WILLIAMS, Ken (text) Karen Erasmus (illus.) Annabel’s Chewy-Gooey Birthday Cake JoJo Pub, 2014 unpaged $16.99 pbk ISBN 9780987607782 SCIS 1674015 Annabel is a demanding, adored and indulged child. Therefore, when she demands the biggest best cake for her birthday party, her mother is bound to find it. Little knowing what lies ahead, off they go to Chef Pierre’s Chocolate Emporium for a taste test. Chef Pierre is famous, talented, inventive, likes a challenge and is Oh! so French in his immaculate chef’s uniform, with his twirling moustache and his ever-more elaborate recipes. Annabel, however proves very hard to please, and…
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WILD, Margaret (text) Ben Wood (illus.) The Bush Book Club Omnibus, 2014 unpaged $24.99 ISBN 9781742990149 SCIS 1651523 Echidna, Koala, Kangaroo and Crocodile belong to the Bush Book Club but poor Bilby can’t stay still for long enough. However it is very lonely playing by himself while all the others are at the Book Club meeting so he creeps in to see what they are all doing. It is very boring – so boring that he falls asleep. When he wakes up, it is dark and everyone has gone home. All there is to do is …. READ! There have…
WHITE, Andy (text) Anita Lester (illus.) My Daddy’s Got Tattoos Vivid Pub, 2014 unpaged $19.95 pbk ISBN 9781925171112 One quarter of Australians over the age of 20 are ‘inked’ so a picture storybook about a much-tattooed family is timely. This is Andy White’s debut children’s book and tells of a small boy’s love for his father. ‘My daddy looks different to some other Daddies’ is its opening line and shows the boy against a grey sea of possible fathers. Turn the page and you enter the vibrant world of a young man who has embraced body art with gusto (he…
TRIBOUT, Rachel (text & illus.) Daniel Patman (text) The Monsters of Tasmania (The Adventures of Captain Blueberry Book 1), Captain Blueberry Press , 2014 unpaged $29.95 ISBN 9780992451004 This is the first book in a series of adventures of Captain Blueberry and his first mate Albert. Captain Blueberry is a French sailor that some people think is crazy because she believes in monsters. Travelling from France around the world Captain Blueberry sets out to prove the existence of monsters; some of the monsters disguise themselves as islands with villages built on their tails. Captain Blueberry continues her journey to the bottom…
TREWIN, Trudie (text) Donna Gynell (illus.) Calpepper’s Place Windy Hollow, 2014 unpaged $25.95 ISBN 9781922081322 SCIS 1675810 Calpepper the camel had ‘lived in the desert for all of his memories’ but dreams of places he’d rather be. So he embarks on an adventure to find a better place. With a spinifex mouse companion he joins a crazy line up of Aussie animals on a ‘bus bound for adventure’ and a road trip that takes him to the snow, the city, and the surf, until he discovers the best place for a camel. Active and lyrical language, repetitive phrases and a…
TIDBALL, Debra (text) Leigh Hedstrom (illus.) When I See Grandma Wombat, 2014 unpaged $19.95 ISBN 9781921632594 SCIS 1644979 Here is a unique picture book focusing on the significance Grandparents have in children’s lives and also gently touching on themes of death and loss. Grandma is ill and in an aged care home. The family visits regularly and the Granddaughter although sad to see her Grandma sick, is happy that she is able to do something for her and add a little something to her life, ‘I’m always sad to see her but I’m always glad that I can brighten her…
TEMPLE, Jol & Kate (text) Jon Foye (illus.) Mike I Don’t Like ABC, 2014 unpaged $19.99 ISBN 9780733333255 SCIS 1659406 This is another quirky book from the creators of Parrot Carrot and I Got This Hat. Mike is at that toddler stage that parents will relate to, where every suggestion is met with ‘I don’t like…’ The tongue-in-cheek humour is evident from the start with a message from Mike warning not to read the book. Opening with a conversation between Mike and the author the story continues with a long list of things Mike doesn’t like. The text is handwritten…
SAI ZUNDE, Romy (text) Cinzah Merkens (illus.) Release the Beast Beatnik Pub, 2014 unpaged NZ$24.99 ISBN 9780992264819 It is a popular idea that catharsis works: that to vent one’s anger is a powerful way to release pent-up emotion and, having done so, feel good about oneself. This is very much the premise of this powerfully illustrated picture book. The text describes how a young lad, when told to do things, gets angry (that’s where the beast comes into play) and he stomps his feet and roars his terrible roars. Narratively, this venting is expressed in powerful, imaginative images of cannibalising…
ROBAARD, Jedda The Little Fox who lost his Tail ISBN 9781743467701; The Little Mouse who lost her Squeak ISBN 9781743467695 Five Mile Press, 2014 unpaged $12.95 Fun, simple and cute, these two picture books are entertaining and interactive. Their lift-the-flap format and square nine and a half centimetre size make them accessible to very young children. Presented with thick, cardboard pages they are tactile and will withstand rough handling. One to four year olds will enjoy helping Little Fox find his tail and Little Mouse find her squeak. The concept is clever and funny as Little Fox mistakes the broom…
RAMSTEIN, Anne-Margot & Matthias Arégui Before After Walker, 2013 unpaged $27.95 ISBN 9781406357936 SCIS 1683395 Wordless, Before After is a unique book that provides an effective discussion-starter for children and their parents or teachers. It is not a book to be viewed in a hurry. The reader will require time and close attention to get into the mood of this chunky, hard-cover, pictures-only production. Flat, pop-art-type illustrations carry the intent of the illustrators to show the dichotomy of many before and after processes of a world in a continual state of flux. Seasons, weather events, building, art, harvest, knitting, nature,…