Owen Davey, Smart About Sharks, Flying Eye Books/Walker Books Australia, 1 Sept 2016, 48pp., $27.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781909263574 Smart About Sharks is the next title in Owen Davey’s series about animals, after Mad About Monkeys. It gives an excellent introduction to these fascinating creatures which can strike so much fear into human hearts. The logical arrangement of topics begins with “What are sharks?”. The text explains how they are classified, their anatomy, their hunting techniques and types of prey and some of the weird and wonderful varieties, such as the hammerhead. One interesting double-page spread gives examples of sharks in mythology…
Author: Admin
Tim Miller (text), Matt Stanton (illus.), There’s a Monster on my Holiday who Farts, ABC Books/HarperCollins Australia, 1 Oct 2016, 32pp., $24.99 (hbk), ISBN: 9780733334658 Growing up in a household full of boys and now having two boys of my own, I understand the significance of the fart. The fart monster’s latest adventure sees him tagging along for a family holiday, travelling around the world. From Japan to Egypt, to Greece, to Spain; the family’s holiday is doomed! The monster’s lurking smell leaves the world in disarray – “The Leaning Tower of Pisa finally topples…” This book is sure to ignite…
Lisa Kerr, A Very Cheeky Monkey Christmas, Five Mile Press, Sept 2016, 16pp., $19.95 (board book), ISBN: 9781760404086 Lisa Kerr’s character Cheeky Monkey shares his love of Christmas through the exploration of traditions and rituals. With the cover’s star cut out providing intrigue and the Christmas spirit evident, I can imagine this book exciting an early childhood audience. “Let me, let me!” Cheeky Monkey is eager to help with everything in preparation for Christmas – decorating, baking, singing and wrapping – but while he has the best intentions, things don’t always turn out as they should. The illustrations in this board…
Nicki Greenberg, The Naughtiest Reindeer Goes South, Allen & Unwin, Oct 2016, 32pp., $15.99 (hbk), ISBN: 9781760293116 Nicki Greenberg’s latest Reindeer instalment manages to capture its audience with its humorous and jingle-like rhyming text. ‘I’m zippy! I’m snappy! I’m raring to go.’ Rudolf’s younger sister Ruby seems to attract drama and disaster – especially at Christmas time when it’s important that everything runs smoothly. Ruby’s determination, eagerness and excitement result in her being stranded and alone; with many of the children’s Christmas presents! What will Ruby do now? Will Christmas be ruined for all? Her tumultuous journey leads Ruby through the…
Longy Han (text), Elinor Hagg (illus.), Gusto and Gecko Travel to New Orleans, Self-published, Oct 2016, 32pp., $22.95 (hbk), ISBN: 9780994341310 This is the second in the picture book series of two little travelling dinosaur friends, Gusto and Gecko. Having explored Kenya in their travelling Rombom machine, this time they end up in New Orleans in time for Mardi Gras and the Super Bowl. The adventure really begins when Gusto bites into a delicious beignet and is propelled through the air by his giant sneeze after the powdered sugar tickled his nose. Gusto bounces through one attraction to another, before Gecko comes to his…
Rachel Cohn & David Levithan, The Twelve Days of Dash & Lily, Allen & Unwin, Nov 2016, 215pp., $19.99 (pbk)., ISBN: 9781760293826 The Twelve Days of Lily & Dash is really all about change. Lily is not a fan of change. She wants routine, stability, and ritual. She barely leaves the 12 block radius of the New York borough where her family live. During the story, Lily runs away from responsibility, from family, and from Dash. Not because she doesn’t want them anymore, but because everything is overwhelming, and everyone is moving forward, and they want Lily to accept, to…
Helen Bate, Peter in Peril: courage and hope in World War Two, Otter-Barry Books/Walker Books Australia, Sept 2016, 46pp., $27.99 (hbk.), ISBN 9781910959572 British author and illustrator Helen Bate frames Peter in Peril, her hybrid picture book/graphic novel, around the life of a real Jewish boy who lived in Budapest during World War II. The story focuses on the years 1944‒1945 when the real Peter was about six years old. The narrative unfolds from Peter’s viewpoint, and he is largely unaware of the deeper implications of his family’s Judaism; his perspective reflects the disruptions to his immediate world of home and family…
Steven O’Donnell (Bajo) and Stephanie Bendixsen (Hex) (text), Chris Kennett (illus). Dragon Land (Pixel Raiders #2). Scholastic Australia, Sept 2016, 192pp., $12.99 (pbk.), ISBN 9781760275662 Looking for a book to entice kids from screen to page? Read on… The Pixel Raiders series, created by ABC TV’s Good Game video gaming reviewers Bajo and Hex, cleverly unites the screen-based world of video games with the text-based world of reading. Even on the printed page, the action is fast-paced and absorbing. In book one of Pixel Raiders, Rip and Mei were catapulted from their regular lives into the world of a fantasy…
Dav Pilkey, Dog Man (Dog Man #1), Scholastic Australia, Sept 2016, 240pp., $15.99 (hbk.), ISBN 9780545581608 Dog Man opens with a ‘behind the scenes’ explanation: some time ago, George and Harold met in kindergarten, became firm friends, and started to create comics together. Despite the runaway success of their Captain Underpants series, they have now decided to return to their original idea: Dog Man, a justice-serving amalgam of a dog’s head supported by a police officer’s body. (You’ll understand how this came about when you read the book.) Dog Man’s nemesis is Petey the cat. More often than not, Petey is…
Sue Baker, Going Wild (The Pobblebonk Earth Detective Club), Balboa Press, 12 Jan 2016, 138pp., $26.99 (pbk), ISBN: 9781452531236 Sue Baker’s efforts in combining fact with fiction, inspiration with information and fun with frogs are tangible. She clearly knows and loves the material she writes about and is generous with detail and description as well as thought provoking questions and ideas. The grand tale of the Mathieson kids’ adventures with Granny is in places hilarious, poignant, insightful and wild. The facts Baker provides are interesting, often unusual and presented with the passion of ‘one who knows’. The ‘investigations’, ‘reports’ and ‘breakfast…