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…
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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…
Gay Hay (text), Margaret Tolland (illus.), Go, Green Gecko!, Starfish Bay Children’s Books, May 2017, 40pp., $27.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781760337 I loved Go, Green Gecko! as soon as I set eyes upon the cover’s alluring illustration by Margaret Tolland. It is big, bright and beautiful; and welcomed me into the secret world of the green gecko as told by author, Gay Hay, in this wonderful story book for young children. In the story, we accompany the gecko as it goes about the everyday business of seeking food. Gecko knows care must be taken so each new place is approached with…
Sally Sutton (text), Kirsten Richards (illus.), Glitterwing’s Book Week Blunder (Miniwings), Scholastic Australia, 1 June 2017, 96pp., $6.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781775434238 Sally Sutton (text), Kirsten Richards (illus.), Whizz’s Internet Oopsie (Miniwings), Scholastic Australia, 1 June 2017, 96pp., $12.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781775434245 Who knew six tiny winged toy horses could create so much mischief? But this is exactly what happens in Glitterwing’s Book Week Blunder and Whizz’s Internet Oopsie when these feisty and adventurous equine creatures come to life away from adult eyes. And while this is fun for their owners, Sophia and her sister Chloe, the Miniwings seem to get…
Brian Falkner has written many popular and highly acclaimed books for young people. He crosses over genres, styles and age groups. His latest release is a collection of short stories published by UQP. Here he explains for us why the short story format benefits readers. I love short stories. As a teenager I used to read anthologies of short stories, my favourites being crime, science fiction and horror. Like most writers, I started by writing short stories. Yet when I became a professional writer, earning my living from my books, it was all novels. That’s not to say that I didn’t write…
Jen Storer (text), Claire Robertson (illus.), Trapped! (Truly Tan #6), ABC Books/HarperCollins Australia, 1 May 2017, 288pp., $16.99 (pbk) ISBN 9780733334122 It’s school holidays and Tan’s been tasked with keeping an eye on her neighbour’s place while she’s away. She has to feed the chooks, water the plants, collect the mail – that kind of thing. Tan and her best friend Gloria have a secret spy club so, when Tan notices a strange car hanging around her neighbour’s house, she suspects something is not quite right and enlists Gloria to help her investigate. Trapped! is the sixth book in the…
Nikki Slade Robinson, Muddle & Mo’s Worm Surprise, Starfish Bay Children’s Books, April 2017, 40pp., $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781760360306 Muddle & Mo’s Worm Surprise is a surprise indeed. This unassuming little book is positively brimming with delight and beauty. The endearing duck and goat return to us and, this time, Muddle the duck is planning a picnic. Worm Surprise is on the menu and Mo is looking a little dubious at the thought. Muddle has a glorious time collecting a smorgasbord of worms for the picnic but Mo grows more and more anxious. By the time Muddle has dragged Mo…
Giles Andreae, The Great Heffalump Hunt, Hardie Grant Egmont, 1 April 2017, 32pp., $16.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781405278300 At first glance, I admit I was a little dubious. The idea of reworking a classic Pooh Bear tale seemed sacrilegious. But then I read this story out loud to my four-year-old daughter, and then read it again, and again. We both adored it. Winne-the-Pooh and Piglet set out to catch a Heffalump, but one large hole in the ground and an almost-empty jar of honey later, and Pooh finds himself in a sticky situation. The terrified and timid Piglet is forced to…
Lucy Worsley, My Name is Victoria, Bloomsbury/Allen & Unwin, May 2017, 368pp., $14.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781408882016 As chief curator at Historic Royal Palaces in London, no one seems better qualified than Lucy Worsley to write about royal history. Here, she intertwines history with fiction, creating a thrilling read about the young Princess Victoria. The story is told from the point of view of Miss V Conroy, second daughter of Sir John Conroy, Comptroller to Princess Victoria and her mother, the Duchess of Kent. Quiet and unassuming, Miss V is whisked from her home to the rundown Kensington Palace where she…
Michelle Worthington (text), Dave Atze (illus.) The Three Legged Kangaroo from Uluru, Big Sky Publishing, 1 May 2017, 32pp., $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781925520415 The outback, Australian animals, surfing and the beach all come together in this interesting picture book. The juxtaposition of the Red Centre and the beach, and a kangaroo with a surf board is immediately attractive and intriguing. The story opens with a kangaroo living near Uluru who has a kinked tail that makes the other animals tease him as it looks like he has a third leg. Constantly ridiculed for being different, he is sad and disheartened.…