Ninja Kid: From Nerd to Ninja, by Anh Do

Grandma looked at the cake … and all the stuff on the ground. ‘You’ve got a long way to go before you know how to use your skills properly,’ she said, ‘and I’m here to help. But your mum’s right. There is no doubt about it, Nelson…you are a NINJA!

Nelson is am awkward uncool nerd, who lives in the junkyard with his mum, grandma and cousin. So when he wakes up on his tenth birthday and can suddenly do things he never could before, he is more than a little weirded out. When he learns that he is, in fact, a ninja – perhaps the last ninja on earth – he thinks there must be a mistake. He can’t even get his undies around the right way, let alone save the world.

From Nerd to Ninja is the first offering the new Ninja Kid series from much loved comedian and children’s author Anh Do. Combining humour with a fast moving story and an unlikely, though likable, hero, the story is sure to impress young readers who will keenly await the next installment.

From Nerd to Ninja, by Anh Do
Scholastic Australia, 2018
ISBN 9781742993263

The Magnificent Tree, by Nick Bland & Stephen Michael King

Pop liked Bonny’s ideas because they were simple, clever and properly made.
Bonny liked Pop’s ideas because they were big, brave and brilliant with bits sticking out.

The Magnificent Tree

Bonny and Pop have lots of wonderful ideas, for all kinds of things, but so far they haven’t had an idea for the birds. Every day the birds fly over them and away. When Bonny decides they need a tree to attract the birds, Pop agrees – and each sets out to make one. Pop’s idea is big and brave, but Bonny’s is simple. It takes a whole year for their ideas to come to fruition, but in spring the birds come – and stay.

The Magnificent Tree is a wonderful celebration of whimsy, creativity and simplicity, as well as the bond between grandparent and grandchild. Coming from the combined talents of two of Australia’s leading picture book creators, this is an absolute treasure of a book, with text that sings its way cross the pages and a pair of lovable characters shown revelling in life – and each other.

Youngsters will giggle at the silliness of some of the ideas and images, and will find satisfaction in the resolution.

Truly magnificent.
The Magnificent Tree, by Nick Bland and Stephen Michael King
Scholastic 2012
ISBN 9781742832951

Available from good bookstores or online.