Boom! Boom! Boom!
Riley was sitting in Parliament when the thumping first began.
Confuddled, he scooped up his friends and dashed outside.
It was a kangaroo! Popping and pinging all over the grassy lawns of Parliament House.
Riley is back in a new city with a new adventure with his friends and his little red plane. This time, he’s in Canberra, hot on the track of a very jumpy kangaroo. They follow the kangaroo around the sights of Canberra. Although the kangaroo stops at many spots, she seldom lingers, and Riley has to keep alert or he’ll lose her. Illustrations are digital art imposed on photos with yellow sunshine-y page edges.
‘Riley and the Jumpy Kangaroo: A journey around Canberra’ is the latest in the ‘Riley’ series from Tania McCartney and Kieron Pratt. They are travel guides for children wrapped up in madcap adventure. The animal featured is generally an icon of the country being explored, and provides a child-friendly entry point for young children. Titles in this series also offer tourists a souvenir of their touring, one that can be shared with young children wherever in the world they might be. Young children will enjoy following the antics visually as Riley and the Jumpy Kangaroo is read to them. Recommended for early primary readers and younger tourists.
Riley and the Jumpy Kangaroo: A Journey around Canberra, Tania McCartney, ill Kieron Pratt
Ford St Publishing 2013
ISBN: 9781925000030
review by Claire Saxby, Children’s Author