Spencer Gray is finally twelve, which means he is finally old enough to join Dad in his glider and experience life in the clouds. He is also a runner, a friend and an older brother.
Spencer and his family live in a small town away from the big city and the life they once knew. Spencer’s dad had moved to Skippers Cove to be a country doctor, spending more time with patients and his family and having more time for adventures, hiking, camping and taking out Drifter, his glider.
Spencer goes with his dad for a flight and loves it so he is excited to be able to go out again, however this time disaster strikes, and he will have to use all his knowledge and skills to save himself and his dad.
The Amazing Spencer Gray is a great way to introduce readers to adventure survival novels like Hatchet by Gary Paulsen and The Explorers by Katherine Rundell. This is simpler writing but no less engaging, it is well written, and I loved the way that Spencer’s thoughts were included, and the reader really wanted him to achieve his goal. The story also feels very Australian with descriptions of places that the reader may recognize or associate with, although set in Western Australia the places would fit with several places around the country.
This is a brilliant book that will engage readers to look for adventure and excitement and will be valued by the librarian as a book to suggest to younger readers who are looking for a novel similar to Hatchet but might not be quite ready for it. The author has done a fabulous job of creating a character that is likeable and real.
The Amazing Spencer Gray is a great class novel as a shared text or read aloud.
Baabinje's backyard by Ella Noah Bancroft and Bronwyn Bancroft
Little Hare, 2025. ISBN: 9781761214325. (Age:3+) Highly recommended.
A beautifully crafted book about a beloved grandmother and her love of her garden encompassing her family and her country, a love passed on from one generation to the next.
The child loves to be in the garden with her baabinje. Here her grandmother shows how she is connected to the land, firmly planting her feet in the soil. Her overalls are colourful, full of pockets containing all she needs when she is in the garden. She shows the little girl the bundjalan which come to the garden because of the flowers she plants, and the things she grows there, while even some weeds can be useful. There is much that they need grown in the garden, so they have little need to visit the supermarket. Some of these are good to eat, but some contain medicines and can help with aches and pains.
Gran tells her how important the soil is, needing to be healthy and full of bugs, she sings the songs of the older generations, ones taught to her, passing on the importance of the soil.
‘Care for the earth and it will care for you’ is whispered in the girl’s ear, reminding her of the responsibility in caring for the garden and by inference the whole of the land on which we live.
Grandmother does not waste anything, all is recycled, and reused. She loves having friends visit. When they talk together, they help with the gardening, planting and weeding. Her garden reflects diversity, with a range of plants, lots of animals and insects visiting and people who drop by.
This wonderful overview of the ties we have to the land and our responsibility in keeping it healthy, will have resonance with all readers, following the way the young girl learns of her place in the land she lives on.
Beautiful illustrations fill each page, drawing the eyes to the richness of the environment, and representing some of the things which the woman cultivates. Children will love the movement and colour presented for their delight, and eagerly follow the journey taken by the girl as her Gran reinforces her love of the land.
Allen & Unwin, 2025. ISBN: 9781760526276. (Age:5+) Highly recommended.
Henderson, author of the highly recommended I see, I see has written and illustrated another challenging book which will keep the reader thinking and wondering. The subtitle A tale in tangrams gives a clue to the exuberant cover illustration of a young child being dragged along by a dog: they are both made from a square cut into seven pieces. Turning to the frontispiece the reader is shown a square, divided into seven different bits to form a tangram. Then the fun begins!
Today, I am this and tomorrow I'm that. Today, I'm a tiger! Tomorrow, a bat. By Saturday, I will have been all of that. So ... who might you be?
Younger readers will be carried along by the wonderful rhyming story which can be read aloud just for the pleasure of hearing the rhymes and rhythm and laughing aloud at the humour. Imagination is valued and the young person in the story can be many things, not only a tiger and a bat, but a student, a knight, a patient, a part of the galaxy and a grumpy old bear. The reader is told that there are ”plenty of me. (And plenty of have-beens and goings-to-be.)”, a reassuring message for children as they grow and develop.
A second read gives the reader or listener the opportunity to look closely at the pictures that Henderson has made from the bits of the tangram. I particularly loved the fierce tiger with its open mouth, while my grandson was fascinated by the fangs in the vampire bat’s smile. Many illustrations which demonstrate the author’s wonderful imagination are placed against a single vibrantly coloured background. Readers will have fun predicting what the next page might hold and the final page has a tangram that can be traced and cut to see what the reader can make and who they might be. What fun to have a go at making a tangram, cutting out the seven pieces, colouring them and using their imagination to make an illustration of their own.
This book is a keeper. It celebrates the power of the imagination, challenges children to count the shapes in a tangram and perhaps make their own story. all while supporting their sense of self.
I read this book with tears in my eyes and fear in my heart. Every page details the extraordinary story of the French Resistance Alliance network - led by the amazing female leader Marie-Madeleine Fourcade known by her code name - Herisson (hedgehog). It is a story that honours the incredible bravery and determination of the French Resistance in the face of the horrors of Nazi invasion. It is also a love story and a declaration of the incredible power of one beautiful woman raging against all odds, with a team of people who literally were prepared to lay their life on the line for the honour of France and its people, and for her. There are so many uncomfortable human stories woven through this fictional retelling of this real history, but it is absolutely a joy to discover the people involved and to be awestruck by their place in providing the necessary intelligence to enable the Allies to repel the Nazi onslaught. In an era before the internet and technological ease for spying and transferring information, using crystal radios and Morse code, there are many close calls and impossible prison escapes, and danger lurks on every page.
This is the kind of book that lovers of history will devour and if, like me, the stories of the Resistance warriors have not been well known, then they will appreciate the intense research that Natasha Lester has undertaken to tell this story. Yes, she has needed to use some creative ‘back-filled detail’, but it is essentially a brilliant story of WWII heroes. There are moments of extreme emotional distress (even the love story is not easy). The fear factor for readers is intense as each character must put their lives and loved ones into harm’s way as they seek information to bring down the relentless attacks on their country. I feel honoured to have finally discovered their stories. Readers aged 16+ will devour this brilliantly written historical masterpiece.
Themes Themes: WWII - French Resistance, Marie-Madeleine Fourcade, Nazi occupation, Courage.
Carolyn Hull
Music Camp by Penny Tangey
University of Queensland Press, 2025. ISBN: 9780702269028. (Age:10-12) Recommended.
Music Camp is an appropriate read for children in the ten through to twelve age range because the level of complexity matches children of that age in terms of language, style and voice of the characters and familiarity of the content.
Two fatherless pre-teen (Year six) girls meet on a music camp. Miley is living in a caravan with her mother as a flood has destroyed her home. She's won a scholarship to attend the camp and her aim is to have people accept recorder as a serious instrument. Flautist Juliet comes from a wealthy musical family background. The two both audition for the only woodwind solo at the final night's concert. They do not see eye to eye. Flood threatens the camp - what could go wrong?...
Like an orchestral piece, the plot unfolds from the alternating narrative view points of Miley and Juliet. The book is structured thus: Prelude (where we meet feisty Miley and bookish Juliet), Day one - Movement, Ensemble, Day Two-Auditions, Rhapsody, Day Three - Rehearsal, Accompaniment, Waltz, Day Four-Promotion, Flight of the Orchestra, Performance, Nocturne, Day Five - Finale.
Music Camp would be especially enjoyed by children who play musical instruments and who have been on or are contemplating music camps. Author, Penny Tangey is clearly inspired by her own upbringing in central Victoria, surrounded by musicians, where recorder revival was a big thing. The characters in Music Camp must juggle and come to understand and accept where they stand in the tension between excellence and performance and playing for pleasure. All the passion and hard work that sits with every musician and is a source of much pain and pleasure is quite astutely depicted by Tangey. The intense rivalries and friendships and budding romances and disappointments are cleverly described.
The childrens' growing understanding of the changing climate, the role of big corporations and the ethics of event patronage is gently developed, moving from the flood that has made Miley homeless, to the flood of the camp, to rising sea levels and environmental refugees from the Pacific. The children are developing a consciousness of their world, entirely in sync with the moral development of twelve -year- olds and protests and activism re the environment starts to interest them. It is another channel for music other than concert performance or for pleasure.
Music Camp describes a passage that ambitious children must follow to find their place in the world. Children with particular skill and passion sometimes have a more difficult path because they have to recognise and accept where their talent lies in relation to others and then to find ways to channel or use that talent. Acceptance of failure is hard. Finding a path, with the guidance of really cool and nice music teachers and other friends was what happened for the regional children at the Music Camp at a riverside cabin resort.
A warm and funny read about music camps, friends and finding your way - especially when you are smart, sassy, passionate, ambitious and maybe just a little bit different. There are good lessons in this book that the reader can learn vicariously. Teacher's notes are available.
Themes Music in school, School camps, Friendship, Environment, Activism, Acceptance, Finding a path.
Wendy Jeffrey
Ebb & Flo: Brain freeze by Laura Bunting & Philip Bunting
Brain Freeze is another story in the delightful Ebb and Flo series by talented creators Laura and Philip Bunting. It is a bright, funny and highly engaging short novel; perfect for early readers. With its vibrant, playful illustrations and simple, entertaining text, this book is ideal for children just starting to read independently or for sharing aloud with an adult.
The story begins with Ebb and Flo overjoyed at the arrival of Boop and his ice cream truck - because who doesn’t love a good ice cream? But excitement turns into a small dilemma when Ebb can’t decide which flavour to choose. After much indecision, he finally makes his pick, only to get an epic brain freeze when eating it all in one bite!
What follows is a series of hilarious and relatable attempts by Ebb to figure out what is happening to his body and how to avoid this chilly problem in the future. He experiments with different “solutions,” all of which go humorously wrong, before discovering the simple but effective answer; eating ice cream slowly.
Young readers will love watching Ebb’s silly strategies and share a laugh at his expressive reactions, all beautifully brought to life in the Buntings’ signature colourful and engaging artwork.
This book is wonderfully designed for early readers, with clear, accessible language and a strong, easy-to-follow storyline. The fun characters and lively pictures keep children’s attention, encouraging them to read along and predict what might happen next. It’s also a perfect choice for shared reading, sparking giggles and conversation about favourite flavours, making choices, and of course, avoiding brain freeze.
Brain Freeze is a charming addition to any early reader’s collection. With its entertaining plot, loveable characters and vibrant illustrations, it’s sure to become a favourite that children will want to return to again and again - especially any time they hear the ice cream truck coming!
Abby Jimenez founded Nadia Cakes bakery which has amassed an international cult following. Her literary wit was widely recognised as being behind the hilarious viral comments on the now famous Nadia Cakes Vageode TM cake. This wit has not been wasted because Jimenez has now further applied it to the writing of romantic comedies. Her novels have sold millions of copies and been translated into twenty-eight languages. Jimenez's wit is on full display in the character of Samantha, the main female character in Say you'll remember. Appropriately and unsurprisingly, fictional Samantha has a similar job to real-life author Jimenez, being incredibly savvy in the field of social media marketing and influencing and, in her case, employed to market mustard through hilarious contribution and commentary to the social media platform promoting the Murkle's mustard brand. It is always more authentic when authors write from real-life experience.
Memorable funny encounters and experiences pepper the entire story which tracks the development of the relationship between Samantha and Xavier, (who looks like Rhysand from the ACOTAR series) and is of course the impossibly gorgeous main male character and love interest. This reader was constantly waiting for Xavier to be revealed as a serial killer but no... Incredibly beautiful people exist. Samantha too is beautiful - long black hair, brown eyes, curvy and when Xavier first meets her in his veterinary clinic, she has a kitten tucked into her bra, sleeping in her cleavage. This meeting sets the scene.
Samantha is called back to California to help her family take care of her mother who is moving rapidly through the advanced stages of dementia and Xavier must remain in Minnesota to run his veterinary practice. The entire story details the frustrating long-distance relationship that the pair try to manage over a year. Although the reader may feel frustration with both of them for not being able to solve their dilemma, the pain of it is unrelieved and continues throughout. Neither seems to be able to move... The dreadful pain and stress placed on families in caring for a loved one with dementia is described in excruciating detail and the toll on all involved is laid bare.
Alternating chapters adopt the viewpoint of Samantha and then Xavier and in this way the plot is neatly unrolled.
Say you'll remember is a warm, funny, frustrating read (for those who lack patience with characters who can't make decisions). It does not shy away from some of the really harsh realities of life, like family having to manage the care of a very ill family member in a declining and irredeemable health situation. The impact on family relationships is depicted with clarity and insight. Humour salvages even the grimmest situation.
For readers who enjoy contemporary romance novels, complete with witty banter, relatable characters, mild sexual content and some emotional and issue-related depth, Say you'll remember is a good suggestion.
Themes Long distance romance, Caring for a family member with dementia, Animal protection.
Wendy Jeffrey
A lemon for Safiya by Jemima Shafei-Ongu. Illus. by Nisaluk Chantanakom
Safiya first notices her. An older woman sitting in the gutter near their house. She notices her different clothes as she and Mum come closer to the woman, noticing the bright yellow lemon in her hand. They try to speak to her, wondering where she lives. They put her in their car and drive around the streets hoping to find her home. Safiya’s mother speaks to her in Arabic, asking where she lives. But every question Mum asks results in a response from the women’s past. She talks of playing amongst the olive trees, telling them that her father had built their house, brick by brick. When they pass a large lemon tree, she calls out that Hanna had planted that tree. In asking further questions, Mum finds that Hanna was her daughter, and the word means happiness in Arabic. But they find that the woman has lost Hanna. Safuya sits next to Maryam, telling her her name, and notices a bracelet on her wrist. They realise that is in an address. Dad turns the car around. They drive to the street that is Maryam’s street, and see a family and neighbours searching for her. A happy reunion ensues with the families sitting down together, and as Safiya offers her the lemon, Maryam gives it back to her, a gift to someone who has shown compassion from an old woman who is losing her memory.
This delightful story of loss and hope, will energise readers to think about Maryam and what has happened to her. Readers will love finding the woman’s home and communing with the family, pondering the importance of the lemon tree.
Through the story are Arabic words which can be accessed in the glossary at the end of the book. Children will be able to read the story with the Arabic words, adding some new words to their vocabulary.
The beautiful illustrations show the old woman’s lined face, each holding a story. Her clothes are delicately shown, encouraging readers to look at how people dress and what group wears this particular style. The gentle colours used when Maryam talks of her past are a wonderful contrast to the other pages, and encourage readers to think about what these illustrations show about her past life.
The gentle woman holds her child close to her, yellow the main colour in the background. Readers might like to find out where lemons are grown and where the lemon tree first came from, and think about why the lemon is important to the older woman.
I love the endpapers with the lemons, and the families sitting down together, the page of Arabic words, and the images of the old woman sitting in the gutter. Each poses questions which will form a point of discusion among the class members.
A thoughtful story to present to a class, with lots of hints about time and place, of what has happened to Maryam and what is happening at the moment. Teacher's notes are available.
Themes Lemons, Dementia, Family, Memory, Loss.
Fran Knight
How to help: when you really want to help by Davina Bell and Hilary Jean Tapper
How to help: when you really want to help addresses that sometimes awkward moment when it is not clear that someone wants help. Each page presents a different event that explores the help that can be offered. In this way the book models the response needed when someone can see a need.
From wiping up baby’s spill as she eats in her high chair, to offering accommodation when it is needed, to sharing a pillow to snuggle, each softly illustrated page shows children how to help. From physical help, making something, baking, wiping and so on, come many offers of help that are an emotional response. Opening your heart, being part of a choir where your voice is shared, to listening to a story read by Grandpa, the list of things people do to help others is widened.
Observation is the key to these offerings. A bird is found in need of help, so a box is made for the animal to revive in; a lost cat is advertised on the neighbourhood trees and is returned home, showing how others have helped the family get their pet back.
Neighbours can check out the person over the fence, checking they are alright and offering help if needed. Showing up for the match either as a supporter or participant helps a range of others, the team can now play their games; the supporters can barrack together. Children can help on clean up days, where a neighbourhood or beach or park is cleaned by a large group of people, or simply by one.
The book gives children a range of large and small things they can do to make a difference, at home, or in the neighbourhood, at school or in the wider community.
Supported by soft pencil and water colour illustrations, the book will encourage interest and discussion.
Themes Helping, Humour, Family.
Fran Knight
The girl and the ghost by Jacqueline Harvey
Penguin, 2025. ISBN: 9781761349409.
Josephine Eloise Thomas — “Jet”— is a lively 12-year-old girl whose life is abruptly interrupted by a sudden move to the countryside of France. The adventure begins when she finds a mystical locket hidden underneath on of the panels in the bottom of her wardrobe; a locket that introduces the existence of a mischievous (and often infuriating) ghost, Prince Louis?XVII.
The Girl and the Ghost is a historical fiction based in rural France and its past. The book delicately pieces together the tragic story of Louis?XVII and life in nineteenth?century France. Several delightful subplots such as teenage confusion, light-hearted romance, and sibling quarrels add a humorous and relatable touch to the story.
At first, the book seemed to pursue history and adventure, but seemed to run off the tracks as I read. While subthemes of family and love are introduced and elaborated on throughout the book, it is rather vague compared to the rest of the thrilling story. Jet’s exciting adventures with Louis are the focus of the story, with the subplots falling short as they struggle to keep up with the pacy plotline. There are momentary instances when new themes are introduced, such as typical sibling rivalry and the connection Jet has with her stepmom, but the book fails to elaborate on them later on in the story and leaves the audience feeling a vague, unfulfilled feeling. Overall, The Girl and the Ghost is a compelling novel that manages to intricately bring together two genres but fell short of my expectations in other areas such as expressing subthemes such as familial bonds. It would be the ideal book for lovers of history and adventure, but not such a great recommendation for those who wish for softer genres such as a heart-warming read.
Jahnavi B. (Student)
Themes France, French History, Restoration, Ghosts, Art theft.
The pull of the moon by Pip Smith
UWA Publishing, 2025. ISBN: 9781760803032. (Age:13+) Highly recommended.
Many would associate Christmas Island with the location of a refugee detention centre, but Pip Smith’s novel begins with the search for the endangered pipistrelle, a microbat that Coralie’s mother, Hannah, tries desperately to track down and protect. Christmas Island is also host to a massive annual red crab migration through forests, across roads, even through buildings, in their determination to reach the sea. The island is a lush natural environment that Coralie can roam freely, though perhaps a little more cautiously through the jungle, reputed to be haunted by ghosts. The export of phosphate and the import of refugees just carries on quietly in the background. That is, until the day an overladen wooden boat is tossed by the waves against the cliffs, smashing bodies on the rocks.
With the changing phases of the moon, the narrative voice changes from that of Coralie to Ali and his family fleeing from Iran, buying passage on a boat from Indonesia to Australia. Their story vividly brings to life the plight of the refugee and the reasons they might desperately seek safety. There is a section in the book where a woman furiously rants against Immigration interviewers, with a speech that should shock every reader into reassessing Australia’s refugee policy. It is a speech that passionately advocates for better understanding and compassion.
Each section of the novel takes place during a different phase of the moon, emphasizing the pull of the natural world and all the creatures within it. At times the perspective is that of a bird riding the thermals in the sky, looking down on the island in the sea. In her author’s note, Smith writes that an Afghan man once told her that he missed the ‘tiny lives of the plum trees’ and her realisation that each blossom was ‘a whole life, a whole world’. This is the feeling that flows through her book, of all the different lives that ebb and flow, lives saved and lives lost, the crabs that make it to the sea and the crabs that are crushed, the refugee who miraculously leaps to safety, and the refugee who is drowned.
At thirteen, Coralie is going through a difficult time, her friends have moved on, the pipistrelles disappear, her mother leaves on prolonged fieldtrips, her father seems at a loss, and then she witnesses the horror of the wrecked refugee boat. She fiercely wants to believe the boy Ali has survived and determines to find him. Smith absolutely captures the feelings of the distraught teenager, the angry words flung at a parent, the passion that drives her, and then the loneliness and confusion when she starts to doubt herself.
The writing style is beautiful, concise and vivid, so many dramatic moments captured so perfectly, moments like the father with his beard ‘speckled with the mince that the stove had spat at his face’ and the mother stabbing her spaghetti with a fork and twisting it ‘slowly, like a knife in the back’.
It is a moving story that young teenagers could read and readily empathise with Coralie and Ali; but the themes of the decline of the natural world and how the moon could just be the earth ‘but in the future, when all the trees and animals have gone’, refugees and imprisonment, the cruelty of chance, all would make it a thought-provoking read for adults as well. Highly recommended for teenagers and adults. Teacher's notes are available.
Themes Christmas Island, Environment, Biodiversity, Refugees, Trauma.
Dedicated to ‘those who are wounded and surviving’ Coburn’s gentle and emotive verse novel shares intimate feelings of loneliness and soul-searching in a way that allows readers to empathise and grow with him towards a better understanding of self and one’s place in the world. The verses tell the story of a young person caught in the middle of his parents’ arguments, as they grieve the loss of their elder son, horribly thrown and stomped by a bull. Grieving himself, Sam feels unloved and unwanted. It is only when an equally troubled young neighbour calls him to help save a seriously injured foal caught in barbed wire, that he makes a connection outside his closed world and gradually develops a relationship that frees him from victimhood and builds his self-esteem.
The verse novel comprises poems that could stand alone, but each adds another chapter to the story, simply written and expressive, telling of two teenagers who, in caring for the foal and gaining its trust, come to trust and care for each other as well. It is first young love between two bruised souls, enabling them to find their inner strength and a path towards a better future.
Whilst the themes include family violence, depression and suicide ideation, it is written in a way that that arouses compassion and empathy, the main focus being on saving the injured foal, an animal that would usually be shot to save its suffering, rather than slowly nurtured back to good health. The writing style is simple and direct, easy for young readers to engage with, and appreciate. It is an achingly beautiful story. Robbie Coburn is clearly an author to watch out for; don’t miss this one. Teacher's notes are available.
Themes Coming of age, Grief, Domestic violence, Depression, Self-esteem, Love.
A deceptively small book, easily read, with large sections being in a format akin to a free-verse novel with double line spacing, Kate Gordon's Aster's next, good thing packs a punch. The reader meets Aster again - the Aster of the CBCA Award-winning world of Aster's good right things. In Aster's good right things, Aster is performing a ritualistic pattern of behaviours which all started when her mother abandoned her. She believes that if she is faithful to performing one good right thing/day, everything will be alright. One year on, in the sequel, Aster's next good thing, Aster is not doing well at all. She believes that she is not important to anyone, that, if she floated away no-one would even notice. This is exacerbated when her Dad and his new partner Nella announce that Nella is pregnant and expecting a new baby. Aster has to cope with change.
Use of the free-verse structure creates an impactful emotional experience for the reader. Although Gordon employs the first person narrative of Aster throughout the book, sections where Aster's thoughts are particularly intense and internalised break into free verse where sentences are broken into phrases and individual words- one/line. The structure accentuates and mirrors Aster's broken thoughts.
From the hiding and ritualised behaviours of the first book, Aster's thoughts are disintegrating. Tragically, she believes that no-one sees her, that she is not needed or important and she begins to think that rather than hiding and performing good deeds she needs to escape and run away. Gordon describes the worry that the family have trying to deal with Aster's mental health beautifully. They walk on egg shells. Importantly, Aster does have two special friends: Xavier from the school for gifted kids which they both attend and Esme from the milkbar. They "see" her. Indigo, lives in Aster's home, part of the unusual family structure which gradually is explained. She challenges Aster..." Why do you always think it's all about you, Aster? Why do you think the world revolves around you? This isn't the Aster show, you know." (p.66) It is disturbing to read about Aster's wrongheaded thinking and to know of the consequences if a depressed person doesn't receive intervention and care of the right sort. Gordon writes with great insight.
Aster reaches crisis point and acts. Compassion for little, bullied Armelle, who appears to be "on the spectrum", the reactions of her family to her escapade, the help and insights of her friends and the birth of the new baby Sylvie work to ground Aster into finding her identity.
Aster's next, good thing is about recognising that love exists, about finding your place in the world and being a friend to others. It is a recognition of "otherness" and the need for belonging; that "acting up" is a call for love and identity. For readers, who may be struggling with feeling a lack of belonging, this story may be easy to identify with and therefore comforting as it describes Aster's struggles so clearly. Gordon describes some of these feelings, with the helpful use of metaphor. An example is Xavier, who while hospitalised because of a decline in mental health, describes an ocean in the head, with ebbs and tides, something you can't control but you can..."put a mermaid in your ocean". Delightful and powerful metaphors such as this combined with other quiet wisdom and the empathetic unfolding of the storyline make this a warm-hearted, reliable book that is recommended for those who might need to read of struggles, mistakes and gains in understanding of self and others when mental health becomes a worry.
Aster's next good thing is a warm, wise, delightful and helpful book.
Subtitled A First Nations journey around Australia’s traditional place names, gives a sound idea as to what will be found when the book is read.
On the title page is a map of Australia with the fifteen places shown, and this will intrigue children as they see the places known to them perhaps by a different name. From Gulmerragin in the north, to Rubibi, known as Broome, to Boorloo and Tarndanya, the places across the north of Australia are shown, the illustrations reflecting some of the things to be found in that vicinity.
Each double page with its contemporary artwork using traditional decorative methods, shows animals and flowers, birds and vegetation, as well as geographic features associated with the named place.
I love the lurking crocodile featured on Borroloola, the hammerhead shark in the background of wetlands Boigu, the bunya pines of Meeanjin country, and the whales on Gadigal land. Each page presents something to search out, to recognise and marvel over. Kids will love to copy the names using the motifs presented, and learn how to say those unfamiliar to them. The Canberra name will intrigue, encouraging students to look at the meaning of the name and why it was selected as the name for our capitol city. In the snow gums can be seen the kookaburra, a particular motif of the area.
Ryhia Dank’s journey around Australia helps the readers learn about some of the more well known places, just as Dank wanted to journey to learn more about her land.
I love listening to ABC RN with its acknowledgement of where each radio show comes from, and this book gives some of those names and we can see how these are written, so expanding the knowledge of these traditional names. Kids will love spotting the array of things shown on each page: jelly fish, lizards, the Aboriginal flag, footprints and loads of insects, to name a few.
Themes Aboriginal flag, Aboriginal names, Journeys, Australian animals.
Fran Knight
Inkbound - Meticulous Jones and the Skull Tattoo by Philippa Leathley
Inkbound - Meticulous Jones and the Skull Tattoo has a female protagonist about the same age as the intended reader as on her tenth birthday, Meticulous 'Metty' Jones receives her fate, as all children do, in the form of a magical tattoo on her hand. She hopes that her tattoo will reveal an exciting destiny: travel, discovery or adventure. What appears is a skull in the palm of a violet glove - Metty's fate is to be a murderer. When Metty's father disappears in mysterious circumstances, Aunt Magnificent takes her to the glittering city of New London, filled with magic, wonder and enchantment. But when Metty hears rumours of a shadowy organisation known as the Black Moths, she begins to suspect they are connected to her own dark fate.
The genre 'fantasy adventure' is described as combining "the elements of fantasy (supernatural, magical, and often imaginary worlds) with the adventure genre (epic journeys, quests, and exciting undertakings), resulting in stories with magic, danger, and exploration." Unique landscapes, societies and cultures are the background to seemingly ordinary human characters embarking on personal quests that involve action, risk and danger and usually in company or conflict with imaginary beings to quell the malicious intent of those who seek to harm them. As they seek to ensure that good triumphs over evil, often with unique and mysterious powers, they also learn much about themselves, who they are, what they stand for and what they can accomplish and achieve as regular people.
Popular since the days of Enid Blyton's Magic Faraway Tree series when young readers transported themselves away from the horrors of World War II to lands where fairies, elves and other magical beings dwelt and life was so different to their lived reality, continued through the 50s as my generation went through the wardrobe into Narnia, then brought into the realm of the modern young reader through the exploits of Harry Potter and his friends and the making of the movies based on Tolkien's classics of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and perpetuated through any number of video and computer games, it is a firm favourite with independent readers across the ages. Those written for children not only allow the child to dwell in an alternative world that may be more appealing than the one they are in, but also enable them to become the hero with both power and powers that the real world denies them. They are in charge, they are calling the shots and making the decisions - something rare in the pre-teen's life.
Inkbound - Meticulous Jones and the Skull Tattoo fits the genre, the demand and the library collection perfectly. It features those essential elements of the fantasy adventure genre with fast-paced narrative that draws the reader into both the setting and the action, while dropping tiny but important clues along the way whose significance only becomes apparent as the climax approaches. There are elements that echo the reader's world making the transition to the imaginary one seem more seamless as they take on the role of the protagonist as they are able to relate, perhaps even empathise, with the struggles they face, yet each features a lightness of touch that makes them ideal read-alones or read-alouds. They also all seem to set themselves as the possible beginning of a new series that keen readers will seek out.
Currently, in the school library in which I volunteer, it is series like these that seem to be constantly circulating, so to be able to bring some new reads to the selections will definitely spike interest as our long winter nights approach.
