Kate Hosford (text), Gabi Swiatkowska (illus.), How the Queen Found the Perfect Cup of Tea, Carolrhoda Books?Walker Books Australia, 1 April 2017, 40pp., $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781467739047 A charming, cleverly crafted story that leads readers around the world on a tea-tasting tour that changes a snooty queen’s outlook on life. The starchy “Victorian-styled’ monarch is dissatisfied with her pampered routine and thinks the problem is the taste of her morning cup of tea. She embarks on a balloon-powered search for the perfect cuppa with her butler James. The reader soon identifies that she is isolated by her own imperious nature. Each introduction…
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Jane Millton (text), Deborah Hinde (illus.), Moo and Moo and the Little Calf Too, Allen & Unwin, April 2017, 32pp., $17.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781877505928 When the Kaikōura earthquake made international headlines in November 2016, the fault line running under the Millton’s farm at Clarence River caused a group of cows to become stranded on a two-metre high ‘island’ as their paddock buckled and slid 80 metres downhill. Having watched the original TV news item of their rescue I think this story could have been given more tension and drama. Using rhyming text is a tricky technique and I found some…
Bren MacDibble, How to Bee, Allen & Unwin, May 2017, 212pp., $16.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781760294335 Peony wants to be a bee so she can climb trees to pollinate the fruit. Many years ago, there were real bees to do the job but now the bees have gone and children must take their place. Life on the farm where Peony lives with her grandfather and sister, Magnolia is not easy. Food is scarce and the work is hard. Without the dedicated work of the bees and pests, no-one will survive. Despite the hardship, Peony is happily settled into the rhythms and routines…
Paul Jennings (text), Geoff Kelly (illus.) A Different Dog, Allen & Unwin, May 2017, 96pp., $14.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781760296469 A Different Dog is the story of a boy who can’t talk and a dog that inadvertently creates an adventure of dangerous proportions. When the boy and the dog find themselves in a perilous situation, the boy is unable to call for help and the dog becomes paralysed with fear. It will be up to the boy’s strength of character – his resilience, courage and determination – if they are to survive. Paul Jennings is a well-loved and highly regarded author of over…
Bobbie Peers, William Wenton and the Luridium Thief, Walker Books Australia, 6 April 2017, 256pp., $14.99 (pbk), ISBN: 9781406371703 Do all the great heroes have alliterated names? Maybe not all but a disproportionately large number do, and I think we’re about to add the name William Wenton to that list. William is a prodigy when it comes to breaking codes and solving puzzles. His family is in hiding following the strange disappearance of William’s grandfather, but it turns out that fate has a way of finding you, especially when you don’t want to be found. William’s gifts earn him a place…
Linsie Tan, Australian States and Territories: Queensland, Redback Publishing, 1 Feb 2017, 32pp., $28.99 (hbk), ISBN: 9780994624734 Designed for the Australian curriculum, this text book for upper primary children about Queensland has a layout that is orderly yet visually interesting, incorporating photos, diagrams and post-it-note style overlays which provides information in manageable segments. Break-out-boxes ask readers questions to engage them and offer activity ideas to process and apply the information. A table of contents and glossary assist with navigating the chapters and text. Unlike the text books of my childhood which included indigenous heritage as an afterthought at the back of…
Josie Wowolla Boyle (text), Maggie Prewett (illus.) Mrs White and the Red Desert, Magabala Books, April 2017, 32pp., $17.99 (pbk) ISBN: 9781925360578 This is another excellent production from publisher of indigenous stories, Magabala books. In Mrs White and the Red Desert, author Josie Wowolla Boyle tells a story from her childhood. Living in the desert ‘in a corrugated iron house that was wavy and buckled and bent just like our grandmothers hair,’ the children invited their teacher, the aptly named Mrs White to their ‘red desert home’ to show her why their homework was always so grubby. When showing Mrs White their…
Beck & Matt Stanton, The Red Book, HarperCollins Australia, 1 April 2017, 32pp., $19.99 (hbk), ISBN 9780733334856 This book relies on a play on words – read and red. The cover sets the scene of the concept as it is purple with a yellow spine, with the title in white – no red to be seen. At the top right-hand corner there is a yellow emblem with the words ‘Books that Drive Kids Crazy!’ The book begins with a direct address to the reader, asking that they read the book together and asking the colour of a number of different-coloured…
Lorin Clarke (text), Mitch Vane (illus.), Our Last Trip to the Market Allen and Unwin, April 2017, 32pp., $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781925266962 The opening page of this book depicts a mother and her six children setting out for a morning’s shopping at the market. What a fabulous morning, mother says, a thought clearly not shared by all the children, two of whom are squabbling over the shopping bag. This opening spread sets the scene for the whole of the book during which the mother proceeds happily through the market, often seeming quite oblivious to what the children are doing. When she…
Trace Balla, The Thank You Dish, Allen and Unwin, April 2017, 24pp., $19.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781760292355 Grace and her mother are about to eat a home-cooked meal. Dinnertime is a time for celebration and recognition of how the food arrives at the table. Mama starts the conversation by thanking the rain, soil and sunshine. Grace and her mother each then thank something or somebody for the meal. Grace’s thanks are often a little quirky, such as when she thanks the kangaroos for not eating all the carrots. On a number of occasions her mother doesn’t understand where Grace’s idea for a…