The Book That Made Me, edited by Judith Ridge

We were all hooked (and a bit unsettled) from the outset, so there was no turning back. My brother and I looked forward to each progressively disturbing chapter: conniving pigs, brainwashed sheep, a horse carted off to something called the “knackers”, and poor Mum had to field all of our questions. (Shaun Tan)

From acclaimed authors from around Australia and overseas, The Book That Made Me offers a glimpse into the formative years of the creators, and of the book (or books) that shaped who they are – as authors, as readers, as people. From early readers and picture books to graphic novels, science fiction, to medical encyclopedia, each author’s preference is different and their tales behind why and how these particular books stayed with them are sometimes funny and other times very moving, but always intriguing.

Editor Judith Ridge is a passionate children’s literature advocate and has brought together a wonderful array of authors, including Shaun Tan, Julia Lawrinson, Sue Lawson, Markus Zusak, Ted Dawe and many more – thirty-two authors in total.

 

This is a book for book lovers of all ages and, with all royalties going to the Indigenous Literacy Foundation, purchase supports a really important cause.

The Book That Made Me
Walker Books Australia, 2016
ISBN 9781922244888

The Great and Wondrous Storyteller, by Michael Scott Parkinson

 

The Great & Wondrous Storyteller

Oh, hello. I am the Great and Wondrous Storyteller!
I have read big books. I have read little books.
I have read short books, tall books,
thick books and thin books …
I have read every
type of book you can imagine!

Everybody knows that the Great and Wondrous Storyteller is, in fact, a great and wodndous storyteller. Everyone knows he has read all kinds of books, to all kinds of people. But everyone also knows that you don’t eat books, or hold them upside down, or start at the end. So why is the Great and Wondrous Storyteller doing all those things?
The Great and Wondrous Storyteller is a gorgeous celebration of books and reading, with a gently educative element – teaching youngeters about the magic of books, and encouraging them to take up reading. The digital illustrations are bright and colourful, with the main character, Norbert, an adorable green monster, and other characters being a range of cute, big-eyed animals.

This debut picture book also explores themes of honesty and learning.

The Great and Wondrous Storyteller, by Michael Scott Parkinson
Five Mile Press, 2015
ISBN 9781760066628

Available from good bookstores and online.

Please, read.

So, a few days ago I shared this quote about reading on Facebook. Sharing things on social media is something I do reasonably regularly – often things that make me smile, occasionally things that make me angry and other times things that make me think. I thought this quote was one of the former, because I found myself nodding in agreement and smiling, but later that night I found myself lying in bed thinking about the message and how it relates to parents and children.

See, I know that reading makes me a better person: happier, more well informed, more empathetic. I also know that most other readers know this. And yet I know many many adults who don’t read, and especially who don’t read for pleasure. Their excuse, if they are asked, is that they don’t have time to read. Often, they say this in a way that suggests that people who do read are somehow either very time-rich, or simply too lazy to be doing more important stuff than getting lost in a novel.

This worries me on their behalf. It especially worries me that it seems they have either never loved reading, or have somehow forgotten the magic of being lost in a story. But it worries me most when those non-reading adults are parents.

Very few parents fail to understand how important it is that their children learn to read. Perhaps some see this is as valuable simply so that they do well in (gah!) NAPLAN tests, or beat other kids in their class (double gah!) or, in the long run, get good jobs so that they can be rich and successful, rather than seeing the way that reading develops other, less measurable skills and attributes. Regardless, few parents would argue against the value of good reading skills. Parents spend hours listening to their kids read, and lots of money on trying to improve their reading skills, either through buying them books (yay!) or by investing in programs to improve their reading skills – computer software, extra tuition, whatever it takes to boost those skills.

The thing that makes me sad, then, is that so very many parents – and other significant adults – miss a wonderful (free) opportunity to engage their kids in reading: modelling. Modelling I hear you ask? Yes, modelling. Modelling to young readers, or future readers, the great pastime of reading. You see, every time an adult opens a book and reads for pleasure, they are demonstrating to spectators that reading is something fun/interesting/cool to do. We all know kids love to do what grown ups do. They watch us and they learn. We want them to eat veggies, so we eat veggies in front of them. We want them to brush their teeth, so we brush our teeth in front of them. We want them to read– we should be reading in front of them.

Instead, though, we tend to read TO kids, or with them (and these are both very very valuable  and important things). But then, when we have time of our own, we turn on the tv, or we pull out our mobile devices, and we entertain ourselves with those. The message we risk giving is that reading is something solely for kids: adults don’t need/want/have time to read. And, in turn, kids then see reading as something boring, a chore that relates only to school, something to shake off as soon as they can.

So what am I saying? Please, read in front of your kids. Pick up a book and read it. Enjoy it. Let your kids see you doing it, preferably every day. Talk to them about the books you’re reading over dinner, or when you’re out in the car, and ask them what they are reading. Model to them that reading is valuable, fun, important, vital! And please don’t let them hear you say proudly “I don’t have time to read’ or “Books are boring”.

If you are not a parent, you still have a role to play, because you are still a model for the kids you come into contact with – as well as for other adults. You read on the train, people see you and perhaps realise it’s a cool thing to do (because hey, you’re a cool looking guy/gal aren’t you?). You sit in the sun/lunchroom/café reading over lunch, the same.

Parent or not, while you’re busy setting that good example, you’ll  probably find something else happening: you’ll find yourself with new stuff to talk  about, with new knowledge, greater empathy, a bigger vocabulary. Heck, you’ll probably even find yourself enjoying yourself! If you don’t, you’re reading the wrong book: find another, and another until you find the right one.

I could go on and on and on about how if more people read we could solve all the world’s problems. Perhaps that’s the subject for a future post. For now, though, I just realised that this whole post can be summed up, very neatly in its title.

Please, read.

The Bush Book Club, by Margaret Wild & Ben Wood

Echidna loved reading snug in bed,
with platters of ants and buttered bread.
Kangaroo loved reading as she hopped along,
trying not fall in the billabong.

All the animals love reading, and are members of the Bush Book Club. Everyone, that is, except Bilby. Bilby has never found a book that interest him. he is too busy twiddling and fiddling, skipping and hopping. Until one day he finds himself alone with nothing but a room full of books.

The Bush Book Club is a lovely story about books – and the importance of finding the right one. The resolution makes clear the premise held by many teachers, librarians, authors and other book people that there is a right book for every reader, and that a child who doesn’t like books hasn’t been given the right book yet.

Bilby and his friends have been beautifully brought to life in the water colour and pencil illustrations by Ben Wood, and youngsters will also enjoy the settings, especially the tree-home of the Book Club.

Gorgeous.

 

The Bush Book Club, by Margaret Wild & Ben Wood
Omnibus Books, 2014
ISBN 9781742990149

Available from good bookstores and online.

Rediscovering Old Favourites

Throughout my childhood and well into my adult years I loved the thrill of revisiting a favourite book. Like visiting an old friend, the conversation with a favourite book is comfortable, yet frequently surprising. But these past few years – maybe even as long as ten years – rereading has been a rare thing for me. Since I started Aussiereviews, I always have a steady supply of new books (more than I can possibly read, at times), and my various dayjobs, family and writing commitments have swallowed up a lot of time, as such things are wont to do.

This past week, though, I’ve immersed myself in rereading. Having been accepted into the PhD program at ECU, where my focus will be children’s poetry, including verse novels, I decided to start my reading by reconnecting with old favourites. And what a joy that has been.

The first verse novel I ever read was Margaret Wild’s Jinx. In fact it was such a new form for me that I had no idea how to describe it when I reviewed it in 2002. I just knew that I loved it, and almost instantly knew that this was a form I wanted to write in, as well. So, the first two verse novels I reread were Jinx, and Wild’s second verse novel, One Night. I hadn’t read either of these for some years , though I often recommend them to other readers. Interestingly, as I reread I was surprised anew by them. I’d actually forgotten what happens, even who the characters were. What I’d retained was the sense of satisfaction. I don’t remember crying when I read them the first time, but reading One Night this time round had me weeping at the kitchen table, much to the bemusement of my family.

From these two I’ve gone on to revisit other favourites – by Steven Herrick, Sharon Creech and Nikki Grimes. Still to come are more Herrick , Lorraine Marwood, Sherryl Clark and more. While perhaps I’m reading these with different eyes – as a researcher and also as one who has since written verse novels – it’s also proving a lovely trip into my reading past, and is inspiring me to look back at other favourites which perhaps deserve a revisit. At the same time, I’m learning stuff. I love seeing how other authors make use of the form, and have been inspired to try a few new things in my own writing.

What a luxurious way to start my new studies. It feels like an indulgence even while it’s paying such lovely dividends for my research and writing.