The Sideways Orbit of Evie Hart

The Sideways Orbit of Evie Hart

Samera Kamaleddine

HarperCollins, 2023

288pp., pbk., RRP $A17.99

9781460762653

Evie Hart likes rules and routines. A lot. But as she embarks on her very last year of primary school, it feels like all the rules around her are being broken and the routines are definitely being upset, starting with mum not eating dinner with the family any more.

Then she discovers her mum, a journalist, is the author of the horoscope page for the local newspaper, and because it has her photo, her friends and their families know too, and they don’t hold back letting Evie know they think her mum writes and tells lies. To make things worse, she learns her beloved stepdad Lee is moving to Dubbo for at least a year, perhaps splitting the family in two forever! So when Evie’s class starts learning about the Earth’s place in the universe, it makes Evie think about her own place in the world and where she belongs.

But the more Evie learns about the sky and the stars, guided both by her kind, compassionate and knowledgeable teacher Miss Owen and her mother’s insights, the more she learns that changes in the world can’t always be controlled. And maybe that’s not a bad thing as she starts to make sense of and map out her own life as a more confident person.

Even though the title is The Sideways Orbit… there are many parallels to the lives of the readers that this book will appeal to, and so it will resonate with them as they make that sometimes tricky transition from tween to teen and young adult. While so much of her life so far has focused on the here and now, as she becomes more independent, bigger questions raise their heads – questions whose answers seem bigger and more complex than the universe – and Evie, like her readers, has to learn to navigate these in the context and boundaries of their own lives. And that doesn’t even include puberty! Straddling the reality of the day-today while contemplating the huge world of what-ifs and what-could-bes that is opening before her, including high school on the horizon, can be overwhelming but there is comfort in knowing that there is a path forward and a way through. So even if you feel like you’re going sideways in an endless spin, there is hope…

Many who write for and work with very young children talk about helping them understand and navigate “big feelings”. This story helps those who are at a different transition navigate theirs.

Etta and the Octopus

Sep5

Etta and the Octopus

Etta and the Octopus

Zana Fraillon

Andrew Joyner

Lothian, 2023

100pp., pbk., RRP $A14.99

9780734421685

FOUND!

One octopus!

Likes to eat tuna sandwiches.

Goes by the name of ‘Oswald’.

It all began when Etta decided to take a bath . . . And realised she wasn’t alone. In the bath sat Oswald. Etta had never had an octopus in her bath before. At first, Etta thinks it might be fun to have Oswald around. But she soon learns that octopuses are not very good at being tidy . . . or cooking . . . or sharing . . . or even playing nicely. Just as Etta has almost had enough, someone comes to claim Oswald. Oswald isn’t perfect, but does Etta really want to send him away?

This is another in the collection of books for emerging independent readers that focus on a young person being befriended by an unusual creature – in this case, an octopus. It has all the structures like a larger font, short chapters and plenty of illustrations that a young person needs; it contains instructions for the game that Etta and Oswald play, and Andrew Joyner has included a step-by-step guide to drawing Oswald. But what sets it apart is that Etta starts making a list of the pros and cons of having an octopus as a pet, a strategy that our young readers can learn and adapt as they venture into the realm of persuasive writing. Their growing maturity allows them to view a problem or situation from more than their own perspective and to be able to stand back and look at the advantages and disadvantages and then list these so they can make an informed opinion is the basis of a quality argument which is at the heart of persuasive writing and being a critical thinker.

So, having shared the story with the students, it offers opportunities to set up similar situations such as a dragon having taken up residence in the school playground, so they can start to explore and develop this strategy for themselves.

The ending of this story sets it up to be a series so perhaps there will be more to come that those who like quirky adventures can enjoy.

Odelia and the Varmint

Sep3

Odelia and the Varmint

Odelia and the Varmint

Jenny Moore

New Frontier, 2023

275pp., pbk., RRP $A16.99

9781922326713

When a pair of unruly fictional pirates escape out of her mother’s book into Victorian London, 11-year-old Odelia Hardluck-Smythe’s lonely life is turned upside down…

After the sudden death of her father leaves her family struggling financially and emotionally as the life of luxury and comfort that they knew disappears, things change dramatically in the Hardluck-Smythe’s household, Trying to support her children, Odelia’s mother spends her time writing an adventure story for a publisher who has rejected all her work so far, while Odelia makes sure the family are able to survive on a daily diet of toast (the only thing she can cook). But when the villain of her mother’s story, pirate Captain Blunderfuss, the ship’s cook and Dog, the oddly named ship’s cat, suddenly come to life and appear in their house, their lives take a remarkable turn.

But rather than freaking out, even though Captain Blunderfuss and Cook are rude, dangerous and obsessed with marzipan fruits, the family adjust to having these unexpected guests, and Odelia sees an opportunity to join the pirates in a search for the treasure she believes her father hid in the family home prior to his death. During their search, Odelia learns that varmints, villains and heroes may not always be as easily identified as they first appear. Who is trustworthy? And while Odelia thinks pirates mean treasure and treasure means buried chest of precious jewels and riches, she discovers that it can have other meanings too.

Despite their somewhat gloomy circumstances, the drama of both the setting and the situation are offset by Captain Blunderfuss continually mispronouncing and misusing the language, which Odelia has to translate to make sense, such as when he promotes her to ship’s basin (bosun) and his regular cry of ‘Ankles away!’ (anchors) offering some light relief as well as the opportunity to explore various terms and phrases. Written for independent readers who like a swashbuckling adventure and mystery, it takes them to Victorian England, a time many will still be unfamiliar with, offering insight into a life where industrialisation in just emerging, far away from the one of instant communication and gratification that they are more likely to know.

As well as exploring a world so different to their own, the endpapers and the teachers’ notes could both take the reader into the world of steampunk, or even into historical fiction generally, opening up a world of new reading adventures.

The Things That Matter Most

Sep2

The Things That Matter Most

The Things That Matter Most

Gabbie Stroud

Allen & Unwin, 2023

368pp., pbk., RRP $A32.99

9781760879839

The staff of St Margaret’s Primary School are hanging by a thread. There’s serious litigation pending, the school is due for registration, and a powerful parent named Janet Bellevue has a lot to say about everything. As teachers they’re trying to remain professional, as people they’re unravelling fast.

There’s Tyson, first year out of uni and nervous as hell, Derek the Assistant Principal who’s dropped the ball on administration, Bev from the office who’s confronting a serious diagnosis, and Sally-Ann who’s desperate for a child of her own.

Thank goodness for kids like Lionel Merrick. Lionel is the student who steals your heart and makes the whole teaching gig worthwhile: he’s cheerful, likeable, helpful – and devoted to his little sister Lacey. But Lionel has a secret of his own. As his future slides from vulnerable to dangerous, will someone from St Margaret’s realise before it’s too late?

Trent Dalton’s quote on the bottom of the front cover reads, “Lionel Merrick stumbled into my heart like a kid late for class, then the whole book swept in after him … gut-wrenching and important.’ And that encapsulates this story from the author of the ground-breaking Teacher, perfectly.

As teachers we have all been or met Tyson, Derek, Sally Ann, Bev and Nova and we certainly know Janet Bellevue and Eric Templeton. And, sadly, we also know Lionel and Lacey and Rupert and so many others just like them, and even more with their own stories to tell and challenges to face. They’re why we work such long hours, put in the effort, don’t walk away when the Janets and the Sampsons try us to the limit – because they’re the things that matter most.

This is a must-read for all teachers because even though it will echo their own day-to-day lives, it will reassure them that they are not alone, they are not invisible, that their issues are shared, and that Lionel and Lacey and Rupert, even Abigail are worth it.

This is a must-read for all parents whose only experience of school is their own so many years ago when things were vastly different so they can get some insight into a life that is not limited to 9-3; that teachers are entitled to a life and living that does not revolve around their child; and debunks the myth that teachers are “underworked, overpaid and have too many holidays”. If that’s the case, why are they not enrolling in uni to become one?

And it is also a must-read for all those who worship the God of Administrivia and who believe that a pile of pointless paperwork is the pathway to paradise. Because when it comes down to it, what are the things that really matter most?

Dog Squad: The Newshound

Aug21

Dog Squad: The Newshound

Dog Squad: The Newshound

Clara Vulliamy

HarperCollins, 2023

128pp., pbk., RRP $A15.99

9780008565336

Eva has always wanted to be a journalist, and, together with her friends Simone and Ash, the she produces the Newshound newspaper for her school readers. While they’ve written a few stories, there hasn’t been anything really significant, so when she finds a stray dog outside her home, Eva thinks she might just have found her first case.

The dog follows her home but living in a block of flats where pets are banned is problematic and although her mum says it can stay overnight, secretly Eva has other ideas. The dog, which she determines is a whippet, is so thin she calls it Wafer and even though tracing its owner might offer The Newshound its biggest story yet, Eva soon realises that she might not want to get to the bottom of the mystery after all – because won’t that just mean she just has to give Wafer back?

Even with its English setting, this is a story that is going to resonate with a broad audience of young newly-independent readers because if they are not budding writers like Eva and her friends wanting to get to the bottom of these sorts of stories, then they are animal lovers whose hearts reach out to stray, mistreated creatures that so clearly need a home. They may even be non binary like Ash and enjoy seeing themselves in a story affirming their identity. As well as being an engaging read, it also provides food for thought as it raises issues about the treatment of animals by humans, from breeding in puppy farms for profit to their disposal when they are no longer wanted, perhaps even inspiring some to delve deeper.

And just to top it off, it is the start of a new series, with The Race scheduled for early 2024, so readers have something to look forward to. While they wait, they might like to meet Dotty Detective, a series in a similar vein of young girls solving mysteries.

Olive of Groves (series)

Aug20

Olive of Groves

Olive of Groves (series)

Olive of Groves

9780733342615

The Great Slurp of Time

9780733342646

The Right Royal Romp

9780733342622

Katrina Nannestad

Lucia Masciullo

ABC Books, 2023

288pp., pbk., RRP $A17.99

Mrs Groves’ Boarding School for Naughty Boys, Talking Animals and Circus Performers is NOT the place for an ordinary girl like Olive but because her grandparents just wanted her to be able to mix with other people it is where she has ended up by mistake. And because going to boarding school has been her dream, Olive decides to stay even though she has to tell a lie that she is an acrobat to be able to satisfy the entry requirements because she is neither a naughty boy, a talking animal or an actual circus performer. Apart from not being an acrobat, as those who are are keen to show her, she has to contend with a principal who is terrified of ordinary girls like her and whose leadership and management skills are non-existent as she seems to be perpetually flustered and flummoxed; a supercilious, egotistical pig who is a bully and determined to make her life unbearable, a goose that faints at the slightest thing, and sharing a strange turret room with three talking rats. Thank goodness she has some allies.

Originally published in 2015 and shortlisted for the 2016 Indie Book Awards, this is a whimsical series for younger readers who can lose themselves in the nonsense of such a scenario and just enjoy Olive’s adventures for what they are. There is tension and drama as the series progresses – it is one best read in order – but this is offset by the crazy characters, the situations they find themselves in and the clever dialogue. Even the title is a clever play on words. As all three have been republished and released at the same time, this is a series for those who like to binge-read without having to wait for the next episode.

The Girl Who Brought Mischief

Aug15

The Girl Who Brought Mischief

The Girl Who Brought Mischief

Katrina Nannestad

ABC Books, 2023

224pp., pbk., RRP $A16.99

9780733342899

After her mother dies, Inge Marie is sent to live with a grandmother she has never met, and who certainly doesn’t seem to want the responsibility of an unknown child, particularly one with her hair half-eaten off by a goat. It is a huge adjustment for each of them as Inge Marie is used to a carefree childhood with servants and freedom in the bustling city of Copenhagen and now finds herself in a tiny cottage on a remote island of Denmark where there are farm animals to care for, domestic chores to be done and a bed to be shared with a grandmother who snores. And things get much worse when she has to go to the local school…

Inge is very aware that what might be normal for her bright, optimistic self could be construed by her grandmother as bad manners or even bad behaviour and so she becomes very grateful and remorseful as she navigates a series of incidents like knocking Henry the turkey out cold that are just the hijinks of childhood It’s hard to forge a path between an imagination boosted by the stories of Hans Christian Andersen, the city life taken so abruptly from her and living with someone who has only known the traditional life of a small village community. Grandmother slaps her once or twice – she has never been hit before – but it is all part of the process of accepting their unimaginable loss and managing their grief. And gradually things start to change, not just for Inge and her grandmother but, indeed for the whole village.

This book was previously published in 2013 and was the Winner of the 2014 NSW Premier’s Literary Award for Children’s Literature as well as being a CBCA Notable Book for Younger Readers in 2014 and it has stood the test of time. Told by Inge, it is both heart-warming and heart-breaking in places but throughout there is a realisation that both are trying to come to terms with their new situation and you have the feeling that things will work out for the best. Despite being set in 1911, when girls were supposed to be quiet and genteel while boys could be rowdy and rambunctious, young readers will see themselves in the outspoken Inge and delight in her approach to life while being compassionate for her loss.

As well as being deserving of the awards that it has won and the praise it has been given, this story has stood the test of time and a new audience will delight in it.

Jawsome

Aug11

Jawsome

Jawsome

R. J. Timms

Albert Street, 2023

304pp., pbk., RRP $A15.99

9781761068591

Deep under the ocean in the Shallow Side of Chumville Finley the reef shark lives with his dentist parents Su and Shi, and his siblings, Dash, Smash, Crash, Flash , Splash and Bash. During the day Finley goes to school with his mates Hunter the tiger shark, Gnash the pointer shark and Gilleon the lemon shark, but at night, they are secretly the super-famous rock band JAWSOME! But not everything is cruisy. Can JAWSOME get to the bottom of an ocean of shady shark-nanigans while keeping their secret identities watertight?

This is a new series for those emerging readers who like a light-hearted read, peppered with pun humour and plenty of illustrations. Verging on a graphic novel because as much of the action happens in the illustrations as it does in the text, it will also appeal to those students who like to be seen with thick books – it has over 300 pages because of the large font and copious graphics. But woven among the puns and other fishy jokes are facts about sharks that will de-mystify and maybe un-demonise these creatures so there is learning as well as laughing, as well as a strong lead character that has to learn to face his fears of singing in public step up to help his mates.

One to look for and perhaps give to some reluctant readers to determine if it is worth adding upcoming additions to the series to the library’s collection.

Scout and the Rescue Dogs

Aug9

Scout and the Rescue Dogs

Scout and the Rescue Dogs

Dianne Wolfer

Tony Flowers

Walker Books, 2023

224pp., pbk., RRP $A15.99

9781760655860

As the school year comes to an end at the Arcadia Boarding School for Young Ladies, Scout has only two plans for the long summer holidays – to enjoy the time with her trucker dad and to persuade him that Arcadia is not the best fit for her and she shouldn’t have to go back there. She has only been there since her mother died from cancer and having kept that a secret from the other girls, she has found it hard to make friends. And now her teacher has set the class a summer project of reaching out to three others to establish stronger friendships… and , of course, two of her three assigned contacts are her greatest tormentors.

But, Dad has one last run to do before they can escape to their farm near Beechworth – a philanthropist has donated a load of dog food to be delivered to animal rescue shelters in anticipation of the increased numbers they experience over Christmas – and soon Scout’s school-based problems fade into perspective as she meets carers and dogs and even makes a new friend through Ms Lawler’s initiative, all the while facing the threat of bushfires sweeping the countryside.

Set against the backdrop of the unprecedented fire season of 2019-2020 and travelling through south-eastern Australia through country that is so familiar to me – I’ve been to every one of the towns mentioned so many times – this was a story that kept me reading well past my bedtime and into the early hours. Wolfer has created a character who tells the story of that dreadful time through a child’s eyes – the interminable days of smoke and ash, the concern for the native wildlife, the fear of ember attacks and worse – and while, as an adult who evacuated twice because of the imminent danger, I could cope with the memories, it may open wounds that are just beginning to have scar tissue for some readers. But, at the same time, it is a story of love, the importance and power of memories, friendship, the camaraderie amongst strangers as communities rally together as they do in dire times, and of hope as Scout comes to terms with her situation through her deepening relationship with her dad and her own philanthropic enterprises. And threaded through it to lighten the mood as the real-life issues are addressed, is the greatest collection of the WORST Dad Jokes ever!!!

Burrumbuttock Hay Run

The Unlikely Heroes Club

Aug7

The Unlikely Heroes Club

The Unlikely Heroes Club

Kate Foster

Walker Books, 2023

208pp., pbk., RRP $A16.99

9781760655969

Eleven-year-old Oli is spending his school holidays at Heroes Club, a special gathering for autistic children so they can learn how to recognise and manage their emotions, and thus, make and maintain friendships. But on the way there a small brown dog is almost run over by the traffic and, as it freezes in shock, it catches Oli’s eye as if pleading for him to hop out of the car and rescue it. But Oli is a rule-abider and even though he has all sorts of worries about the upcoming class, he stays in the car. Supported by his mum and his big sister Cathy, whom he adores, Oli makes it to his new class and over the course of the week begins to make friends. Gradually, he overcomes his worries and fears, but the thought of the dog haunts him, and when he not only spots it in an abandoned building from the classroom window but also learns the other children in the group have also seen it, he begins to hatch a plan to rescue it, especially when it seems the adults won’t listen to him.

However, it is an audacious plan that requires the other kids to help and he is concerned that they will change their minds while he doubts his own ability to be there when he is needed…

Author Kate Foster says she is “passionate about encouraging and teaching a wider understanding of autism and mental illness via positive approach and representation” and she has certainly achieved this in her books so far – Paws, Harriet Hound, CBCA Notable The Bravest Word, and now this one. By having the lead character as autistic and telling the story in the first person, the reader gets an inside look at the lives of these children in a way that neither observation or textbook can offer. Through that knowledge comes understanding and acceptance so that everyone’s life is richer. And in this book, with five of the children and Marge on the spectrum we learn a little about the range of ways that it manifests itself so that each child is different as opposed to a physical disease that has predictable signs and symptoms and solutions. Just as with “normal” kids, each is a unique individual deserving dignity, understanding and respect.

In my native New Zealand, the Maori word for autism is takiwatanga which means “in my own time and space” and The Unlikely Heroes Club is the most poignant story of how children can come together for the greater good even if they are in their own time and space.

In my opinion, if it has Kate Foster’s name on the cover, then it should be in your collection.

Takiwatanga

Lauren Myracle

The Bottom Shelf

Great books for little people

Archives

The Sideways Orbit of Evie Hart

Etta and the Octopus

Odelia and the Varmint

The Things That Matter Most

Dog Squad: The Newshound

Olive of Groves (series)

The Girl Who Brought Mischief

Jawsome

Scout and the Rescue Dogs

The Unlikely Heroes Club