Meet The Illustrator: Sarah Anthony

Name: Sarah Anthony

Describe your illustration style in ten words or less.
Realist figurative oil painting and drawing

What items are an essential part of your creative space?
Oil paints, pencils and mediums, beautiful hand pressed papers, coffee and music

Do you have a favourite artistic medium?
I love painting in oils as they have a luminous quality, and vibrancy of colour that is hard to find in other mediums.

Name three artists whose work inspires you.
Denis Sarazhin, Lucy Culliton, Colin Davidson

Which artistic period would you most like to visit and why?
All of them! In particular, though, the Impressionists.
I am personally so influenced by the use of light and colour to convey mood, that characterised the movement.

Who or what inspired you to become an illustrator?
I was working as a painter and hadn’t really thought of turning my hand to illustration until I was contacted by the Associate Art Director at Walker books. I thought “what an extremely great idea!” and the rest is history!

Can you share a photo of your creative work space or part of the area where you work most often? Talk us through it.
As we are currently under lockdown I mostly paint at a tabletop easel in the dining room at home. I have a trolley next to me with all my paints and mediums in and a plan chest for all my drawings.

What is your favourite part of the illustration process?
It’s all interesting, but it is such a buzz when the text is first placed into the illustrations, and the project starts to come to life as a book.

What advice would you give to an aspiring illustrator?
Spend serious time in developing a portfolio that shows the range of work you can do. Join professional bodies and groups that can help promote your work and help you make industry connections. Take your time, and don’t give up!

 Sarah is a Melbourne-based figurative painter, metalsmith and illustrator. Her qualifications include BA Hons Fine Arts / Silversmithing and MA Art Therapy.
She has a particular interest in portraiture and do private commissions and exhibit regularly. In 2020 Sarah illustrated her first children’s picture book named ‘Drover’ for Walker Books.

For more information, please visit Sarah's website or follow her on instagram.

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Review: Just One Bee

This is a beautifully crafted book, written by Margrete Lamond and Anthony Bertini, with haunting and whimsical illustrations by Christopher Nielsen. 

It tells the story of One- Bee, alone in a desolate landscape, lonely and forgotten. Nielsen's illustrations sensitively depict the bleak state the land is in, underscoring the enormity of One-Bee's task.

But she nevertheless dreams of how beautiful it could be, of a field bursting with flowers where there is only heat and dust. 

She knows it is attainable. But how?

One-Bee navigates this world, until she comes across Other-Bee. One-Bee is delighted. Other-Bee, a grumpy, irritable and pessimistic creature, does not share One-Bee's vision and rejects her unapologetically.

Their voices see-saw between optimism and pessimism, hope and despair.

But One-Bee knows that she needs to be persistent and drive the changes that she wants to see.

This is a powerful book about the importance of having a vision and the resilience to persist in the face of enormous obstacles. For a review of Bertini's other work, see here and of  Nielsen's other work see here.

At forty pages, it is slightly longer than most picture books, but I see this as a bonus. It is an important addition to any reader's collection, with its important message of persistence in the face of the overwhelming challenges of climate change. 

Teacher's notes are available.

Title: Just One Bee
Author: Margrete Lamond and Anthony Bertini
Illustrator: Christopher Nielsen
Publisher: Dirt Lane Press, $24.99
Publication Date: May 2021
Format: Hardback
ISBN: 9780648023890
For ages: 4 years +
Type: Picture Book

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Guest Post: Felicity Castagna

Felicity Castagna is a multi-creative artist with a life rich in expression. Her first novel for Young Adults, The Incredible Here and Now, won the Prime Minister’s Literary Award and the IBBY Honour Book for Australia.

Her last book, No More Boats, was a finalist for the Miles Franklin and The Voss Award. 

Her latest book, Girls in Boys’ Cars will be available early August 2021.

Felicity talks to us about this powerful exploration of teenage relationships, and finding one’s place in the world.

You were previously a teacher. When did you choose to make the transition to writer?
I’ve actually always been a teacher and a writer and the two kind of go hand in hand for me. I was a high school teacher for several years before transitioning to teaching at university and teaching workshops all over the place from schools to community centres and correctional facilities. Teaching gives me a really powerfully opportunity to still be in the lives of young people in a meaningful way and to hear about the kind of stories that matter in their world and I think that keeps my writing for young adults more honest and responsive to the world we live in.

How did you decide a non-linear style for your novel?
I love experimenting with form and structure, particularly when writing for young adults because I think it’s not as common in this genre as it is in others. Girls In Boys’ Cars essentially has a framing narrative which is the present time where Rosa is in jail and working out all the things that have led her there, and the past story of the summer she stole a car with Asheeka. I love the idea of having the past and the present sit side by side in the story in alternating chapters – I think it mirrors life where your past is always tangled up with who you are in the present.

Girls in Boys’ Cars has a cast of interesting and individual characters. Rosa and Asheeka are opposites. One vibrant and outgoing; the other uncomfortable in her skin. Please tell us about them.
I wanted to explore a really complicated friendship as most friendships are. They love and care for each other deeply but also can’t stand each other at the same time. They have different levels of privilege, different relationships with their families, boys and their own status as girls but they also come from the same place. I wanted to show how different we can be even within our own geographical communities and I also wanted to show that struggle-and failure-to completely understand someone else even when the intention is genuine.

Both girls live insulated lives. Their escape to freedom is an opportunity to find their place in the world by experiencing things themselves.
I never wanted to write the kind of novel where two girls step out into the world and bam! They find themselves. I think this story is all about the exploration of ourselves and the fact that we keep exploring for the rest of our lives and maybe that is a process that starts most profoundly in our teenage years. Part of the difficulty in working oneself is that we all, in our own ways, live very guarded and insular lives but particularly teenagers whose lives are governed by adult expectations and, of course there’s another layer on top of that when you think about the societal and community expectations that are also placed on girls. I wanted to watch two girls try to free themselves of all that.

You have illuminated the differentiation between male and female sexuality. This was just one of the many issues built upon. What was your main objective?
I wanted all the talk around sex in this book to be about how awkward and strange it can be. A lot of writing around sex that I find, particularly in girl-focused young adult novels, is centred around girls owning, exploring and desiring sex or the opposite – sex as something that can be violent or violating. 

I completely support both depictions of sex and think they are vital and important for young women to read, but I also feel like there is this middle ground full of questions that could be explored more. Girls who are wondering- how come sex is so strange and weird and not like the movies? Why is it meant to be so interesting? How is my body meant to feel in sex? How do I ask for what I want and need and how come boys don’t ask that question first? And, of course, how come boys derive power and status from sex in a way that girls have never been able to?

There is a powerful energy in your writing. How much of what you have used in your characters is drawn from your life experiences?
I certainly remember that endless sense of waiting for my life to really begin as a teenage girl and the incredible frustration it is to try and find your own space to figure things out away from all of the noise of family and life and society’s expectations. I never stole a car but I certainly did a lot of far too risky things that I can only talk about when hiding them on the pages of fiction.

You are also involved in cross-artform collaboration. Can you explain what that is?
I’m really interested in collaborating with other writers and artists and in creating work that is responsive to local place and communities. I always wanted to be in a band but I can’t clap my hands to a beat so instead I’ve been lucky enough to work on lots of projects which involve me writing text and stories with artists in other mediums.

For example, I recently worked on a large-scale work for The Sydney Festival in which I worked with an orchestra, dancers and musicians to create a live work about Parramatta, where the work was set and where I live. I wrote a bunch of monologues about the place and the dancers performed works that elaborated the ideas in the monologues while a performance poet read the works out loud. Sounds weird I know, but it was so much fun and the audience had a great time.

The Finishing School – will you share some information about this other area of your creative life?
I have worked on a lot of storytelling, mentoring and art projects in western Sydney. One of the latest projects I’ve been working on is The Finishing School. It began as a mentoring program for women writers in western Sydney and has helped to produce a lot of great writers and books from this region. We now work as a collective of women writers who create a lot of collaborative work with artists in other fields for art galleries, festivals and publications.

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12 Curly Questions with author Lana Spasevski

1. Tell us something hardly anyone knows about you.
Before writing children’s books, I worked on building the brand stories of some of Australia’s most favourite products. A normal workday could see me on a set of a TV commercial with a cast of puppies causing a ruckus, or developing ideas for new baking products.

2. What is your nickname?
It’s actually Lana which is a shortened version of my full name.

3. What is your greatest fear?
Cassowaries, thanks to an overzealous tour guide on a hike in the Daintree Rainforest!

4. Describe your writing style in 10 words.
Carefully crafted ideas and evocative language that leaves an impression.

5. Tell us five positive words that describe you as a writer.
Optimistic, inspiring, entertaining, impactful and hopeful.

6. What book character would you be, and why?
This is a tricky question. If I must narrow it down to one, it would be Alice from Alice in Wonderland. She’s my kind of book character; a heroine who uses her imagination and wit to successfully navigate her way through a curious world!

7. If you could time travel, what year would you go to and why?
I wouldn’t go too far back in time. I’d love to go back to the 1980s and experience it as a grown-up as I was a child back then. I’m all for crimped hair, neon-coloured fashion and the music!

8. What would your 10-year-old self say to you now?
She would give me the greatest hug and say, ‘You did it!’

9. Who is your greatest influence?
My children. Their hopes, dreams, fears and clever observations drive everything that I do in my life.

10. What/who made you start writing?
I have been so lucky to have been influenced by many supportive and incredible school teachers throughout the years. Their encouragement and love of storytelling is why I started writing at a young age and never stopped.

11. What is your favourite word and why?
My favourite word changes daily! Currently it is smile because it makes me smile whenever I say, hear or read it.

12. If you could only read one book for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Without a doubt, Charlotte’s Web. I have fond memories of my grade four teacher, Ms Phillips, reading a chapter of the book each day at school after lunch. The story of Fern, the Arables, Templeton and ‘some pig’ called Wilbur is what ignited my lifelong love of children’s literature.

Lana is a children’s author who writes stories that tap into the curious world of children. Her writing has been long-listed in the 2018 Children’s Book Council of Australia Charlotte Waring Barton Award as part of the Aspiring Writers Mentorship Award and in competitions such as Creative Kids Tales, Greenleaf Press and CYA. She is also a children’s book reviewer with the CBCA’s Reading Time website and has been invited to present at the 2021 Sydney Writer’s Festival Family Day. A trained lawyer and marketing manager, Lana now writes for children from her book-filled home where she lives with her husband, her two book butterflies and a rescue kitten called Marbles. See www.lanawrites.com for more information. You can read reviews of Lana's picture books here.

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Review: Heroes, Rebels and Innovators

Heroes, Rebels and Innovators, is a collection of seven stories on inspiring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people from history. It reveals and profiles, the lives of extraordinary people and their achievements during Australia’s early years of colonisation.

A young Darug woman, Patyegerang, met William Dawes who studied the stars; a Lieutenant of the First Fleet. They taught each other their language and together they created the first books featuring Aboriginal languages.

Bungaree dreamed big and lived to see his dreams a reality. Proud and confident, he accompanied Matthew Flinders around Australia.

Flinders spent his days drawing maps and his nights mesmerised by Bungaree’s tales. A strong friendship formed with both Flinders, and his cat Trim.

Recognised as a diplomat and explorer, Bungaree was given the title King of Broken Bay by Governor Macquarie. But no monument was raised in his honour.

Tarenorerer was taken by white sealers and forced into slavery. She escaped to witness the destruction of her land by white people.

Fearless and daring, she led armed attacks on the invading settlers, earning the name Amazon of Van Diemen’s Land.

Heroes of Gundagai is what Yarri and Jacky Jacky were called. They warned the settlers that building too close to the flood plains would be catastrophic. Nobody listened. When floods came, seventy lives were lost. The two friends saved many of the townspeople after they clung to trees and rooftops for days before they were rescued.

Newlywed Mohara Wacando-Lifu was on a boat when Mahina, the greatest tropical cyclone hit. Courageous and strong, separated from her husband, she saved two sailors she came across in the water. They clung to her as she swam seven hours to reach the shore.

She became the first Indigenous woman to be awarded the Royal Humane Society’s Gold Medal for Bravery.

David Unaipon was one of nine children. A man of many skills and talents, he was also a writer and inventor. But he was unable to secure funding for his nineteen inventions.

The first Aboriginal author of Ngarrindjeri stories, he also gave talks at universities. He is honoured with his image on the fifty dollar note.

Fanny Bulbuk Yooreel was a resistance fighter and environmental protector, who tried to teach white people how to care for the environment. She took her role seriously, always protesting against things that were sacred to her.

These are only entrees offered, taken from the valuable lives of these inspiring people who have so much more to reveal. Some may be unfamiliar, but this book will encourage readers of any age, to learn more about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Title: Heroes, Rebels and Innovators
Author: Karen Wyld
Illustrator: Jaelyn Biumaiwai
Publisher: Hachette, $ 26.99
Publication Date: 28 July 2021
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9780734419838
For ages: 9+
Type: Non Fiction

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Review: Rea and the Blood of the Nectar

Rea lives in the small village of Darjeeling with her Amma, Bajai and twin brother Rohan. She’s about to turn twelve and she wishes things could be a little different to what they are.

She wishes she had more friends. She wishes her Amma would tell her more about her Baba. She wishes Rohan would speak to her more and include her in things like he used to.

Life isn’t exactly perfect. Really, it’s rather dull. But when Rohan goes missing in the middle of the night, everything changes, and dull is no longer a word Rea can use to describe her world.

Her family seems to give up easily and accept that Rohan is gone, but Rea can’t. She won’t. With her friend Leela in tow, Rea visits a fortune teller and is given a riddle to solve to find her brother. It’s beyond bizarre, but she has nothing to lose, so she follows the clues into the forest and…

…falls into Astranthia.

Another world, a strange and beautiful place, Astranthia is home to both humans and magical creatures. Fairies, dwarves and an evil queen who’s kidnapped Rohan to secure her place on the throne.

Rea and Leela are faced with impossible odds. They can’t get to Rohan, the queen is manipulating their every move and there are secrets that link Rea to Astranthia’s past — secrets her Amma has deliberately kept from her and might now cost her dearly.

Rea and the Blood of the Nectar is a fantastical adventure filled with magic, whimsy and imagination. Author Payal Doshi has built an extensive world and brought it to life with vibrant characters and engaging storytelling.

Rea is a real and relatable character who is flawed, who makes mistakes. She is what is means to be twelve in the real world, with too many questions in her head and dangerous self-doubt that can make her lash out at the wrong people at the wrong times. I love all these things about her. She is a true underdog hero, learning who she is and how to be herself in a confusing world (both Earth and Astranthia). By the end of the book, I wouldn’t say she’s mastered everything either, and I love this too. She is very relatable.

The world Payal delivers is also something special. It has some of the more familiar mythical creatures that we all know and love, but it’s also filled with so much new — butterfly faced sorcerers and plants that whisper secrets. It’s the perfect mix of familiar and new, grounding readers with things they know before pushing imaginations to their limits with unique beings and incredible powers, all infused with culture and place.

This is a great middle grade read for fans of fantasy and otherworlds. It’s a grand adventure in a magical land that sets up things perfectly for more tales to come. And I loved the incorporated ribbon bookmark too! Makes the read extra special.

Title: Rea and the Blood of the Nectar
Author: Payal Doshi
Publisher: Mango and Marigold Press, $35.75 (Aus. RRP)
Publication Date: 17 May 2021
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781645437635
For ages: 10 - 14
Type: Junior Fiction, Middle Grade Fiction

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Giveaway: Middle Grade Novel: Twitch

Review: Girls in Boys' Cars

Award-winning Felicity Castagna, is the author of The Incredible Here and Now, which won the Prime Minister’s Literary Award and the IBBY Honour Book for Australia. Her last book, No More Boats, was a finalist for the Miles Franklin and the Voss Award.

She is back with another impressive Young Adult novel, Girls in Boys’ Cars, an extraordinary exploration of friendship, freedom, the power of stories, and the demeaning divide between what is acceptable for boys, is unacceptable for girls.

The story starts from the middle working outward.

Rosa is in a juvenile correction centre for six months. Caught after stealing a car with her best friend Asheeka who is now missing, Rosa hopes to find her real self amongst the many parts she has buried inside her.

A passionate book lover and reader, but uncomfortable in her skin, her counsellor suggests Rosa write her own story as a way of connecting with who she really is. It is through the stories she writes, that we learn about how she came to be in juvie.

Asheeka is vibrant, outgoing and part of the popular crowd. She loves clothes, her nails, hair, her emotionally abusive boyfriend Arnold, and his stunning blue car. She strains against the cultural expectations that her mother imposes on her, also against Arnold’s selfishness and lack of respect.

Arnold has a dark side. After he physically attacks then ignores her, Asheeka steals his pride and joy as revenge, and with Rosa, they take off into the unknown.

They continue together through Australian towns and countryside in the greatest adventure of their lives; their own personal freedom, searching with each new beginning, to find an escape from what they can’t resolve.

With a unique turn of phrase, sharp wit and entertaining language, the reader is drawn into the girls’ company as they travel into and through exciting, unlawful and continuous flights of freedom; from darkness into light.

There is no escaping the law-breaking. To survive they must steal again and again. Each mile forward removes them from their insulated lives, to the world beyond that they had never experienced. Until the bushfires stop them. 

Then Asheeka goes missing again.

The ugliness of broken personal relationships, the changes needed to repair them and the revenge that destroys, builds the backstory that is a powerful force in this novel.

A fantastic read, with non-stop, fast- paced action reminiscent of Thelma and Louise, but much more.

Title: Girls in Boys' Cars
Author: Felicity Castagna
Publisher: Pan Macmillan, $ 18.99
Publication Date: 1 August 2021
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 97817760987688
For ages: 14+
Type: Young Adult Fiction

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Guest Post: Dr Jane Williams on Grandparenting Grandchildren

Review: The Travelling Bookshop: Mim and the Baffling Bully

We all know that the best adventures start in bookshops.

 
Mim's family bookshop is a bit different - it travels the world courtesy of their beloved Flossy, a flying horse, and takes the family on adventures to where their books are needed the most.

On this journey, Mim, her Dad and brother, and their assorted pets end up in the Netherlands.

Mim makes friends with the shy Willemina, whose life is quite miserable given the nasty treatment that is being meted out by a bullying peer, Gerda. 

The bookstore has an unerring knack of matching the customer with the book that they need the most at the time - even if they don't know it. 

Mim is certain that Willemina will be given a book about being assertive and standing up for herself.

But, no. She is given a seemingly random volume - could the bookstore have gotten it wrong?

Mim tries to dig a little deeper into the bully's life. Gerda seems to have everything a kid could want. So why is she so nasty and why does she bother to pick on the unassuming Willemina?

Mim needs to work with the bookstore and learn about the nature of bullying - and also find out who the one that actually needs to change is.

This is Book One in the series of the travelling bookshop, and I cant wait to see where Flossy will take the eccentric family to next. 

A sweet book brimming with line drawings by the talented Cheryl Orsini. 

Both Nannestad and Orsini have numerous children's books published between them, and you can read reviews for them here and here.

Title: The Travelling Bookshop: Mim and the Baffling Bully
Author: Katrina Nannestad
Illustrator: Cheryl Orsini
Publisher: Harper Collins , $14.99
Publication Date: 28 July 2021
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780733341656
For ages: 7+
Type: Junior Fiction

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Junior Review: 90 Miles To Havana

Revolution. This word symbolizes the reason so many parents had to separate themselves from their children in 1961, Cuba. 

90 Miles to Havana is a story of how Julian adjusts to the American lifestyle and completing his family again.

Julian and his two brothers are sent alone to Miami without their parents via the Pedro Pan operation. When they arrive, they’re sent to a crowded camp filled with kids from Cuba waiting to find a new home, which is quite the opposite of what their mother told them their new lives would be like. 

They reunite with old friends and bullies, but Julian’s brothers are sent to a foster home without Julian. Julian decides to act and reunite his family, but how will he survive in this new country, a place where he’s an outsider?

Author Enrique Flores-Galbis has written this novel on his similar experience of traveling from Cuba to Florida without his parents. 

This novel is filled with comedy, wittiness, but is also heartfelt about the struggles of being a young foreigner in a country that is like a completely different word. You can really connect to Julian’s tough experiences in the novel, but the author has made the protagonist stand out because he never let the pain cut through him. You should read this novel that will help you see what an immigrant’s life is like through the eyes of a kid.

Title: 90 Miles to Havana
Author: Enrique Flores-Galbis
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press, $18.99
Publication Date: August 3, 2010
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: ‎978-1596431683
For ages: 9-12
Type: Middle Grade Fiction

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Guest Post: Meg McKinlay on Writing About Special Grandparent-grandchild Relationships

Review: The Big Book of Festivals

Festivals, celebrations and religious Holy Days have always been part of the world’s history. Some go back thousands of years. 

The Big Book of Festivals encompasses a great range of these from around the globe.

The most popular, original and sometime out-there festivals make interesting reading for those who love to expand their knowledge. 

Symbols, motifs and emblems that mark each event, plus plants, music, instruments and dancing, accentuate the essence of each entry.

Over time, each custom has evolved to some degree with change, and movement of people around the globe.

I have chosen the most unusual ones to represent this magnificent collection. They will whet your curiosity to discover what else this amazing book holds.

Everyone has heard about Valencia’s tomato festival. To throw thousands of kilos of tomatoes at one another seems such a waste but to the people who take part, it is fun!

Fire-walking rituals that take part in Northern Greece named Anastenaria, are celebrated by the Greek-Macedonians to honour St Helen and St Constantine in May.

Diwali, India’s festival of light lasts five days. New Delhi has the grandest festival, being the ancient capital. Food and gifts are shared and exchanged.

Konaki Sumo is the crying baby festival, a 400 year-old Shinto tradition, is between two Sumo wrestlers holding a baby. It’s to see who can make the baby cry first.

There are Whirling Dervishes, and Halloween. Seasonal festivals and rituals are guided by the phases of the Moon, depending on the individual calendars that are followed.

The Big Book of Festivals records the where and when each of these celebrations is held. Included are stories, folklore and mythology handed down through generations.

Brilliantly coloured, intricately detailed illustrations fill the pages with movement, song and dance. Strange and unusual some may be, but they are all diverse and educational.

Can you find the children from the opening page in the illustrations? The challenge is to discover them and see to which country they belong.

Title: The Big Book of Festivals
Author: Marita Bullock & Joan-Marie Hargreaves
Illustrator: Liz Roland
Publisher: Hachette, $ 29.99
Publication Date: 31 March 2021
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9780734419972
For ages: 8+
Type:  Junior Non Fiction

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12 Curly Questions with author Kate Foster

1. Tell us something hardly anyone knows about you.
When I’m rich and famous, my dream is to open up a rescue centre for abandoned elderly dogs – the dogs that few people would ever adopt because they may only have a few years left of life. I want all those dogs. I want to set up little rooms for them with lots of comfy sofas and blankets and beds so they can all curl up and rest and live out their days in style.

2. What is your nickname?
I’m soooooo boring that I actually don’t have one, other than people playing around with my name (Katrina, Katriana, Katikins, etc). So, I guess I’m in the market for a nickname if anyone wants to put suggestions forward...

3. What is your greatest fear?
Upsetting people and letting people down. I try so hard not to do this and avoid confrontation, but sometimes it doesn’t work. I’m very hard on myself if I know someone is upset because of me.

4. Describe your writing style in 10 words.
Warm, dogs, cuddly, dogs, upbeat, dogs, heart-tugging, dogs, friendly, and... dogs?

5. Tell us five positive words that describe you as a writer.
Fun, passionate, enthusiastic, lively, and, erm, dogs?

6. What book character would you be, and why?
One of my favourite series as a child was The Worst Witch, by Jill Murphy, and I always wanted to be Mildred Hubble. It just sounded so much fun to be at Miss Cackle’s Academy. But, recently I read and loved Alone by Megan E Freeman, which is about a girl who wakes up one morning to find her town completely abandoned. She teams up with a rottweiler. I would throw myself into this lifestyle of no people and no traffic and no noise, but I’d probably try to find more dogs to be my companions.

7. If you could time travel, what year would you go to and why?
Erm, oooh, this is a tricky one. Well, I love to pat all the dogs, so I think I’d have to go back to the early 1900s and pat and nose-boop Sergeant Stubby, the pit-bull terrier. He was found abandoned as a puppy but went on to help, support, and save so many soldiers’ lives during World War I. What a fantastic dog Stubby was!

8. What would your 10-year-old self say to you now?
"You're an author? Wow! You're an actual, real-life author!" Something like that, I suspect!

9. Who is your greatest influence?
Eek, that’s a tough question with a bunch of possible answers. My mum and dad are definitely the most influential in all my day-to-day choices. However, specifically with my writing, I am influenced by the great David Almond, the extraordinary Neal Shusterman, and the legendary CS Lewis.

10. What/who made you start writing?
I’m not really sure because I have memories of writing stories when I was a teeny tiny person (Monty Mouse was the title of one story!), which I guess means it was probably a calling I was born with, if that’s a thing. As a child I loved make-believe and reading fantasy stories like CS Lewis books, and The Wishing Chair and The Faraway Tree series, by Enid Blyton, so I was swept up in that magic very early on in life.

11. What is your favourite word and why?
Hello. I mean, there are so many ways you can deliver this word – questioning, angry, excited, interested... and everyone uses it!

12. If you could only read one book for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Noooooo! A book lover should never be asked this! A Monster Calls, by Patrick Ness. No! The Unwind series, by Neal Shusterman. No! It has to be Skellig, by David Almond. No! Ugh, I can't answer this question.

Kate Foster works as a literary agent and writes children's books about friends, family and dogs. Originally from the south east of England, she now lives on the beautiful Gold Coast in Australia with her family and rescue dogs. She loves eating cake, reading books and watching cooking programs on TV. For more infoprmation, see www.kfosterbooks.com.

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Winner: Echo In The Memory

Our lucky winner is...

Liz Dorrington, WA

Congratulations!

You have won a copy of the historical page turning YA Novel, Echo In The Memory by Cameron Nunn.

Enjoy!

Thank you to ALL who entered.

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Junior Review: Left-Handed Booksellers of London

Review: Ash Invites Her Friends To Tea

Ash Invites Her Friends to Tea captures the relationship between a grandfather and his granddaughter.

Ash is a young bird who is bored with the tree she is sitting in. She doesn't think there's anything special about it.

Then one day Grandpa shows her the magic that happens after you pick the leaves and dry them.

When hot water is later added, it wakes the leaves from their sleep, and the wonderful smell attracts other creatures.

Ash and Grandpa are visited by a monkey, panda, and a wild boar.

The animals all enjoy the tea made from the leaves, each reminded of something special. Panda tastes the sweetness of fruit and honey, while monkey tastes the silky smoothness of bamboo.

Then a dragon appears and wants its share of the magic. Will Ash share their tea?

There is a sense of peace and tradition in both the story and illustratons in Ash Invites Her Friends to Tea.

At the end of the book you will find instructions for how to make tea just like Grandpa does, in four simple steps. 

Author and illustrator, Fu Wenzheng's style is clearly influenced by her Chinese heritage, and the story's themes can be used to introduce discussion of culture and traditions. 

Ash Invites Her Friends to Tea is a story that can be enjoyed at home by families, including childrren and grandparents, or in a classroom.

Teacher's notes with activities can be downloaded from the publisher's website.

Title: Ash Invites Her Friends To Tea
Author/Illustrator: Fu Wenzheng
Publisher: New Frontier Publishing, $ 14.99
Publication Date: June 2021
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781922326317
For ages: 3+
Type: Picture Books

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Review: Once Upon Our Planet

Once upon a time there was a planet. Our planet. A place of mysterious beauty, filled with heat and ice, forests and deserts, creatures of all shapes and sizes.

If you love whimsy and wonder in your short stories, Once Upon Our Planet is a perfect pick.

The book has twelve gorgeous stories about life, nature and the world — fiction intertwined with splashes of mythology and legends by internationally best-selling author Vita Murrow.

Read the story of the North Wind, where Bo the giant must venture across the lands to blow the first breaths of winter in the south. Read the tale of two suns and find out how two became one. 

Each story is based around nature, seasons, the environment and our planet. Each takes you on a fantastical adventure, but each has elements of the real, making you wonder… could this be true?

This is a lovely book for bedtime shares. It will spark imagination and wonder. Its beautiful and warming.

The stunning illustrations by Aitch will have you running your hands over the pages. Deep colours and whimsical creatures add to the vibrancy of the stories. And they’re there with every page turn, bringing a special magic to this storytelling experience.

With a lovely thick hard cover, the book is one to last the test of time. It’s textured and speckled with gold — hard to walk by without reaching for it.

Once Upon Our Planet will bring special moments into your life. If you’re looking for something unique to share with your kids, this one is for you.

Title: Once Upon Our Planet
Author: Vita Murrow
Illustrator: Aitch
Publisher: Magic Cat, $34.99
Publication Date: 2 June 2021
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781913520083
For ages: 4+
Type: Junior Fiction

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Review: The Story of Australia: For the Young and the Curious

The Story of Australia was first published in 1984. This superb edition, has been produced for a younger audience and is an experience in reading pleasure.

Evidence of human occupation goes back 50,000 years and its from what is found in the ground such as bones and seeds, that reveals to us, what food and animals the early people lived on.

Prehistorians have documented fascinating statistics about the groups that existed in those early times; their individual lands, languages and dialects, and how our first Australians adapted and survived all the climactic and natural changes.

Beginning at Ancient Australia, The Story of Australia for the Young and the Curious, is beautifully presented and referenced. Each section is introduced by a page of stunning coloured illustrations and a listing of the time-line being covered.

The descriptions of situations that led to the decimation of the Aboriginal population are tragic and confronting, with settlers taking possession of the land from which all life, knowledge and spirituality depended.

The entries move through history in a smooth narrative that takes its time to succinctly relay the historical evolution of our country.

Its well-considered design is paramount. Spreads share the page equally between the full colour and black and white archived images, and the detailed text.

I found this a priceless reference book whose vivid descriptions breathe life into the narrative.

This compilation of Australian history is perfect for any age, but specifically valuable to younger readers for study and enjoyment. Its vibrant cover reflects the quality of the content. These 218 pages will be dipped into, referred to repeatedly, and treasured by book lovers and history buffs.

Title: The Story of Australia: For the Young and the Curious
Author: Don Watson
Publisher: Black Inc., $32.99
Publication Date: 2 July 2021
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781760641139
For ages: 10+
Type: Non Fiction

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Guest Post: Ruth de Vos on Celebrating Ordinary

Today we welcome, Ruth de Vos, illustrator of Shine, written by Danny Parker and how she embraced the ordinary, everyday moments when creating this divine work.

Shineis a love song between a parent and a child. It combines fun rhymes by Danny Parker with my entertaining illustrations of real-life home and family experiences. 

As a mother of six children, these illustrations needed no artistic licence at all, but are an accurate portrayal of our reality.

The moment I read Danny’s manuscript, I knew that I didn’t want to illustrate this in a sweet and sappy way. I’ll be the first to tell you that parenthood is an incredible privilege, but also to acknowledge that it is far less ‘sweet and sappy’ and far more ‘messy, noisy and stinky’ than some might lead you to believe. I’ll also be the first to insist that the beauty of family and parenthood and childhood is found in those ordinary, less glamorous moments and events.

I truly believe that it’s the ordinary, everyday moments that make a beautiful life. The few minutes of teasing while washing the family car together, siblings all wanting to read the same book at the same time (even though there are several hundred alternatives on the bookshelf), a glass of juice together while discussing (arguing?!) the finer details of the rules for a modified game of hide and seek (agreeing on the rules always takes far longer than the game itself!), refolding the washing that your toddler is ‘helping’ with, pulling together a somewhat healthy dinner with a toddler clinging to one leg and another  precariously perched on a stool nearby …

I’d love us all to celebrate those moments a little more. If the family photo albums or camera rolls are filled with first-day-of-school and birthday photos, maybe flesh them out with captured moments of family members engaging with each other. Let’s notice the ways in which we turn towards each other as parents and children and siblings, and maybe become more mindful about doing so more often.

A few years ago I took a photo of home life every single day for a year. While this obviously resulted in a fantastic collection of family memories, it also helped me to really notice and treasure the ordinary things we do at home, and the ways in which we connect with each other. Try it for yourself! It creates an intimate visual story that can be shared with one another and with future generations.

As we become more aware of the value of mindfulness in various areas of life, let’s also be mindful of the richness that our loved ones bring to our lives – whether through the mundane or the profound.

Ruth de Vos’s illustration work has grown out of a career as an internationally recognised textile artist. Ruth combines traditional (pencil, gouache, collage, screen-printing) and digital techniques to create fun scenes and worlds, and her passion lies in illustrating children’s books. As a mother of six young children, she is an avid and critical consumer of children’s literature, and she also has a ready source of drawing inspiration right in her home. Shine, her book with Danny Parker, is available in all good bookstores and online from Fremantle Press.

Please visit Ruth's website for more information or follow her on instagram .

Read our KBR review of Shine by Shaye Wardrop.

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Review: The Incredibly Busy Mind of Bowen Bartholomew Crisp

The Incredibly Busy Mind of Bowen Bartholomew Crisp is a tribute to the minds of those who examine the world around them, and see things others miss.

 Paul Russell’s perfectly structured prose opens up for examination, the definition of ‘normal’, in connection to the contrasting views of the world as seen by children, whose brains are wired in a singular way.

When Bowen started school, the questions he was asked to answer, needed more time than he was given to reply.

As he grew older his expanding mind had reached a higher degree of thought and logic, exceeding that of others who weren’t allowed the time to examine. 

I could see so much, but everyone else had already finished looking.

His mum understood him perfectly. They played their question and answer games, challenging each other, allowing time for curiosity to burst through the silence before answering.

Created from the personal experience of both writer and illustrator, this magical book is designed to encourage a deeper understanding and awareness in educators and families, about the different neurological pathways in the brains of children. A difference which can easily be translated as something abnormal, but which in fact, is the brilliance of a unique mind, which simply sees things in another way.

Nicky Johnston’s always delicate illustrations offer up the countless details that make up Bowen’s life. He doesn’t know it yet, but what he sees as not fitting in, is a mind in constant thought, examining a world waiting to be discovered, as he works his way to his full potential.

Stunning in every way, another superb collaboration from two highly talented creators, filled with wisdom and beauty, also waiting to be discovered.

Title: The Incredibly Busy Mind of Bartholomew Crisp
Author: Paul Russell
Illustrator: Nicky Johnston
Publisher: EK Books, $ 24.99
Publication Date: 1 July 2021
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 978192820881
For ages: 5 – 10
Type: Picture Book

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Junior Review: The Boy Who Stepped Through Time

Announcement: Unsolicited Review Submissions Month OPEN!

At KBR, we realise how tough it can be—in a flooded kids’ book market, not to mention the current global climate—to get noticed. 

We are a small team, there are only a set amount of days in the year, and we are already chronically flooded with review copies from major and independent publishers.

However, to give emerging creators and self-publishers a chance, we will be opening our review policy for ONE MONTH—to accept unsolicited review submissions from new, self-published or very small (Indie) publishers.

If you fall into this category and would like to have your book considered for review on the #1 kids’ book review site on the web, please read the following guidelines carefully. Email the following to dimity.

A short EMAIL introducing yourself, with a link to your website or other online presence. Please only provide ONE main link. There is no need to give background on you or your books, or any explanations.

A single attachment—one PRESS RELEASE (either PDF of Word doc—no other format accepted) for your book. If you are unfamiliar with press releases, you can google their format and content, but for our purposes, they should include the following:

• A book cover image
• Up to two internal pages/spreads
• A short book synopsis
• Book title
• Book genre
• Publisher
• Publication date
• ISBN
• Retail price (in your country’s currency)
• A short creator biography
• Contact details

Ensure your attachment is no larger than 2MB. Zipped files cannot be accepted.

Please don’t send any other attachments or links to anything else, nor provide any extra, unrequested information.

All of the above must be contained in one single Word document or PDF, as an email attachment, not embedded in the body of the email. Remember, guidelines are an important part of this industry, and should be followed to the letter. Submissions that do not follow these guidelines cannot be considered.

What happens after submission?

If we are interested in your book, your press release will be emailed to the entire KBR review team. If someone on the team wishes to view the book, they will contact you directly for a review copy, and will provide their postal address. All reviewers currently reside in Australia.

Please note that we cannot accept anything but fully finished, published books. Galleys, proofs, mock-ups or electronic book versions are not eligible.

While over 99% of our requested books go to review, we reserve the right not to review any book, even those requested.

We regret we cannot acknowledge receipt of books and we cannot return books. 

We cannot advise if and when reviews will be posted. Reviews can take a week or three months or more to appear on the site. Do keep an eye on the site, and there is a search bar on KBR that allows you to search for titles.

Important

As we are expecting a large volume of submissions, we are unable to respond to emails. There will be no acknowledgment of receipt, and no follow-up. If you do not hear from us by the end of the first week of THE MONTH AFTER, you can assume your submission has not been successful this time. We regret we cannot respond to follow-up emails.

Unsolicited review submissions will be accepted from 5.00 am Wednesday 28 July 2021 to 5.00 pm Wednesday 18 August 2021 . Please note that this is Sydney Australia time (GMT +10). Emails dated past 5.01pm on 18 August 2021 (Sydney time), no matter where you live in the world, cannot be accepted.

We are looking forward to seeing your submissions!

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Review: Exit Through the Gift Shop

Ok, colour me impressed. This is one heck of a novel. And it's the author's debut, too. Maryam Master tackles the most controversial and sensitive topic there is - death - and does it very well too.Straight from page one, we know that twelve-and-a-half-year-old girl Ana has non Hodgkins lymphoma, which means that she is dying.

Although not a graphic novel, it is heavily illustrated, probably to underscore the humour that runs through and lighten the heavier parts. 

We join Ana some time after she has received the diagnosis - Master avoids the melodrama of the big reveal. We meet Ana when she has digested this news and is dealing with the reality of her illness.

Told in first person, Ana, doesn't sugar coat it.  And please don't imagine Ana is a Beth from Little Women type either. There's no hint of self pity, Ana has so much life, so much vitality. She certainly isn't dead yet and intends to live on her terms. 

Ana's voice bursts from the page and the reader has no choice but to be pulled into her world. She is moving forward, juggling the demands of school, friendship and puberty alongside her chemotherapy and symptoms.

Enter the antagonist. Alyssa Anderson (a nod to Alison Ashley perhaps?) is all blonde perfection. Her mean-girl vibe takes a turn for the bizarre and the reader is left wondering what her motivations really are. Mid-way through, Ana learns what a truly toxic person Alyssa is. 

Ana has a difficult choice to make - to waste her previous time hating Alyssa for her unconscionable actions, or to forgive and let it go. 

And if you think you can predict where this goes, think again. Master throws in another twist around Alyssa's motivations. Ana learns that the world is not neat and that loose ends remain untied.

Overall, there are some tear-jerking moments here, as well as lots of humour. And because the story is told in first person, I think that a younger reader needs to be warned (spoiler alert) to not expect an eleventh hour reprieve. 

Title: Exit Through the Gift Shop 
Author: Maryam Master
Illustrator: Astred Hicks
Publisher: PanMacMillan, $16.99
Publication Date: 27 July 2021
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781760983512
For ages: 8 -12 years
Type: Middle Grade Fiction

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Review: Bee Detectives

Olivia and Hamish are Bee Detectives. Along with their pet Ignatius, they are guides through a wonderful visual and factual tour, highlighting the lives of Australian bees.

It begins with the noise of a chainsaw. The children and their parents hurry out to see a fallen tree with a black mist rising from it. It isn’t smoke but a hive of bees that have made their home in the trunk.

The Bee Team arrive to carry the nest to a new home. The questions pour from Olivia and Hamish. They want to know everything about what the Bee Team is doing.

It is through the course of exchanging the bees’ home from the trunk to a box, that they learn about what goes on in the hive.

Fantastic illustrations and labels on each area of the comb, allow us an inside view on the workings of a hive.

The team waits for night and moves the hive to Olivia and Hamish’s back yard. They are so excited that they have now officially become Bee Detectives.

Along with the children, we learn about social bees and solitary bees. What their roles are, how they live, what they contribute and how much honey they collect each year.

There are 17,000 species of native bees in Australia. A view through a magnifying glass allows a close-up of the various species shown in the book, offering all the personal information on each bee.

The first focus is on the Blue Banded Bee, its scientific name (Amegilla), and how she lives. The Carpenter Bees don’t use hammers or nails. They leave small holes like a Hansel and Gretel trail behind them, so they are easy to follow. The growth of the Carpenter Bee is depicted in cells, from the larvae stage to when they hatch.

Leaf-cutter bee, Resin Bee, and The Australian Native Stingless Bee are amongst those analysed.

How to attract bees to your garden and the benefits attached to it, plus lots of facts about bees are included in this intricately illustrated and highly educational book.

A comprehensive Glossary adds a wealth of information about the highlighted words found between the covers and the vocabulary associated with bees.

Stunning end pages, depict the bees working under circular magnifying glasses which allows you to view their bodies close up.

Title: Bee Detectives
Author: Vanessa Ryan-Rendall
Illustrator: Brenna Quinlan
Publisher: CSIRO, $ 24.99
Publication Date:1 April 2021
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781486313396
For ages: 6 – 9
Type: Non Fiction

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Review: Leilong the Library Bus

Who doesn't love a good story?

We all want to be intrigued and captivated by a fun and engaging tale, and Leilong the Brontosaurus is no exception.

Lelong's friends, Mo, Maggie and Max are excited to introduce Lielong to the wonders of story time at the local library.

He enthusiastically carries his friends to the library, leaving chaos in his wake. 

But to everybody's disappointment, he can't join in.

Being bigger than the building itself presents a few problems.

However, the enterprising bunch soon find a solution that allows Leilong to participate with all of his friends...but maybe the title gives the solution away.

The illustrations are hilarious, and have a crazy, cartoonish vibe to them that matches the story perfectly.

Originally published in Taiwan, the story beautifully captures the essence of the wonder that we all experience with a good book, and the joy of sharing this. 

Title: Leilong the Library Bus
Author: Julia Liu
Illustrator: Bei Lynn
Publisher: Gecko Press, $16.99
Publication Date: 7 July, 2021
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781776573325
For ages: 3+
Type: Picture Book

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Review: Wonderful Shoes

Shoes are wonderful, and Wonderful Shoes is a celebration of all things shoes!

Wonderful Shoes explores the fun of shoes. From gumboots to slippers, different shoes give you the power to do lots of different things. AND… make lots of  sounds.

In gumboots you can STAMP and STOMP. In flippers you can FLIP AND FLOP. In tap shoes you can TIP and TAP. 

ALL the shoe sounds feature throughout the book, making this a highly interactive read that is sure to get kids on their feet. Kids will have loads of fun reading along, making all the fun shoe sounds and pretending their stomping along in all the different shoes. The book is destined for story times and classrooms as well as homes.

Debut children's author Emma Bowd delivers delicious rhyming fun in this timeless picture book tale, but, of course, like all good picture books, the text is only half the story. Award-winning illustrator Tania McCartney creates a whole world on the page in this book. She features kids from across the globe in settings far and wide, from cities to the farm, sunshine to snow. The illustrations also feature traditional shoes from around the world, giving a nod to the fact that shoes have history and important cultural significance.

There’s something really special about kids seeing their parents’ shoes and trying them on, and in Wonderful Shoes we're invited into the beautiful connection between kids and our shoes. In oversized heels and mammoth comfy boots, all the kid characters discover not only the different experiences shoes can deliver, but also the gorgeous silly fun that can be seized when clomping around in giant shoes.

It’s reflective of reality (my daughter is often caught in my heels) but also a brilliant way to spark imagination and play. Put on those gumboots and be a farmer. Pull on those boots and play cities with your pals.

And McCartney’s details are just divine. She captures kid life AND parent life perfectly, infusing little family details that all add up to create an authentic world in paper form. Cups of steaming tea for Mum back from shopping, sandcastle flags made of sticks and drawing on the floor as only kids seem to want to do. I adore this special level of detail in a picture book.

A beautiful and fun rhyming read-aloud, Wonderful Shoes will inspire you to pull on a pair of shoes and play.

Title: Wonderful Shoes
Author: Emma Bowd
Illustrator: Tania McCartney
Publisher: Windy Hollow Books, $25.99
Publication Date: May 2021
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781922081988
For ages: 3 - 6
Type: Picture Book

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Review: Australian Backyard Birdies

Australian Backyard Birdies is a non-fiction book with a bit of a difference.

It's a 'somewhat factual' field guide to some of the birds you might find near where you live.

Birds like the White Ibis (also known as a bin chicken), Willie Wagtail, and Seagulls (which the book also calls beach chickens).

Each bird has a double-page spread which includes a picture of the starring bird and a map of Australia showing where the bird can be found.

There's also a colour palette highlighting the bird's features, and pictures that explain the bird's size in comparison to a bucket.

The bird's scientific name is included, along with a couple of facts. Some facts are a little different to what you might expect in an information book. 

The illustrations are soft and a little bit quirky, and the birds' eyes peer out from the pages at the reader looking at them.

As you read Australian Backyard Birdies, it's like author and illustrator, Andy Geppert is chatting with you, and adding a dash of humour, too. The humour is a good example of the dad jokes referred to on the page about the kookaburra. Watch out for the giant inflatable swan that's included!

Readers will find many of the facts quite memorable. Especially those like a bush turkey's nest mound being able to be bigger than your mum's car!

Australian Backyard Birdies is a good introduction to birds for young children, and could be used as a nature activity at school or at home in the backyard. It can also be a prompt for discovering the truth about each of the birds.

Title: Australian Backyard Birdies
Author/Illustrator: Andy Geppert
Publisher: Lothian Children's Books, $ 19.99
Publication Date: July 2021
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9780734420695
For ages: 4-8 year olds
Type: Junior Non-Fiction

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Giveaway: Echo In The Memory

Announcement: The Environment Award for Children's Literature 2021 by Wilderness Society: Shortlist!

Guest Review by Ria Banerjee: Thursday's Child

There is something comforting and calming about reading children's books. This feeling makes me want to go back to them again and again. Noel Streatfeild's books have always been my favourites in this genre. They are inspirational, full of diverse characters and adventures, and Thursday's Child is no exception.

Margaret Thursday is a foundling discovered at the doorstep of a church with three of everything of the best quality. She was named after the day she was found. She receives money every year from an anonymous person for her expenses and happily lives with Hannah, the caretaker of two old ladies of the Cameron family at Saltmarsh House.

When all of sudden the money stops coming for Margaret, her life takes a new turn. The Cameron ladies and Hannah are not financially well enough to raise her. Therefore, Margaret is sent to an orphanage which has a good reputation.

Margaret soon discovers that the cruel and cunning Matron of the orphanage bullies the children, subjects them to hard labour and does not properly feed and clothe them. Nobody outside the orphanage is allowed to know about these activities. Margaret faces all kinds of punishments for her outspoken nature, but never gives up the hope of escaping from the place.

One day Margaret discovers something that may put her friends into trouble, and decides to run away, along with her friend Lavinia's brother Peter and his little brother Horatio. They embark on an adventurous journey from the orphanage through the canals of England on a boat and they even travel around with an acting company. Their escapade is full of moments of tension and fun.

In contrast to the Matron at the orphanage, there are many kind-hearted grown-ups who help the children all along. The relationships portrayed in the book are heart-warming.

All of the children have their unique characteristics. Lavinia is the oldest of them, and therefore she is a wise and mature girl. Margaret is kind, brave, ambitious and clever but she likes to tell exaggerated stories about her background. Peter loves to read books and usually stays quiet. Horatio is a very small child who tends to speak the truth. Interestingly, each one of them have qualities that play significant parts in the story.

This is a beautiful story about friendship, courage and believing in oneself. I recommend this book not only to children, but to all grown-ups who want to find the joy of their childhood in reading.

Title: Thursday's Child
Author: Noel Streatfeild

Publisher: William Collins, Sons, Harper Collins, $14.99
Publication Date:  First published1970. April 2020

ISBN: 9780008244057
For Ages: 9 - 12

Type: Middle Grade Fiction

You'll find Ria at her website, Booklovers' Guide.

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Review: Enough Love?

Enough Love? is a picture book to celebrate. It’s a picture book to share, and a picture book to make you think.

In Enough Love? we’re introduced to Willa. Willa has one mum, one dad, one home and one bird. And that’s enough.

But when Willa’s parents get divorced, things change. One home becomes two. And when Willa’s dad meets Kevin, one dad becomes two. A little sister arrives, and that’s enough.

Until things change again.

At the end, things are very different from where they started. There are more pets and more siblings. There are stepsiblings too. 

Willa’s family grows bigger and connections expand. Things change but there is always love. And even though change brings challenge and frustrations, in the end Willa finds space in her heart to love everyone… with maybe even some space for more.

Enough Love? is a beautiful exploration of family, love and change. It shines a light on a different family that maybe isn’t so different after all. Family is about love, right? And whether your family is two people or ten, if there is love, does it really matter how many mums, dads, pets and siblings are part of it?

What I adore most about this book is that all the meaning I’ve just pulled from it is my own. The book tells the story of a young girl and her changing family — the emotions that come with change. But it in no way hits you over the head with morals or messages.

Author Maggie Hutchings delivers this in all her picture books. The story is the hero, and the meaning is there for the reader to find. If they want to. Hutchings creates little worlds on paper, and you, the reader, get to step into these worlds when you open the covers.

Evie Barrow brings colourful joy to this book with her stunning illustrations. In beautiful hand drawn style, Barrow’s illustrations are filled with details and emotion. They perfectly capture family life, with brooms in the corner of the room, kid art on the fridge and bobby pins on the bathroom sink. All the characters have strong visual personalities, bringing them to life. Simply gorgeous!

If you’re looking for a book to show kids that families come in all shapes and sizes, this is the one. If you’re looking for a book that helps kids navigate change, this is the one. If you’re looking for a book that celebrates love and family, this is the one.

It’s a book for so many occasions, and at the end of the day it’s just really good storytelling.

For more great picture books by Maggie Hutchings, make sure you check out I saw Pete and Pete Saw Me and Your Birthday was the Best. For more delicious illustrations by Evie Barrow, make sure you check out Howl and Horatio Squeak.

Title: Enough Love?
Author: Maggie Hutchings
Illustrator: Evie Barrow
Publisher: Affirm Press, $24.99
Publication Date: 29 June 2021
Format: Hard Cover
ISBN: 9781922400833
For ages: 3 - 6 
Type: Picture Book

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