September 2016 – Aussie Reviews

Do NOT Open This Book, by Andy Lee & Heath McKenzie

Oh! You opened the book.
I assume that was an accident?
No problem, accidents happen.
I’m not even angry.
Just PLEASE don’t turn the page.

A zany long-legged egg-shaped blue monster is the star of this book, pleading with the reader first not to open the book then, with increasing desperation, not to turn the pages. he tries threats, pleas and even ignoring the reader, until, on the second last spread, he reveals that a witch has threatened to turn him into a frog if any one reads all the way to the book.

Young readers and listeners are invited into the story. to participate either by turning the page or by telling the adult reader whether to or not to do so. I read this book to my three year old grandson who, after one page, was urging me to ‘turn the page’, and demanded repeated rereadings of the book.

Illustrations, by Heath McKenzie, focus on the narrator, with big eyes, long limbs an an expressive mouth. Text features including bold, caps and shaped text to emphasise emotion, as well as a mix of white space and backgrounds including red when he is particularly angry, as dark grey when he is desperate help to build tension as well as humour.

Great for toddlers and early readers.

Do Not Open This Book, by Andy Lee, illustrated by Heath McKenzie
Lake press, 2016
ISBN 9781760451486

The Dry, by Jane Harper

Even those who didn’t darken the door of the church from one Christmas to the next could tell there would be more mourners than seats. A bottleneck of black and grey was already forming at the entrance as Aaron Falk drove up, trailing a cloud of dust and cracked leaves.
Neighbours, determined but trying not to appear so, jostled each other for the advantage as the scrum trickled through the doors. Across the road the media circled.

Aaron Falk is reluctant to head to Kiewarra, the town of his childhood. but his childhood friend, Luke Hadler, is dead, and he appears to have killed his wife and son, too, in a horrible murder suicide. Luke’s father has asked Aaron to come, and he feels it’s the least he can do. Aaron is a policeman, but murder isn’t his field – he’s a Federal Police investigator, specializing in corporate crime. Sso when he’s asked to help look into Luke’s death, he’s reluctant.

Aaron’s own past in the town is murky. As a teenager he was implicated in the death of a girl and, although he knows he was innocent, it seems the townspeople are less prepared to let the matter rest. His presence in the town and determination to get to the bottom of Luke’s death puts his own safety at risk.

The Dry is an absorbing crime novel, with the dual mysteries – the apparent murder-suicide now, and the older death of a teenage girl – providing plenty for both the reader and the characters to work through. the character of Luke is well-drawn, with his past and present selves pleasingly developed. The town, too, is populated with an interesting cast, and the mysteries it hosts will keep readers guessing.

The Dry, by Jane Harper
Pan Macmillan, 2016
ISBN 9781743548059

You'll Be Sorry! by Ann Howard

From the appointment of the Controller, Colonel Sybil Irving, on 29 September 1941, until the cessation of hostilities in August 1945, over 24,000 girls and women enlisted as volunteers in the Australian Women’s Army Service (AWAS).
From different places, from different backgrounds, by varied routes, they were now together, the members of the Australian Women’s Army service. As the first raw recruits were marshaled onto a bus for Killara, talking non-stop about what lay ahead, they heard cries of ‘You’ll be sorry!’ but they never were.

In Word War 2, as men serviced in Europe and Asia, the homefront faced struggles, too, not the least of which was the shortage of staff. Australian women, who wanted to contribute, campaigned hard to be allowed to enlist and, finally in September 1941 the Women’s Army Service was formed. Between then and the end of the war, thousands of women volunteered and served in a wide variety of roles including driving, logistics, administration, communications and more. Giving their all for the service and ‘doing their bit’, these women later found themselves at a loss when the war ended and the expectation was that they would return to home life as quickly as possible.

You’ll be Sorry: How World War II Changed Women’s Lives traces the stories of these women through the war years and after, using testimony and recount from the women who served and from family members. Easy to read, the book provides an in depth insight into the types of women who served, their roles and lives within the service, and the challenges of life afterwards.

A vivid, intriguing account.

You’ll be Sorry: How World War II Changed Women’s Lives, by Ann Howard
Big Sky Publishing, 2016
ISBN 9781925275841

On the River, by Roland Harvey

Here in the foothills, tadpoles practise to be grown-up frogs in crystal-clear ponds, surrounded by wiry grasses and tough little plants that have spent the winter sleeping under the snow….These are the headwaters of the Murray River, where the story begins.

From its small beginnings high in the Australian alps to its meeting with the sea, the Murray River’s beauty is legendary. But, though it is home to a vast range of wildlife, including fish, birds, frogs and insects, it has also played a major role in Australia’s farming, transport and industrial history and, as such, its delicate balance has been impacted.

In On the River, author/illustrator Roland Harvey travels the length of the river in words and pictures, with his pelican friend, exploring the beauty of the river, as well as its history, its role in the lives of both the natural and human world, and its struggles.

Populating beautifully rendered realistic landscapes and aerial views with the slightly cartoonish human figures which Harvey is known for, the book mixes whimsy with serious subject matter, highlighting the plight of the river as well as the things it is loved for, including recreation and its beauty.

Useful for classroom purposes, On the River is also great for private enjoyment.

On the River, by Roland Harvey
Allen & Unwin, 2016
ISBN 9781760112455

Anders and the Volcano by Gregory Mackay

‘I can’t believe the holidays are almost here, Bernie.’

‘I know. It’s the last day of school already.’

‘I’m so excited!’

‘What do you have planned?’

‘Um …’

‘I can’t believe the holidays are almost here, Bernie.’

‘I know. It’s the last day of school already.’

‘I’m so excited!’

‘What do you have planned?’

‘Um …’

Anders and his friends, Bernie and Eden are looking forward to their holidays, now that school is finished. Anders and his family are going away, as is Eden. But Bernie has no plans as his father has to work. Anders soon sorts that out and Bernie joins his family at the holiday camp. There they spend their time exploring, having fun, making new friends. Eden is happy to join in, but is just as happy to entertain herself with her own projects. Now Anders is not the only one with a beetle, there is even more adventure to be had. Their new friend doesn’t have a beetle, but she does have a cricket, a jumpy one. Cover art shows the friends flying with the aid of their beetles/cricket and the smoking volcano hints at their interaction with this extinct volcano. Characters are drawn lightly as animals of different species.

Told in graphic novel/comic format, Anders and the Volcano is light on text, heavy on image and packaged as a novel. This second adventure with Anders and his friends (Book 1: Anders and the Comet) explores many familiar aspects of summer holidays – going away, exploring, playing, sleepovers. Each of the characters has their own story, and represent a range of family types and backgrounds. The style of the images is uncluttered and gentle and would be accessible to a wide range of readers and reading abilities. Younger competent readers will enjoy the adventures told in the comic style and older readers not ready for full novels will appreciate the different character journeys and the clarity of the text. Recommended for newly competent and mid-primary readers.

Anders and the Volcano, Gregory Mackay
Allen & Unwin 2016
ISBN: 9781760290030

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s author and bookseller

www.clairesaxby.com

Captain Jimmy Cook Discovers Third Grade by Kate & Jol Temple ill Jon Foye

I discovered three things tody:

Captain Cook was the greatest explorer that ever lived.
Captain Cook is my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great- great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather
Third Grade is going to be the best year of my life.

It’s History Week and learning about Captain Cook is the second-best thing that has ever happened in Ms Fennel’s class. The first, of course, being the escape of Ambystoma mexicanum, which is Wikipedia for axolotl.

I discovered three things today:

Captain Cook was the greatest explorer that ever lived.
Captain Cook is my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great- great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather
Third Grade is going to be the best year of my life.

It’s History Week and learning about Captain Cook is the second-best thing that has ever happened in Ms Fennel’s class. The first, of course, being the escape of Ambystoma mexicanum, which is Wikipedia for axolotl.

Jimmy Cook has just discovered a link to Captain James Cook and decided that these genes mean that he is destined for Big Things. He’s keeping a log – a Captain’s log – of all his plans and observations. One of his plans involves completing some of Captain Cook’s unfinished tasks. But first he has to overcome some obstacles, the most troublesome of which is fellow classmate and all-round pest Alice Toolie. No matter what he does, she seems to get there first. But Jimmy is undaunted. World class explorers have to expect a few setbacks. Illustrations scatter throughout to help Jimmy be sure that readers understand his world.

If bright ideas and enthusiasm are what spins the world, then Jimmy Cook is sure of many whirlwind adventures. His Captain’s log overflows his brilliance and capabilities. Nothing shakes his confidence, nothing gets in his way. Not pesky classmates, not the doubts of others, not reality. He is ready to take on the world. Whether or not the world is quite ready for some of his wilder ideas, is another matter. Young readers will be carried along in the excitement of Jimmy’s missions and laugh out loud at some of the absurdities. Recommended for newly confident readers who still like a few illustrations to break up the text.

Captain Jimmy Cook Discovers Third Grade by Kate & Jol Temple ill Jon Foye

Allen & Unwin 2016 ISBN: 9781760291938

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s author and bookseller

www.clairesaxby.com

This Girl That Girl by Charlotte Lance

This is this girl.

And that is that girl.

This is this girl.

And that is that girl.

This girl and that girl are very different. They dress differently. Their houses are next door to each other but very different. Their families are different in how they look and how they live. But even though they are different in so many ways, this girl and her dad, and that girl and her dad both arrive at the same place. Illustrations are blackline and watercolour, loose and colourful. As the story unfolds, the girls, set in white space, gradually fill the pages with their personalities and adventures.

This Girl, That Girl is a funny and lovely story about travelling different paths to the same destination. It’s about being different within a family as well as to others outside the family. The girls are both fully engaged with their families and their worlds (even when they are at odds with the ‘family way’ of doing things), and both are happy with their own way of living and doing. At the end of the hard work, despite their differences, the outcomes are less different than might have been expected. Great material for classroom and home discussion. The text is spare but the story rich. Recommended for pre- and early-schoolers.

This Girl, That Girl, Charlotte Lance
Allen & Unwin 2016
ISBN: 9781760291709

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s author and bookseller

www.clairesaxby.com

The Bone Sparrow, by Zana Fraillon

Soon Subhi, the people out there will remember us. Soon they’ll see that living in here isn’t living at all. We just need to show them who we are, that we’re people, and then they’ll remember. This time, they won’t forget.

Subhi was born in a refugee camp, and has never known freedom. His mother and sister remember life before, and the dangerous journey to get to Australia, but now even his mother has stopped hoping, stopped telling the stories of home, and teaching Subhi their language. Subhi still believes in goodness, and lives with the hope that one day his father will come and join them and that they will live outside of the camp.

Jimmie lives close to the camp, with her father and brother, but since the death of her mother the family is barely functioning. Jimmie rarely goes to school because Dad works shifts and her brother is too busy to take her. She wonders about the nearby camp and whether its inhabitants have things she doesn’t. When she finds a way in, it is Subhi that she meets.

The Bone Sparrow is a moving story of friendship and survival. Both children are scarred by what is happening in their own lives, but each is able to offer the other hope.

But, though Jimmie’s story is part of the book, it is Subhi’s life which will shock young readers, offering a glimpse of life in detention camps and, particularly, of the children who live in them. The story is confronting, with Subhi and fellow inmates being poorly treated – physically and emotionally. It is this confronting nature that makes the story so important, giving an empathetic voice to a problem happening here in Australia and abroad – as the book’s afterword claims, “an all too true reality.”

Beautifully told, The Bone Sparrow will bring tears, and a desire to change things for kids like Subhi.

The Bone Sparrow, by Zana Fraillon
Lothian, 2016
ISBN 9780734417138

Stripes in the Forest: The Story of the Last Wild Thylacine by Aleesah Darlison and Shane McGrath

I am the last of my kind.

This I know.

Once, we roamed the land.

We owned the land.

We called it Home.

I am the last of my kind.

This I know.

Once, we roamed the land.

We owned the land.

We called it Home.

Stripes in the Forest is told in first person from the perspective of the last remaining Thylacine. Her story begins as she first encounters man. She watches cautiously and with growing concern as the white man and his firesticks decimate not just Thylacine populations but those of other native animals. She retreats to more remote forest to keep her young safe. When at last they are ready to leave her, she worries about their survival. There is a note of hope at the end that somewhere, deep in the forests, other Thylacines endure. A final page offers Thylacine facts. Illustrations offer a lush world full of hiding places for animals fleeing white men. Extras include a faux sticker that reminds the reader that it is 80 years since the Thylacine was rendered extinct.

‘Stripes in the Forest: The Story of the Last Wild Thylacine is a chilling and compelling story. Words and images work together well to evoke both the silence and voice of this final Thylacine. The brief text allows the reader to immerse themselves in the story and to ‘walk’ with the animals. Stripes in the Forest provides rich material for discussion at home and in the classroom and the note of hope invites speculation about if and where survivors may be hiding. A thoughtful blend of fact and fiction. Recommended for lower primary readers.

Stripes in the Forest: The Story of the Last Wild Thylacine, Aleesah Darlison ill Shane McGrath
Big Sky Publishing 2016
ISBN: 9781925275711

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s author and bookseller

www.clairesaxby.com

Riddle Gully Secrets by Jen Banyard

She darted along the shadowy trail, adrenalin sparking through her limbs. Her eyes scanned for the snatches of white shirt flickering through the trees of the forest ahead; her nostrils twitched for shifting scents; her ears strained for every snap, every cry, every rustle, every …

‘Let’s go back now!’

The voice was like a frypan clanging on the head of Pollo di Nozi, Youth Reporter for the Coast newspaper. She leapt around to face its owner. She turned around to face its owner.

‘You can’t be serious, Will!’ Pollo hissed. ‘We’re chasing the first case we’ve had in weeks and you want to go back?’

‘The first case you’ve had in weeks,’ said Will.

‘Let’s go back now!’

The voice was like a frypan clanging on the head of Pollo di Nozi, Youth Reporter for the Coast newspaper. She leapt around to face its owner. She turned around to face its owner.

‘You can’t be serious, Will!’ Pollo hissed. ‘We’re chasing the first case we’ve had in weeks and you want to go back?’

‘The first case you’ve had in weeks,’ said Will.

Things have been mighty quiet in Riddle Gully. While this might be good news for the town, it’s not good news for intrepid reporter, Pollo and her slightly less enthusiastic, and often hungry sidekick, Will. But this trail, which leads them deep into the bush is sure to lead to super-scoops and further advance Pollo’s blooming career. And it does lead them to a mystery – with more leads than even Pollo could have imagined. Why don’t the campers want to be found? Who else is interested in the secrets of the hills? Pollo is desperate to find all the answers. All she has to do is convince Will to help her, untangle all the stories and fame will surely be hers.

Riddle Gully Secrets is the third mystery in this series set in a small town, Riddle Gully. While everyone else goes about their business, intrepid reporter (junior) Pollo sees intrigue and mystery everywhere. Her offsider, Will, is supportive but sometimes overwhelmed by Pollo’s enthusiasms. And there are many. ‘Riddle Gully Secrets’ explores secrets, greed, history, family and belonging, wrapped up in a mystery full of fun and wide-ranging adventure. Recommended for mid-primary readers and lovers of mystery.

Riddle Gully Secrets, Jen Banyard
Fremantle Press 2016 ISBN: 9781925163957

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s author and bookseller