Meet The Illustrator: Shirley Shelby

Name: Shirley Shelby

Describe your illustration style in ten words or less.
Heartwarming, humorous, textured, bright, sweet, a little quirky and joyful.

What items are an essential part of your creative space?
My sketchbook, set of pencils, iPad, laptop, Wacom tablet and watercolor paints. I usually work digitally these days using Procreate and then sometimes take my work into Photoshop, but I also like to hand draw my illustrations from time to time as well.

Do you have a favourite artistic medium?
I think that would be Procreate on my iPad and Photoshop on my laptop since I work most of the time digitally, but I also love sketching too.

Name artists whose work inspires you.
When I was young, I was inspired by Shirley Hughes and Beatrix Potter.
Their illustrations are so amazing and detailed.

Which artistic period would you most like to visit and why?
Possibly to visit the Surrealism era, as I had been quite interested in that, especially Salvador Dali’s work, since studying art at school.

Who or what inspired you to become an illustrator?
I just always loved to draw, especially nature and animals, and was always encouraged to be creative. My passion for illustration and visual storytelling began when I was five years old, when I would spend hours illustrating my own stories. I loved coming up with new ideas. I have aspired to be a children’s book illustrator ever since then.

Can you share a photo of your creative work space or part of the area where you work most often? Talk us through it.
I have a table where I paint, but as I work digitally most of the time, it makes it much easier to work using my iPad.

What is your favourite part of the illustration process?
Coming up with new ideas, sketching them out and choosing the best one to develop. I also really like trying out different textures, adding patterns sometimes to my work too and seeing everything comes together.

What advice would you give to an aspiring illustrator?
Learn as much as you can. Look also at certain aspects which you think you need to work on more. For example, backgrounds, poses etc, and practice that until you get better at it. If you love it, keep at it and have fun. 

Shirley is a children’s book illustrator and designer. She loves illustrating nature, animals, creating inspiring lettering pieces and has also taken various courses in illustration and design.

For more information, please follow Shirley on her instagram.

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Review: Love from Giraffes Can't Dance

Reflecting the same joy that was contained in the picture book, Giraffes Can’t Dance, these two popular and talented creators have collaborated again in Love from Giraffes Can’t Dance.

Gerald the giraffe and his friends surface again in a board book full of love spread through poetry. The stunning images by Guy Parker-Rees reinforce the text, making it twinkle like spitting sparklers.

The rhyming verse reminds us that music can be found everywhere if your heart is open to love. In the trees, in the breeze, in the sounds of life moving about, the chirp of birds and crickets; of grasshoppers and the noises of the night. Music is in the stars. That music can make you want to dance.

Most of all, the best sound of music can be heard in the words, I love you!

Although this is a board book which is directed at children, it will probably be given to many others that are not children. Declarations of love do not belong to an age group. Love is the music of the soul, so it is there for all.

This beautiful book with animal characters, large and small, reflects the diversity within relationships. It holds the glory of life in bold statements of what makes it worthwhile. Love.

In these turbulent times that the world is experiencing, joy can be given and found in many forms. Even in a board book.

Title: Love from Giraffes Can't Dance
Author: Giles Andreae
Illustrator: Guy Parker-Rees
Publisher: Hachette, $14.99
Publication Date: 12 January 2021
Format: Board Book
ISBN: 9781408364833
For ages: 0 – 3+
Type: Board Book

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Review: Colin Cockroach Goes To Caloundra

10 Quirky Questions with author Sue Lawson

1. What's your hidden talent?
That’s a tricky one. I’m pretty open about everything, so not sure I have any secrets, or hidden talents. Actually, I LOVE cleaning out and organising cupboards, drawers, etc. Drives my family nuts as they can’t find anything, but I love it. And I love following organisers on Instagram.

2. Who is your favourite literary villain and why?
For sheer terror, IT from Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle In Time. Our Grade 4 teacher Mrs Phillip read it to us. While I couldn’t remember the name of the book, I have always remembered IT. Then as an adult I stumbled across A Wrinkle In Time and met IT again. That thing still disturbs me. As an adult, my favourite villain is Lady Macbeth. I love how she changes from a ruthless manipulating wife into a tortured soul.

3. You're hosting a literary dinner party, which five authors would you invite? (alive or dead)
Hmmmm. That’s a toughie. There are so many authors I admire. These are the first to spring to mind for all kinds of reasons: Tim Winton, Helen Garner, Maya Angelou, James Baldwin, John Irving. How is that for a mix? They’ve all written books I’ve loved and have stayed with me well after I turned the last page.

4. Which literary invention do you wish was real?
Hermoine Granger’s Time Changer. There’s so many places and eras I’d love to visit.

5. What are five words that describe your writing process?
Messy – I throw ideas all over the place and wrangle them into a story.
Absorbing – the rest of the world disappears when I’m in the flow.
Distracted – When I start a new project I’m easily distracted, especially when researching.
Magical – there’s something magical and fantastical about writing.
Supported – I have the most incredible support crew - family, friends and my publisher.

6. Which are the five words you would like to be remembered by as a writer?
That’s a really tough one, as none of us can know how we will be remembered. I guess I hope my words will have an impact in some small way.

7. Picture your favourite writing space. What are five objects you would find there?
At the moment, loads of technology as I have updated my computer system. I’d have my NUC computer and backup system (no more manual back-ups. Phew!), my Sonos (a speaker that plays my music via wifi.), a router, a scented candle – my current favourite is vanilla. And pens and notebooks. I know that’s more than five, so let’s say stationery. Oh, and if we’re having perfect writing spaces, an uninterrupted view of the ocean.

8. Grab the nearest book, open it to page 22 and look for the second word in the first sentence. Now, write a line that starts with that word. (Please include the name of the book!)
Were you hoping for a more interesting word than were?
(I had Davina Bell’s The End of the World Is Bigger than Love on my desk as I am editing my interview with her for Portable Magic. The book is completely fantastic.)

9. If you could ask one author one question, what would the question be and who would you ask?
I would ask George R R Martin if he will ever finish the final books in the Songs of Fire and Ice (Game of Thrones) series. I am desperate!

10. Which would you rather do: 'Never write another story or never read another book'?
The first. I’d rather give up writing than give up reading. Reading is my escape, delight, release and inspiration. 

Sue Lawson writes fiction and non fiction books for children and young adults. Her books have won and been shortlisted for numerous awards, including the Family Therapists Award, the Prime Minister’s Literary Award and the Children’s Book Council of Australia Awards. Her latest young adult novel Freedom Ride was shortlisted for the Children’s Book Council Book of the Year Awards, the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards, the Western Australian Premier’s Book Awards and longlisted for the Davitt Awards. For more information, see www.suelawson.com.au.

 

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Review: Be An Artist Every Day

It's early in a new year, and if you're looking for something to do, something to encourage yourself or your children to explore creativity and imagination, then look no further.

Be An Artist Every Day has a whole year's worth of activities to keep you occupied, and help develop the artist within.

It's appealing right from the front cover and endpapers. 

An introduction reminds you that being an artist is about having fun, and that there is no right or wrong in creating art.

There are 365 activities in this compact paperback activity book. They're created by Susan Schwake who is an artist and art educator and Charlotte Farmer who is an illustrator.

Drawing and collage. Patterns and doodles. Word art. Faces. Nature. Food. Abstract art. It's all here, and lots more.

Some of the activities are expected. Others, not so much. There's one that asks you to imagine 'What if cats went to school?' and then draw them!

You'll design your own car on one page, and on another design a book cover. Imagine and illustrate a new planet.

Try drawing different textures, or connecting dots to create a picture. 

Other activities might ask you to write something and then decorate it, or make a tiny model of a human.

Not all the activities stay just within the bounds of the book (one will ask you to go outside and find a leaf to draw), but all will be recorded in it.

By the time you finish all 365 of the art activities, you will have a colourful and creative journal.

Although the activities are all numbered, and you can start from one and work your way through in order, you could also dip in and out of them freely as you feel like it.

Be An Artist Every Day will inspire and encourage artists of varied ages and experiences. It's a journey you can take without leaving home, and one the whole family could enjoy together.

Title: Be An Artist Every Day
Author: Susan Schwake
Illustrator: Charlotte Farmer
Publisher: Ivy Kids, $ 19.99
Publication Date: 2020
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781782408321
For ages: 8+
Type: Activity Book

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Review: A Clock of Stars: The Shadow Moth

A scintillating debut novel by Francesca Gibbons, A Clock of Stars: The Shadow Moth, is the first in a middle grade trilogy, that launches an amazing fantasy adventure.

A stunning cast of characters and settings have been created. Incredible reveals add tension and mystery to a fast-paced, multi-layered storyline.

Chris Riddell’s amazing illustrations fuel the imagination, leaving us longing to know what happens next.  Sisters Imogen and Marie have wild imaginations. They don’t like each other, or their mother’s boyfriends. 

When the girls escape from a boring afternoon with Grandma into the teahouse gardens, they find a door in a giant tree trunk and enter the magical Kingdom of Yaroslav.

Confronted by houses with skulls and bones of skret built into their framework, the girls, filled with fear, are unable to find their way back.

They are taken in by the lonely future king, twelve year old Prince Miro, whose uncle King Drakomor rules in his place. 

But Drakomor is as mysterious as the Kingdom.

The girls don't know what will happen from one moment to the next. Nor does the reader. They meet Andel, the one-eyed clockmaker, creator of the powerful clock of stars, which is tuned to the rhythm of the stars, allowing its motions to foretell the happenings in Yaroslav. The clock plays a pivotal role in the story.

The children become pawns in a continuing game of greed, treachery, lies, murder and deceit within this once harmonious place. Although Miro’s loyalty to his uncle keeps him ignorant of what he really is, the truth remains ugly.

Secret treasures and stones are part of Drakomor’s hoard hidden throughout his castle chambers. The most valuable of these is the Sertze Hora, the heart of the Klenot Mountain which he’d stolen long ago, and whose absence has caused the slow death of the forests and the skret that escaped and now live there. It is this theft that caused the schism which darkens the Kingdom.

Personal growth occurs in the girls as they discover a strength and resilience which otherwise they would never have known on the other side of the door. They are also transformed by the quest they undertake up the fierce mountain to the Maudree Kral, leader of the skret, and the only one who can guide them to the door of return.

But there is an extraordinary bargaining price for this information. Can it be paid?

Title: A Clock of Stars
Author: Francesca Gibbons
Illustrator: Chris Riddell
Publisher: Harper Collins, $ 29.99
Publication Date: 7 October 2020
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9780008355036
For ages: 8+
Type: Middle Grade Fiction

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Review: Be More Vegan: The Young Person's Guide to A Plant-based Lifestyle

Giveaway: Picture Book Magic Pack: There Is No Magic In This Book and How To Make A Bird

Do you love magic? Have you ever wanted to fly? Perhaps a special magical ability is all that's required. The magic of Christmas and the joy of creativity live on in these two marvellous new picture books. There Is No Magic In This Book, by Michelle Macwhirter and Sophie Beer is a vibrant interactive story, readers are told by the insistent Bookkeeper that there’s no magic to be found in its pages, but eagle-eyed readers can discover enchanted surprises on every spread. Perfect for fans of interactive classics like Do Not Open this Book, The Book with No Pictures and Press Here, this story encourages young readers to look for magic in even the most ordinary places.

From award-winning author Meg McKinlay and celebrated artist Matt Ottley comes a moving and visually stunning picture book that celebrates the transformative power of the creative process from inception through recognition to celebration and releasing into the world. How to Make a Bird shows how small things, combined with a little imagination and a steady heart, can transform into works of magic.

Thanks to the magical people of Walker Books Australia, we have a copy of each of these glorious books to giveaway.

For the chance to win this doublebook prize, in 25 words or less, tell us what would you most like the magical ability to create? 

Email your answer along with your name and postal address to dimity. The response we like best will win a copy of this amazing new release. Competition is open to anyone, worldwide, so long as they have an Australian postal address for delivery of the books. Please note, we cannot deliver to PO Boxes. Entries without a name and street address will be ineligible. Winners will be announced right here on our website on  18 January 2021.

Competition runs from 5.00 am 9 January 2021 to 5 pm 16 January 2021. Adults can enter for those aged 17 and under. This is a game of skill, not chance. The judge’s decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.

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Review: Counting Creatures

From the creators of Animalphabet, comes a similar, beautifully designed counting book. Beginning from the exquisite cover, Counting Creatures is interactive, educational and a feast for the eye.

Award-winning illustrator Sharon King-Chai has magnificently translated Julia Donaldson’s text. Together they have created a book of extraordinary beauty that facilitates learning.

Cut-out pages, flaps and fold outs are used to hide and introduce a variety of animal families.

 

 

Creatures of the day and night, loud and quiet ones, all wait to be discovered and counted.

Clusters of gorgeous baby animals are presented with their collective name in rhyming verse, alliteration and assonance, and unique artwork.

Foxes, frolicking, frisking, bushy tales whisking. Very sound-effective, the language and the repetitive sounds demand they be read aloud for full appreciation.

Stunning colours play a major part in making even the shadows of night seem exotic and breathtaking. Leaves appear alive and crispy in their autumn shades. Butterfly wings cover baby caterpillars. Cut-out forests reveal hidden baby poults.

Language and learning become a slideshow of beauty and detail.

There is so much in this book to love. It is a collector’s dream and will fit well with other standout picture books that children, and adults love to call their own.

Title: Counting Creatures
Author: Julia Donaldson
Illustrator: Sharon King-Chai
Publisher: Pan Macmillan, $29.99
Publication Date: 13 October 2020
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781529040517
For ages: 4+
Type: Picture Book

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Review: The Reckless Afterlife of Harriet Stoker

Review: An Amazing Australian Road Trip

The family – two kids, their parents and aunt, set off on a trip around Australia, with a huge birthday cake precariously perched on the roof (as you do).

They’re on a quest to find the perfect picnic spot to celebrate Auntie’s sixtieth birthday.

This rhyming picture book is Jackie Hosking's love letter both to Australia, and to the Australian tradition of the mega road trip.

In this story, nobody whines about the great distances, numb bottoms or the weather; it’s a tribute to the amazing places to see and the wonderful things to do.

Along the way, the family stop and take in the sights that make Australia a truly fascinating place to see. From Uluru to Ningaloo, and Sydney Harbour to Port Arthur, the family have an absolute ball. Notes are included on each page so that whoever is reading the book aloud can respond to the inevitable questions that will arise from the text. Many of these notes were also respectful to the First Nations people whose lands are depicted in the scenes, and I commend the author for that inclusion.

Lesley Vamos’s glorious illustrations include lots of hilarious detail that depicts the family’s wonderful misadventures at each of the sites they stopped at ...I particularly liked the penguins abducting the aunty in Tasmania.

Hosking is is the author of both non fiction and rhyming picture books, such as The Croc and the Platypus.

My only quibble would be that they maybe need to have another look at where they placed Coober Pedy on the map - -poetic licence, maybe?

Title: An Amazing Australian Road Trip
Author: Jackie Hosking
Illustrator: Lesley Vamos
Publisher: Walker, $24.99
Publication Date: 6 January, 2021
Format: Hardback
ISBN: 9781760650766
For ages: 4+
Type: Picture Book

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Review: There's Only One Friend Like You

A celebration of friendship, There’s Only One Friend Like You explores all the ways friends care for each other, through thick and thin, through good and bad.

Lots of friends or just a few, friends for a short time or friends forever, our friends are there to love and cherish when we need them most. 

Written in delightful rhyme, with some lovely surprise pages turned on the side, this is a beautiful picture book to read with loved ones and classrooms. 

Jess Racklyeft’s illustrations are blooming with love, with vibrant colours, soft water colour splashes and lots of glorious details to spot (like the peacock with the fabulous pair of red boots!). 

This is one of those amazing books that works for lots of different ages. Read a beautifully flowing bedtime rhyme for the little ones, have fun spotting funky details with toddlers and learn about feeling, emotions, empathy and friendship with your classrooms. 

Beautiful to look at and beautiful to read, There’s Only One Friend Like You is a picture book stunner.

Title: There's Only One Friend Like You
Author/Illustrator: Jess Racklyeft
Publisher: Affirm Press, $19.99  
Publication Date: 24 November 2020
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781922400390
For ages: 3 - 6 
Type: Picture Book

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Review: Monty's Island #3: Elvis Eager and the Golden Egg

A storm has swept debris onto the shore on Monty’s Island. Whatever is reusable is collected and loaded onto Monty’s sled for  reuse. The extraordinary find of a golden egg brings with it more than just curiosity.

The egg hatches to reveal a strange and also golden creature that eats the shell and immediately grows bigger with every mouthful.

A stranger arrives, his canoe having been washed up by the storm. Claiming to be an explorer, Elvis Eager is accepted as that by Monty and his friends, Tawny the lion, Sir Wise the owl, Bunchy the elephant, and Clink the one-legged pirate parrot.

Swooping winged creatures appear in the sky and threaten the group. Their shelter beneath the canoe helps them reach Marigold’s café. Elvis recognises them as Giant Red Winged Oragoths.

What are these creatures and why are they on the island? The book that holds these answers meets a tragic end. Another stranger and storm victim, Ranger Katz from the Rare Beasts Division, turns up.

Things lost are found. Questions are answered and the mystery of the golden egg needs to be solved. 

Can the group escape the wrath of the Oragoths? Monty comes up with a brilliant idea and the friends band together to make it work. But will it?

This is the third book in this adventure series by Emily Rodda for younger readers. With four animal characters personified, it makes for a terrific read as they have abilities that the human characters lack. This spices up the plot and adds interest and excitement for the reader.

Not having read the previous two books, it was easy to read this as a stand alone book, for the characters were depicted and named at the beginning, creating recognition for the reader.

Fantastic illustrations by Lucinda Gifford reinforce the text beautifully in a perfect collaboration between two highly talented artists.

Title: Monty's Island #3: Elvis Eager and the Golden Egg
Author: Emily Rodda
Illustrator: Lucinda Gifford
Publisher: Allen & Unwin, $ 14.99
Publication Date: 5 January 2021
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781760876999
For ages: 6 – 8
Type: Junior Fiction

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12 Curly Questions with author Helen Castles

1. Tell us something hardly anyone knows about you.
I always wanted to be an actress. I'm convinced if I had followed that path I'd have an Academy Award by now!

2. What is your nickname?
When I was a child my family called me 'Bub' because I'm the youngest of seven children but thankfully that petered out when I entered adulthood.

3. What is your greatest fear?
Inadvertently stepping on a snake. Actually, having a snake within a one kilometre radius is enough to terrify me.

4. Describe your writing style in 10 words.
My editor calls it quirky yet sophisticated and I agree.

5. Tell us five positive words that describe you as a writer.
Dedicated, humourous, colourful, driven and responsible.

6. What book character would you be, and why?
Matilda from Roald Dahl's Matilda. She was a resourceful and intelligent girl who found her own way to a happy ending.

7. If you could time travel, what year would you go to and why?
I'd go back to 1989 when I was a 17-year-old living in the USA. It was kind of like my last hurrah as a carefree teen. A year later I was at university and had to be all 'adulty'.

8. What would your 10-year-old self say to you now?
I can't believe you have a mortgage. We were supposed to be rich by now!

9. Who is your greatest influence?
My father passed away when I was nine, and everything I do as a writer, I hope would make him proud. He loved books and would be thrilled to know his daughter is a writer.

10. What/who made you start writing?
I had some wonderful teachers as a child who always encouraged my love of writing, but I was influenced to make storytelling my living by the works of screenwriter John Hughes. I wrote screenplays for many years before switching over to children's fiction.

11. What is your favourite word and why?
Actually. I love the way it sounds, I love the way it looks and I love how it can be used. I'm a self-confessed 'word nerd'. One of my favourite pastimes as a child was reading the dictionary and learning new words.

12. If you could only read one book for the rest of your life, what would it be?
My favourite childhood book, The Wind in the Willows. There's something really comforting about that book.

Helen Castles lives in southern New South Wales and is a newspaper journalist and children's author. Her loves include coffee, chocolate, cuddling puppies and holidaying near the ocean. When she's not chasing up a real-life news story, she's writing about the adventures of feisty detective editor, Scoop McLaren. For more information, see www.newfrontier.com.au.

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Aussie STEM Stars: Fiona Wood, Inventor of Spray-On Skin.

This is a well-written piece of non-fiction that is as compelling a read as any fiction.

It captures the reader from the start, as Fiona Wood's strong personality and humor immediately burst from the page. 

Fiona Wood is a beautiful example of the power of sticking to your dreams and never taking ‘no’ for an answer, despite the odds against you.

Born into a poor mining family in a village in Yorkshire, where the opportunity for further education for girls was very limited, Fiona’s family encouraged all of their children to work as hard as they could and take advantage of any chance to better themselves.

In fact, a government decision in the early 60s to change the catchments for schools in their local area resulted in Fiona and her sister having no school to provide them with an education beyond Year 10. 

When their mother wrote to the government to point out the unfairness of this, a bureaucrat wrote back to say that he did not believe that these girls were university material.

Disgusting!

But the sisters were very fortunate! Their mother got a job at a local private school and the girls could therefore enroll at heavily discounted prices. It makes me sad to think of all the other village girls who would have missed out on completing their high school education.

Once there, Fiona worked hard and played hard. She excelled both academically and on the sports ground. Her initial dream was to become an Olympic sprinter. And although she worked very hard at running she did not achieve that particular ambition.

Which is just as well! The world’s burns victims are probably grateful for this. Not only did Fiona end up going to university, she was accepted into a prestigious medical college where, in her usual way, she threw herself into her studies, determined to be the very best she could be.

On the way she fell in love with a fellow doctor and they migrated to Australia. Despite being told that women with families could not be surgeons, Fiona proved them wrong and not only worked as a surgeon, she developed a passion for helping burns victims and led the field in breakthrough research. 

Her compassion for burns victims combined with her never-give-up mentality resulted in her making huge advances in the area of skin grafting. She was determined to reduce the time required to grow usable skin from the patient’s own cells, until she reduced the time from months to a few days. Her innovations led to the invention of spray-on skin. This saved hundreds of lives, including those of the Bali bombing victims.

Overall, a compelling and fascinating read.

Teachers’ notes are available.

Title: Aussie STEM Stars: Fiona Wood
Author: Cristy Burne
Publisher: Wild Dingo Press, $14.95
Publication Date: October, 2020
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781925893281
For ages: 8-12
Type: Junior Non-Fiction

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Review: Rowley Jefferson's Awesome Friendly Adventure

Greg Heffley of Diary of a Wimpy Kid fame has a best friend called Rowley Jefferson. 

Rowely is imaginative and creative, and he’s just decided to write his own book about a character named Roland and his best friend Greg the Barbarian.

Rowley just wants to write the story he wants to write, but much to his annoyance, his best friend Greg is determined to help. 

And Greg has some very specific ideas about what makes a good story.

This is a brilliantly fun book for all fans of the Wimpy Kid series, plus all fans of fun and entertaining stories.

The book is written in an ongoing pattern, with a chapter of Roland and Greg’s adventure (as written by Rowley) and then a debrief chapter where Greg tells Rowley all the things he did wrong and all the things he needs to fix in the next chapter.

The result is a hilarious peek into friendship and the inner working of what does and doesn’t make a story work.

It’s great fun and filled with hilariousness all the way through.

In true Jeff Kinney (the actual author/illustrator) style, there are loads of illustrations throughout, making it an easy read for junior readers. A new series for wimpy kid fans to sink their teeth into, and others to discover, I highly recommend this one for all fans of fun.

Title: Rowley Jefferson's Awesome Friendly Adventure
Author/Illustrator: Jeff Kinney
Publisher: Puffin, $14.99  
Publication Date: 4 August 2020
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781760897888
For ages: 7 - 12
Type: Junior Fiction

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Review: October, October

Review: Poems to Save the World With

In 2018, Chris Riddell chose and illustrated a collection of 46 poems. Poems to Live Your Life By came in eight sections as diverse as possible. 

In late 2019, Riddell gifted us, Poems to Fall in Love With, chosen classic and modern favourites which celebrate love in all its forms, decorating the pages with artistic expression.

Poems to Save the World With, presented in six sections, brings poems on advice, hope, happiness, compassion, acceptance and reflection in a time when all these things in life are so important.

The contents of this third collection, like the others, are as different as the days of the week and as powerful as a full blown storm. Poems of reassurance that people are fine the way they are, random acts of kindness, and an encouraging word that may save a person’s life, will move and change you.

Standouts are The Mushroom Hunters and What You Need to be Warm by Neil Gaiman, A Word of Advice by Libby Russell, Kindness by Nikita Gill. (I would gladly list the remainder of all the collection here, but won’t.)

The poetry is taken from: Emily Dickinson, William Blake, The Ecclesiastics, William Wordsworth, Robert Browning, Rudyard Kipling and other well-known and not so well known poets.

True to the times, the collection ends with poems about Lockdown.

Riddell’s illustrations are wisps of ink on the page. Fine-lined with a feather-touch, they appear to have landed on the paper as lightly as a floating flake. Simply perfect!

This book is influential. It will send you to your nearest book supplier to buy his other titles. You have been warned!

Title: Poems to Save the World With
Author/Illustrator: Chris Riddell
Publisher: Pan Macmillan, $ 26.99
Publication Date: 17 September 2020
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781529040111
For ages: 12+
Type: Poetry










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Guest Post: Sherry Shahan on The Challenges and Revelations of Writing a (Teen) Novel in Verse

Review: The Drop Bear

Are you a drop bear denier?

Do you question the existence of these rarely seen, yet well-known bushland creatures?

Well, if that's so, then this book is a must. 

Chris Edser presents compelling evidence of the presence of a large, aggressive (yet curiously shy) tree-top dwelling, sleepy, kind-of-but-not-quite koala-like creature that's easy to miss if you gaze up at the canopy of a eucalyptus forest.

Easily ignored, the casual bushwalker could stroll by a drop bear's tree and be none the wiser.

Unless they drop rubbish in its niche, of course. This book serves a fair warning to those who befoul our native bushland. Beware! Silently and without warning, the drop bear will retaliate by doing what it knows best. 

And it's at least ten times heavier than the average koala. 

Chris Edser presents a strong argument in favour for each of us to do our best to keep our native bushland pristine. Illustrated with a muted palette, Edser portrays a quiet version of the Australian bush, which underscores the message of it being a sacred place for our fauna, a delicate place where humans are almost tolerated. A world where humans need to be mindful of the myriad consequences of a careless action. A place that needs a protector.

Embedded in these images are gorgeous pictures of a variety of indigenous creatures for the reader to search for and to find.

Title: The Drop Bear
Author: Chris Edser
Illustrator: Chris Edser
Publisher: Five Mile, $24.99  
Publication Date: November 2020
Format: Hardback
ISBN: 9781922385314
For ages: 3+
Type: Picture Book

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Review: Pie in the Sky

Jingwen and Yanghao his nine-year-old brother, arrive in Australia with absolutely no knowledge of English. They start school right away. Their ever optimistic Mama who is familiar with the language, reassures them that they will learn quickly.

In his mind, Jingwen sees the Aussie kids as Martians; their speech just as alien. This keeps him from making friends. (He blames his mother for not getting a tutor to prepare him). 

At any other time, with more focus and less preoccupation, he might have managed to pick up basic English.

But, he is still grieving at the loss of his father just before their departure, and all the plans they’d mapped out together for their bakery, Pie in the Sky.

What tortures Jingwen the most is their last heated exchange.

He believes that if he can bake his way through his father’s cake recipes, he will honour him, and his harsh words will be forgiven.

How can this be done with Mama’s cardinal rule of no using the oven while she is away?

Having to mind the pesky Yanghao while Mama works, Jingwen inculcates him into his scheme. Using pocket money to purchase the ingredients, Jingwen begins to bake his way to forgiveness.

Remy Lai starts the book by taking the mickey out of many views and habits her characters have. This creates a light-hearted tone as it moves into a more serious but always humorous one.

A mixture of graphic novel and illustrated middle grade novel, the images add to the hilarity of many situations that the brothers get into through the quest they’ve set themselves.

Well-written and highly entertaining throughout, it follows Fly On the Wall, also full of jokes and funny stuff that will keep a smile on the reader’s face.

Title: Pie in the Sky
Author/Illustrator: Remy Lai
Publisher: Walker Books, $ 19.99
Publication Date: 2 September 2020
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781760653156
For ages: 9+
Type: Middle Grade Fiction

 

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Review: We Are All Kind

This is the sort of book that invites a snuggle-up time between  a caregiver and a child to share and enjoy together.

This gentle, rhyming story explores the ways in which we can all show kindliness. 

It celebrates the simple, everyday acts of kindness that require very little effort, but give so much when it is needed.

A smile, a laugh, an invitation to include, offering a helping hand are all examples of very simple yet so powerful acts.

The latest title by the prolific P. Crumble, who has published thirteen other titles, including  The Cat Wants Custard and Me and Moo.

Jonathan Bentley's illustrations complement the text beautifully, demonstrating how easy it can be to make anther person feel better, and showing that small deeds are the most powerful.

Gentle, sweet and warm, this is one for bedtime or for a preschool teacher to settle a rowdy class with.

Title: We Are All Kind
Author: P. Crumble
Illustrator: Jonathon Bentley
Publisher: Omnibus, $19.99
Publication Date: November, 2020
Format: Hardback
ISBN: 9781760972363
For ages: 4 years +
Type: Picture Book

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Review: We Are Wolves

It is the heart of winter, 1945. Fighting for Hitler, Eric Wolf is now missing in action. The remaining Wolf family – two grandparents, Mama, Liesl, Otto and baby Mia, join the thousands leaving East Prussia to escape the invading Russian army. 

They go forth, wagons loaded with belongings and hope, to reach ships that are moving people across the Baltic Sea.

The grandparents collapse as a result of freezing temperatures. They join the trail of lifeless shadows and scattered possessions, the price paid for the long journey to freedom.

When a bomb is dropped onto the stream of travellers towards the end of their quest, the frozen lagoon swallows the Wolf’s horse and wagon. Mama’s cry to run is all the children take with them as they escape into the forest to become part of the German Wolfskinder, the wolf children, victims of war.

They undertake a seemingly impossible trek across country in search of a home without their mother, surviving on whatever edible the forest contains and stealing or begging from farms – abandoned and occupied. Danger lies everywhere. Liesl does her best to protect the younger children. But hunger and the elements leave their mark on them all, including others fleeing, whom they encounter along the way.

There is a short respite from deprivation when two Russian soldiers show compassion and offer the children temporary protection from the savagery that reigns within the Red Army against all Germans, children included.

Alone again, they learn that in the bordering Lithuania, food is plentiful. When they find shelter there with a childless couple, to survive, they must change their names and replace their mother tongue to become Lithuanian in all aspects.

Fictionalised, the novel is based on true stories about what become of the German children who were left orphaned and homeless after the invasion of Germany by Russia.

We Are Wolves is a poignant, at times disturbing novel that tears at the heart. It addresses the hardships many children experienced during war time. The absolute determination and resourcefulness in order to survive is strongly portrayed, along with the compassion and kindness of strangers offered to the Wolfskinder simply because they were children.

Title: We Are Wolves
Author: Katrina Nannestad
Publisher: Harper Collins, $ 19.99
Publication Date: 29 October 2020
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9780733340888
For ages: 10+
Type: Middle Grade Fiction

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Review: Turtle Boy

Review: Toffle Towers: Order in the Court

Chegwin Toffle is the manager of the Toffle Towers hotel. 

It’s not a normal hotel, unless you call being able to check in upside down in magnetic boots normal… or Lolly Rooms are standard in hotels you’ve been to… or gravity-free restaurants are old hat in your opinion.

I guess the other un-normal thing is that Chegwin is a kid, but that doesn’t make him an unskilled, untrained, unknowing manager. 

Except… sometimes Chegwin makes mistakes (he is still learning of course!), and when his arch nemesis Brontessa Braxton tricks him into signing a contract, his mistake could lead to losing the hotel.

But that’s not the only challenge Chegwin is facing in book three of this awesome series. The hotel has also been snowed in, there is a thief on the lose, a mystery guest no one can find and the hotel roof is in danger of caving in.

All in a days work for a hotel manager, but, seriously, how is Chegwin going to solve ALL these problems?

Toffle Towers: Order in the Court is a brilliantly funny and entertaining junior read for kids. It’s for fans of zany, fans of silly and fans of fun. Filled with mysteries galore, humour and a giant cast of brilliant characters, it’s a fast-paced read that keeps you guessing and totally engrossed until the very end. 

Foley’s brilliant illustrations are peppered throughout the book, in all the right places. And Harris delivers some really cool storytelling techniques throughout, including letters, Chegwin’s inner monologue thinkings, text message conversations, letter exchanges and mini comic strips. These things add so much fun to the story and the whole atmosphere of the Toffle Towers world.

Buy this book (and series) for all the kids in your life! I thoroughly enjoyed reading it, and if you know kids who love mystery, humour, fun and entertainment, they are going to love it too.

Title: Toffle Towers: Order in the Court
Author: Tim Harris
Illustrator: James Foley
Publisher: Puffin, $14.99  
Publication Date: 4 August 2020
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780143795445
For ages: 7+
Type: Junior Fiction, Middle Grade

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Junior Review: When This Bell Rings

Review: Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Deep End

Greg Heffley and his family are off on a road trip. They’ve escaped Gramma’s basement and they’ve got Uncle Gary’s old camper. They’re off, and nothing is going to get in their way of having a jolly good holiday.

Except, well… everything goes wrong.

The holiday parks are full, every other piece of wilderness seems to be owned by someone who doesn’t want them trespassing, and when they finally find somewhere to stay, it isn’t exactly a picture perfect place. 

Everything goes wrong. And I mean EVERYTHING! Can the Heffley’s holiday be salvaged? Will they even make it out of there alive?

If you’re looking for a fun, funny and easy read, the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series is what you’re looking for!

Written as journal entries, The Deep End (and the rest of the Wimpy Kid series) takes you deep inside Greg’s head, experiencing his world through his inner most thoughts. 

He isn’t shy about telling his journal (and you) what he thinks, and the situations he gets himself (and his family) into as a result of his straight forward attitude are so entertaining.

With a generous amount of illustrations on every page, these books are great for junior readers starting to read independently. The illustration to words ratio is pretty much even, and this is perfect for kids taking on new reading adventures for themselves.  

With a long line of books before it (each which can be read as a standalone), the series is also a great one to get kids hooked on. They’ll have read eight, nine, ten Wimpy Kid books before they even realise it!

Title: Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Deep End
Author: Jeff Kinney
Publisher: Puffin, $14.99  
Publication Date: 27 October 2020
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780143796084
For ages: 7 - 12
Type: Junior Fiction

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Review: The Forest of Moon and Sword

Guest Post: Donna Paul: A Montessori Teacher's Approach to Picture Books in the Classroom

Meet The Illustrator: Ana Duna

Name: Ana Duna

Describe your illustration style in ten words or less.
Fun, playful and humorous.

What items are an essential part of your creative space?
I need paper and pencil (I start every project with these two lovely things). I also use my graphic tablet and lately I have also been using a lightbox to make the final linework of my illustrations.

Do you have a favourite artistic medium?
Recently I have been working a lot with digital tools, I love how versatile they are because they allow me to experiment as much as I want without it taking very long. However I don’t like my work to have a digital feel to it, that’s why I always try to use brushes that give a warm look to the final result and also lately I have been doing all my final lines using real pencil and scanning it later. With time I have found that the best way of working for me is the one that combines analog and digital tools into the final piece.

Name three artists whose work inspires you.
I have always loved the way Quentin Blake illustrates, I really admire how loose his lines are which makes his work very dynamic and full of life. Ronald Searle’s work is also such a delight, his characters have so much personality and his line is also very energetic and inspiring. The last one would have to be Sempé, I can spend hours looking at his work, for some reason it speaks to me at a very personal level, he has a very unique way to observe life which in my opinion is one of the nicest qualities an illustrator could have.

Which artistic period would you most like to visit and why?
When I was studying Fine Arts I remember that I got very interested in the Fauvism period. Color has always intrigued me and I would have loved to be able to see how these people thought about color and how they played with it without fear.

Who or what inspired you to become an illustrator?

This is a very tricky question, because I really don’t know! I guess it has been a mix of a lot of things, I always loved to draw so I studied Fine Arts and during this period I remember one day that I found a magazine with an interview of a few illustrators, they were talking about their work and I felt really surprised that this was actually something that you could do for living! So later I decided to study a Master’s degree in illustration and graphic design, while I studied it I realised that what I liked to do the most when I was drawing was to tell stories, it was my favourite part so children illustration was just a very natural path for me to follow.

Can you share a photo of your creative work space or part of the area where you work most often? Talk us through it.
During the past years I have been living in different cities so my studio has been changing (which I actually enjoy a lot) I always like to have some inspiration hanging up on the walls, a nice table (I’m a bit obsessed with tables) my drawing tools and I also appreciate having good light.

What is your favourite part of the illustration process?
The best part for me is definitely the beginning, I really enjoy receiving the manuscript, reading the story and the whole thinking process; at this point every possibility is open and you kind of imagine how the final work would look but it still surprises you changing and developing everyday. I also love how loose and playful the first sketches are because they suggest the image but you finish it in your mind, I find this part of the process so magical.

What advice would you give to an aspiring illustrator?
To never forget to have fun with it, sometimes we put so much pressure on ourselves trying to make everything just the way we wanted that we forget to have fun and enjoy the process, I think it is so important to never lose sight of this.

Ana is a children’s book illustrator based in Spain. She studied a bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts and later a Master’s degree in illustration and graphic design. She started working as a pattern designer for a fashion brand but soon she decided to focus on her passion: children illustration. Humour being an essential part of her work she loves to have fun working and she particularly enjoys creating interesting characters and the worlds they live in.

 For more information, please visit Ana's website and behance or follow her instagram.

 

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Review: Brain Freeze

Much-loved children’s author Oliver Phommavanh delivers fun, funny, silly and entertaining in this fabulous collection of short stories to freeze your brain with wacky deliciousness.

A super-competitive chess game, a slushy slurping competition with freezing consequences and acts of kindness when you’re living in the middle of a pandemic. 

If you’re looking for whacky, fun and entertaining, delivered in short snippets, Brain Freeze is for you!

The blurb describes this book as a collection of stories featuring characters who are trying to step up and be brave, and that theme really does shine through.  

Each tale is about a kid faced with some kind of challenge that requires them to be courageous — real and relatable challenges, even in a whacky world where your parents are allowed by law to change your name everyday.

Weaved throughout the stories are ones that kids will really relate to this year — stories of life in lockdown and remote schooling. I loved these stories in particular, not just because they are reflective of our year, but because Phommavanh has a way of pulling you into stories, acknowledging the bad but infusing the good (with loads of humour), so you finish reading feeling seen, heard and part of something.

The stories are the perfect size for a cosy read before bed, which also makes this a great book for kids who like to take on bite-sized reading challenges. It provides a variety of stories for kids to try, each fun and entertaining, but each different with lots of different characters (both girls and boys).

Fun, entertaining and kid focused, Brain Freeze is for kids who love a relatable story to laugh out loud at.

Title: Brain Freeze
Author: Oliver Phommavanh
Publisher: Puffin, $14.99  
Publication Date: 1 September 2020
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781760897147
For ages: 10+
Type: Junior Fiction, Middle Fiction

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Review: Busy Beaks

Beaks and the bodies they’re on, are exposed in stunning colour and artwork with their scientific name included for those that love to learn – adults and children.

This is a brilliant collection of unique Australian birds that float and fly, peck and pick, strut and soar. Others suck on nectar. The Laughing Kookaburra calls out to its friends.

I loved this book right away as I am always excited when reading something from which I can learn. As will readers. 

This bevy of beauties compete with one another as on stage.

A tall emu father, Dromaius novaehollandiae, and his babies stand on the opposite page to Palm cockatoos, Probosciger aterrimus, who communicate while sitting on the shell of a tall tree.

Shorebirds and penguins on parade will delight children as they learn the names of our colourful, noisy, quiet, active and sluggish birds. Waiting to be discovered are those that flock together, others that prefer to be alone like the Wedge-tailed eagle, and those who prefer life in pairs; all visible birds. Others like the Spotted Pardalote, Padalotus punctatus, prefer their nest out of sight.

This is a reference book of sorts, but not. It’s a delight to go through slowly, observing, like a walk in the park, discovering things that you’d not noticed before or knew about.

Facts and Feathers steal four pages at the end, to exhibit the birds in miniature images, with additional information on each.

And that’s not all! The wrapping for all these divine goods are the gorgeous end pages covered in as many varieties of eggs, as the book has birds. 

Sara Allen is inspired by the natural world and hopes to inspire others with her work.

An ideal gift for giving, overseas visitors, libraries and home bookshelves. Or simply for yourself as a special present.

Title: Busy Beaks
Author/Illustrator: Sarah Allen
Publisher: Affirm Press, $ 19.99
Publication Date: 29 September 2020
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9787925972948
For ages: 5+
Type: Non Fiction

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Review: Meerkat Christmas

Emily Gravett is the winner of two CILIP Kate Greenaway Medals, and author of Too Much Stuff, Cyril and Pat, and Meerkat Mail amongst others. In Meerkat Christmas, she has created another glorious and fun-filled adventure.

Christmas is approaching. Sunny wants everything to be perfect. In the Kalahari where the meerkat family lives, nothing around him is anything like the images in his magazine. He sets off to find a place that is. 

He takes his check list with him.

His pen pal Kev the koala seems to be enjoying himself. Shrimps on the barbie, sausages on a stick, a seaside retreat and lots of sunscreen. Not what Sunny wants. He moves on. Letters are sent home to keep the family informed.

Trevor’s the tarsier’s decorations are award-winning. But where is the snow? Another card is sent off with a snack enclosed.

Sunny gets caught in the rain (he hates getting wet!) and huddles into a Christmas stocking while red robin and family sing carols. Rain blotches the writing on the card he sends off this time.

At last he finds snow – and penguins, presents and singing. But snow is not like sand. Sunny is now a freezing meerkat. But he recovers when he opens penguin’s present.

Sunny finds all that he was looking for. Trees, decorations, presents, and even sprouts, his favourite food. But there is still something missing.

Santa finds Sunny's last card home. Can he give Sunny his heart’s desire?

Gorgeous family photos of the meerkats close the book. A festive atmosphere flows throughout as it introduces various animals in their habitat. Encountered on Sunny’s travels.

This novelty book is something unique for Christmas. It includes real cards which Sunny has written, a free print for a child’s door or wall, and lots of meerkat-inspired ideas for Christmas decorations. (They are only ideas. Not meant to be implemented!)

Title: Meerkat Christmas
Author/Illustrator: Emily Gravett
Publisher: Pan Macmillan, $ 24.99
Publication Date: 29 September 2019
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781509857296
For ages: 3+
Type: Picture Book

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Announcement: New Team Member: Meet Sue Warren!

10 Quirky Questions with author Paul Collins

1. What's your hidden talent?
If I told you that then it wouldn’t be hidden! But let me see. My super power on the tennis court is my speed. Opposition players often comment on it. I suspect my age fools them. They wouldn’t believe how fast I was in my thirties lol.

2. Who is your favourite literary villain and why?
My equal favourites are Modesty Blaise and Artemis Fowl. They’re both ‘heroes’, really, but then, technically, they’re the bad guys because they’re both criminals. So I don’t see the term ‘villain’ as black and white. And that’s what I love about them. They’re multi-layered characters. Needless to say, the authors are simply the best.

3. You're hosting a literary dinner party, which five authors would you invite? (alive or dead)
Peter McDonnell, Eoin Colfer, Philip Reeve, Stan Lee and Fritz Leiber. You won’t find that combination anywhere.

4. Which literary invention do you wish was real?
A time machine would be pretty cool.

5. What are five words that describe your writing process?
Organised, episodic, funny, diverse and energetic.

6. Which are the five words you would like to be remembered by as a writer?
SF, dystopian, humour, action, plot-driven.

7. Picture your favourite writing space. What are five objects you would find there?
Computer, books, pens, paper and telephone.

8. Grab the nearest book, open it to page 22 and look for the second word in the first sentence. Now, write a line that starts with that word. (Please include the name of the book!)
‘Bonds like superglue,’ said Mrs Witchard, loftily holding up her latest invention: a camouflaging skin mesh. (Trust Me Too.)

9. If you could ask one author one question, what would the question be and who would you ask?
I would ask Peter O’Donnell if he rolled in his grave when the first Modesty Blaise movie was released. Had his character been taken seriously, like for example, James Bond, the Modesty Blaise franchise would’ve been huge. Instead, it was made satiric.

10. Which would you rather do: 'Never write another story or never read another book'?
Never read another book.

Paul Collins has written over 140 books and 150 short stories. He is best known for The Quentaris Chronicles (The Spell of Undoing is Book #1 in the new series), which he co-edited with Michael Pryor, The Jelindel Chronicles, The Earthborn Wars and The World of Grrym trilogy in collaboration with Danny Willis. Paul’s latest book is James Gong: The Big Hit, published by Hybrid Publishers. He is also the publisher at Ford Street Publishing and director of Creative Net Speakers’ Agency. Paul has been short-listed for many awards and won the Aurealis, William Atheling and the inaugural Peter McNamara awards. He recently received the A Bertram Chandler Award for lifetime achievement in Australian science fiction. He has black belts in both ju jitsu and taekwondo and was trained in kick-boxing by then Australian Heavyweight Champion, Dana Goodson. See www.paulcollins.com.au for more information.

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Review: Chasing Rainbows

Can anyone chase a rainbow? If so, how is it done?

Siblings Sam and Ruby love rainbows. 

Their dad tells them stories about the rainbow magic he sees from his helicopter.

Their minds draw pictures of what they could see and feel and do with a rainbow if they could also see the rainbow magic. They long for a rainbow to appear to them in puddles.

But it is a sun shower that brings the colours they’ve waited for. They try to catch it but they can’t reach. Not on their pogo sticks, or jumping on the trampoline, or from the roof of their cubby house.

They continue to long for the rainbow magic that dad talks about.

They have a brief glance of their rainbow again when the sun glitters through the hose water, but it disappears too soon.

There was one way that they could see dad’s rainbow magic. The only way. But would the children get their wish?

A world of colour is to be found throughout the book, ideally matching the children’s fantasy of rainbow magic. Illustrations in bold lines and vibrant tones produce up-close full page images.

Highly imaginative, the story captures children’s longing for the impossible; the mystery and the magic which sometimes becomes possible.

Title: Chasing Rainbows
Author: Katrina McKelvey
Illustrator: Cheri Hughes
Publisher: Big Sky Publishing, $ 14.99
Publication Date: 13 August 2020
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781922265708
For ages: 4+
Type: Picture Book

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Review: Zombie School Teachers

Since his debut in 2015 with My Dead Bunny, and his more recent release, There's Something Weird about Lena, Sigi Cohen has established himself as the author of wildly fun, gross picture books that do not take themselves at all seriously.

His most recent book, Zombie School Teachers, continues this trend with a dark theme told in rhyme, infused with lashings of humour. Cohen makes fun of a target that his readers will appreciate: school teachers!

The teachers suddenly start acting very strangely – lurching around the classrooms, grunting and trying to feed on the students! 

Even the principal gets in on the act.

It takes some action by the quick thinking kids to get themselves out of this mess with their brains intact.

This over-the-top tale is a silly bit of fun. The illustrations area celebration of gross detail – green tongues, bloodshot eyes and flying limbs abound – which is sure to delight its audience. The zombie teachers pop up various states of decay feasting on brains and chasing innocent children, but (spoiler alert!) are no match for the speedy class.

However, the resolution relies on adult intervention, so this book is not as satisfying as his previous works.

Although the story and illustrations are clearly meant to be funny rather than scary, it is nevertheless best for primary, rather than preschool aged children.

Title: Zombie School Teachers
Author: Sigi Cohen
Illustrator: Matty Mitchell
Publisher: Larrikin House, $24.99
Publication Date: 1 Octoner, 2020
Format: Hardback
ISBN: 9780648804925
For ages: 5 +
Type: Picture Book for Older readers

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