younger readers – Page 3

Violet Mackerel's Remarkable Recovery, by Anna Branford

“I’ll give you some lozenges for now, to help with the prickles,” says Doctor Singh, ‘but I think it would be a good idea to have your tonsils taken out.”
Violet, however, does not think this is a good idea. She generally prefers not to have things taken out.

Violet Mackerel has a very sore throat – again – and so the Doctor has decided it’s time for a tonsillectomy. At first Violet is not impressed, but then she starts to wonder if the tonsillectomy will leave her with a better singing voice. She wants to have a really remarkable recovery.

In the waiting room at the hospital Violet meets a lovely old lady called Iris who is also going to have an operation. She promises to see Iris again after the operation but, back at home, she has no idea how to find Iris. It will take something pretty remarkable for Violet to find Iris again.

Violet Mackerel’s Remarkable Recovery is the second book featuring the delightful Violet Mackerel and her family and friends. Violet is an endearing character who reaches out to people around her with her unique blend of friendship, courage and humour as she faces life head on. The story is brought to life through the gorgeous black and white illustrative work of Sarah Davis, and, produced in hardcover, is an absolute treasure that any little girl will love.

Violet Mackerel’s Remarkable Recovery, by Anna Branford, illustrated by Sarah Davis
Walker Books, 2011
ISBN 9781921529184

This book can be purchased from any good bookstore, or online from Fishpond.

Panda Chase, by Justin D'Ath

Pingwu was huge and scary. His big yellow teeth were as thick as Jordan’s fingers.

Jordan and Harry have got a lot going on. They’ve got an orphaned possum to hand feed, a bathful of yabbies to rehome and sheep to chase off the highway. If that’s not enough, they’re also the first on the scene when a giant panda escapes from a crashed truck. But really, it’s just another day in the life of Mission Fox: Animal Rescue Service.

Panda Chase is the second title in this series for middle primary aged readers and, in true Justin D’Ath style, raises the stakes for the twins, who in the previous book only had to deal with a giant python, a swarm of wasps and an escaped cockatoo. Their operations don’t always go smoothly, and their mother doesn’t approve of some of their antics, but young readers will.

Good stuff.

Panda Chase (Mission Fox), by Justin D’Ath
Puffin Books, 2011
ISBN 978014330582

This book can be purchased in good bookstores, or online from Fishpond. Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews.

Snake Escape, by Justin D'Ath

The twins looked up…
‘Shishkebab!’ they gasped.
Bella was enormous.

Twins Jordan and Harry are on a mission. With their dog Myrtle they have set up Mission Fox Animal Rescue Service, and now Mrs Seabert wants them to help her find her missing pet – a giant python called Bella.

But catching a scary, and hungry, snake is not easy – especially when you add in a scared cockatoo, an angry cat and a swarm of wasps. This could be Jordan and Harry’s slipperiest mission.

Snake Escape is the first title in a new series for junior readers by Justin D’Ath, author of the extremely popular Extreme Adventures series. Harry and Jake are fairly normal nine year olds – they have fears, illnesses and foibles – who, in their quest to do something special, find themselves in extraordinary situations. Eight to ten year old readers will love this.

Snake Escape (Mission Fox), by Justin D’Ath
Puffin Books, 2011
ISBN 9780143305811

This book can be purchased from good bookstores, or online from Fishpond. Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews.

My Father's War, by Sophie Masson

It scares me a lot, thinking of Dad out there, far away in that dangerous, terrible place, wondering how it will be when he comes back – if he comes back, that is…

Annie’s dad has been away fighting in the Great War for two years leaving Annie and her mum at home in Australia. But Dad’s letters have stopped coming, ad Annie’s mother is sick with worry, so she’s decided to do something about it. She will travel to France to find him. Soon Annie and her Mother, who is French, are in France trying to find out what has happened to Dad. As she pieces together the clues to her father’s disappearance, Annie finds out for herself what war is like.

My Father’s War , part of the My Australian Story series, presents a fictional first person account of the events and impact of the first world war on a twelve year old girl. Told using diary format, Annie’s mixed parentage and feisty nature enable the reader to experience the war first hand as she travels through the war zone in search of her father.

Excellent historical fiction for primary aged readers.

My Father’s War , by Sophie Masson
Scholastic, 2011
ISBN 9781741698282

This book can be purchased in good bookstores, or online from Fishpond .

Angel Creek, by Sally Rippin

There in the shadowy depths was a pale, pale child with glass-like eyes that stared up at her, and long white hair that billowed like clouds … ‘You won’t believe this,’ she said, laughter bursting up through her chest. ‘I think … I think we’ve found an angel!’

Jelly is not happy about the new house she has moved to with her parents. The only good things are the old apricot tree in the back yard, and the creek which runs along behind the house. But on Christmas Eve, Jelly and her friends find something trapped in the creek. At first they think it’s some sort of bird – but then they discover, to their amazement, that it is an angel.

As Jelly and Gino look after the wounded angel they start to see that taking something away from where it belongs can only lead to problems – even when you may start out with good intentions. As the angel clings to life, things start to go wrong, seriously wrong in Jelly’s own life, and she and Gino must make some tough decisions to try to sort things out and face the things they can’t change.

Angel Creek is a beautiful tale of growing up, of facing change and of friendship. It is also, of course, about the mystic presence of an angel.

Ages 10 and over.

Angel Creek, by Sally Rippin
Text, 2011
ISBN This book can be purchased in good bookstores, or online from Fishpond. Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews.

Fromelles, by Carole Wilkinson

The guns have been going all day long. It’s enough to drive you crazy…the waiting to see if this is the shell that is going to blow you to pieces… (Private Walter McAlister, 60th Battalion, 15th Bridgade)

The Battle of Fromelles began at 11 am on 19 July, 1916 and lasted less than 24 hours, but when it was over more than 5000 Australian soldiers were either dead, wounded or taken prisoner. More died in this died than in the Boer, Korean and Vietnam wars combined. Yet this, Australia’s bloodiest day at war, is not as well-known as campaigns such as Gallipoli. Fromelles: Australia’s Bloodiest Day at War attempts to redress this by providing young readers with both the facts of the battle and a glimpse at the human face of the battle.

Factual chapters are interspersed with fictional chapters telling the story of an underage soldier who enlists in Melbourne and finds himself fighting in Fromelles. There are also visual aids including maps, photographs and fact-boxes.

Carole Wilkinson has a wonderful knack of making history come alive for young readers.

Fromelles: Australia’s Bloodiest Day at War, by Carole Wilkinson
Black Dog, 2011
ISBN This book can be purchased from good bookstores or online from Fishpond. Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews.

Awesome Aussie Things to Draw, by Louis Shea

There is no shortage of how to draw books on the market, but that doesn’t eman there isn’t roomf or another one. Awesome Aussie Things to Draw!will appeal to young artists and animal lovers because of its focus, as the name suggests, on Australian icons.

Artist Louis Shea guides the reader through simple steps to draw a range of familiar Australian things. There are plenty of animals – including a dolphin, a kangaroo, and a kookaburra – as well as other familiar Australian sights ad objects such as a breaking wave, a tractor and a tree. There are also two ‘bonus’ landmarks, in the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

This non drawer reviewer had a go at a few of the activities and produced a passable dolphin and an almost recognisable wave. I’m sure with repeated practise I could have been even more successful, and a child who is keen on drawing would achieve satisfying results fairly easily.

Awesome Aussie Things to Draw! would make a great gift for a primary aged child.

Awesome Aussie Things to Draw! by Louis Shea
Scholastic 2011
ISBN 9781741695489

This book can be purchased in good bookstores or online from Fishpond . Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews.

Get a Grip, Cooper Jones, by Sue Whiting

Mum’s words clunk around inside my brain. It’s the third day in a row where the temperature is expected to tip forty degrees, and my head feels thick from lack of sleep and from breathing all this stinky hot air.
“Come on,” she says, “get a wriggle on. It’s after five. Don’t want to be late.”

Cooper’s life is okay until the day Skye tells him she’s seen his dad. That’s not possible – Cooper doesn’t have a dad – not one he knows anything about. Suddenly he’s plagued with thoughts about this mysterious figure. At the same time, he’s frustrated by his fear of the beach, and by his mother’s strange behaviour.

The new girl next door, Abeba, also seems to have a complicated life. As Cooper gets to know her, life gets even more complicated.

Get a Grip, Cooper Jones is fast paced, lightly humorous look at growing up and taking control. Set in a hot summer with bushfires looming, the story is a mixture of action and self-exploration, as Cooper tries to work through his various dilemmas.

A wonderful read for upper primary and lower secondary aged readers.

Get a Grip, Cooper Jones, by Sue Whiting
Walker Books, 2010

This book can be purchased online from Fishpond. Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews.

Blood Money, by J. E. Fison

I have always wanted to be rich. Richer than the Queen? No, not that rich – just to have loads of money, that’s all I ask. To have the cash for every new gadget invented, to buy the coolest new phone. That would be enough. I’m not saying I’m greedy. I’m just a bit needy. But when you’re on holidays at Hazard River you have to be careful what you wish for. It might just come true…

10-year-old Jack Wilde is keen to make some money and selling coconuts is not doing it fast enough. So when his brother Ben finds a bag of money, Jack is very interested. He thinks they can share. Then Lachlan and Mimi get in on the act and it seems everyone has a plan for the cash. But the owner of the cash, and the other contents of the bag, is keen to retrieve it. Actually he’s more than keen: he’s determined, desperate and he’s not going to let four nosy kids get in his way. Finding so much cash should be a recipe for fun, excitement and a big shopping spree. But Jack discovers while there’s plenty of excitement, it’s not the excitement he was planning. Cover art is by Mark McBride. There’s a map inside to show where all the action takes place.

This is the sixth instalment in the Hazard River series from J. E. Fison. The stories are set in a Queensland beach and riverside town. The children have a freedom that is reminiscent of earlier generations and sadly not so available to children today. Jack, his brother and their friends find there is plenty of adventure to be had during these holidays. Adults are very much on the periphery of the action, unless they are the baddies integral to the plot. The story proceeds at break neck pace, with more twists and turns than any bush track. Recommended for mid-primary readers.

Blood Money, J. E Fison
Ford St Publishing 2011
ISBN: 9781921665462

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s Author
www.clairesaxby.com

This book can be purchased from good bookstores, or online from Fishpond. Buying through this link supports Aussiereviews.

Toad's Revenge, by J. E. Fison

There’s a good reason I call my neighbour, Lachlan Master, the Master of Disaster. All of his plans end in disaster. Always. So when a celebrity moved to Hazard River and Lachlan decided we should meet him, I should have known our expedition could only end one way …
‘I heard Just Orsum is working on his most dangerous and daring mission ever,’ I say to Lachlan as we climb over a fence and into the backyard of Australia’s most famous adventurer, ‘Maybe he’s planning a trip to Mars.’

Jack and his friend, Lachlan are always on the lookout for adventure and excitement. And they are sure the arrival of Just Orsum is going to make life interesting. And it does. Just not quite in the way they’d imagined. Together with Jack’s brother Ben and their friend Mimi, Jack and Lachlan find themselves facing the biggest toads they’ve ever seen in an environment they hardly recognise. It takes all their combined skills and some help from some locals to find their way home.

Toads Revenge is the fifth story from J. E. Fison, set in a seaside/riverside holiday area of southern Queensland. Jack and his friends manage to get themselves into, and out of, plenty of trouble. The stories are told from Jack’s point of view but each of the four main characters contributes to both the trouble and the solutions they must find. There’s hardly time for the characters – or the reader – to catch their breath before another complication has them again on the run. Think updated and Australian-set Blyton adventures. Perfect for safe adventuring and hopefully too wild for copying! Recommended for mid-primary readers.

Toads Revenge, J. E. Fison
Ford Street Publishing 2011
ISBN: 9781921665455

review by Claire Saxby, Children’s Author
www.clairesaxby.com