Jessica and Stephen Parry-Valentine (text) and Ashlee Spink (illustrator), Our Home on Wheels: A Big Trip around Australia, Penguin Books Australia, November 2022, 32 pp., RRP $19.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781761046827
This sweet picture book is the product of, and tribute to, one family’s adventurous spirit.
Going on a ‘Big Lap’ around Australia has been something that the Covid pandemic has prohibited in recent years. It would now seem that those pesky restrictions could be just a speck in a rear-view mirror for those who might want to tackle this rite of passage.
In Our Home on Wheels, Jessica and Stephen Parry-Valentine have recounted their journey around Oz in picture book form, from the perspective of their young daughter, Hunter. Using rhyming text, Hunter speaks to the reader about their experiences with van life, the animals they see, and the places they visit. From the Nullarbor to Tasmania to the Top End, the family are depicted snorkelling, picnicking, eating ice creams and boating.
With a book like this it’s hard not to compare it to Alison Lester’s classic, Are We There Yet? which follows a family with primary school aged children on a trip around Australia. Our Home on Wheels is certainly aimed at a younger audience; it appears that the narrator, Hunter, is a pre-schooler. Plus, the illustrations are a bit simpler and most of the pages focus on one main event. And while it isn’t always spot on, the text is written in rhymes, which is very engaging for younger children.
Overall, this would be a must read for families with young children who are heading out on their own exploratory sojourn around Australia.
Reviewed by Cherie Bell
