Author: Admin

Corinne Fenton (text), Andrew McLean (illus), Bob the Railway Dog,  Black Dog Books/Walker Books Australia,  1 August 2015,  32pp.,  $24.95 (hbk), ISBN 9781922179890 The story of Bob the dog bound for a life with rabbit hunters, but singled out by by Will Ferry to be his companion during the early days of rail in South Australia, is a tale to touch the heartstrings and engage with complete nostalgia for the beauty of the outback in times past. The outstanding illustrations could carry the story alone.  The muted palette of the outback ,the gritty interiors of the steam trains and on every page,…

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Isabelle Arsenault,  Alpha,  Walker Books Australia,  1 August 2015,  unpaged,  $24.95 (hbk),  ISBN 9781406361834 This beautiful picture book rebirth of the International Radiotelephony Spelling Alphabet is a simply stunning display of humour, understatement and vital information.  On so many levels it appeals to all ages for a myriad of different reasons.  A double page spread contains the word on the left hand page with a highlighted initial letter in upper case and a full page illustration of same on the right hand page. Alpha Bravo Charlie have expected illustrations but the joy for the adult browser are in the quirky and…

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Meredith Costain (text),  Danielle Mc Donald (illus),  Dreams Come True (Ella Diaries #4),  Scholastic Australia, 1 August 2015,  144pp.,  $12.99 (pbk).  ISBN: 9781760153045 The amazing and talented rock star Cassi Valentine is coming to town and Ella and her friends are over-the-top excited. Teachers explain that entering a local competition may also bring this idol to their very own school for a lunchtime concert… students must simply create a video about performing arts at their school. When the two best ideas are from Ella and her least favourite person at school, Peach Parker, trouble lies ahead. What are the teachers thinking?…

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Natalie Jane Prior (text), Cheryl Orsini (illus), The Fairy Dancers, Harper Collins, 1 October 2015, 48pp., $19.99 (hbk) ISBN 9780733333576 This delightful book combines two things most little girls love – fairies and ballet dancing. It follows three friends as they attend a regular weekend ballet class with a teacher they all adore. Little girls who already take ballet lessons will be able to relate to the girls in the story – Mia, Emma and Grace – who wear their hair in ballet buns, point their toes and practice skipping like fairies. Little girls who don’t take ballet will probably…

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Gillian Mears (text), Dinalie Dabarera (illus), The Cat with the Coloured Tail, Walker Books Australia, 1 September 2015, 77pp., $19.95 (hbk) ISBN 9781922077400 I wasn’t sure what to expect when I picked up this book, as the cover is quite dark – it didn’t look like a typical children’s book to me. (There’s a watchful grey cat with a deep pink tail, set against a grey-green sky, with a flock of birds flying by in a heart shape.) As it turns out, the cover neatly reflects the story inside. It’s about a man and his cat who travel around in their…

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Jacqueline Harvey,  Clementine Rose and the Birthday Emergency Clementine Rose #10),  Random House Australia,  1 July 2015,  160pp.,  $12.99 (pbk),  ISBN 9780857985163 Clementine Rose is the daughter of Lady Appleby of Penberthy House. Together they live with her Aunt Violet, Digby the butler and Lavender, her pet teacup pig. Far from being prim and proper though, she is a typical five-year old, eagerly awaiting and planning her birthday party. The School Sports Carnival is coming up too, and Clementine hopes to be chosen for a special race. Then Lavender gets sick and must go to the vet. On the day…

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Kate Beaton, The Princess and the Pony,  Walker Books, 1 August  2015,  32pp.,  $14.95 (pbk),  ISBN 9781406365382 In a kingdom of warriors, Princess Pinecone is the smallest of them all. She dreams of becoming the bravest, and winning the warrior tournament. All she needs is a big, strong horse for her birthday. But sometimes parents get things wrong and Pinecone ends up with a small, round pony which eats things it shouldn’t and farts a lot. Try as she might, she has no success training the pony. The day of the tournament arrives and a vicious battle ensues. Pinecone bravely…

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Bob Graham, How the Sun Got to Coco’s House, Walker Books, 1 August 2015, 32pp., $24.95 (hbk), ISBN 9781406359008 It’s night time at Coco’s house. As she sleeps the sun is rising in a faraway place seeking out polar bears and fishing boats, glinting in the eye of a whale, gliding over forests and towns, deserts and cities until it barges through Coco’s window and spends the day with her. Following on from his award winning Silver Buttons, Bob Graham explores the concept of time again, capturing moments as the sun rises across the world. Using personification and verb phrases,…

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Claire Saxby (text),  Janine Dawson (illus),  Christmas at Grandma’s Beach House,  The Five Mile Press,  September 2015,  24pp.,  $16.95,  ISBN: 9781760065140 I love a parody especially if it’s done well and true to all of Claire Saxby’s books, this one is done extremely well. Like The 12 days of Christmas, Christmas at Grandma’s Beach House counts down the days of Christmas by introducing us to a delightful narrator (a young girl) and everyone she knows, family and friends, as she describes their fun filled Christmas, beach holiday adventure. Each page is abuzz with action, smiles and warm Aussie days and as…

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Michael Byrne,  Lottery Boy, Walker Books,  1 July 2015,  279pp.,  $16.95 ISBN 978-1-4063-5829-2 Bully (proper name Bradley) lives on the streets following the death of his mother. He’s only 13 but has developed quite a lot of ‘street smarts’ in the year or so he’s been homeless. He has two precious possessions – one is his dog Jack (actually a female but no longer called Jacky) and the last birthday card his mother gave him before she died. In a roundabout way, it is the card that causes Bully’s life on the streets to fall apart. Inside the card he…

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