Stephen Michael King, Rainbow Bear, Scholastic Australia, November 2018, 32 pp., RRP $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781742997698 There is a delightful kind of fantasy element to this book, right from the opening endpapers which, in black and white, depict animals picnicking, strolling on a hillside overlooking a city and making up the elements of a fountain. No humans are visible in the city illustrated on the title page – an illustration which cleverly hints at what is to come in the rest of the story as we see one small animal painting a canvas with rainbow colours and a rainbow arching…
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Robyn Osborne (text), and John Phillips (illustrator), Bruno: The Boisterous Blue Dog from the Bush. Big Sky Publishing, August 2018, 32 pp., RRP $14.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781925675504 Bob and his blue-heeler dog Bruno are best friends. They live a simple country life in a rather ramshackle house, happy to eat sausages and baked beans. However, when Bob wins a large amount of money they move to the city, buy a new house and car and dine on much fancier food than they have been used to. Unfortunately for Bruno, Bob makes new friends and Bruno feels lonely and abandoned. It…
Lynn Jenkins (text), and Kirrili Lonergan (illustrator), Grey-glasses-itis, EK Books, January 2019, 32 pp., RRP $19.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781925335958 Grey Glasses-Itis is a clumsy-at-times read. The title itself is a play on a medical condition (rhymes with laryngitis, get it?) and was a little tricky to convey to a preschooler. However, the story is sweet, with Loppy the LAC (the origins of whose name is not revealed but it may have been in previous installments to the series) being a lovable and cheerful creature. Loppy loves to paint and sees the world in all its colours. One day, however, the LAC…
Ruth Lauren, Seeker of the Crown (Prisoner of Ice and Snow #2), Bloomsbury Publishing, October 2018, 288 pp., RRP $12.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781408884560 Valor is our heroine, a strong young woman with an immovable moral compass, especially when it comes to her twin sister, Sasha. In this young reader novel, Valor seeks to find her sister’s captor, Princess Anastasia. Sasha is free, but Anastasia is still missing in action. A battle for the throne and family secrets and loyalty make this a riveting fantasy with the potential to become a classic. A female-led adventure, celebrating friendship and bravery, this novel…
Danny Katz (text), and Mitch Vane (illustrator), The Poppa Platoon in Operation Dessert Storm, Scholastic Australia, October 2018, 192 pp., RRP $12.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781742769240 The second installment on the Poppa Platoon series, with The Age columnist Danny Katz at the helm, the zany antics of Poppa and the grandkids is guaranteed to get plenty of laughs. Complemented by Vane’s illustrations this is a perfect read for readers 7 and older. In Operation Dessert Storm, Poppa leads Abbie, Flynn and Captain Cuddles the cat of a highly dangerous and top-secret mission to conquer the hottest restaurant in town; the all…
Aaron Blabey, Superbad (The Bad Guys #8), Scholastic Australia, October 2018, 144 pp., RRP $14.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781760279509 I was truly excited to get the opportunity review Bad Guys 8: Superbad. I’m a huge fan of Aaron Blabey and this is one of my favourite series to share with my two boys. We have been reduced to tears of laughter many times over reading these books and this one is no exception. The Bad Guys series is about your usual fairy-tale bad guy suspects: Wolf, Snake, Shark, Piranha and Spider. However, they decided to become The Good Guys Club and…
Mitchell Starc (text), and Phillip Bunting (illustrator), Not Out! (Mighty Mitch #4), Scholastic Australia, October 2018, 144 pp., RRP $12.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781742769165 Not Out! is the fourth book in the Mighty Mitch series by Australian cricketer Mitchell Starc, illustrated by Philip Bunting. We have previously reviewed book one, Aussies vs England Game On! and Clash of the Keepers!, Book three Mitch plays for the Wombats Under 10’s cricket team. They have reached the semi-finals and are excited to play the Crocodiles. However, their good luck seems to have run out and the Crocodiles have a few new players who…
Heidi McKinnon, It’s a Long Way to the Shop, Scholastic Australia, November 2018, 32 pp., RRP $17.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781742998855 It’s a long way to the shop if you want a sausage roll… Heidi McKinnon, author and illustrator of the popular picture book I Just Ate My Friend, is back with this simple and witty story about two rocks. Two rocks who want to go to the shop at the top of the mountain. But it’s not as easy as it seems. After all, rocks don’t have legs and there are other dangers and obstacles along the way. It’s a…
D C Green, Dragon Apocalypse (City of Monsters #3), Ford Street Publishing, September 2018, 358 pp., RRP $19.95 (pbk), ISBN 9781925272680 The final instalment of the City of Monsters series, Dragon Apocalypse continues at the frenetic pace of Monster School and Goblin Mafia Wars. I would strongly recommend reading the prequels, as Dragon Apocalypse commences where Goblin Mafia Wars ended, and assumes some knowledge of the previous books. Dragon Apocalypse brings together the multiple plots and quests of the first two books, focusing on the Dead Gang’s quest to find the dragon eggs and return them to the dragon Kalthazari,…
Felice Arena, Marcus Emerson, Andy Griffiths, Katrina Nannestad, Yvette Poshoglian, James Roy, Lisa Shanahan, Matt Stanton, and Penny Tangey (text), and Andrea Innocent (illustrator), Laugh Your Head Off 4 Ever, Pan Macmillan, October 2018, 232 pp., PPR $19.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781760559854 This book is come-alive engaging fun presented by a talented cast – Andy Griffiths, Felice Arena, Yvette Poshoglian, Marcus Emerson, Matt Stanton, Katrina Nannestad, James Roy, Lisa Shanahan and Penny Tangey. Each has written from the protaganist’s view-point so it really is a first-person-I recognise-me book. Every character’s voice is definite and we recognise them instantly as situations encountered…