Christmas Countdown Crunch Time! Days 17 - 24!
I’ve been indulging in (almost) daily posts, savouring some of my standout reading recommendations for Christmas this year but like any Christmas feast, the time has come to harness gluttony and reduce mouthfuls to meaningful bite-sized tastes. So here is a super quick, but delicious, sample of some more cracking good reads to cram into your kids’ stockings this year. They sure beat lumps of coal!
There’s A Zoo InMy Poo
The title alone entices further
inspection. But as we all know, or should, poo is life and maintaining a
healthy gut system is key to happy poos and happy YOU! This book explores the
microscopic stew of your inners, examining up-close and personal the zoo of
bugs your gut harbours and how and why they are super critical for good health.
As head zookeeper, it’s a tricky job keeping every bug happy but this nifty
guide for youngsters is brilliant for explaining what to feed your bugs
(recipes included!) and how to keep them strong and diverse. Explicit and
excellent, this book takes poo to the next (fun) level.
Title:
There’s A Zoo In My Poo
Author: Professor Felice Jacka
Illustrator: Rob Craw
Publisher: Pan Macmillan, $24.99
Publication Date: July 2020
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781760783044
For ages: 5+
Type: Non Fiction Picture Book, Junior Non Fiction
Buy the
Book: Pan Macmillan, Boomerang Books
Scientists Who Changed the World: Charles Darwin
Older readers will soak up scientific facts with
glee in this stylish and sleek non-fiction series sporting several well-known
scientists. Rachel Carson, Albert Einstein, Galileo Galilei, Stephen Hawking
and Sir Isaac Newton are but some of the scientists featured, each of whom have
changed our world and thinking in some brilliant way. The names and
contributions may be familiar to young people, but the stories behind their
ideas and theories are revealed in this series with unambiguous detail creating
an enviable resource library. Each title introduces these great people with a
brief but grabbing biology, gradually guiding the reader through a profusion of
facts and achievements and what their impact on the scientific world meant and
still means for mankind. Photographs, line drawings and a student-friendly
extended references section complement this superlative series.
Title:
Scientists Who Changed The World: various
Author: Anita Croy
Publisher: EK Books, $24.99
Publication Date: May 2020
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781925820706 (Charles Darwin)
various
For ages: 6+
Type: Non Fiction Picture Book, Non Fiction for Older Reader
Buy the
Book: EK Books, Boomerang Books
Robots: The Future Is Now
Ears prick and heartbeats quicken whenever the
word, robots is uttered. Kids seem to
adore the notion of artificial intelligence as a means to avoid making ones bed
and walking the dog. But what are robots really? And how can we safely harness
their technology for the greater good? This book is a brilliant resource for
primary aged kids that explores the mythology, current and future impact robots
have on society. Even the concept of Uncanny Valley is conveyed in kid-friendly
fashion. I love this although find the whole AI thing slightly unnerving. Still,
this is one book that is sure to win praise in the robotics class.
Title: Robots:
The Future Is Now
Author: Charles Hope
Publisher: Wild Dog Books, $24.99
Publication Date: June 2020
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781742034799
For ages: 7 – 10
Type: Junior Non Fiction
Buy the
Book: Wild Dog Books, Boomerang Books
Maths Mutts series: All About Time
Maths Mutts is a picture book stylised ‘raise-the-question’ type
junior non-fiction series. And it has
dogs therefore oodles of ‘aww ooh’ appeal but importantly it covers essential maths-related
concepts; in this case, time. Readers
are advised from the get go what to expect, what they will learn and things
they can ponder over later. I love how full coloured images of puzzling pups
adorn every page encouraging youngsters to explore and ‘try it for themselves’. Exercises are simple enough for lower
grade-aged children and reinforce how to tell the time, measure it and
understand its machinations…something I still struggle with! All
About Time concludes with a reminder that time
is constantly moving forward and can never be repeated (without a TARDIS in any
case), therefore we should all spend it in the most enjoyable ways we can, like
giving your dog a good pat. Timely advice indeed.
Title:
Maths Mutts: All About Time
Author: Charles Hope
Publisher: Wild Dog Books, $24.99
Publication Date: October 2020
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781742035994
For ages: 5 – 8
Type: Junior Non Fiction
Buy the
Book: Wild Dog Books, Boomerang Books
Show Me The Money
Even small children cotton on to the concept of
value and exchange so it’s little wonder we all hold a fascination for money.
We all crave for more of it but think little of handing it over for things we
deem ‘must-have’. This insightful production encourages children to slow down
and take a closer look at their pocket money, in particular the people and
imagery used on Australian currency. After a brief visit to colonial times, Show Me The Money, instructs readers
about currency in circulation, its current security features and then most
impressively, explains each side of every note in detail. Not only will this
encourage a closer look at what is normally just stuffed into wallets or back
pockets but also a deeper appreciation of the painstaking design incorporated
into our unique medium of exchange, not to mention how helpful this will be in
trivia quizzes! A handy timeline and glossary complete this fascinating
show-and-tell experience that is ultimately a story of colonised Australia.
Title:
Show Me The Money
Author: Sue Lawson and Karen Tayleur
Publisher: Wild Dog Books, $24.99
Publication Date: October 2020
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781742035898
For ages: 7+
Type: Junior Non Fiction
Buy the
Book: Wild Dog Books, Boomerang Books
Playing With Collage
Most of us are familiar with Jeannie Baker’s
stunning picture book classics, most of which feature her artful illustrative
collage creations. Now for the first time, the artist shares her secrets in the
sumptuous feast of tips and tricks. What you need and how to find it is broken
down into step-by-step discussion accompanied by equally detailed photographs.
Baker addresses the reader from a first person point of view creating a real
teacher-student vibe that is both inviting and intimate. Specifics are chunked
together in four main sections: Paper,
Out In Nature, On The Beach and In The Kitchen and the materials displayed
need to be seen to be believed! Who knew vermicelli might make a gorgeous
display. This book fosters creativity in spades and will give young
art-and-crafters endless projects to work on. Almost too good to leave out on
the craft table!
Title:
Playing With Collage
Author: Jeannie Baker
Publisher: Walker Books, $27.99
Publication Date: June 2019
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9781406378665
For ages: 5+
Type: Non Fiction
Buy the
Book: Walker Books, Boomerang Books
Dr Seuss’s Horse Museum
A horse is
many different things to many different people. So is art… Art. It’s not just short for Arthur you know and in this incredible
illustrated non-fiction work based on a manuscript and sketches by the
renowned, Dr Seuss, children and adults alike will learn about art, horses and
most profoundly, themselves. Andrew Joyner’s jolly illustrations are faithful
to Seuss’s original sketches which escort the reader through a museum of
wonder, speculation, revelation and actual horse-inspired art by real artists.
Several artistic styles are discussed in conversational kid style; so clear and
engaging even an art boob like me can learn something new. Great lengths are
taken to encourage viewing art and indeed life from different perspectives.
This is after all what makes us unique and what makes every artist’s impression
of a horse so singular and special, too. Look
it over. Think it over. Talk it over; a credence of life that suggests
there is no right or wrong way to judge or enjoy art. This is a book to
enlighten, entertain and charm in ways to great too measure. Highly recommended
for budding artists, philosophers, lovers of Seuss and horses and admirers of
fine art. Brilliant.
Title:
Dr Seuss’s Horse Museum
Author: Dr Seuss
Illustrator: Andrew Joyner
Publisher: Penguin Random House, $ 27.99
Publication Date: September 2019
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 9780241425725
For ages: 7+
Type: Illustrated Non Fiction
Buy the Book: Boomerang Books, Booktopia
Fearless Footsteps: True Stories ThatCapture The Spirit of Adventure
Intrepid Times
introduces this colourful and stirring collection of travel anecdotes,
recollections and harrowing incidents with the notion that ‘the difference between travel and adventure
is the presence of fear’. I couldn’t agree more. Even a leisurely sojourn
can morph into a heart-racing experience of dread when heightened by feelings
of isolation and anxiousness brought about by an inability to understand the
language, culture or motivations of the land through which you are trekking.
But without this kind of innate unease, the edge of adventure is eroded.
Excitement and a sense of triumph are sometimes best savoured after your guts
have roiled a little with terror.
This is why I wrote
about one of my fearful travel encounters and why I am deliriously proud to
have it included in this anthology. But perhaps more telling, is how much I’ve
enjoyed travelling again, albeit vicariously, through the tales of others.
These true stories about staring down fear full in the face told through the
eyes of fellow travellers, trekkers, and hustlers of life keen to, well … live…
are truly emotional and inspirational. Not only do they entertain and enthral
(some causing audible gasping), they demonstrate the sheer tensile strength of
the human will and our ability to endure. A quality, like this book, to value
and revere and one adults and young adults alike will relish.
Title:
Fearless Footsteps: True Stories That Capture The Spirit of Adventure
Author: Dimity Powell, Various
Editors: Nathan James Thomas and
Jennifer Roberts
Publisher: Exisle Publishing, $29.99
Publication Date: November 2020
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781925820577
For ages: 15+
Type: Non Fiction Anthology
Buy the
Book: Exisle Publishing, Dimity Powell (for signed copies), Boomerang Books
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