be – firstly it was a shark and a wolf, now chickens and goats so what could be next?  Perhaps they could even draw what they visualise and develop their own story based on what they already know of the resident characters, Weird-Warp’s motivations and their own imaginations.  

Santa’s New Reindeer

Dec13

 

 

 

Santa's New Reindeer

Santa’s New Reindeer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Santa’s New Reindeer

Caroline Crowe

Jess Pauwels

Faber, 2023

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

9780571375134

One week to go ’till Christmas Day,
The final touches underway,
A ribbon here,
a flourish there,
And presents piled up everywhere.

Santa smiled. ‘What could go wrong?’

It didn’t take long for him to find out.  Suddenly, there is a crash and a bang and Rudolph tumbles through the workroom roof after one of his flying tricks goes disastrously wrong!

And if that’s not bad enough, he has injured himself so now he can’t pull the sleigh!  And, on top of that, no one else has any flying reindeer to spare and using just seven will mean the journey won’t be completed in time!  What will they use instead>  The other reindeer make all sorts of suggestions, but each creature has an issue that makes them unsuitable, proving that only reindeer can pull the sleigh with its precious cargo.  But then Lizzie, the elves’ Head Inventor offers a solution…

For those familiar with the hijinks of Santa’s New Beard and Santa’s New Sleigh, this is another rollicking story that offers young readers an insight into the behind-the-scenes workings of that special place at the North Pole.  It’s a hive of activity all year round and they will have fun exploring all the details in the illustrations as well as suggesting solutions for Santa’s dilemma.

Every year there is a whole new wave of children who begin to appreciate the fun and excitement of Christmas, and their joy is palpable so to feed it with original and entertaining stories of the time is a privilege.  This series is definitely one to bring out during your Christmas Countdown.

 

The Blunders

Dec7
The Blunders

The Blunders

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Blunders

David Walliams

Adam Stower

HarperCollins, 2023

384pp., pbk., RRP $A22.99

 9780008614393

Blunder: a stupid or careless mistake or to make one

That pretty much sums up the family in this new release from one of the most popular authors for young readers. “The Blunders are the most blundersome family in the blundering history of blunderdom.  They live in a crumbling country house named Blunder Hall.  It has been in the family for hundreds of years in the heart of the English countryside. “

And like so many stately homes of its ilk, it is slowly crumbling and the family is constantly and desperately seeking ways to raise funds to maintain it. For Lord Bertie Blunder (“a classic upper class twit”), this means inventing something that will make the family a fortune but sadly, his inventions tend to be so silly and impractical that they cost more than they raise. But if he is to keep his family together and his home his castle, he needs to do something before The Man from the Bank who has his own plan to seize Blunder Hall can close everything down.

Fans of David Walliams will appreciate finding this either in their Christmas stocking or on the school library shelves, as will those who are just embarking on their independent reading journey because of its easy-to-read text liberally illustrated with line drawings that not only support the story but are also LOL in themselves.  The characters are caricatures, the humour is slapstick and the whole read one that will support the young reader in their belief that they can read, even thick books like this one.  

Ultrawild: An Audacious Plan for Rewilding Every City on Earth

Nov10
Ultrawild

Ultrawild: An Audacious Plan for Rewilding Every City on Earth

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ultrawild: An Audacious Plan for Rewilding Every City on Earth

Steve Mushin

A & U Children’s, 2023

80pp., hbk., RRP $A34.99

9781760292812

When the introduction to a book is entitled ” Ludicrous Ideas are Bootcamp for Brains” then you know you have something that is going to be out there and it’s going to appeal to your wild thinkers, your madcap inventors and all those other kids who dwell in the Land of What If?

This is a most unusual book in both format and content and yet it is also most intriguing.  The author himself says that he had been having “outlandish ideas” for as long as he can remember, some successful, some not-so, but he is on a mission to “crush climate change by transforming every city on Earth into a jungle (or whatever other type of ecosystem it was before humans trashed it)”.

So in a comic-like format that follows his thought processes, he designs habitat-printing robot birds and water-filtering sewer submarines, calculates how far compost cannons can blast seed bombs (over a kilometre), brainstorms biomaterials with scientists and engineers, studies ecosystems and develops a deadly serious plan to transform cities into jungles, rewilding them into carbon-sucking mega-habitats for all species, and as fast as possible. But, as a highly-respected industrial designer, artist and inventor these are not the random machinations of a child’s wildest dreams, but serious collaborations with scientists and others who are concerned about the planet and which incorporate futuristic materials and foods, bio reactors, soil, forest ecosystems, mechanical flight, solar thermal power and working out just how fast we could actually turn roads into jungles, absorb carbon and reverse climate change. Each project has been researched and while not yet necessarily put into practice, each is theoretically possible and some are already happening,

A peek inside...

A peek inside…

Underpinned by quotes from those who have gone before including 14th century philosopher William of Ockham who said that “the simplest solution is almost always the best” (Occam’s razor) this is one to inspire all those who are concerned about climate change but who want and need to do more than reduce their personal use of plastic and who can see that doing what has always been done might not work in time, let alone be successful. It validates the wacky and the wild ideas some students have and encourages them to go even further.

Book of the Microscope

Nov24
Book of the Microscope

Book of the Microscope

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Book of the Microscope

Alice James

Usborne, 2022

64pp., hbk., RRP $A19.99

9781474998468

Give a little child a magnifying glass and you will entertain them for hours.

Give a little child a pair of binoculars and you will entertain them for days,

But give them a microscope and you will entertain them weeks, if not a lifetime.

There is something fascinating that draws little people into looking at little things, so much smaller than they are and which captures their interest and imagination.  How well I remember the times it was our turn to have the school’s class set of microscopes and the anticipation and oy of discoveries made.  It didn’t surprise me that now Miss 16 had a microscope and a telescope on her Santa lists when she was but a babe!

So this book which explains what a microscope is, how it works and how to use it will be a welcome companion to a gift of the real thing. There are so many things to look at in and around the home that it can be overwhelming but with brilliant illustrations and accessible text, the reader is directed to focus on specific things such as the shapes and textures of thinks like moss or pollen and thus when they choose their own investigations they have learned the sorts of things to look for and at. There are even projects such as peeling a leaf or growing body bacteria  so the budding scientist is even more actively engaged.

Apart from being a brilliant suggestion for keeping young readers entranced as the long summer holidays approach, being an Usborne publication means there are safe links to follow to learn and discover more including using a virtual microscope.  

As well, the TL’s best friend Peter Macinnis still endorses the GoMicro, a device that attaches to a smart phone and for which he has written a series of free lessons for kids to use to explore the world around them.   More information about the device and how it can be purchased and used in schools (included purchasing a class set for $270) is here  or contact Peter directly for the teaching notes. 

Frankie Stein

Oct12
Frankie Stein

Frankie Stein

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Frankie Stein

Kylie Covark

Shane McG

Ford Street, 2022

32pp., pbk.,  RRP $A16.95

9781922696120

Frankie Stein loves doing science experiments while her teddy watches on. She wishes she could chat with him … she’s sure he’s a bear with scientific flair!

But when she mixes up a formula that works, and Bear comes alive, he is not the friendly, cuddly companion she is expecting! Now it’s a race to fix him before everything is destroyed.

With strong links to the original novel by Mary Shelley, this is a junior rhyming version with an underlying theme of being careful what you wish for.  Like the original, it is the scientist not the monster with the familiar name, and the teachers’ notes explain the amazing link between Mary Shelley and Ada Lovelace and why October 12 is set aside to celebrate the achievements of women in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) (and the date chosen to publish this review.)

The teaching notes also focus on assisting our younger readers to think about what scientists  do, science in their lives, and offer some simple science that they can practise that is much safer than creating a monster bear.  The story could start discussions about the reality of monsters in general. Could Frankie Stein really make a potion to bring her bear to life, regardless of how clever she is?  Or it may also inspire more advanced readers to seek out a junior version of the original novel while others might like to investigate the meaning of the original’s subtitle, The Modern Prometheus. It could also start discussions about the reality of monsters in general. Could Frankie Stein really make a potion to bring her bear to life, regardless of how clever she is? Whichever path is taken, it offers an introduction to one of the enduring characters in literature that children will hear of as their reading journeys continue.

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Frank’s Red Hat

Oct3
Frank's Red Hat

Frank’s Red Hat

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Frank’s Red Hat

Sean E. Avery

Walker Books, 2022

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

9781760654283

Frank is a penguin with ideas. Some are better than others but often they are  not so good.. So when he  he shows the other penguins his strange new creation, they are very nervous. It’s something they’d never seen or expected to see in their cold and colourless Antarctic world — a red hat. and when Neville puts it on and is immediately taken by a killer whale, they definitely don’t want anything to do with it –  or the lime, copper, apricot, cobalt, lilac versions Frank offered.  In fact, they didn’t care for any of his colour variations – it was the hat itself that was evil.

Despite his perseverance, Frank had to admit defeat and declared he would not make any more hats until…

Sometimes it just takes someone with a belief in their ideas, in what they do and can offer to bring colour into a monochrome world thus changing that world forever, and Frank’s determination and resilience to be and make the changes is a lesson to all those who have a talent or an idea. Encouraging those with the big ideas to not give up, to persevere while being willing to listen to their audience and even modify their prototypes to address concerns and meet new needs, this is a story that offers the boost to continue that might be needed.

On the other hand, it opens up opportunities for discussions from the penguins’ perspective about how we are naturally resistant to change that takes us beyond our comfort zone, this is a great story to share with those about to embark on new adventures such as moving house or graduating to high school.  While there will be anxiety about leaving what is known, there is also the chance for new, exciting doors to open, such as the new friends Frank meets and the potential to expand both ideas and learning.  

While the publisher recommends this as a story for 4-7 year olds, it has the potential to have a much wider audience in the hands of a skilled teacher.