Over the past year we have reviewed many of the titles that made the Notable List for Early Childhood Book of the Year….
Author: Admin
Over the past year we have reviewed many of the titles that made the Notable List for Younger Reader Book of the Year….
Over the past year we have reviewed many of the titles that made the Notable List for Older Reader Book of the Year….
MacIVER, Juliette (text) Stephanie Junovich (illus.) Bye! Bye! Bye! Scholastic (NZ), 2014 unpaged NZ$19.50 pbk ISBN 9781775432258 SCIS 1678924 This is a delightful poetic evocation of the love of a young girl for her pet animals. What happens to her pets when the family is about to head off for a holiday by the seaside is something that this young narrator puzzles about, worried that they will be well. Presumably the parents have made arrangements, but we are not told of this. Our young girl whines to Dad who is insistent that no pets can come, but for their sake,…
Reading Time Online has reviewed many of the 2015 shortlisted books over this past year. We have put them all together in this one post for your convenience. Book of the Year: Early Childhood Short List Pig the Pug by Aaron Blabey Scary Night by Lesley Gibbes & Stephen Michael King Go to Sleep, Jessie! by Libby Gleeson & Freya Blackwood A House of Her Own by Jenny Hughes & Jonathan Bentley Snail and Turtle are Friends by Stephen Michael King Noni the Pony goes to the Beach by Alison Lester Book of the Year: Younger Readers Short List Two…
LONERGAN, Dianne (text) Leo Herreygers (illus.) Mavis the Amazing Tugboat Mater Private Hospital Redland, 2013 unpaged $14.95 pbk ISBN 9780987571205 This delightful story is based on a real event that happened during the 2010/2011 Brisbane floods when ‘Thunder, lightning and roaring winds swirled and twisted down the coast’ in a turbulent tropical storm. On 11 January 2011 the Brisbane River was a raging torrent. The banks had flooded, boats had come loose from their moorings. All sorts of objects and debris were caught in the wild current. That’s when a 300 tonne concrete walkway managed to break free and a huge…
LLOYD, Miranda Fun at Boxy & T’s Farm Self Pub, 2014 unpaged $17.95 pbk ISBN 9780646928241 This independently produced book supports RSPCA South Australia and clearly shows the RSPCA logo. An idyllic story book farm, where humans and animals lead a story book life style, is depicted in a light-hearted, stylised way. Boxy, a farmer, and T are the main characters. Boxy who always chews a blade of grass, wears a brown hat, brown overalls, and yellow gum boots. T has a smiling face, huge bright red lips and fair hair. Her outfit includes red gum boots and vibrant pink…
LLEWELYN, Chris (text) Scott Tulloch (illus.) How does the Giraffe get to Work? Scholatic (NZ) 2014 unpaged NZ$19.50 pbk ISBN 9781775432463 SCIS 1678928 As you may well know, it is important to keep a work-life balance so that good health is maintained. But you may not know that animals at the zoo are working animals and so, they too have to go home and have some fun. And so the question arises, how do zoo animals get themselves to and from work? Zebras and antelopes cram on the bus whilst the emu and rhea jog to work; the grizzly bear…
LIAS, Aedan & Grandpa (text) Aedan Lias (illus.) The Horse Story ARTSmiles Here P/L, 2014 23pp $10.00 pbk ISBN 9780992390648 When Aedan confides in his Poppy that he is miserable because he finds reading difficult, Poppy shares with him a special story about resilience and perseverance. The Horse Story tells us about two very similar, yet very different horses. One horse, aptly named Give Up, thinks everything is too hard. He finds excuses to quit and doesn’t imagine he will ever be a winner. The other Horse with an optimistic outlook is named Try Again. Despite having never placed in…
JARMAN, Julia (text) Adrian Reynolds (illus.) Big Bouncy Bed Orchard, 2014 unpaged $24.99 ISBN 9781408305430 SCIS 1691362 Beds make great trampolines, especially Mum and Dad’s big double bed. When little Ben and Bella begin bouncing they could hardly have guessed the attraction of their activity and the fantastic chain of events that would follow. In rhyming couplets, with each page turning, a succession of unlikely animals pop in, asking to join the fun. Elephant’s ultimate entry sends the bed up into the sky and there they drift on into space, by the planets, until they eventually descend in feigned evening…