Jacqueline Harvey (text) and Kate Isobel Scott (illustrator), Kevin the Sheep, Penguin Random House, March 2024, 32 pp., RRP $17.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781761048951 Kevin the Sheep is an action-packed picture book involving a sheep called Kevin, who is a little bit different to the rest of his flock. This hilarious rhyming story by Jacqueline Harvey communicates the idea that it is important to be yourself despite what others think of you, a message that is very relevant today. The story can assure young readers that it is okay to enjoy things other people may not like, as this could be…
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Sally Rippin (text) & Lucinda Gifford (illustrator), Big Dog is a Big Help, Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing, August 2023, 32 pp., RRP $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781761210839 Big Dog is such a big help when his family goes camping. He can fetch and carry, help with the cooking, and show Little Dog where to find all the best, soggy, muddy treasures. So why is everyone so upset with him? When Little Dog goes missing, though, Big Dog shows just how helpful he can be in finding Little Dog again. Life with pets and kids and families is frequently chaotic and messy,…
Rebecca M Newman and Sally Murphy (editors) and Briony Stewart (illustrator), Right Way Down and Other Poems, co-published by Fremantle Press & Alphabet Soup, February 2024, 144 pp., RRP $17.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781760993429 A collection of poems from West Australian writers, Right Way Down and Other Poems is ideal for primary school libraries. Parents might not realise, but poetry is in the school curriculum at most year levels. I know already this year 2 of my 3 primary schoolers have been writing poems in class, and we certainly covered it as part of learning from home during Covid. As such, school…
Tania Ingram (text) and A. YI, (illustrator) Aggie Flea is NOT a liar! Scholastic Books Australia, September 2023, 192 pp., RRP $16.99 ISBN 9781760972547 It’s no surprise that this funny junior fiction recently earnt a Notable in the CBCA 2024 Younger Readers Book of the Year category. Aggie Flea is a lovable rascal who is forever getting in trouble with her over-active imagination. This new series is pitched at children seven-plus and may particularly appeal to children with separated parents. Aggie and her brother live with their mum, while their dad has recently moved to London. When a new neighbour…
Pamela Freeman (author) and Liz Anelli (illustrator), Seed to Sky: Life in the Daintree, Walker Books Australia, April 2024, 32 pp., RRP $26.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781760653750 Seed to Sky is another beautiful title in the Walker Books’ “Nature Storybooks” collection, by the award-winning duo – author, Pamela Freeman, and illustrator, Liz Anelli. It is a factual text about the magnificent array of fauna and flora of the Daintree Rainforest of northern Australia. In illustrated non-fiction picture book format, it tells the story of a bull kauri conifer’s life journey from germination on the Daintree Rainforest floor 200 years ago, to…
Anna Fienberg, Picasso and the Greatest Show on Earth, Allen & Unwin, July 2023, 374 pp., RRP $17.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781760296988 Picasso and the Greatest Show on Earth is a sad but hopeful story of how friendship, a dog’s love and enjoying nature, as well as the creativity of art making, helps heal two young people struggling with traumatic life experiences. It is a beautifully written YA novel by award winning, highly acclaimed author, Anna Fienberg, and I can see why CBCA judges have included it on the 2024 CBCA notables list for Older Readers. I loved Fienberg’s evocative writing…
Hannah Gold (text) and Levi Pinfold (illustrator), Finding Bear, HarperCollins Australia, January 2024, 352 pp., RRP $19.99 (hbk), ISBN 9780008582012 Finding Bear is the captivating sequel to the extraordinary bestselling and award-winning The Last Bear. Superbly illustrated by Levi Pinfold, it’s ideal for readers 8+ Its’s exactly seventeen months since April Wood has returned from her adventure on Bear Island, and Bear is constantly in her thoughts. Hearing that a polar bear has been shot and injured in Svalbard, April is certain that it is her friend Bear. Eventually she persuades her dad to accompany her to the northernmost regions…
Jared M Field (text) and Jeremy Worrall (illustrator), Etta and the Shadow Taboo, Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing, June 2023, 32 pp., RRP $27.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781760509798 This magnificently illustrated story highlights the regard we should show others in terms of the respect we hold for their personal space. Many little sisters can relate to Etta who is sad after a telling off from an older sister. The cause of the conflict was Etta’s disregard for her sister’s shadow. As a consequence, the spirit tree causes Etta to be turned into a shadow and she’ll be that way forever if she…
Colin Burgess, Sisters in Captivity, Simon & Schuster, July 2023, 368 pp., RRP $34.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781761109089 The rather long subtitle of this book, ‘Sister Betty Jeffrey OAM and the courage story of the Australian Army nurses in Sumatra 1942 – 1945’ gives a clear summary of what this biography is about. Author Colin Burgess, with his extensive research offers a compassionate and sensitive account of what many prisoners of war would have suffered under the Japanese forces’ harsh conditions. Readers are treated to Sister Jeffrey’s early life and strong family support, through her enrolment into the Australian Army and…
Deborah Kelly (text) and Jenni Goodman (illustrator), Little Horses, Wombat Books, January 2024, 32 pp., RRP $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781761111310 I’m excited to recommend a wonderful picture book that I think children aged 2-10 years will absolutely adore. In an honest rhyme spun by Deborah Kelly, readers are invited into this enchanting world of Little Horses, affectionately nicknamed after the White Seahorse species that sparked inspiration behind creating this heart-warming narrative. For those readers who have yet to encounter seahorses up close, a nurturing experience awaits them inside this story following a delicate seahorse family. This book breathes life into…