Jonny Lambert, Tiger Tiger, Little Tiger Press/Hardie Grant Egmont, 1 June 2017, 32pp., $16.99 (pbk), ISBN: 9781848694446 Grumpy old Tiger is looking after little Cub. ‘Bother,’ he growls. ‘I’m too old for cub-sitting’. He wants to sleep, but lively Cub has other ideas and coaxes Tiger into an adventure through the jungle where they encounter monkeys, baby rhinos, pangolin and more. Initially Tiger is unimpressed – he has seen all this before – but Cub’s enthusiasm is infectious, and gradually Tiger begins to see the jungle with fresh eyes. The text is lively and fun with lots of rhythmical rhyming that…
Author: Admin
Chris Hadfield (text), The Fan Brothers (illus.), The Darkest Dark, Macmillan Children’s Books Australia, 30 May 2017, 48pp., $14.99 (pbk), ISBN: 9781509824090 Chris loves rockets and planets and pretending that he is an astronaut in space. But Chris is afraid of the dark. His parents have finally had enough of Chris sleeping in their bed and declare it is time he stayed in his own bed. Chris is scared – he sees the ‘worst sort of aliens’ in the shadows. But when he watches the first moon landing with ‘Real, live astronauts. On the actual, far-away Moon,’ he is captivated and…
Lynn Jenkins (text), Kirrili Lonergan (illus.), Ollie’s Treasure, Exisle Publishing, June 2017, 32pp., $24.99 (hbk), ISBN: 9781925335422 Ollie’s Treasure is a tale of mindfulness for children. Knowing he likes treasure hunts, Ollie’s grandma sends him a treasure map promising treasure that will bring him happiness. The map guides him through experiences that involve all the senses – ‘Look up and see the sky’, ‘Find the brightest yellow rose and smell its perfume’, and ‘Wriggle your toes and feel the grass under your feet’. When Ollie reaches the end of the treasure hunt, he is disappointed there is no shiny truck or…
Caleb Krisp (text), John Kelly (illus.), Bring Me the Head of Ivy Pocket (Ivy Pocket #3), Bloomsbury/Allen & Unwin, May 2017, 336pp., $14.99 (pbk) ISBN: 9781408858721 Ivy Pocket, who is bonkers, (the author’s words, not mine, although it is a spot on description) is back in the wonderful series finale of her adventures in Bring me the Head of Ivy Pocket. It’s a little hard to describe the Ivy Pocket series: gothic, wacky, peculiar, hilarious are all adjectives that come to mind. It is even harder to describe the plot in this novel because the plots in the series are…
Stephan Pastis, The Cat Stole My Pants (Timmy Failure #6), Walker Books Australia, 27 April 2017, 288pp., $17.99 (hbk), ISBN: 9781406377163 Timmy Failure is at it again in book six of the best-selling Timmy Failure series by famed comic strip creator, Stephan Pastis. Timmy’s supposed to be relaxing on vacation, but getting away from it all doesn’t apply to his investigation business, Total Failure, Inc. Mystery, danger and a six-toed cat linger around every corner of Key West, Florida. Together with his unpaid intern, Timmy must solve the case (and finish a book report) all while trying to figure out why his mother thinks she’s…
Liz Pichon, My School Project: family, friends and furry creatures (Tom Gates #12), Scholastic Australia, 1 June 2017, 272pp., $16.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781743816523 This is an interesting book for newly independent readers – full of drawings, doodling and different fonts, it’s an alternate form of storytelling. The narrator is Tom Gates, and this is his scrapbook and school project. Tom and his classmates are doing an assignment on their family trees and Tom needs to do some research on his, though he’d rather not. But encouraged by his mum and dad, Tom finds out all kinds of things he never…
Anh Do (text), Dan McGuiness (illus.), Party Time! (Hotdog #2), Scholastic Australia, 1 June 2017, 128pp., $12.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781760279011 Here is the second in the new Hotdog series from Anh Do. It’s Kevin the cat’s birthday and Hotdog the dachshund and Lizzie the iguana are throwing him a surprise party. But it’s not easy – they have to distract Kev, set up the party, buy his present and foil the plans of two thieving bullies! Can they give Kev the best birthday ever? This is a fast paced story with plenty of action and physical humour. There are lots…
Katrina Germein (text), Janine Dawson (illus.), Great Goal! Marvellous Mark!, Ford Street, June 2017, 32pp., $16.95 (pbk), ISBN 9781925272673 This is a very contemporary Australian picture book. There is a weekend Aussie Rules football match starting and the kids are enthusiastic and keen to win. The narrator is one of the players and he tells the story like a commentator calling a game. Can the Yellow Team take the day? Here is an alphabet book with a difference. Each page emphasises a different letter, starting with A at the pre-game warmup, and ending with Z and the narrator fast asleep…
Shen Shixi (text), Shen Yuanyuan (illus.), When Mu Meets Min, Starfish Bay Publishing, June 2017, 40pp., $24.99 (hbk), ISBN: 9781760360344 The old saying ‘to fight like cats and dogs’ finds life in this sweetly humorous tale, set in rural China. Contrasting with many children’s picture books, the narrator is an adult, a farmer, who is gifted a small white puppy named Min by his best friend, Cheng. When the farmhouse is invaded by rats, the farmer and his wife, Lian, decide to get a kitten, Mu, despite Cheng’s warnings that cats and dogs cannot be friends. While they are young, Mu…
Yann & Gwendal Le Bec, Raymond, Walker Books Australia, 1 May 2017, 32pp., $24.99 (hbk), ISBN: 9781406362428 The hilarious story of Raymond – a dog who wants to try on a human life – reminded me of the books of my childhood from the Dr Seuss I Can Read series. Mostly they were illustrated by P.D. Eastman – think Go Dog Go, The Best Nest and Are You My Mother? – and conjured nuclear families with problem pets. The Le Bec brothers’ illustrations echo this gorgeous 60s style. The pictures are off-set by white space and include lots of visual gags…