The first of a new series from Larrikin House promises lots of laughs as Dad’s plans predictably go awry. The front cover provokes laughter as kids pick up the book, seeing a snake hanging from the tree, lots of eyes peering out at the family, while the girl clutches a significantly placed first aid box. Imaginations will kick into gear as holidays with the family are recalled.
The book opens with the plan of the camping holiday on the endpaper, a few hills and lakes are to be explored as Dad makes his hopes known. His kids need nature, he assumes, but his daughter would prefer glamping. Rhyming pairs of lines follow the disasters that befall Dad on their rustic holiday. From pitching the tent on a mountain of ants to disturbing a bee hive, Dad’s back to nature trip is sure to come unstuck. When he falls into the swamp and comes back up with leeches on his ears, a rat taking a bite from his chin and a crab snapping at this skin, the laughs come thick and fast at poor Dad’s expense. Others would give up, pack up the gear and head for home but not this dad. He walks into a tree and is stunned, so begins walking in circles, taking his kids with him. Just when things could not get any worse, a savage boar butts Dad on his bum. Some of his wounds are becoming infected and when the fire is lit to cook, the fox runs off with the steak. And then a snake appears. What else could go wrong? Well his many bites are now blowing up his head. Asking for the calamine lotion to cool himself down he sees the fire escape from the campfire and burn down the tent. A night spent in the car sees a black spider crawl up Dad’s leg, but after all this the children suggest they stay another night!
A very funny rhyming text is wonderfully supported with funny illustrations that remind all readers of the dangers lurking outside when someone wants to go back to nature. A laugh on every page, the images of the kids and their dog and dad coping with a mountain of calamities underlines the impact of trying something new, despite things going wrong. A discussion could be had after the laughter has died down around change and trying different things, of being adaptable, of preparing for change.
Willa loves the Branagh (1993) film interpretation of Shakespeare’s ‘Much Ado about Nothing’; the feelings the opening scenes of the movie stir up in her become the touchstone in her job as publishing editor of romance novels, and also in her relationships with men. A romance novel is not going to make it if it doesn’t inspire that excited response for her, and neither will a relationship.
This is not so much a modern adaptation of Much Ado about Nothing, though there is a similar shared plot-line, but is more a reflection of the values and relationships within the play. Willa herself recognises the overlap of stories, and wonders if she can realistically reach the same happy outcome. But she doesn’t know who her partner is. And she is very wary because she rebels against the usual expectations of marriage and babies. She just wants the true passion, The Feeling.
Dettmann’s novel moves along at a sparkling pace and is full of witty and very funny dialogue, especially coming from Willa. She is somebody who can always make people laugh, and people love her for it. But it becomes increasingly apparent that her jokes can sometimes be a barrier to better understanding and can even turn hurtful when she reacts too quickly without reflection.
‘Without further ado’ is a humorous reworking of Shakespeare’s play – it could be a rewarding exercise to read the two works alongside each other. But even without knowing too much about the play, there is a lot of fun to be had in reading this delightful rom-com, one that explores issues of love, marriage, parenting, morals, trust and self-assertion.
Themes Shakespeare, Much Ado about Nothing, Romance, Women’s roles, Humour.
Helen Eddy
Two Dogs by Ian Falconer
HarperCollins, 2022. ISBN: 9780008399863.
Two dogs, dachshunds Dignified, slightly imperious with aquiline noses and noble profiles. Indeed, they look like Roman emperors...
Everyone loved Augie and Perry when they were puppies and played with them all the time, but as the years passed and the children went to school and the adults were at work, the dogs were left to their own devices during the day. Most days they were fine but one day they found a way to get through the screen door and outside and soon they're diving into the swimming pool, digging an enormous hole in the lawn, and causing all kinds of chaos... But then they hear the family car pull up...
Many of our young readers will have got a pet for Christmas and while that's all well and good during this long summer break, just what will those pets get up to when school goes back? This is an hilarious story that will entertain young readers but plant seeds of doubt as to what might be really happening when they are not there.
Barbara Braxton
Mini & Milo: The teeny-tiny voice by Venita Dimos & Natashia Curtin
A story that leads readers to think about keeping themselves safe, defying the negative voice in their head which seeks to undermine and belittle. The book will find a willing audience as many children are more aware of their mental health, of needing to be positive and resilient, and this book is one which will encourage individual readers and a classroom or group to be positive.
Mini the elephant lives in a tiny house with a tiny bedroom and a tiny bed. Her best friend, Milo is practising to be a magician. Usually the voice in Mini’s head is supportive and encouraging, but now and again it goes the other way. Instead of saying ‘you can do it’ it says ‘everyone’s mean’ and ‘its not fair’.
The negative thoughts keep appearing, undermining everything she does. Try as she might, the voice is still there.
She tried various ways of getting the voice to keep quiet, all to no avail. But one day she has an idea. The teeny tiny voice in her head should follow her rules, just like Mini follows Mum’s rules. She and Milo write up a list of rules for the voice and tells it it must stick to them, reminding the voice of the rules whenever it strays. 'I’ve got this’ is the response that Mini uses whenever the voice begins its negative thoughts and together they follow the rules; kind words only, no whining, no telling me to do naughty stuff and no breaking the rules.
Children will love the ideas put forward in this humorous tale: that you can do something about the negative voice in your head, that you can be resilient and positive. The story encourages them to reject negative thoughts, to use positive and kind words only, to stop any whining and look to their friends for support.
Family dispute specialist, Venita Dimos has written a tale full of support for those living under a cloud, showing them a way to grapple that negative encumbrance and turn it into something positive.
Supported by very funny illustrations by Natashia Curtin, readers will love following Mini’s antics through the story as she tries to conquer the unkind thoughts in her head, succeeding when she plots a set of rules to guide the voice’s interruptions. I have never thought of an elephant being agile, but Curtin manages to show Mini in the most physical of activities, all of which seem most feasible. I loved following Mini through this story, seeing how she reacts to all that is imposed upon her until she takes stock and turns the voice around.
An amusing story of a fish trying to find its school has a hidden message of pollution and the despoiling of our seas as younger readers becoming increasingly aware of the damage that plastic is having on our oceans and those that call it home.
A little fish sees what he calls an odd fish. It is nothing like he has seen before and being helpful tries to help it find its way to its own school of fish. Together they travel through the seas, through the reef and out to the ocean, along the way seeing how plastic is destroying the environment. The seahorse has a straw attached to its tail, an octopus has its legs entangled in netting, a turtle is eating a plastic bag, and the number of plastic debris increases the further out from the shore they get. Finally they spy the place the odd fish belongs, with thousands of other plastic bottles and rubbish swirling around the ocean. Readers will see the huge mess of plastic that now inhabits our oceans, reefs, and shores. All children will be able to give stories of how they have found plastic rubbish as they walk along the beach and see the point of the book they have just read.
Stunning illustrations by James Jones underlines the impact of plastic upon our wildlife in the sea. Readers will love picking out the detail he includes in his pages, the different inhabitants, the increasing amount of rubbish, nets, the odd ship and so on. Information on the last two pages underline the story of the book, giving detail which will interest them further. A list of websites encourages further investigation, and I am sure they will notice the amount of litter on the beaches they visit, helping collect it to put it in a bin.
Themes Oceans, Seas, Fish, Pollution.
Fran Knight
Song in the city by Daniel Bernstrom. Illus. by Jenin Mohammed
This exuberant story full of the noises heard in a city will impel readers to stop and listen for themselves. Emmalene and her Grandmother walk through the city, the young blind girl listening to the cacophony of sounds around her. The yip yap of the dog, tap of her mobility stick, screech of brakes, sizzles from the street food stall. She runs for the bus telling her Grandmother about the pretty ditty she can hear. Grandma is unimpressed, telling her it's not a song but a commotion of sound coming from the traffic.
But Emmalene persists. Telling Grandma Jean of the drumming, humming, clap clap clapping, toot tooting sounds that she hears. But the singing and ringing are not music to Grandma’s ears. Emmmalene sits her down and she listens. She hears the crying cat, the buzzing of the mobile phone, the shrieking of a siren. Emmalene puts her hands over Grandma’s eyes and in the dark she hears the sounds the city makes beyond the wrecking and the sirens, above the peck pecking of the birds. She hears the clapping, the rollicky romping, bopping, tippety tapping that the city makes.
Emmalene is thrilled that Grandma Jean can hear what she hears, the two experience something together, a joyous reminder of the link between generations. This is a meditative work, encouraging people to take time and listen. Just sitting and breathing deeply will cause the other senses to come into play, hearing the sounds around you with more clarity. A wonderful exercise to do in the classroom.
Readers will love taking up the rhythm of the story, intrigued by the rhymes offered, and the array of onomatopoeic words which exude fun and excitement.
The bright illustrations present a disabled child in a positive light. She teaches her Grandmother to hear the things she can hear and impels readers to take more notice of what is around them. With her mobility stick and Grandma she is about to navigate the city she knows well. More about Jenin’s work can be found hereand more about Daniel and his aim to bring joy filled books to readers, can be found here.
Themes Africa, Village life, Families, Grandparents, Crops.
Fran Knight
You two, you two by Brooke Hill. Illus. by Elin Matilda Andersson
The charming tale of siblings doing everything together, will find a ready audience amongst children listening to the words. Told in rhyme, the children will love prediction the rhyming word, especially those that describe movement inviting them to wriggle and jump along with the two little people portrayed. Everything about the book invites readers to participate either in movement or listening to the rhyming words, or predicting the word, or saying the lines along with the reader.
And each page invites discussion as different animals are portrayed, offering a decision to be made about what animal is shown and what the children know about that animal.
The rhyming lines underscores the relationship between siblings, showing the bonds that tie them together reinforcing the links that exist between those born in the same family. They are together, side by side, peas in a pod, friends, a team.
They climb, fly through the air, play hide and seek, crash and boom until knees must be bandaged and a lap found to sit upon for comfort, get muddy shoes and sandy feet, and get stuck up a tree together. Activities abound throughout the book, done together, as a pair of little people.
Full of flair and fun, the story will be read eagerly by children, engaged with the movement and activities of the children in the tale, engrossed with the vibrant funny illustrations and engaging with their siblings in a variety of adventures.
This is a sturdily bound book suitable for reading at bedtime. Or any time!
A Q and A with author, Brooke Hill can be found here. While more can be found about the illustrator, Elin Andersson here.
The appealing and colourful cover of Can you Get Rainbows in Space? will attract many readers both young and old. The colour theme flows throughout the book beginning with the contents page set out with each chapter being one of the colours of the rainbow. The introduction discusses all aspects of colour including ‘What is colour?’ and ‘How do we see colour?’
The first chapter is all about the colour red and begins with some interesting facts such as red is the colour of good luck in China and was one of the first colours used in prehistoric art. This is then followed by questions such as ‘Why is blood red?’ and ‘Why is Mars know as the red planet?’ The chapter then goes on to explain such things as why flamingos are pink and why a hippo’s sweat is red. Each chapter follows a similar format with fascinating questions and facts surrounded by colourful images to engage all readers. The last chapter talks about everything rainbow-related: facts, how to make one, what do rainbows represent and the important final question ‘Can you get rainbows in space?’ This is followed by a detailed glossary and finally a thank you to the rainbow key workers who kept people safe during the covid pandemic.
An interesting and entertaining book that would be an excellent non-fiction resource for a classroom, school or public library.
Meet the Weather is a brightly coloured rhyming picture book that will entertain younger readers with its clever text and vibrant illustrations. Each aspect of the more common weather conditions is introduced to the reader as a young child and their pet travel on a hot air balloon through clouds, wind, thunder, lightning, tornado, fog, snow, sunshine, rain and finally a rainbow. The lyrical text is lots of fun and as a read-aloud text lends itself to role play and actions:
I’m the WIND, whooshing wildly! I’m the gushing and RUSHING of air. There are times when I’m soft as a feather- Feel me tickle and lift up your hair.
It’s great fun when I’m GUSTING and blowing. I can make the trees swish and fro So take a deep breath and come join me Are you ready… One two, three-BLOW!
Each of the weather conditions are presented in bold font and there are highlighted key words throughout. The full-page illustrations are busy and bright with fluorescent colours added in for extra emphasis.
This book is a great introduction to weather for early years students. A companion book to Meet the Planets and Meet the Oceans and an enjoyable book to be shared out aloud.
Sixteen-year-old Winnie Wednesday lives in Hemlock Falls, a town where an ancient order, the Luminaries, stalk and kill nightmares – monsters that roam the forest. Winnie’s family was ostracized from the society when her father was accused of being a traitor. Bullied and shunned, by friends and relatives alike, she longs to be a member of the elite group of hunters, knowing that would reinstate her family’s standing. The only way back is to succeed in the deadly hunter trials even though she has not had the rigorous training of other contestants. With the help of Jay Friday, her ex-best friend, she faces the trials and the horrific monsters in the forest.
The book is very easy to read and the action moves along at a fast pace. Winnie faces nightmares in the forest, many graphically drawn in full page illustrations with a description, and these add to the enjoyment of the book. She is a young woman who is very easy to relate to: she stoically faces unkind comments from her classmates and the reader empathises as she recalls the companionship of Jay and Erica, who had been her best friends prior to her father’s disgrace. And no one will believe her when she speaks of the Whisperer, an entity in the forest that even the monsters are afraid.
Romance lovers will enjoy the slow-burn romance between Winnie and Jay, while readers who like action, monsters and horror and short chapters will escape into The Luminaries. While waiting for the next instalment, readers may enjoy the monsters in The forest of hands and teeth by Carrie Ryan, Dread nation by Justina Ireland, Highway bodies by Alison Evans and The bone houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones.
Themes Monsters, Bullying, Coming of age, Fantasy.
This is an astounding story with real heart, ripe for Sci-fi film adaptation and full of issues for consideration for those who like their sci-fi stories to challenge their thinking! After invasion by aliens (who are never seen or described) the world is given only one solution for the survival of humanity – relocate to Antarctica in 30 days or face extinction. For individuals and governments this announcement creates a frantic scramble to find a way to Antarctica for as many people as possible. With some countries and individuals being deliberately forward-thinking, and others just acting randomly in grasping at ways and means of getting to the frozen continent, there are always going to be problems for future survival. The cold is an enemy almost larger than aliens. Once on the frozen wasteland survival strategies must be explored and new ideas for the future involve the ‘creation’ of genetically modified ‘Cold People’. The ordinary born community members also create modified ways of living that are both beautiful and profound. Seen through the stories of a few individuals, we see possibility for hope but also encounter the awfulness of a world gone wrong.
The mastery and the mystery of this story is that we never see the aliens, but their influence has been profound and strangely gracious in allowing some human survival. Bizarrely, humanity seems to be drawn to create their own ‘aliens’ through the genetic manipulation of the human genome and genetic interpolation from other species. How this collides with love, compassion and what we would define as ‘humanity’ is part of the power of this story. The story is told through the perspectives and history of a limited number of individuals – there is a traversing of time and place as their stories are patchworked together in the lead up to the moving and confronting conclusion. Each of these characters have stirring and unique histories and attitudes that readers connect to or puzzle over. This is a book to recommend highly for sci-fi lovers. It is not so much an alien invasion story, but a human survival story in the most awful of circumstances, with the vestiges of science being used to breed a future community with cold adapted features. There are huge leaps required over credibility hurdles, but none of these detract from the intense readability of this story.
Pearly and Pig’s second action packed adventure is into an Asian jungle looking for the lost city of Mu Savan. Before Pearly was born her parents and grandfather spent time in the village of Ban Noa searching for Mu Savan and made friends with King Alung Chu. Now the Woe family are trying again. After a long journey they travel along the Mekong River by longboat, only to find Ban Noa is no more. A huge band of monkeys nearly turn them back but luckily one little monkey takes them to the new site of Ban Noa. However, things are not right in the village. King Alung Chu is missing and his brother King Foom Chu blames the Woe’s for upsetting nature. Pig’s mother The Divine Sow is very ill and strange rumbling noises at night are scaring the villagers.
Luckily Pearly has a gift for languages, including talking to animals. This gives her a lot of useful information and helps the Woe family get to the bottom of what is going on. Despite her self-doubt (and there’s a lot!) she proves once again she is the best Adventurologist in the family.
There’s plenty of action, great characters and a whiff of Indiana Jones in this novel. Pig is an endearing character who any child would want as their friend. Pearly is a worrier but she remembers to refocus in stressful events and recalls the rules for young Adventurologists to guide her decisions. The evil doers are dispatched with in a suitably just fashion. The story’s underlying message is about being resourceful, smart and brave. It is also about adults allowing their children to take risks and trust them. This is a terrific positive story and will make a great read-aloud as a class novel for early primary years students. There is a lot of potential for creative learning spin offs from it. Readers who enjoy Miss Mary Kate’s Guide to Monsters series are certain to like this series about Pearly.
Fans of The Last hours series (Chain of Gold and Chain of iron will be thrilled to see the final in the series. James and Cordelia must save London from Belial who plans to take it over, as well as saving their marriage. Their friends Lucie, Matthew, Thomas and Christopher, all must face their innermost fears about love as well as their destinies as Shadowhunters.
The Collector’s first edition is a massive 677 pages, plus a short story starring Cordelia and Lucie and starts off directly after the cliff ending in Chain of iron, with Cordelia fleeing James and travelling to Paris with Matthew, hoping to find some peace after witnessing James’ relationship with Grace. It is not a stand-alone and readers need to read the three volumes in order. The collector’s edition has internal illustrations by Alexandra Curte, which add interest and understanding to the narrative.
While Chain of iron was very long, the action throughout kept the reader immersed and eager to finish it quickly. However the first two thirds of Chain of thorns moves slowly - although fans of romance will love it. It flicks from one, sometimes steamy, romance to the next, with James realising his love for Cordelia, Matthew struggling with alcohol and his feelings for Cordelia, Lucie and Jesse forming a relationship, Ari and Anna coming to grips with their feelings for each other, Thomas and Alastair starting to become open with each other, while Christopher brings out the best in Grace.
The action becomes more tense in the last third of the book and will be welcomed by fans, when Cordelia and James, ably supported by Matthew and Luce, face the demon Belial. Scenes of London being overtaken are horrific and the heroism of the other Shadowhunters as they battle for their very existence is very exciting. The epilogue brings to a close this series, although there are openings for more Shadowhunter adventures.
Themes Romance, Fantasy, Coming of age, Alcoholism, LGBTQI+.
Alex Evelyn is a Welsh journalist with a background in public relations. This delightful and fantastical adventure story is her first novel and follows Fern, a clever, kind and curious girl whom middle-grade readers will adore.
Fern has spent her first 10 years travelling the world with her botanist parents - living outdoors, climbing trees, studying Latin, collecting seeds and making friends with plants. Suddenly her parents decide she needs to stay put for a while and live a normal life with human friends, so she is sent to live with her endearingly quirky uncle in London.
Luckily Fern has a little plant she can talk to, which makes the transition easier while she tries to make her first friend and starts to explore her new surroundings. But in the background the latest news around London is very odd - there are massive plants appearing overnight and taking over the city. No-one knows what's going on. It's literally a growing mystery!
Then Fern's plant friend gets sick. Fern joins forces with the loner boy next door in a complicated effort to save it. For each of them this means learning to work together, being mindful of their differences and making the most of their individual strengths. They have to be brave, resourceful and rely on each other.
The characters in this story are written with warmth and humour, and the story is fast-paced and packed full of interesting turns. At it's heart, too, is the idea of finding your place in the world as well as finding a balance between humans and nature. And the 'plant' names of people and places woven throughout are a real highlight. From Fern herself to Blossom the taxi driver and more - trying to spot the next one is such fun!
The tale of Peter Rabbit will be familiar to all, and readers will recognise the cheeky little rabbit in his blue coat, not only from the book, but from the TV show and the lovely crockery mugs, plates and toys that are available. This edition of the classic story is in a board book format, just right for young children to turn over the pages and marvel at the gorgeous illustrations. The title page features Mrs Rabbit looking after a baby rabbit, tucked up in bed, a most caring expression on her face and sets the scene for the rest of the story. Then follows the escapades of naughty Peter who creeps into Mr McGregor’s garden looking to steal his vegetables.
The text is the original first written by Beatrix Potter. It reads aloud very well and her lovely illustrations will captivate her young audience.
This board book version is a keeper, perfect as a gift for young children. First printed in 1902, it is a must-have classic that has stood the test of time.
