tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32443648691834060602024-03-10T12:47:25.399+10:00Dim's Write StuffChildren's Author Dimity PowellDimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.comBlogger430125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-88860353725959602024-03-06T05:00:00.048+10:002024-03-06T05:00:00.139+10:00DIM'S DICTIONARY OF DYNAMIC READS: Once Upon A Time In Space …<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRMyNBCehDyKMBUkJjX95ghg2_ZYPBuWKUKi9IQI_qchHSkPST2W4_XmtZbWWqZP65QZYOtMSXKqAfiFlipf_KS3TdGcnp9s44p-xrGWFQuv9FZ6rye-eqzWGGWKHmy_cpgJayhrxChW5pH1D9TVeh0E4hKjcoRVjYBkk14BCVBIiv1aVn6YXErhQE8Ibr/s5120/Blogging%20Pics6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2880" data-original-width="5120" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRMyNBCehDyKMBUkJjX95ghg2_ZYPBuWKUKi9IQI_qchHSkPST2W4_XmtZbWWqZP65QZYOtMSXKqAfiFlipf_KS3TdGcnp9s44p-xrGWFQuv9FZ6rye-eqzWGGWKHmy_cpgJayhrxChW5pH1D9TVeh0E4hKjcoRVjYBkk14BCVBIiv1aVn6YXErhQE8Ibr/w640-h360/Blogging%20Pics6.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />The meaning of life. The beginning
of time. Existential significance for human kind. Pretty hefty topics for
pre-schoolers and those over 14 years of age. And yet, here are an eclectic
collection of picture books that I feel do these notions proud. Funny,
informative and touching; the scope is broad as are the concepts but their
combined purpose further serves to broaden our children’s minds in the aspects
of time and space and humanity. Enjoy!<p></p><p><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaiNWRgjBiaGYtJ5U4o7MriUpbw43_x5DtlhL_sQonJHIqMjtS-uCY8mUa5X67jhgjWvRGlBQE0ISqgKdmo5lzxGItw8BOraSkp-JpW109i11Op8ou2TFHcVsXtRuzF_0fzpfR5LmQvgCfyPFET25dm4z08Qrcejqj1ymKv1n2wNKLdwu61aInIZwMDp2c/s648/Ada%20and%20the%20Galaxy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="648" data-original-width="621" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaiNWRgjBiaGYtJ5U4o7MriUpbw43_x5DtlhL_sQonJHIqMjtS-uCY8mUa5X67jhgjWvRGlBQE0ISqgKdmo5lzxGItw8BOraSkp-JpW109i11Op8ou2TFHcVsXtRuzF_0fzpfR5LmQvgCfyPFET25dm4z08Qrcejqj1ymKv1n2wNKLdwu61aInIZwMDp2c/w614-h640/Ada%20and%20the%20Galaxy.jpg" width="614" /></a></div><p><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781536215618/"><b>Ada And The Galaxies</b></a> by Alan Lightman and Olga Pastuchiv and
Susanna Chapman</p><p><o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Ada loves the night sky and not just
for its twinkling stars. Yet living in the city can make it difficult to
appreciate distant galaxies of stars, let alone see them! So, when Ada spends
time with her grandparents at their seaside home, new universes of nature, meteorology
and space become accessible in the most spectacular way. Visually arresting and
factually fascinating. A gem in the night sky.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Walker Books Australia (Mit Kids
Press imprint), September 2021 ISBN: 9781536215618<o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiONhpKkI-enDE5VVzy86ZEtQoTUlKmfHYsJOrJgpRmca-laR7UcvcO11dHWzQkh6bNWhX24KvLAuxXY0txS_0MyVmjl9T7RIWyrJgTykQlLeZZcI9kIstFIaIApHaR185vAqMg7Yr3bQo4oMzq662D0IQcj3BEagSi-D3ekYMUBAVtXb7bHAhLj1CjJenl/s3307/Darwin%20on%20the%20Origin%20of%20the%20Speices.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3307" data-original-width="2610" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiONhpKkI-enDE5VVzy86ZEtQoTUlKmfHYsJOrJgpRmca-laR7UcvcO11dHWzQkh6bNWhX24KvLAuxXY0txS_0MyVmjl9T7RIWyrJgTykQlLeZZcI9kIstFIaIApHaR185vAqMg7Yr3bQo4oMzq662D0IQcj3BEagSi-D3ekYMUBAVtXb7bHAhLj1CjJenl/w506-h640/Darwin%20on%20the%20Origin%20of%20the%20Speices.jpg" width="506" /></a></div><p><a href="https://www.penguin.com.au/books/on-the-origin-of-species-9780141388519"><b>Charles Darwin’s On The Origin Of Species</b></a> retold and illustrated by Sabina Radeva</p><p><o:p></o:p></p>
<p>This is a bright and glorious
introduction to the man, his meanings and of course his amazing findings and
theories. Natural selection is suffused into each page with scientific
simplicity ensuring understanding. A sensible yet interesting layout with mixed
used of vignettes, full page colour and alternating font shades aid allure and
boosts knowledge that evolution is a wondrous perpetual circumstance. Highly
recommended classroom reading. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Penguin Books, February 2022 ISBN:
9780141388519<o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmvdGOLwg8LX4ze4INRf_eAkXQtKB0bIZwAEGN2vptr97uoVKTpQh0avNxiEVfInwRaqJig3a_Y0_THZoUXKcrEleIt5reafOcDC7pMTm6jF4hTP9iz5Y6RWCC_lA9wp8OIpbOCiSqEO9mc7bHbpxV8M2z92fbSgrZSvR7QqkbHIg0yh1tKWpJSYmjZwJq/s648/Meanwhile%20Back%20on%20Earth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="648" data-original-width="555" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmvdGOLwg8LX4ze4INRf_eAkXQtKB0bIZwAEGN2vptr97uoVKTpQh0avNxiEVfInwRaqJig3a_Y0_THZoUXKcrEleIt5reafOcDC7pMTm6jF4hTP9iz5Y6RWCC_lA9wp8OIpbOCiSqEO9mc7bHbpxV8M2z92fbSgrZSvR7QqkbHIg0yh1tKWpJSYmjZwJq/w548-h640/Meanwhile%20Back%20on%20Earth.jpg" width="548" /></a></div><p><a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780008555450/meanwhile-back-on-earth/"><b>Meanwhile Back On Earth</b></a> by Oliver Jeffers</p><p><o:p></o:p></p>
<p>While on the topic of packing enough
snacks for intra galaxy travel (re. <i>Ada And The Galaxies</i>), this bigger
than average (double the normal length) picture book by the incredible Oliver
Jeffers is a deep dive into our Solar System so you’ll need to triple your
snack quota. Jeffers melts the rigors of a long car journey with young kids
into an exploration of our galaxy and Earth’s place within it. It’s a
conceptual comparison of (the trivial fruitily of) historic events with space
and the extreme wonderful almost limitless of it all. Speeds and distances are
matched with the punitive timeline of human existence creating a comprehensible
yet mind blowing journey of realisation and wonderment. Easy to share and
marvel over. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p>HarperCollins Australia, October
2022, ISBN: 9780008555450<o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0JN-tGYm5eLKINoLUar_FZpIhB14qgxn-WFykS_tBTRxlU_noVs4gxPQfE0dzGwkgYIsA_F9ssNKV8ef3RPs21rV3RnGUE_268T_OK-cHEv4nuHeMi9jFGfT4aFxLD_TOOKSi2LJhZ6GMpnwkFAw72ltH_VqRHXXSImcLUA8AS8RLm1-jLMAqv5-3Gdoh/s1048/Scientists%20Saving%20The%20World.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1048" data-original-width="900" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0JN-tGYm5eLKINoLUar_FZpIhB14qgxn-WFykS_tBTRxlU_noVs4gxPQfE0dzGwkgYIsA_F9ssNKV8ef3RPs21rV3RnGUE_268T_OK-cHEv4nuHeMi9jFGfT4aFxLD_TOOKSi2LJhZ6GMpnwkFAw72ltH_VqRHXXSImcLUA8AS8RLm1-jLMAqv5-3Gdoh/w550-h640/Scientists%20Saving%20The%20World.jpg" width="550" /></a></div><p><a href="https://thamesandhudson.com.au/product/scientists-are-saving-the-world-so-who-is-working-on-time-travel/"><b>Scientists Are Saving The World!</b></a> by Saskia Gwinn and Ana Albero</p><p><o:p></o:p></p>
<p>And just how you may wonder, are
they doing that? Delve into this graphic picture book presentation which
proposes answers and then dutifully backs them up with facts and the names of
those living the scientific dream. Palaeontologists, astronauts, conservationists,
climatologists, doctors, geologists and marine biologists are just some of the
scientists featured by name and job description. Whether diving among sharks or
travelling through time, kids will hang on every fascinating speech bubbled
revelation and gain an insight of those saving our world not only from our past
and current history but also of themselves; from the very things they ask,
watch and wonder about too. The scientists of tomorrow! <o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Magic Cat Publishing, July 2022
ISBN: 97814913520540<o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKp_2DCtVVkPFv-1tY568OF6jYvINNxTwGfrKdDi-VdUdwGMlEgj06q3CvnguF0g2n32C3Fqcv5C3PoI9AHk6Ynqyj2yAupDre3MPVs413R3-LOlxk8fq6fbAZBjQrdU7ftU9kI38Al9RncQENCWi6kc-MbY1GOqkEh6PPwTrubXupSMWINTeUF4LZAdgr/s1168/It%E2%80%99s%20Up%20to%20Us__9781913750558.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1168" data-original-width="1054" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKp_2DCtVVkPFv-1tY568OF6jYvINNxTwGfrKdDi-VdUdwGMlEgj06q3CvnguF0g2n32C3Fqcv5C3PoI9AHk6Ynqyj2yAupDre3MPVs413R3-LOlxk8fq6fbAZBjQrdU7ftU9kI38Al9RncQENCWi6kc-MbY1GOqkEh6PPwTrubXupSMWINTeUF4LZAdgr/w578-h640/It%E2%80%99s%20Up%20to%20Us__9781913750558.jpeg" width="578" /></a></div><p><b><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781913750558/">It’s Up To Us: A
Children’s Terra Carta For Nature, People & Planet</a></b> by Christopher Lloyd</p><p><o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Like the magna carta, this children’s
terra carta originates from the roadmap of sustainability issued by his then
Royal Highness, The Prince of Wales (King Charles III). It is a gloriously illustrated
pictorial mandate and promise to our future generations that while the
seemingly unstoppable wave of destructive human practises continue to burden
Nature and threaten our planet’s wellbeing, all is not lost.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p>It is a determined and undeterred
cry for support. A stirring assurance that if we ALL join forces to preserve
and nurture Nature, she in turn will ensure a long and healthy existence for us
all here on Earth. It is a plea to listen, collaborate, act and acknowledge that
the sum of our efforts will eventually, hopefully, amount to more than the multitude
of really dumb thoughtless things we humans inflict on each other and mother
Earth. Tactfully divided into parts addressing the big picture, nature, people
and the terra carta itself, each illustrated by 33 different artists from
around the world, this production includes a forward by HRH The Prince of Wales
and the original language of the preface of this important document. Gripping
stuff and a useful starting point for initiators of change. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Walker Books Australia (Imprint What
On Earth Books), March 2022 ISBN: 9781913750558<o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc-fVZKVWzOWjQp-UmQw3wC4DnH3duBNAYialRJOk24UJzVIVXi2KV4GTj4vDMd1kxb5y9Qa3X55z3sSISMCSCshcOcqNzqcOYAgJBEgdpSyVvXuqx4BqXfcHhXWyfixkGeLvAqxBNxm3LDmPTju8_65LXAopes4mKv929qSU2I4WQRLChAc3d66AYaMRh/s1225/Comet__9781838740658.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1225" data-original-width="1045" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc-fVZKVWzOWjQp-UmQw3wC4DnH3duBNAYialRJOk24UJzVIVXi2KV4GTj4vDMd1kxb5y9Qa3X55z3sSISMCSCshcOcqNzqcOYAgJBEgdpSyVvXuqx4BqXfcHhXWyfixkGeLvAqxBNxm3LDmPTju8_65LXAopes4mKv929qSU2I4WQRLChAc3d66AYaMRh/w546-h640/Comet__9781838740658.jpeg" width="546" /></a></div><p><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781838740658/"><b>The Comet</b></a> by Joe Todd-Stanton</p><p><o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Embossed in swirling gold foil and
laden with colour-soaked pages, this tale told in first person harnesses the
glories of nature, family and imagination. It also encompasses change when a
young girl and her father are forced to leave their beautiful country home for
the city. The radical upheaval and girl’s inability to share her father’s
precious time and stories coincide with her inability to see the stars clearly
anymore either. Until one night, she spies a comet and from then on, magic
blooms. This lux production underlines the importance of sticking together even
when colossal shifts in our universes occur. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Walker Books Australia (Flying Eye
Books imprint), July 2022 ISBN: 9781838740658<o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrXiHg6wxLjd3vJKnB8IJFbCa9Rc0iuXJ9x0PP-NrcPX5SzF2_tBUwmLTzufSxV2408CGfMO3I5ThakBYAhmmSA3WKSX8pC-OjuTxAlbtvf1t2uWXmMyI2SLJBAk5A_t8YwuApFNLpa1Ohkp9E7LiAqL3tlIVJFxvHRE27eNUt1QOzGYXF7pJwQYLyxyrv/s3118/We%20Go%20Way%20Back.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3118" data-original-width="2988" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrXiHg6wxLjd3vJKnB8IJFbCa9Rc0iuXJ9x0PP-NrcPX5SzF2_tBUwmLTzufSxV2408CGfMO3I5ThakBYAhmmSA3WKSX8pC-OjuTxAlbtvf1t2uWXmMyI2SLJBAk5A_t8YwuApFNLpa1Ohkp9E7LiAqL3tlIVJFxvHRE27eNUt1QOzGYXF7pJwQYLyxyrv/w614-h640/We%20Go%20Way%20Back.jpg" width="614" /></a></div><p><a href="https://www.allenandunwin.com/browse/book/Idan-Ben-Barak,-illustrated-by-Philip-Bunting-We-Go-Way-Back-9781760526085/"><b>We Go Way Back</b></a> by Idan Ben-Barak and Philip Bunting</p><p><o:p></o:p></p>
<p>This is a book about life and how it
all began so naturally it’s a little longer than your average picture book. In
the most basic sense, it strips back creation to one simple question: <i>What is
life?</i> And does so in a clear, concise and creative way. Swirling typeset fonts,
colour filled family trees, and the obligatory timeslips back to the beginning
of the world mesh harmoniously together making the multi-milieu of magic know
as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abiogenesis#:~:text=The%20prevailing%20scientific%20hypothesis%20is,%2C%20self%2Dassembly%2C%20autocatalysis%2C">abiogenesis.</a> (I told you some of this stuff was beyond
adults!). Fun factual, accessible reading. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Allen & Unwin, August 2021 ISBN:
9781760526085<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></b> </p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-51483543648529516672024-02-21T05:00:00.051+10:002024-02-23T22:26:42.989+10:00Review: Red Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4oMQ8dYy0b2Csl3-iPcdDNfBqXF3OQbmy-qnO7CpeJA_1ld4ZMBzD9bHdszJDJknhg0ehFKdGz7uwooeuKS1Sm8HlA7vBRKM5zGMqNO1nQl0Ig9byoMzR0DqEmJHAH04ftLP_C4sRaid2F9GAEXBlIkcslEWKAeeYuLjAJBRoHpuW8hRg0TMDMGSgEvNc/s1225/Red%20Day__9781760652449.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1225" data-original-width="795" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4oMQ8dYy0b2Csl3-iPcdDNfBqXF3OQbmy-qnO7CpeJA_1ld4ZMBzD9bHdszJDJknhg0ehFKdGz7uwooeuKS1Sm8HlA7vBRKM5zGMqNO1nQl0Ig9byoMzR0DqEmJHAH04ftLP_C4sRaid2F9GAEXBlIkcslEWKAeeYuLjAJBRoHpuW8hRg0TMDMGSgEvNc/w416-h640/Red%20Day__9781760652449.jpeg" width="416" /></a></div><br />Charlie lives in a regional Australian town with a colourful past. Charlie also has synaesthesia. To describe her as supersensative is not quite right. She just senses things differently, intensely. Days of the weeks have colours. People have auras and sounds have scents. <div><br /></div><div>She's accustomed to her unique ways of perceiving the world, it is after all all she has ever known. But when Japanese exchange student, Kenichi is relegated to her dead brother's bedroom for part of her new school term, Charlie's senses intensify to the point she begins to suffer flashbacks accompanied by violent and unpredictable visceral reactions. </div><div><br /></div><div>Despite Charlie's determined stance to keep Kenichi, aka Ken, at arm's length (loving the Japanese culture is her mum's jam not hers), they soon come to realise they are inextricably linked not only to each other but to unravelling a puzzling mystery surrounding the infamous Cowra Breakout. </div><div><br /><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/creator/fussell-sandy/" target="_blank">Sandy Fussell</a> has a natural flow and rhythm to her stories that envelope and involve the reader with unassuming ease. This one, told with eloquence, charm and enough humour to normalise everything, resonates honesty and authenticity despite it's tentative time slipping qualities. Charlie and Kenichi begin as opposites and conclude as bonded equals. Their experiences which oscillate around Charlie's synaesthesia traits is both intriguing and enriching.<div><br /><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synesthesia" target="_blank">Synaesthesia</a> is a condition that presents in 2 - 4 % of the (Australian) population. It's documentation in fictional narratives such as this one is a welcome and valuable way of introducing neurodiversity to youngsters while acknowledging the infinite wonders and mysteries of the human mind and its makeup.<br /><br />Fussell's <i><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760652449/" target="_blank">Red Day</a></i> takes this one step further promoting the acceptance of being 'synth' while exploring one of the more significant moments (the Cowra Breakout) in Australia's (and Japan's) wartime history. Fascinating, stirring stuff and highly recommended reading.</div></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Title:</b> Red Day</div><div><b>Author: </b>Sandy Fussell</div><div><b>Publisher:</b> Walker Books Australia, $17.99</div><div><b>Publication Date:</b> March 2020</div><div><b>Format:</b> Paperback</div><div><b>ISBN:</b> 9781760651866</div><div><b>For ages:</b> 9+</div><div><b>Type:</b> Middle Grade Fiction</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Buy the Book:<a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760652449/" target="_blank"> Walker Books Australia, Boomerang Books</a></b></div>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-19641662712050237982024-02-05T05:00:00.042+10:002024-02-05T05:00:00.143+10:00Review: The Corner Of My Eye<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQS3lxBbj5s_d4lhyj3S_udxPCyMVWD5PAVkm-B5ZB_G38h0jc8hSAhC7e5ToEPSH2NO28-ea_5Hwp5MprEGW1xH95qbvzOxPRGxmqoz0Z7SHCvyX0To9VAqxfbQ9-ze9jDb_7VLNuXW7FqNz-iOjDw2-g4k1aBZAUIxZOaOSHMgBvifTxSWylC1X0Mxcf/s1225/Corner%20of%20My%20Eye__9781925381931%20(1).jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1225" data-original-width="939" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQS3lxBbj5s_d4lhyj3S_udxPCyMVWD5PAVkm-B5ZB_G38h0jc8hSAhC7e5ToEPSH2NO28-ea_5Hwp5MprEGW1xH95qbvzOxPRGxmqoz0Z7SHCvyX0To9VAqxfbQ9-ze9jDb_7VLNuXW7FqNz-iOjDw2-g4k1aBZAUIxZOaOSHMgBvifTxSWylC1X0Mxcf/w490-h640/Corner%20of%20My%20Eye__9781925381931%20(1).jpeg" width="490" /></a></div><br />Thompson's work never fails to enthrall and entertain. This is a majestic foray into the minds of two very different people; one in old age with the onset of dementia, struggling with the enormity of making sense of a lifetime of memories. The other his granddaughter determined to find what he has 'lost'.<br /><br /><div>The search takes both them and the the reader through a detailed adventure of perception, memory, reflection and finally resignation. Some lost things are never found, like time and youth but with kindness and understanding, their previous existence can be cherished.<br /><br />Full page spreads burst with colour, clever jokes, ties to previous works and well-known entities. None of us really know what we are looking, but Thompson prompts us to search anyway. The whole effect has a rather Graeme Base feel to it which is brilliant in my book. </div><div><br /></div><div>The use of colour, deliberate placement of 'clues' and exploration of 'normal' locations within a home keep minds and eyes active whilst all the while preparing us for the inevitable. Busy images replicate jumbled minds and memories, each quirky reflection compartmentalised yet still wonderfully loose, wild and eclectic.<br /><br />I love this interpretation of one's deepest long term memories. It is how I envisage the shelves of my memory banks to look and if anything in my life is allowed to be messy, then this place should be it. As Thompson explains, nothing is really lost. It's just our ability the remember where we 'put it' or to remember which shelf in the home of our lives things are, that is diminished with time. That is life. And this book introduces young readers to it in the most enticing, gentle and extraordinary way.<div><br /><br /><b>Title:</b> The Corner Of My Eye<br /><b>Author Illustrator:</b> Colin Thompson<br /><b>Publisher:</b> Walker Books Australia, $26.99<br /><b>Publication date:</b> 1 October 2019<br /><b>Format:</b> Hardcover<br /><b>ISBN:</b> 9781925381931<br /><b>For Ages: </b>3 - 8<br /><b>Type:</b> Picture Book </div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Buy the Book:</b> <a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781925381931/" target="_blank">Walker Books Australia,</a> <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/the-corner-of-my-eye/colin-thompson/book_9781925381931.htm" target="_blank">Boomerang Books</a></div></div>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-25965293511675540912024-01-29T05:00:00.061+10:002024-01-29T05:00:00.133+10:00DIM’S DICTIONARY OF DYNAMIC READS: Built With Love<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMVPjVqIQjXGbrrilREfQYhrRQWYWTGBwM3YlHz-A_nq4GXod5w5Br4yLX2pkg7ZkW9lzo3qt4W_Y7KgRvTX0VJ39v2DpWcjvUnqg-mRX3WYTnK0KT-4fwBewB5mnPCZSFNv7v_PpgAbyuwCcTslwuYwDc4F_Fnf9AbxInBcoq2t7hGJwMw2D2L7Wwqdu3/s5120/Blogging%20Pics5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2880" data-original-width="5120" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMVPjVqIQjXGbrrilREfQYhrRQWYWTGBwM3YlHz-A_nq4GXod5w5Br4yLX2pkg7ZkW9lzo3qt4W_Y7KgRvTX0VJ39v2DpWcjvUnqg-mRX3WYTnK0KT-4fwBewB5mnPCZSFNv7v_PpgAbyuwCcTslwuYwDc4F_Fnf9AbxInBcoq2t7hGJwMw2D2L7Wwqdu3/w640-h360/Blogging%20Pics5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />Picture books are renowned for
tackling a plethora of subjects that illuminate imaginative thought and
spark creativity. None more so than those centred around construction,
building, <i>making</i>. As an adult, I am constantly moved and enlightened by
the ability of humans to design and create homes to shelter in and communities
to thrive amongst. Imagine then how enthralling these types of books are for
youngsters. This crafty collection of recent releases escorts young readers
from architectural triumphs, to design to the notion of ‘home is where the
heart (or pet) is’. Enjoy!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCu83BZorW32fVbEsOTlTWcrDfaVD8i0PCQJ6LbNN-LbzJzyNzCerIfFKNe-5sVSHQouFFsH_PwfjPXK7ATpIYVKnmXUaRpfRXTBMXBGhuaEfGvwk7DDKQxUCufDqW7g7YAmBiM7CF1rtV8Gv8uoDAzdtV_UlPdkXJ_wQ2p_1_84L3AY2BYh7VCqQjCXAZ/s654/Digby%20and%20Claude.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="654" data-original-width="550" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCu83BZorW32fVbEsOTlTWcrDfaVD8i0PCQJ6LbNN-LbzJzyNzCerIfFKNe-5sVSHQouFFsH_PwfjPXK7ATpIYVKnmXUaRpfRXTBMXBGhuaEfGvwk7DDKQxUCufDqW7g7YAmBiM7CF1rtV8Gv8uoDAzdtV_UlPdkXJ_wQ2p_1_84L3AY2BYh7VCqQjCXAZ/w538-h640/Digby%20and%20Claude.jpg" width="538" /></a></div><p><b><a href="https://bookshop.nla.gov.au/book/digby-claude.do">Digby & Claude</a></b> by Emma Allen and Hanna Sommerville</p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This hefty picture book is a moving
tribute to the re-developmental phase of housing in Australia in the late
1930s. It is also a powerful testimony to change, the evolution of friendship
and resilience of community spirit. Digby and Claude unite as a change in the
appearance and composition of their street begins; new flats are being built.
As the demolition of the old and raising of the new takes place, a parallel
construction of their own occurs, a wondrous cubby, which homes an unbreakable
friendship and precious memories. A moving pictorial snapshot of a time in
history that captures the essence of change. Sublime reading.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">NLA, September 2018 ISBN:
9780642279279<o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwWjMFxkL07ZY744KayCPQO2spoitRrlMQYbY4oZVhHZ8Rs6US3_5apRV5ouRhpSJNBSiy3k_tjlNK7w0bwdStb59PVwNVKDg0CVBWPQsqA6cgnM28VnnQsUd9kWFi2EeZkoXMuh4XQ54KnMhyphenhyphennvasqp57l8U_mhOv8jXcT1upMlLN0c5KemQdjzlmSqDA/s768/Jorn-768x736.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="736" data-original-width="768" height="614" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwWjMFxkL07ZY744KayCPQO2spoitRrlMQYbY4oZVhHZ8Rs6US3_5apRV5ouRhpSJNBSiy3k_tjlNK7w0bwdStb59PVwNVKDg0CVBWPQsqA6cgnM28VnnQsUd9kWFi2EeZkoXMuh4XQ54KnMhyphenhyphennvasqp57l8U_mhOv8jXcT1upMlLN0c5KemQdjzlmSqDA/w640-h614/Jorn-768x736.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><b><a href="https://ekbooks.org/product/jorns-magnificent-imagination/?v=6cc98ba2045f">Jørn’s
Magnificent Imagination</a></b> by
Coral Vass and Nicky Johnston<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Created and crafted by this
well-known duo, this picture book is a truly magnificent tribute to the
designer of our beloved Sydney Opera House. To this day, few other building
designs match its elegance, iconic uniqueness or colourful history. This book
is less of how it was constructed and more of a close up look of the life of the
visionary gifted Danish architect, Jørn Utzon to the point of the building’s
completion. A classroom staple!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">EK Books, October 2022 ISBN:
9781922539144<o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV4y6GT6ml5WOOXsUV1bnW4vO8rzptkx0TUa8l9qQplRf2Ih3ohD6KsD5VEbyhrpSLOSTVigbaJOH3GxexdyVM8FXnUrUPpEwurg18QhUz_NwjCKXyPkOct7_oXzopG7NCOsIcUB2FTy1WjzVRoKO8rvhHJWh5fdwlIfkNYVJYph1ZI0dNcvQf6roWyVGc/s2600/Home%20Sweet%20Home.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2600" data-original-width="2145" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV4y6GT6ml5WOOXsUV1bnW4vO8rzptkx0TUa8l9qQplRf2Ih3ohD6KsD5VEbyhrpSLOSTVigbaJOH3GxexdyVM8FXnUrUPpEwurg18QhUz_NwjCKXyPkOct7_oXzopG7NCOsIcUB2FTy1WjzVRoKO8rvhHJWh5fdwlIfkNYVJYph1ZI0dNcvQf6roWyVGc/w528-h640/Home%20Sweet%20Home.jpg" width="528" /></a></div><b><a href="https://www.allenandunwin.co.nz/browse/book/illustrated-by-Paula-Blumen,--Mia-Cassany-Home-Sweet-Home-9781786031136">Home
Sweet Home</a></b> by Mia Gassany and
Paula Blumen<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This spectacularly presented
experience is a journey around the world hosted by a menagerie of pets who
diligently describe their humans’ abodes with profound affection and glorious
detail. Homes across the Americas, Europe and Asian continent are portrayed in
absorbing detail, enough on each page in fact to create a ‘look and find’
scenario. Locating the narrating pets is half the joy. The other, a superb
intro into housing styles and conventions illustrating that not all homes are
equal. Highly recommended. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Frances Lincoln (Quarto - Imprint),
October 2017, ISBN: 9781786031136<o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNf-k_EJzcnqubPwTwSlMtqQTbXZA0my3h86cQhl4Ppu2XO1raR8Q97Ik7cWitJcFR2Tf-XDtXYW4CD2ZHSCpXYmoKaA3meQvH_9WdRR69GGLlZ2NCv78Uy-74qOIYCda-Mir5TaIs1NaXlTQ0UTNDgRNc-XUHExCBokvgi4PMxxbapA5z0X2v4-nTXUmy/s550/How%20To%20Build%20The%20Perfect%20Cubby%20House.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="448" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNf-k_EJzcnqubPwTwSlMtqQTbXZA0my3h86cQhl4Ppu2XO1raR8Q97Ik7cWitJcFR2Tf-XDtXYW4CD2ZHSCpXYmoKaA3meQvH_9WdRR69GGLlZ2NCv78Uy-74qOIYCda-Mir5TaIs1NaXlTQ0UTNDgRNc-XUHExCBokvgi4PMxxbapA5z0X2v4-nTXUmy/w522-h640/How%20To%20Build%20The%20Perfect%20Cubby%20House.jpg" width="522" /></a></div><b><a href="https://shop.scholastic.com.au/Product/8423665/How-to-Build-the-Perfect-Cubby-House/?BackToSearch=d1d4cb8b-73f3-4f9e-9ab0-25c85f3d3168&PageNo=0&ItemsPerPage=12&SortBy=1&SearchString=&FilterBy=&menuId=158&parentId=101&breadcrumb=">How
To Build The Perfect Cubby House</a></b>
by Heath McKenzie<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Privacy, functionality, fun; these
are just some of the essential prerequisites of building one’s cubby house.
McKenzie does a marvellous job of juxtaposing family whims and values, dynamics
and desires within the walls of one very extraordinary cubby. Kids will love
the comedy and absurdity of it all because including a movie room in one’s
cubby house is tots normal, right! Brilliantly relayed in bubbled speeches and
useful steps, this is fantastic inspo for the family’s next weekend project
together.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Scholastic Press, May 2019 ISBN:
9781760152673<o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFZVMygcAa_drhMrDx03wP_dXYMdMrwl0IE3uCvZX8cZwqsGPWbR6zSwPQ96rM3qEhiZIVqasVM2_Wk6mEQSVMww-S2yig-nxLMxDTiRVdtYdHwNshVT6G7j5kJhgOGTUOO_eqwbnKgsHPk2Q2HU0DOnoOSD8fnAM2NqsZJQQ5SbQulCzocuhcU1VjL8f_/s3759/Puffin%20The%20Architecct.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3759" data-original-width="3099" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFZVMygcAa_drhMrDx03wP_dXYMdMrwl0IE3uCvZX8cZwqsGPWbR6zSwPQ96rM3qEhiZIVqasVM2_Wk6mEQSVMww-S2yig-nxLMxDTiRVdtYdHwNshVT6G7j5kJhgOGTUOO_eqwbnKgsHPk2Q2HU0DOnoOSD8fnAM2NqsZJQQ5SbQulCzocuhcU1VjL8f_/w528-h640/Puffin%20The%20Architecct.jpg" width="528" /></a></div><b><a href="https://www.penguin.com.au/books/puffin-the-architect-9780143793755">Puffin
The Architect</a></b> by Kimberly
Andrews<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Speaking of family projects, this
golden nugget anthropomorphically highlights a pair of precocious pufflings’
requests for a place of their own. Their puffin parent, the erstwhile architect
of designs and demands, comes up with dozens of potential dwelling ideas only
to receive constant rebuff from said youngsters. Sound familiar? Eventually we
learn that home and one’s sense of place is indeed unique to self. Jolly
rhyming text and magnificent imagery thrusts puffin magic and a myriad of
different housing designs onto centre stage revealing the wonderful diversity
of living spaces, needs and wants, not to mention the incredibly photogenic
puffin! A unique, entertaining sensory delight.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Penguin Random House Australia, July
2018 ISBN: 9780143793755<o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwT9BAU0huVETDoTsPgaOHz010xqxybI4was0MhkjwN0BrtKufwC0e0VVQm0gEPBN-VBG1Egdzp_9AVQeOqRzez8hx1kIYcr6eo-whNdeUMJf97cMxTNIjPwtcUtUlOD8X4f8Sdr7QOnebQWI1XuJPvc7BeHFHfDuXC5RuwUnFC7qpyCNY4h40QXf0UxrK/s2268/Tiny%20Tradies%20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2268" data-original-width="2123" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwT9BAU0huVETDoTsPgaOHz010xqxybI4was0MhkjwN0BrtKufwC0e0VVQm0gEPBN-VBG1Egdzp_9AVQeOqRzez8hx1kIYcr6eo-whNdeUMJf97cMxTNIjPwtcUtUlOD8X4f8Sdr7QOnebQWI1XuJPvc7BeHFHfDuXC5RuwUnFC7qpyCNY4h40QXf0UxrK/w600-h640/Tiny%20Tradies%20.jpg" width="600" /></a></div><b><a href="https://affirmpress.com.au/browse/book/Tami-Sussman-and-Tom-Jellett-Tiny-Tradies-9781922848123/">Tiny
Tradies</a></b><p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>by Tami Sussman and Tom Jellett<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Delightfully Aussie in flavour, this
metaphoric adventure humorously couples the daily quirks and tribulations of
toddlers with those of the tradies who construct and labour for a living. Both
occupations of course involve a lot of work, large appetites, a need to dress
appropriately and enough stamina to build, create, knock down, wade through
disputes, adapt to changes of plan, clean up and … well you get the idea. With
the aid of Site, Safety and Project managers, these tiny tradies survive
another day – just. Rollicking relatable fun makes this a joyous read for
parents attempting to avoid overtime with their own toddlers. Jellett’s use of brighter
than bright hi-vis orange to emphasise visual points makes the whole thing
utterly wonderful. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Affirm Press, February 2023 ISBN:
9781922848123<o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs3MJsIYgg1nio5cg3KvQlDPhhGmMBYd3NYh11zjRLqkCPLaOKV6mNOf2MB7MYw5c0pzU3KPowi76KdPFIRF55BocB8OKwD8b57qnT0h_JevJ8trekX8P3ax9kyVSwVk2wDq9hq7NYfzFejbxIWkiHDr3R_MVhy6U7m0DouMHpuyBRwbun3Y8hztmqAKM4/s1147/Concrete%20Garden__9781529512649.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1147" data-original-width="1054" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs3MJsIYgg1nio5cg3KvQlDPhhGmMBYd3NYh11zjRLqkCPLaOKV6mNOf2MB7MYw5c0pzU3KPowi76KdPFIRF55BocB8OKwD8b57qnT0h_JevJ8trekX8P3ax9kyVSwVk2wDq9hq7NYfzFejbxIWkiHDr3R_MVhy6U7m0DouMHpuyBRwbun3Y8hztmqAKM4/w588-h640/Concrete%20Garden__9781529512649.jpeg" width="588" /></a></div><b><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781529512649/">The Concrete Garden</a></b> by Bob Graham<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Written during the time of Covid,
this meandering tale of change is a marvellous song about community and caring
and the amazing inherent resilience possessed by kids. This work of art
features a – work of art. It’s birth, evolution and final magnificent magnetic
pull that unites a community in a thousand unseen but profoundly felt ways.
Graham’s gift with a handful of words and a few supremely executed lines and
smudges sings this song with a simplicity that speaks louder than words. The
focus being that life can blossom in the most dismal of environments, beneath a
towering block of flats with nothing but concrete to grow upon. Sublime.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Walker Books Australia, October 2023
ISBN: 9781529512649<o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCpadaVdy8YewcAN1rsauymZj_R9prZ5VFyvKxhhgYJ3VGBGclNQnLJcbO9cTD7NnnK-ZaQrmFZMXnIL3UTVE7cvWHHHqBSmiG66MR_KhWkvX-hCXALTttTsiBe0j2TF19jejIKqZzXxNhtQPRMBzCN9skfVuKSNKH3v0qh_5tg9xTRNtI383-vbyKTC_q/s785/The%20Lucky%20Shack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="648" data-original-width="785" height="528" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCpadaVdy8YewcAN1rsauymZj_R9prZ5VFyvKxhhgYJ3VGBGclNQnLJcbO9cTD7NnnK-ZaQrmFZMXnIL3UTVE7cvWHHHqBSmiG66MR_KhWkvX-hCXALTttTsiBe0j2TF19jejIKqZzXxNhtQPRMBzCN9skfVuKSNKH3v0qh_5tg9xTRNtI383-vbyKTC_q/w640-h528/The%20Lucky%20Shack.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><b><a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9781922033154/the-lucky-shack/">The
Lucky Shack</a></b> by Apsara Baldovino
and Jennifer Falkner<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Narrated by the shack itself, this
is a visually resplendent and linguistically rich tale that allows readers to
appreciate the mechanics of a structure but also understand that a building’s
heart and soul is the sum of many things not least of which are its occupants.
When the shack is abandoned by one occupant, we experience the same despair and
decline as it does until the process of time and change brings a renewal of
life and colour again. A fetching story about the impermanency of all things
including those that are manmade. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Working Title Press, July 2023 ISBN:
978192203154<o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi737gZUNxbPUQO3ExqRQIUlLVqzR_P86oNCssz1SDzfrIHQIcpSqwsZLShX9ecLJHID0lEeIoIUEjaou-xgfuogUD-T1yePwRUbrzROR6d7KZUhvq8NRAFJAGrgH_nLjwjEk-Xzi6JHrCcXVwFpfTgB8rbgCALJiPwYBr5K9sCn4gxqkAfT3Wl4MANsZbN/s721/How%20Was%20That%20Built.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="721" data-original-width="568" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi737gZUNxbPUQO3ExqRQIUlLVqzR_P86oNCssz1SDzfrIHQIcpSqwsZLShX9ecLJHID0lEeIoIUEjaou-xgfuogUD-T1yePwRUbrzROR6d7KZUhvq8NRAFJAGrgH_nLjwjEk-Xzi6JHrCcXVwFpfTgB8rbgCALJiPwYBr5K9sCn4gxqkAfT3Wl4MANsZbN/w504-h640/How%20Was%20That%20Built.jpg" width="504" /></a></div><b><a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/au/how-was-that-built-9781526603654/">How Was
That Built? The Stories Behind Awesome Structures</a></b> by Roma Agrawal and Katie Hickey<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">It wouldn’t be a building bonanza
without a non-fictional contribution and this one is a standout. Despite the
aptitude and skill humans have possessed for building things for tens of
thousands of years, it’s not always immediately obvious how we make bridges
span impossibly wide divides or create buildings that soar thousands of feet
into the air – against the law of gravity! This book takes readers through the
art of harnessing nature’s laws and using them to construct things that are
long, tall, dome-shaped, strong and stable in every environment on this planet
(and some in space and underground too). It is engrossing, enlightening and
easy to digest with the use of famous and well-known structures from around the
world. Fascinating and factual reading. Perfect for future architects, designers
or the curious at heart, like me.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Bloomsbury, September 2021 ISBN
9781526603654<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-35002026594854999412024-01-22T17:00:00.008+10:002024-01-22T17:00:00.156+10:00Review: Lessons In Chemistry<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyUcfhbWWYMIlYiWKpJOM6DhNQ9ijy11jFIvyvacibrgcAf4_sW0eWU0dkcIVFqO6eJN9oSNI8AJyVpCfOmr9gLLnvuM8LR0jYERpD_RCEeLyq8bNxpFOY8Yp06lynhiU8R3Dwn2ESHY0pD27S7cfPTh9p7Du1rKNSBcE__dhH7Gh9w6LRI0Z-qVkMeNed/s2351/Lessons%20in%20Chemistry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2351" data-original-width="1488" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyUcfhbWWYMIlYiWKpJOM6DhNQ9ijy11jFIvyvacibrgcAf4_sW0eWU0dkcIVFqO6eJN9oSNI8AJyVpCfOmr9gLLnvuM8LR0jYERpD_RCEeLyq8bNxpFOY8Yp06lynhiU8R3Dwn2ESHY0pD27S7cfPTh9p7Du1rKNSBcE__dhH7Gh9w6LRI0Z-qVkMeNed/w406-h640/Lessons%20in%20Chemistry.jpg" width="406" /></a></div><br />Like Nigella Lawson, I am crushed to
have reached the end of this book. It has been a true companion in recent days,
a place I have relished (and rushed) to return to. Its occupants devastatingly
alluring, a sheer buzz to hang out with, even the reprehensible ones. <i>Lessons
in Chemistry</i> is simply the best book I’ve read this year. Okay, it’s the
also the first book I’ve read but what a humdinger to start with!<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Smart, sassy, no nonsense – this
summarises the premise, plot and the standout heroine, Elizabeth Zott who it
turns out, is the sum of many superlative things: chemist, rower, mother, TV
star which ultimately concentrates down to staunch feminist. Or as she prefers,
humanist. But that’s not all.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This novel heightens one’s sense of
intelligence. It’s an articulate read that rallies intellectual spirit and
challenges status quo smashing the shackles of antiquated belief systems centering around <i>useless
values based on categories of sex, race, economic status and religion</i> and
fosters a powerful sense of sisterhood which positively encompasses males, as
well. In short, it sings. Loud. Ludicrously. Lavishly, with language that
enfolds you in a gentle cloud of vague familiarity flavoured with impossible
chemical nomenclature that inexplicably fills you with overwhelming <i>clarity</i>.
It’s a heady experience.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Garmus’ narrative is bold, daring and
uncompromising, just like Elizabeth who gives triple-fold more than she gets
and she really gets some – good and bad. Her personal mottos revolve around
tenacity, determined logic, a need not to be seen, but rather to be heard. She
epitomises womanhood in a zillion ways or rather what we might all aspire to be
like despite or maybe in spite of living in the 21<sup>st</sup> century rather
than in the middle of the last as she did. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Lessons in Chemistry</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> is exquisite, a sublimely satisfying study
of the lives orbiting around Elizabeth, those she touched, those she loved and
those she ticked off. It’s a constantly permutating equation of love and like
all great love stories features moments of unprecedented reactions, tragedy and
wit that caused me to spontaneously laugh out loud, multiple times. And of
course, there’s a faithful companion – a dog – who knows over 980 human words. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Glorious.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Despite Elizabeth staring point
blank down the barrel of a TV camera and explicitly telling us what to do and
how to feel, there is not a sniff of didactic moralistic overtone. Not one molecule.
Readers may feel an array of emotions reading this tale. Elizabeth will tell
you they are all normal chemical and neurological responses to her situation.
Pity was not one of them because this lady never once laid down and rolled
over. She suffered. She strove on. She succeeded. As does this illuminating
novel.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Lessons in Chemistry</span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> ticked all my boxes. I LOVE chemistry! I
LOVE cooking. I LOVE a quietly persistent, champion who believes enough in
herself to admit defeat but get on with the next chapter, the next dish, the
next experiment regardless. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">My Year 12 Chemistry teacher, a Mr
Bland if you can believe it, once expostulated that chemistry is life. I have
never forgotten it. Elizabeth’s own proclamation enforces this belief and the
notion that, ‘<i>your ability to change everything – including yourself –
starts here’</i>. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thank you, Elizabeth.
It’s been an absolute pleasure.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">13/10 which I think tops an High
Distinction. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><b><span style="color: black;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black;">
Lessons in Chemistry<br />
<b>Author: </b> Bonnie Garmus<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Penguin UK<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> 2022<br />
<b>Format:</b> Paperback<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9780857528131<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 15 – 100<br />
<b>Type:</b> Adult Fiction (also suited to younger adult readers)<br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/lessons-in-chemistry-the-no-1-sunday-times-bestseller-and-bbc-between-the-covers-book-club-pick/bonnie-garmus/book_9781804990926.htm" target="_blank">Boomerang Books</a>, <a href="https://www.penguin.com.au/books/lessons-in-chemistry-9781804990926#:~:text=Chemist%20Elizabeth%20Zott%20is%20not,very%20unscientific%20view%20of%20equality." target="_blank">Penguin</a> </b></span><b><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-51990266035628457992024-01-15T05:00:00.019+10:002024-01-15T05:00:00.129+10:00Review: The Edge Of Limits<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY7wrOqwg5qf-kic51x2EITVaxK1EPbC2l28O_8PDjW1ZoZi33faTSLpkXn48ORIIi1s_lckyNbQOHTNFaLMGRDuEDSFJAs1J-kToUYARr3p9_6Jx0SFQbq0sWyChG5o3WqwdKKSFbjEUCxiSZ1gbqFOh-__igdjwCk2dUBoiPqs4TQC4oDZ8pNwO9sOzp/s841/Cropped%20book%20cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="841" data-original-width="562" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY7wrOqwg5qf-kic51x2EITVaxK1EPbC2l28O_8PDjW1ZoZi33faTSLpkXn48ORIIi1s_lckyNbQOHTNFaLMGRDuEDSFJAs1J-kToUYARr3p9_6Jx0SFQbq0sWyChG5o3WqwdKKSFbjEUCxiSZ1gbqFOh-__igdjwCk2dUBoiPqs4TQC4oDZ8pNwO9sOzp/w428-h640/Cropped%20book%20cover.jpg" width="428" /></a></div><br />Full confession: I adore the writing
style of Susanne Gervay. Her picture books resound with lilting emotion. Her
junior novels entertain and engross. Her young adult fiction, gripping and
gritty. So, while I’m being upfront and honest, her latest YA<i>, The Edge of
Limits</i> was a more exacting reading experience than expected.<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">In </span><a href="http://www.kids-bookreview.com/2022/11/guest-post-susanne-gervay-on-edge-of.html"><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Susanne’s own words</span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> this novel, </span><i>delves into adolescent
relationships and consent looking into the complexities of boys as they
confront sexuality, power, and relationships.</i> Teenage boys are not a
species I admit to understanding in great measures. I have never lived with
their unique drives, language and emotional tropes, their male ‘smells’. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p>So, reading about 17-year-old Sam and his testosterone imbued school mates
as they plough their way through self-actualisation and a school survival camp,
was not the proverbial walk through the park. The park was the confronting
physical and mental terrain of the Aussie bush. The walk, a challenging journey
of realisation, guilt and confrontation. And yet, a kind of enlightenment was
attained from Sam’s coming-of-age tale, disquieting at times, illuminating at
others. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p>Loyalty, self-preservation, the maintenance of mateship, the ability to
‘choose correctly’; these values are gender non-specific and although teenage
hormones intensify them, they are aspects of our human nature that may be
tested and guarded, stretched and broken, at any age. This is why <i>The Edge
of Limits</i> resounds so sharply. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p>At its heart, Sam’s story is about differentiating between when to remain
dumb and when to shout out in defiant defence of all the is right and good. <i>Integrity</i>.
Such a rich and potent quality. Strange how it ends in ‘grity’ – aka gritty –
precisely what Gervay’s narrative possesses; a grittiness that is sometimes
hard to swallow but simultaneously enticing. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p>I realise this is more of a reflection of the ethos and delivery of the
story as opposed to a full-blown review of the story itself but that’s OK. It’s
wise to ease gently into bathwaters you may have let run too hot. Eventually,
the experience is one to relish. Like this book. For those who want a more in-depth
plunge into the plotlines and premises, read KBR’s<a href="http://www.kids-bookreview.com/2022/11/review-edge-of-limits.html"> Liz
Vercoe’s account of <i>The Edge of Limits</i></a>. Her perceptions mirror many
of my own. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p>I still don’t know exactly what teenage boys smell like but thanks to novels
like these, I can appreciate their humanness just a little bit better and
fortunately, it allows them to do so, as well. <o:p></o:p></p>
<b>Title:</b> The Edge Of Limits<br /><b> Author</b>: S J Gervay<br /><b> Publisher:</b> Flying Elephant, $15.99<br /><b> Publication Date:</b> November 2022<br /><b> Format:</b> Paperback<br /><b> ISBN: </b>9780648203551<br /><b> For ages:</b> 14+<br /><b> Type: </b> Young Adult Fiction<br /> <br /><b> Buy the Book:</b> <a href="https://flyingelephant.com.au/book/the-edge-of-limits/">Flying Elephant Media</a>, <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/edge-of-limits/s-j-gervay/book_9780648203551.htm">Boomerang Books</a>, <a href="https://www.booktopia.com.au/edge-of-limits-susanne-gervay/book/9780648203551.html">Booktopia</a>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-56035851933865973432023-12-18T05:00:00.054+10:002023-12-18T05:00:00.137+10:00DIMS’ DICTIONARY OF DYNAMIC READS: Magical Coastal Picture Books<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCcK3Dl6o4vO8Ol2Ptqs84gPHW5zYiHqEVTz5JQu0rc9JU0jRIZ7kbRRrrscN3kKSxKET_RajOJ4Ik7EqyDGrnEDnrCp6TzOaJbi_Nm04oKdFmkP0mDtV7gBE_oZ4Cm0BCer_ll5A6xsLTt5V12lZm-ajVtkicf6_NNUWqCM9nG6uHUjhE1KffYI2qvG_3/s5120/Gypsee%2012%20(6yrs%20to%207).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2880" data-original-width="5120" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCcK3Dl6o4vO8Ol2Ptqs84gPHW5zYiHqEVTz5JQu0rc9JU0jRIZ7kbRRrrscN3kKSxKET_RajOJ4Ik7EqyDGrnEDnrCp6TzOaJbi_Nm04oKdFmkP0mDtV7gBE_oZ4Cm0BCer_ll5A6xsLTt5V12lZm-ajVtkicf6_NNUWqCM9nG6uHUjhE1KffYI2qvG_3/s16000/Gypsee%2012%20(6yrs%20to%207).jpg" /></a></div><br />In the lead up to the silly season
where, as everyone knows, the best present of all is a BOOK, it’s time to throw
some scintillating options at you. This collection features content showcasing
our reef and ocean life with a few surprises along the way. Click on title
links to access more information for perfect summer reading. Enjoy!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil96wtblw6NEdMHtov6Pxa6db5_uq5bmUXxtxg_R2zsaYh9nIlBCVwr4RjhNB9OfPG7abuH7KwNmVcFqI6ISUtCBj7kRfJR-ONOTxWmHrfhjVOFUeuMdDc6y5pvAjWwfUSJfbf0HLOJpg6blPBjClacxX7NCUwZw4dmx7V0b_ATfmwxOjXErZLT5NVjM4P/s1099/A%20Is%20for%20Australian%20Reefs__9781760652258.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1099" data-original-width="1054" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil96wtblw6NEdMHtov6Pxa6db5_uq5bmUXxtxg_R2zsaYh9nIlBCVwr4RjhNB9OfPG7abuH7KwNmVcFqI6ISUtCBj7kRfJR-ONOTxWmHrfhjVOFUeuMdDc6y5pvAjWwfUSJfbf0HLOJpg6blPBjClacxX7NCUwZw4dmx7V0b_ATfmwxOjXErZLT5NVjM4P/w614-h640/A%20Is%20for%20Australian%20Reefs__9781760652258.jpeg" width="614" /></a></div><p><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760652258/"><b>A Is For Australian Reefs: A <i>fact</i>astic
Tour</b></a> by Frané Lessac</p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This is an ABC book with a
difference. It’s not simply a collection of alphabetised sea creatures but a
colour saturated, detail imbued meander around our coral reefs which includes
nomenclature (species names) and terminology. Random fun facts pop up on every
page adding interesting and depth to one of the most biodiverse environments on
the planet. Highly recommended.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Walker Books Australia, October 2022
ISBN: 9781760652258<o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsdwBj7XTtGxTZha0skieMwNiYObwnRKT8US9I7Np2qUbrMmAlSnfLIv9JfQYh8Zhc1RSf9ArS84mfNqbhQSvoVuQDdLqMHGLtJdKVVBMuWv_TLWCHdhbB4pDZSGbx1xPQHTZDch6HfRCFtxq8tneQXqGRtExKoh67K0GDSS_iQszg_ibBMwNXWERnyH_j/s3142/9781922711977.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3142" data-original-width="2610" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsdwBj7XTtGxTZha0skieMwNiYObwnRKT8US9I7Np2qUbrMmAlSnfLIv9JfQYh8Zhc1RSf9ArS84mfNqbhQSvoVuQDdLqMHGLtJdKVVBMuWv_TLWCHdhbB4pDZSGbx1xPQHTZDch6HfRCFtxq8tneQXqGRtExKoh67K0GDSS_iQszg_ibBMwNXWERnyH_j/w532-h640/9781922711977.jpg" width="532" /></a></div><p></p><p><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://affirmpress.com.au/browse/book/Jess-Racklyeft-Big-World,-Tiny-World:-Reef-9781922711977/">Big
World, Tiny World: Reef</a></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> by Jess
Racklyeft<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Another memorable masterpiece
highlighting ocean life in and around our beautiful reefs. Racklyeft combines lyrical
verse with explosions of her trademark colour-bomb images, every page saturated
in watercolour bliss that shifts our attention from the omnipresent universe,
the heavens above, to <i>where the seaweed bends and sways. </i>We move with
the fish at coral level zigging and zagging through jungles of light and
mystery at the mercy of the moon and tide. Kids will love the shimmery foil
effects and cutout star that prompts curiosity and wonder in this explore the
world series.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Affirm Press, July 2022 ISBN:
9781922711977<o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5-gi7Bvz1awtnfo5tIuKbcRAkpEEUBr9U7MRo6TA1K7T04tHmNqmMhuYWqBbwY33L8NYKS9KP3plMC73IXW5jI2nYGVWguWjBepC8chISOd_5kUGVFLyEBVD-wi3t1AAumO215Lbc04Ku6QYru9mviWzYFCXaOsIxtEKwPxuPw-0TiNAwJ2FN9XhWhJPg/s2019/9780734421371.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2019" data-original-width="2016" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5-gi7Bvz1awtnfo5tIuKbcRAkpEEUBr9U7MRo6TA1K7T04tHmNqmMhuYWqBbwY33L8NYKS9KP3plMC73IXW5jI2nYGVWguWjBepC8chISOd_5kUGVFLyEBVD-wi3t1AAumO215Lbc04Ku6QYru9mviWzYFCXaOsIxtEKwPxuPw-0TiNAwJ2FN9XhWhJPg/w640-h640/9780734421371.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><a href="https://www.hachette.com.au/sami-bayly/how-we-came-to-be-creatures-of-camouflage-and-mimicry"><b>Creatures of Camouflage and Mimicry</b></a> by Sami Bayly<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Okay, so not all of the creatures in
this title are underwater ones but it’s included because some of the <i>best</i>
mimics and camouflagers in the business <i>are</i> marine creatures. </span><a href="https://www.samibayly.com/"><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Bayly’s</span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> devotion to the animals of planet Earth and
her magnificent portrayal of them via informative narrative and stunning
illustrations is becoming legendary. Check out her series of </span><a href="https://www.samibayly.com/shop?category=books"><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Amazing Animal Stories</span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">
and keep an eye out for a dedicated </span><a href="https://www.samibayly.com/"><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Sea Creatures</span></i></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> title coming out soon!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Lothian Books, September 2023 ISBN:
9780734421371<o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUfyOBwTOMvO2wpZwu6gs7ipG39ndk4ZfCWSTrqz5uNZ6t8FYk0F3kpT5XPnw80ylb30MGgiq_OvSj5nFUiB7DW7LfCI76Fc2W8VLUx5mDmaQaNLbfWIo3RYrA5wOPkOOsFrcSS0p-i2N2hMW4uoDxB5WHEW70gFJoZkeeSyMndSAzaAo83bLr9vdJ7gPr/s4529/Koko%20and%20the%20Coconut.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4529" data-original-width="4529" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUfyOBwTOMvO2wpZwu6gs7ipG39ndk4ZfCWSTrqz5uNZ6t8FYk0F3kpT5XPnw80ylb30MGgiq_OvSj5nFUiB7DW7LfCI76Fc2W8VLUx5mDmaQaNLbfWIo3RYrA5wOPkOOsFrcSS0p-i2N2hMW4uoDxB5WHEW70gFJoZkeeSyMndSAzaAo83bLr9vdJ7gPr/w640-h640/Koko%20and%20the%20Coconut.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><a href="https://www.penguin.com.au/books/koko-and-the-coconut-9781760892944"><b>Koko And The Coconut</b></a> by Turia Pitt and Celestine Vaite and Emilie
Tavaearii<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Vividly illustrated fun story about
a robust little coconut crab and his coming of age, aka his first crack of the
coconut. Koko has to overcome seemingly insurmountable odds to locate, reach,
dislodge, and finally crack his nut before success is enjoyed. It doesn’t
happen overnight – well it does in this story’s timeline – but figuratively,
this is a telling tale of perseverance, tenacity and courage; attributes Turia
has had to live by many times over. Beaut focus on creatures of the tropic
islands (which incidentally, are the only places you’ll find coconut crabs!).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Puffin Books, January 2023 ISBN:
9781760892944<o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1weiu85a7w6QESgyAfA8HhjFoAMa05e-6W5PYn-0Qz2XPx9gugKG6RSoWfU8edYRkJXrvC40DIEXjZHNLG1lS6VVlH5td9fukx3xSNlylIxVfLNFYpnCRCjR6QBCO8eP6H6Tby1SGNApTgYj74ek-cS0jfFMy1qZmH0b8RpqK_CFamJ53kTo-Q7WHLPGq/s1446/Mama%20Ocean.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1446" data-original-width="1198" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1weiu85a7w6QESgyAfA8HhjFoAMa05e-6W5PYn-0Qz2XPx9gugKG6RSoWfU8edYRkJXrvC40DIEXjZHNLG1lS6VVlH5td9fukx3xSNlylIxVfLNFYpnCRCjR6QBCO8eP6H6Tby1SGNApTgYj74ek-cS0jfFMy1qZmH0b8RpqK_CFamJ53kTo-Q7WHLPGq/w530-h640/Mama%20Ocean.jpg" width="530" /></a></div><p></p>
<p><a href="https://midnightsunpublishing.com/shop/books/mama-ocean/"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Mama Ocean</b></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> by Jane Jolly and Sally Heinrich<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This sumptuously illustrated tale is
book-ended by a gleaming, expansive, clean-as-a-mirror ocean. Mama Ocean
presides over it all, <i>tumbling and trailing through the tides</i>, abundant
with life. But when her mirth turns to sadness, the sea creatures fret. They
bring her gift after gift in an effort to restore her spirit but the gifts only
worsen her plight for, they are not jewels of the natural ocean rather the
awful residual of human inconsideration and laziness. A fanciful yet hard
hitting depiction of the demise of our oceans if our neglect of them continues.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">MidnightSun Publishing, September
2020 ISBN: 9781925227659<o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtfrp3ODv0awp8DxprlyNvC948wqlGBkuxf0jLcYNpcm9nmYiqgfMHJU9kIL3R_GnfSqEH1KeUpMwsrNvpSUs4BT9dFa8KTKGJVnh3t-hqNfkP4CeBJkVAuGvCgAoMswJ6OO1h7zC5jIxe0-_lTpT52oyd13HbtY0mVKQ3C7QJbMcB2p1oW3m1LldTTOZc/s3496/Moonfish.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3496" data-original-width="3182" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtfrp3ODv0awp8DxprlyNvC948wqlGBkuxf0jLcYNpcm9nmYiqgfMHJU9kIL3R_GnfSqEH1KeUpMwsrNvpSUs4BT9dFa8KTKGJVnh3t-hqNfkP4CeBJkVAuGvCgAoMswJ6OO1h7zC5jIxe0-_lTpT52oyd13HbtY0mVKQ3C7QJbMcB2p1oW3m1LldTTOZc/w582-h640/Moonfish.jpg" width="582" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><a href="https://www.penguin.com.au/books/moonfish-9780143791409"><b>Moonfish</b></a> by Graeme Base<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The moonfish is a mythical creature,
living beneath the dragon-moon. It seems a safe and sacred place but it wasn’t
always so. Moonfish lived in uncertain times. Orphaned, rescued and ridiculed,
he wasn’t like the others, did not fit in. So, he set off to discover exactly
where he did belong. His journey took him through ominous places with fearful
encounters until his heart returned him home where the murderous herons
threatened all that was dear to him. And then, rather like the phenomenal
transformation of the ugly duckling, we learn the true form and character of
Moonfish. With spectacular illustrations rich in movement and form, swimming in
beautiful surrealism and emotion, this fable-like story explores identity and
sense of place in exquisite detail. Highly recommended.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Puffin Books, October 2019 ISBN:
9780143791409<o:p></o:p></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrQoHI2LFDRq9yWuyPY_CRh-NkoFGUiOy0pCg5BtzBKY_zEGSDVBVn0eqS7lSvPcdbH7uar1FlqOBKjvh6QydRs_-SLU9KOl1HlaFqsJahC6MyMj4ByHOBZ9XV7HKyURuq_IeaAN_E3F6KBeK8af-eDOLdvz8TgxufbalXgRWcPfXXSEEqD5Dd88QR3eaJ/s1200/Rock%20Pool%20Secrets.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1190" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrQoHI2LFDRq9yWuyPY_CRh-NkoFGUiOy0pCg5BtzBKY_zEGSDVBVn0eqS7lSvPcdbH7uar1FlqOBKjvh6QydRs_-SLU9KOl1HlaFqsJahC6MyMj4ByHOBZ9XV7HKyURuq_IeaAN_E3F6KBeK8af-eDOLdvz8TgxufbalXgRWcPfXXSEEqD5Dd88QR3eaJ/w634-h640/Rock%20Pool%20Secrets.jpg" width="634" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><b><a href="https://www.booktopia.com.au/rock-pool-secrets-narelle-oliver/book/9781922179357.html">Rock
Pool Secrets</a></b> by Narelle Oliver<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">One of the last picture books created
by Australian picture book legend, <a href="https://narelleoliver.com/reel/introduction-3/">Narelle Oliver</a>, <i>Rock
Pools </i>emanates the sensations, sights and sounds youngsters might encounter
as they wonder a coastal shore line. Craggy cratered landscapes encrusted with barnacles
and limpets greet us at low tide; <i>a good time to explore</i>. At first
colours and shapes are hard to discern but look closely and you will see a
jigsaw of life. Crustaceans, anemones, seaweeds; each with their own special
spot within the rockpools. Each bearing their own secrets which are hidden
behind flaps of rock and seaweed and expulsions of ink! Vibrant pops of colour
assist in this seek and find mission against a backdrop of shades and textures
(created by linocut drawings) that belie treasure detection. Hurry, the tide is
on the rise. Can you spot them all in time? I’ve had this book for some years,
revisiting the magic of the rock pools as though they were old friends. Thick
sturdy pages and timeless narrative ensures its longevity as does the strong allure
of the sea so brilliantly imbued within this book. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Walker Books Australia, April 2017
ISBN: 9781922179357<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-55069544814908265452023-12-11T05:00:00.055+10:002023-12-11T05:00:00.137+10:00Book Bites: Christmas Crackers and Picture Book Pressies<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiahYgThn_vp54SNErLQjKcLx9GWUXH3r0OvH35MhMYQ_K2bOED8inmcS6UMCD4bIhDuCBNlGejuYUPDjdYIC_sNPS5c0iafEazDa4EFekn01TlxWR1OsnzeL59104FFBTi-Isjp9F63EImm_yl9oN-lGag3TmPIh5nN2whj3hr1GxTaZFJEExrU6OasdVw/s5120/PIO.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2880" data-original-width="5120" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiahYgThn_vp54SNErLQjKcLx9GWUXH3r0OvH35MhMYQ_K2bOED8inmcS6UMCD4bIhDuCBNlGejuYUPDjdYIC_sNPS5c0iafEazDa4EFekn01TlxWR1OsnzeL59104FFBTi-Isjp9F63EImm_yl9oN-lGag3TmPIh5nN2whj3hr1GxTaZFJEExrU6OasdVw/s16000/PIO.jpg" /></a></div><br />Over a slew of silly seasons aka
Christmases, I’ve reviewed some truly stunning Christmas inspired books. You’ll
find many of them <a href="https://blog.boomerangbooks.com.au/?s=dimity+powell" target="_blank">here</a> and as curated booklists at <a href="https://dimswritestuff.blogspot.com/2021/12/book-bites-sharing-merry-picture-books.html" target="_blank"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">DIM’S re VIEW</span>S</a>. This year, like my intake of dried fruit treats and sugar, I’ve
reduced the selection to this humble handful. Droll wit, Aussie flavoured, and spirit-filled
are the themes of the day or rather season so, enjoy! <b><span style="color: #990000;">Happy Christmas!</span></b><p></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhToFs3o4qVjek9nYECuGLwVtRn1Vwp1dfP5UEI0AUQHKvx97aQ442-_SGGLnEdldRAAuVn1zpzWvNsVpRc2x1CD-xfbpG3wW_Wf_3lGDkpuJ9g8qFxZdnoGyV3JsQ5QZh3z2Rs7ElXj-popV53Sehi9mt9qpkDqFVmxmWD3ZDFdG2wnBC3RwxVFHHmPUM4/s1225/How%20Does%20Santa%20Go%20Down%20the%20Chimney___9781529512779.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1225" data-original-width="917" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhToFs3o4qVjek9nYECuGLwVtRn1Vwp1dfP5UEI0AUQHKvx97aQ442-_SGGLnEdldRAAuVn1zpzWvNsVpRc2x1CD-xfbpG3wW_Wf_3lGDkpuJ9g8qFxZdnoGyV3JsQ5QZh3z2Rs7ElXj-popV53Sehi9mt9qpkDqFVmxmWD3ZDFdG2wnBC3RwxVFHHmPUM4/w480-h640/How%20Does%20Santa%20Go%20Down%20the%20Chimney___9781529512779.jpeg" width="480" /></a></div><p><b><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781529512779/">How Does Santa Go
Down The Chimney?</a> </b>by Mac
Barnett and Jon Klassen</p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Good question lads. This, my non-Shakespearean
friends, is the <i>real</i> question, one exasperatingly left incompletely
answered. This book is a magical, maddening meandering through the various ways
our St. Nickolas aka Santa, is able to silently and stealthily enter the number
of dwellings he does in the time that he has. As we follow SC across the
rooftops (and under the front doors) seeking answers, other enigmatic quandaries
are raised like whether or not he pauses to do laundry between houses given his
suit may pick up a bit of sooty soiling as he descends down said chimneys. As ever,
this comic creative pairing keeps us teetering on the edge of reason and
reality with their consummate narrative and illustrative style whilst firmly engaging
our funny bones to maximum level. Pure Christmas delight. Worth asking SC for because
who cares how he gets it there, as long as he does.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> How Does Santa Go Down The Chimney?<br />
<b>Author: </b> Mac Barnett<br />
<b>Illustrator:</b> Jon Klassen<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Candlewick Press, Walker Books Australia imprint, $27.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> October 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Hardcover<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9781529512779<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 3+<br />
<b>Type:</b> Picture Book<br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: </b></span><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781529512779/">Walker Books
Australia</a>, <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/how-does-santa-go-down-the-chimney/mac-barnett/book_9781529512779.htm">Boomerang
Books</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7lrGJ51UwSduwvtVbvoxZXPPhRuRVh1z7dj3hRDZLTBIVhMeNXBYarxZcyOCyiZ87FC6gy4G4lCfBjcE0qYYGv5hs5qTGQKkrUdv3ecD-WCeEDmJKcgIPTs4hsWHeYK9teWJt6E2N0sN3qwqFoqp32w0Xuc1bh8RjjRTHG2FivOG6x5Lw6ir7Cx06ZlcK/s648/How%20The%20Grinch%20Lost%20Christmas.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="648" data-original-width="477" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7lrGJ51UwSduwvtVbvoxZXPPhRuRVh1z7dj3hRDZLTBIVhMeNXBYarxZcyOCyiZ87FC6gy4G4lCfBjcE0qYYGv5hs5qTGQKkrUdv3ecD-WCeEDmJKcgIPTs4hsWHeYK9teWJt6E2N0sN3qwqFoqp32w0Xuc1bh8RjjRTHG2FivOG6x5Lw6ir7Cx06ZlcK/w472-h640/How%20The%20Grinch%20Lost%20Christmas.jpg" width="472" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780008626013/how-the-grinch-lost-christmas/"><b>How The Grinch Lost Christmas!</b></a> Dr Seuss inspired text and illustrations by Alastair Heim and Aristides Ruiz<br /><br />Most of us know how the Grinch stole Christmas and how his relationship with one Cindy-Lu <i>Who</i> helped him turn a new holly leaf as it were. Well, he’s back with renewed determination to demonstrate to <i>Who</i>-ville just how pro-Christmas he is. When the <i>Whos</i> run a Christmas Tree contest, Grinch labours over the biggest and brightest tree to enter. His tree outshines and out-towers every other including Cindy-Lu’s entry, the smallest, least spectacular of them all. Breaths are held and heartbeats freeze as the mayor announces Grinch’s placing … shared second! Grinch’s exit is immediate and indignant. It’s not until Cindy-Lu <i>Who</i>, the winner of the best made tree, invites him back that Grinch’s heart receives a Christmas reboot and appreciation of the true meaning of Christmas spirit. Delightful in rhyme and reasoning, this is a pleasure to read aloud and share with fellow lovers of Christmas any time of the year.<br />
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> How The Grinch Stole Christmas<br />
<b>Author: </b> Alastair Heim<br />
<b>Illustrator:</b> Aristides Ruiz<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> HarperCollins Australia, $24.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> September 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Hardcover<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9780008626013<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 5+<br />
<b>Type:</b> Picture Book<br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: <a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780008626013/how-the-grinch-lost-christmas/">HarperCollins</a>,
<a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/how-the-grinch-lost-christmas-a-sequel-to-how-the-grinch-stole-christmas/dr-seuss/book_9780008626013.htm">Boomerang
Books</a><o:p></o:p></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga1n6TBw8CZ_4RQ5H2yT0xyyXmToENq1MkDYOXlfSuldzmHlgGEWQChoYPMAMpFX6AszD6HSCqoOEzdz0wQOr08BBb4fMSCu0dfN72M7cUoB0S5nCut9vaL-C4XnyOsLa20K9HDlDI-YXz8NusIiq_k88YSqnwVAZMs532N55jaP6WH1X7hC7MfkBcpxbf/s3563/9780734422248.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3563" data-original-width="3563" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga1n6TBw8CZ_4RQ5H2yT0xyyXmToENq1MkDYOXlfSuldzmHlgGEWQChoYPMAMpFX6AszD6HSCqoOEzdz0wQOr08BBb4fMSCu0dfN72M7cUoB0S5nCut9vaL-C4XnyOsLa20K9HDlDI-YXz8NusIiq_k88YSqnwVAZMs532N55jaP6WH1X7hC7MfkBcpxbf/w640-h640/9780734422248.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><a href="https://www.hachette.com.au/sophie-sayle-daron-parton/a-christmas-present-for-roo"><b>A Christmas Present For Roo</b></a> by Sophie Sayle and Daron Parton<br /><br />Christmas in Australia is uniquely different just like our endemic wildlife so it wouldn’t be the festive season without a tale originating in the bushlands of Australia and featuring a selection of our best-known fauna. Bush babies, Wombat, Bandicoot and Kangaroo are putting the finishing touches on their nature inspired Christmas tree but Echidna is dozing. She’s left the presenting far too late and has nothing for Roo. With gentle persuasion from wise old Kookaburra, Echidna embarks on an arts and crafts quest to <i>make</i> Roo a singularly unique and beautiful gift. But is it the perfect gift for Roo? Gay abundantly ornate and Christmas-bauble-bold illustrations personify our bushland babies’ emotions and the novelty and beauty of hand crafting gifts from nature.<br />
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> A Christmas Present For Roo<br />
<b>Author: </b> Sophie Sayle<br />
<b>Illustrator:</b> Daron Parton<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Hachette, Lothian Children’s Books imprint, $19.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> August 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Hardcover<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9780734422248<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 3+<br />
<b>Type:</b> Picture Book<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Buy the Book: <a href="https://www.hachette.com.au/sophie-sayle-daron-parton/a-christmas-present-for-roo">Hachette
Australia</a>, <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/a-christmas-present-for-roo/sophie-sayle/book_9780734422248.htm">Boomerang
Books</a></span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzhUHRZhLdCq5JGKPo6TD1p_noAs8POXPLGBJv7VrMXj8qvJO4EDOq7kwIvPN-XH5-cD7MFJaJVEx4P8TEs2CiWYt71RA1Cehbpix5iva0v1BbmpqaR2GvpBdSa1vmR2SXgEOUZUx62tRUvrpGjTcvMgIIKNoaDNyvAkkUeuhdgT4oI8PdbjlQuwREFtSj/s649/Christmas%20Days%20in%20the%20Sunshine.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="648" data-original-width="649" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzhUHRZhLdCq5JGKPo6TD1p_noAs8POXPLGBJv7VrMXj8qvJO4EDOq7kwIvPN-XH5-cD7MFJaJVEx4P8TEs2CiWYt71RA1Cehbpix5iva0v1BbmpqaR2GvpBdSa1vmR2SXgEOUZUx62tRUvrpGjTcvMgIIKNoaDNyvAkkUeuhdgT4oI8PdbjlQuwREFtSj/w640-h640/Christmas%20Days%20in%20the%20Sunshine.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780733342745/christmas-days-in-the-sunshine/"><b>Christmas Days In The Sunshine</b></a> by Byll and Beth Stephen and Simon Howe <br /><br />For us Aussies, Christmas is summer and summer is days of sunshine and so many other sublime things. Like: trapsing around the neighbourhood on hot sultry nights in search of the best lit-up house; slurping mangoes or stone fruits over the sink, splashing around in the pool or under the sprinkler; icy poles on the couch under the air con (if you’re lucky); walking barefoot over scorching tarmac or sand or bindies; camping trip adventures; the scent of sunscreen smeared everywhere on everything; the sound of friendship. This book is less of a story and more of a collection of truths, memories and moments neatly surmising the best bits of summers that all begin with the last school bell and immediate countdown to Christmas. Many of us will relate to this imagery. Young readers already forming memories from these simple traditions and celebrations. Howe’s illustrations reverberate with summer scents and sounds burnished in beautiful golden hues that reflect the essence of <i>days in the sunshine.</i>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> Christmas Days In The Sunshine<br />
<b>Authors: </b>Byll & Beth Stephen<br />
<b>Illustrator:</b> Simon Howe<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> HarperCollins Australia, $22.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> September 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Hardcover<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9780733342745<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 3+<br />
<b>Type:</b> Picture Book<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Buy the Book: <a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780733342745/christmas-days-in-the-sunshine/">HarperCollins</a>,
<a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/christmas-days-in-the-sunshine/byll-stephen/book_9780733342745.htm">Boomerang
Books</a></span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
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<!--[endif]--></span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-60752709107221975582023-11-27T05:00:00.082+10:002023-11-27T05:00:00.148+10:00Review: Fluff: Bullies Beware!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmbJkp8oGJe8_dEXKAZwbyywsyk1qDUOzTtK442Y6NIPx2ebLU8ML604cssS_iBAmZPRK1o-5bszSQoEVBse2FHwdCfmKzzF4lBXc4UtS0yY4SKAn1OnbwN6UvD4s-YNZpBpKqkgpZlFB40XhLSoiUHJ4y22jdY7KBXCCSn1TvbGPD4kbSChiS5Ht4MQPe/s648/y648.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="648" data-original-width="511" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmbJkp8oGJe8_dEXKAZwbyywsyk1qDUOzTtK442Y6NIPx2ebLU8ML604cssS_iBAmZPRK1o-5bszSQoEVBse2FHwdCfmKzzF4lBXc4UtS0yY4SKAn1OnbwN6UvD4s-YNZpBpKqkgpZlFB40XhLSoiUHJ4y22jdY7KBXCCSn1TvbGPD4kbSChiS5Ht4MQPe/w504-h640/y648.jpg" width="504" /></a></div><br />There's nothing to not like about Stanton's latest junior graphic fiction series,<a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780733342080/fluff-bullies-beware-fluff-1/" target="_blank"> </a><i><a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780733342080/fluff-bullies-beware-fluff-1/" target="_blank">Fluff</a>.</i> Except maybe bullies, which Gilbert and his gigantic fluffy bunny buddy do, with a passion. In fact their borderline self-righteousness and desire to wreak revenge on their arch nemesis, Carl, becomes their soul purpose and the core of this cute and quirky tale which features tonnes of turtles, parmesan cheese, drones and undies in weird places. Kids will love the zaniness, the absurdity, the talking fish (I did) and the extremely brilliant illustrations swimming with motion and madness (the facial expressions alone are a crack up). <div><br /></div><div><div>What makes a great graphic novel experience superlative are the touches of tenderness secreted amidst the crazy. Stanton does this quietly and with great effect beginning with the 'bit at the beginning' which is in fact the hook for book #2 right there (for me anyways). Along with the series's namesake of course. </div><div><br /></div><div>We learn that Gilbert lost his father as a young toddler; to space aliens as he believes. To help compensate for this tragic turn of events. Gilbert receives a fluffy puffy bunny from mum who advises lots of cuddles and bunny snuggling. Gil becomes so adept at loving Fluff that one day, Fluff does more than love him back. He talks to him, too. So begins a wonderful mateship, the kind where Fluff always has Gil's back even if his ideas are not always 100% appropriate. They are reassuringly funny, though. Which is more than something.</div><div><br /></div><div>And so is this first foray into life with a giant over confident rabbit. I ended up loving this more than I thought I would and I reckon kids won't have any problem doing so either. <a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780733342080/fluff-bullies-beware-fluff-1/" target="_blank"><i>Bullies Beware</i></a> is, as the title suggests, about coming to terms with the school's worst bully. And despite the hilarious succession of revenge antics, there is some very cool advice thrown in by Gilbert and Fluff which I for one hope, becomes a national schoolyard credo. </div><div><br /></div><div>Time to get your bunny on kids to make sure you get enough of the wonderful Fluff. :-)</div><div><br /></div><div><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 18.4px;"> Fluff: Bullies Beware!<br /><b>Author /</b><b>Illustrator:</b> Matt Stanton<br /><b>Publisher:</b> HarperCollins imprint ABC Books, $15.99<br /><b>Publication Date:</b> 1 November 2023<br /><b>Format:</b> Paperback<br /><b>ISBN</b>: 99780733342080<br /><b>For ages: </b> 7 – 12<br /><b>Type:</b> Illustrated Junior Fiction / Graphic Novel<br /><br /><b>Buy the Book: <a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780733342080/fluff-bullies-beware-fluff-1/" target="_blank">HarperCollins Australia</a>, <a href="https://www.booktopia.com.au/fluff-bullies-beware-matt-stanton/book/9780733342080.html" target="_blank">Booktopia</a></b></span></div></div>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-35968230116856939162023-11-22T05:00:00.011+10:002023-11-22T05:00:00.137+10:00Review: Queenie In Seven Moves <p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz8_QXy5qUKV1mEVIE4yFnnJhnx-Mice1iHmOjERbreTdwSOO4-tuwxxtHWZK_15u1Owt1MvH8Wc6MZ8x5zTaA-tNvw8BHUZ05twzvchRMhfaqYxy_H1yD279hAyIxzSfmet89IRco122pLxTiRmXIzhUPjyaFTvCOERnKPsKsIE0BVYU3AHdxW-GhspkQ/s1225/Queenie%20in%20Seven%20Moves__9781760655662.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1225" data-original-width="798" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz8_QXy5qUKV1mEVIE4yFnnJhnx-Mice1iHmOjERbreTdwSOO4-tuwxxtHWZK_15u1Owt1MvH8Wc6MZ8x5zTaA-tNvw8BHUZ05twzvchRMhfaqYxy_H1yD279hAyIxzSfmet89IRco122pLxTiRmXIzhUPjyaFTvCOERnKPsKsIE0BVYU3AHdxW-GhspkQ/w416-h640/Queenie%20in%20Seven%20Moves__9781760655662.jpeg" width="416" /></a></div><br />Ripping up roots can cause wilt; in
saplings at least and, as it turns out, in young human beings like Queenie Jean
Anderson. Queenie is a girl with a passion to rock and roll. At least, she
plays a mean guitar but what she has in raw talent, she lacks in confidence.
Stricken with stage fright and the belief that her ex-bestie, Sparrow, will out
best her every time, Queenie chooses to flee at every given opportunity rather
than face the possibility of abject failure.<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Leaving, exit stage left, is one
thing but when she and her mother are forced to move from their rented ramshackle
home, aka Peachy, things take on a more desperate and tension-filled tone.
Salvation comes in the form of temporary refuge in Queenie’s mum’s place of
work, the Diamond Sands Seniors Village. Adaptation is the key to survival and
Queenie soon becomes the oldies’ favourite but the situation is short-lived and
so begins a hopscotch journey from one place of abode to another.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Throughout this pell mell of moving,
Queenie is unsettled by thoughts of the Summer Song Contest, something she
simultaneously wants to participate in yet is reticent about. With nothing but
her dad’s old guitar and her natural songwriting ability, Queenie scribbles out
lyrics which her erstwhile (new) roommate, Dory transforms it into something
beyond credible with the help of his high-tech know how. Destination: viral. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">But it’s not enough. Being homeless
and harassed by Sparrow’s taunts increases the strained relationship between Queenie
and her mum. They move again, this time into a teacher’s caravan. At first this
arrangement sounds idyllic and carefree until the rains begin. Leaks turn into
torrents that threaten to cave in the van’s roof, a symbolic metaphor for the
flood of misfortune in which Queenie finds herself floundering. Forced to
abandon the van and with her Mum stuck at work thanks to rising flood waters,
Queenie makes her fourth move, to higher ground as it were. But life has not
quite finished its game and Queenie is still in emotional and physical motion.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">She makes desperate social appeals to
no avail and yet somewhere between all the ‘bouncing around’ from one domicile
to another, Sparrow and Queenie collide and a tentative renewed friendship adds
to Queenie’s pre-Christmas confusions. The summer marches on. The moves become
less comfortable. Change is a constant through which realisation eventually
seeps. And Queenie Jean Anderson finally learns that she is stronger than she
first thought. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Inspired by the real-life events of accomplished
author, Zannie Louise, Queenie’s tale embodies the plight hundreds of families who
through circumstances indited by the pandemic, found it nearly impossible to
secure a permanent dwelling. Moving house is rated among the top ten most
stressful things a human being can undertake, never mind the uncertainty
created by constant house hopping. Change is inevitable. What is less certain
is our capacity to embrace and develop from it until it is actually upon us.
Queenie’s collection of changes is huge and all-consuming and yet through her
creative outlet in song, she develops a sense of space and reason, compassion
and determination enabling her to sing her song, complete Year 6, accept her
mother’s new beau and most importantly, love the life she’s in. It’s not a
perfect checkmate but it could be Queenie’s best move yet. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Louise’s narrative is a triumph of
nuanced layers and emotions with far reaching appeal. Touching, witty and
wonderful to the nth degree, </span><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760655662/"><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Queenie In Seven Moves</span></i></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> is a proper crowd pleaser proving that home
really is where the heart is.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Queenie In Seven Moves<br />
<b>Author: </b> Zanni Louise<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Walker Books Australia, $16.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> February 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Paperback<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9781760655662<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 10 – 13<br />
<b>Type:</b> Middle Grade Fiction<br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: </b></span><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760655662/"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Walker Books Australia</span></b></a><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">, </span></b><a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/queenie-in-seven-moves/zanni-louise/book_9781760655662.htm"><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Boomerang Books</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></b></a><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-72912365805381108082023-11-17T05:00:00.012+10:002023-11-17T05:00:00.146+10:00Review: A Norendy Tale: The Puppets of Spelhorst<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8XciVAJTvh7eZjYUbwUK_0d51N97MaSvVPgP1SEOWirdpK6wCJy0Mn55VK6FW-_bfTM1oZfBvLzgFkOKoGLa80RBHnAFU_2dUDRNjiwLdPp1-fG9QxGu-cfVFYP3L7kU-ZcpapNEz6TECPEh0lVPqCiyzFAtMqPRQHTF7Nv68Ru4GLpUmke6usqr911hI/s1225/Puppets%20of%20Spelhorst__9781529512854.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1225" data-original-width="835" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8XciVAJTvh7eZjYUbwUK_0d51N97MaSvVPgP1SEOWirdpK6wCJy0Mn55VK6FW-_bfTM1oZfBvLzgFkOKoGLa80RBHnAFU_2dUDRNjiwLdPp1-fG9QxGu-cfVFYP3L7kU-ZcpapNEz6TECPEh0lVPqCiyzFAtMqPRQHTF7Nv68Ru4GLpUmke6usqr911hI/w436-h640/Puppets%20of%20Spelhorst__9781529512854.jpeg" width="436" /></a></div><br />Fate and circumstance are curious
things that can set storytelling wheels in motion with the most extraordinary
outcomes. From the dexterous mind and unfathomable imaginings of <a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/creator/dicamillo-kate/">Kate DiCamillo</a>
comes a new, spellbindingly illustrated fiction that bewitches and bemuses.<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Five exquisite puppets each with a personality
and power peculiar to their maker’s whimsy are locked in a trunk after their
former master forsakes them, their story and himself. And that is where their
real story begins. An adventure, a quest, a parody of unfortunate near
disasters, twists and awkward turns that involves each of the puppets in turn
and ultimately as a one for they are all in the same story. Of this they are certain
and so vow to each other to remain in the telling until the end.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Their journey evokes wonder in simple
beauties that are easily overlooked; the colour of moonlight through an open
window for instance. The vagaries of misguided vanity. The heartbreak of unrequited
expectations. And like the most confounding and enchanting of dreams within
dreams, this story within in a story is told in acts befitting a splendid stage
production, which most satisfyingly, the puppets themselves become part of. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">DiCamillo’s ability to weave nuance
and meaning into the most intricate story tapestries is beyond considerable. It
is simply incredible. And believable. Logic rubs shoulders with incongruous
absurdities. Storylines melt into a rich alchemy of obvious yet intelligible fantasy
that young readers will have no difficulty in recognising nor trusting. <a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/creator/morstad-julie/">Julie Morstad’s</a>
pencil lined drawings bring the King, the Wolf, the Girl, the Boy and the Owl
to life which lovers of illustrated fiction (like me) will appreciate but the
heart that beats beneath this wistful affected tale is strong and assured on
its own encouraging repeat readings and poignant discoveries. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This <a href="file:///E:/ThePowells/Documents/Our%20Documents%20New/Dim's%20Writings!/Reviews/DIM'S%20re%20VIEWS/Walker%20Books%20Australia">Norendy
Tale</a> of adventure and destiny is a captivating experience of love, loyalties
and how the time in between life’s comings and goings is too short to waste. So,
don’t.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> A Norendy Tale: The Puppets of Spelhorst<br />
<b>Author: </b> Kate DiCamillo<br />
<b>Illustrator:</b> Julie Morstad<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Walker Books Australia, 24.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> 14 October 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Hardcover<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9781529512854<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 7 – 10<br />
<b>Type:</b> Junior Fiction<br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: <a href="file:///E:/ThePowells/Documents/Our%20Documents%20New/Dim's%20Writings!/Reviews/DIM'S%20re%20VIEWS/Walker%20Books%20Australia">Walker
Books Australia</a>, <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/the-puppets-of-spelhorst/kate-dicamillo/book_9781529512854.htm">Boomerang
Books<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></a></b></span><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-86802355917830434442023-11-10T05:00:00.014+10:002023-11-10T05:00:00.252+10:00Review: Bear And Bird: The Stars And Other Stories<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhrbxL4BeEbmy6rPsOG56jlRmC0HgdAr5VFXhJSHOZ6aVfEVX0TBGqDkUSJUQh8rjlYAvVgQjg_9HxZzJI4ohXEytFsi28BsZUuX4FJaZ8-KXsT0ZCVy6jGrSPzvCRmRkjXTXxtSf1u2IXfhTH3A7QasEmI0LpV9YHO4OJgpkLgvBiEpbnFHVIx9yfIA-8/s1225/Bear%20and%20Bird_%20The%20Stars%20and%20Other%20Stories__9781529504903.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1225" data-original-width="822" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhrbxL4BeEbmy6rPsOG56jlRmC0HgdAr5VFXhJSHOZ6aVfEVX0TBGqDkUSJUQh8rjlYAvVgQjg_9HxZzJI4ohXEytFsi28BsZUuX4FJaZ8-KXsT0ZCVy6jGrSPzvCRmRkjXTXxtSf1u2IXfhTH3A7QasEmI0LpV9YHO4OJgpkLgvBiEpbnFHVIx9yfIA-8/w430-h640/Bear%20and%20Bird_%20The%20Stars%20and%20Other%20Stories__9781529504903.jpeg" width="430" /></a></div><br />Bear and Bird are best friends and
that is all you really need to know because the rest of this book and its counterpart,
<i><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781529504897/">The Picnic and
Other Stories</a>,</i> also by the uber talented, Jarvis, is simply a wonderful
venture into the relationship between these two.<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Like the friendship of many small
children, Bear and Bird’s is one of unrestrained candour and genuine purity of spirit.
They share, care and yes, argue; sometimes over the most inane things, like a
spoon. In this collection of four short and super sweet stories, the spoon causes
a quaking rift between the two companions prompting Bear to write a letter
looking for a new friend. Extreme reactions indeed, that result in a new connection
with another lost soul also seeking a new confidant. Ironically, both end up anonymously
describing all the wonderful things they cherish and have in common with the
other, because of course, unbeknownst to themselves, they have been writing to
each. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This and the other stories about
stars and cake and obedience are gorgeous exposes of moments in time shared between
Bear and Bird which whilst cute and humorous also imbue some big emotions.
Patience, anger, jealously, guilt, gluttony, regret are among some of the feelings
incorporated into these very relatable storylines. Even if riding on the back
of tortoise across the ocean waves believing it’s a rock that likes to roam isn’t
quite your everyday school yard occurrence, the literal blind faith Bird adopts
when out shopping with Bear one day is a reaction common in young children.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The accompanying colour-filled
artwork of Jarvis which features, softly textured painted imagery outlined in bold
crayon ensures these tales are brimming with poignant charm, wit and a heart
song about friendship that is pure and powerful. Highly recommended for newly independent readers and lovers of illustrated fiction.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Bear And Bird: The Stars And Other Stories<br />
<b>Author Illustrator:</b> Jarvis<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Walker Books Australia, $24.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> 4 October 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Hardcover<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9781529504903<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 5 – 7<br />
<b>Type:</b> Junior Fiction<br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: <a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781529504903/">Walker
Books</a>, <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/bear-and-bird-the-stars-and-other-stories/jarvis/book_9781529504903.htm">Boomerang
Books</a></b></span><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-85320993672566449312023-10-30T05:00:00.014+10:002023-11-13T14:42:42.514+10:00Review: Australian Animals from Beach To Bush<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP8HULhjD5q6OuVc1hKf1HQj5JZwCodH0BA357xqnzZ2CLvs1s_Oii0qCBXWsG58Dz23MGzsfRVWLVFCnYHLqmFGX6iG82zwQpvSDIBqpwnnR6Ga_JW_HT7K3bBDUzRbonU3aewlCeuVLTFnxEHEBzRmYtAgcBcDXxqMxQfu1eMbJIdhfwlFH79A7xTdvv/s3413/9781922930408.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3020" data-original-width="3413" height="566" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP8HULhjD5q6OuVc1hKf1HQj5JZwCodH0BA357xqnzZ2CLvs1s_Oii0qCBXWsG58Dz23MGzsfRVWLVFCnYHLqmFGX6iG82zwQpvSDIBqpwnnR6Ga_JW_HT7K3bBDUzRbonU3aewlCeuVLTFnxEHEBzRmYtAgcBcDXxqMxQfu1eMbJIdhfwlFH79A7xTdvv/w640-h566/9781922930408.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />I’m currently embracing all things
Aussie and story. This means my awareness and appreciation for the stories
created on Traditional Country, Sky Country and Sea Country is slowly but
surely growing. It’s a wonderful study to be part of, <i>acknowledging the
stories, culture and history of our First Nations people</i> and basking in
their enormous pools of knowledge.<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This new release from the creative
brains of</span><a href="https://www.brentos.com.au/pages/our-story"><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> Brentos</span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> is not just another picture book listing the conservational status of our
unique Australian wildlife, it is a colourful ode to the Aussie bush and
surrounding seas connecting readers with the heart and soul of the land on
which they reside. And it’s a corker.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Sadly though, not every creature is
thriving alongside our human existence or more accurately, because of it. </span><a href="https://affirmpress.com.au/browse/book/Brentos-Australian-Animals:-From-Beach-to-Bush-9781922930408/"><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Australian Animals From Beach To Bush</span></i></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">, clearly identifies species from coral reefs
to inland skylines that are vulnerable, endangered or currently doing okay.
Definitions are coloured coded prior to journeying from beach to bush which
ensures accessibility for confident readers,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">What really sets this picture book
apart from its contemporaries is the sheer number of Australian animals
included. Environments and individual species are featured in luxuriant double
page spreads that invite the reader into the world these animals inhabit. We
are then given the exciting task of spotting a myriad of creatures that coexist
in these habitats for example kelp forests, coastal wetlands, and eucalyptus
forests. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Challenges are enhanced by
encouraging youngsters to ‘look and find’ a quoted number of the named animals
thus by combining the elements of a fun game, children are committing to memory
the features, characteristics and habitats of each creature in similar ways our
First Nations people have passed on crucial animal and location identifiers via
Songlines. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Another defining difference is the
artwork employed throughout. </span><a href="https://affirmpress.com.au/author/61539"><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Brentos</span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> use their
‘signature style’ which incorporates simple bold rounded lines with <i>soft
whimsical pastels</i> to portray the bush and beach. Fur feather and fin
details are absent in favour of contoured shading. Like-colour palettes accentuate
time and place; the greater bilby’s homeland in the savanna is a delicious
smorgasbord of ochres, pinks and muted yellows for instance. Animals sport
large almost comical eyes, even the most minute ladybird and cicada, creating
an inviting sense of play for young readers, cementing attention and
encouraging deeper exploration – just as they would if they were actually
walking Country. Wonderful. Clever. Unique. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The lesson (and I use that term
loosely as this experience is way more fun than being in the classroom),
doesn’t stop there. Extinct animals get their own spread too, hued in subdued
sombre shades of grey and black; a reminder that while we are the harbingers of
change, we must be ever mindful of how change impacts our magical lands and
seas. Thankfully, the creators leave us with a few easy-to-implement ways to
help us better <i>connect with nature and help Australian animals.</i> What
more could you ask for! <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A singularly beautiful picture book highly
recommended for primary school classrooms, libraries and home bookshelves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> Australian Animals From Beach To Bush<br />
<b>Author Illustrator:</b> Brentos<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Affirm, $24.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> 31 October 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Hardcover<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9781922930408<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 3+<br />
<b>Type:</b> Non-fiction Picture Book <br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: </b></span><a href="https://affirmpress.com.au/browse/book/Brentos-Australian-Animals:-From-Beach-to-Bush-9781922930408/"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Affirm Press</span></b></a><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></b></p><b>Footnote:<i> </i></b><i><a href="https://affirmpress.com.au/browse/book/Brentos-Australia:-From-Dawn-to-Dusk-9781922806321/" target="_blank">Australia From Dawn To Dusk</a></i> is another title in this collection. A glorious colour-filled journey from sun up to sun down through a spectacular array of landscapes and Australian locations, each perfectly hued in colours that match the time of day as well as the environment peculiar to that place. Snippets of intriguing information about the inhabitants and their habits according to the time of day provide a delicious all-round reading experience. These books by dual creators, Bentos make gorgeous gifts and bookshelf treasures. Highly recommended.
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-15375305569699247002023-10-23T14:26:00.000+10:002023-10-23T14:26:56.108+10:00Review: Silver Linings<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWP1xvGX-Di-EYSCPzPn_9D5ofn4Jn7oFfn9Yvjy3RJEiFr7HvaGxzDWfN-kJJtGm_nhYtzvTyx4UgCXJUVKixAzRylCiDCNFb-RdX0RhoUhZ74e68gcqPi_z9wk3oaE3ASMiZQ0i9yS-xKrhr2qxmlMJbvwh9j2CX9arkN5L-aXIJUwVaWII4Wse4T_8q/s648/Silver%20Linings.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="648" data-original-width="456" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWP1xvGX-Di-EYSCPzPn_9D5ofn4Jn7oFfn9Yvjy3RJEiFr7HvaGxzDWfN-kJJtGm_nhYtzvTyx4UgCXJUVKixAzRylCiDCNFb-RdX0RhoUhZ74e68gcqPi_z9wk3oaE3ASMiZQ0i9yS-xKrhr2qxmlMJbvwh9j2CX9arkN5L-aXIJUwVaWII4Wse4T_8q/w450-h640/Silver%20Linings.jpg" width="450" /></a></div><br />Katrina Nannestad has well and truly
cemented her position as one of Australia’s most accomplished historical
fiction writers with her latest novel, <i><a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780733342257/silver-linings/">Silver
Linings</a>.</i> Most of us are aware that clouds have them, silver linings
that is, but what exactly do they mean and do they really exist? Nettie Sweeney
sure thinks so.<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Nettie’s story, set in the 1950s, reads as a middle grade novel yet champions Nettie Sweeney as the young protagonist
who has just started primary school. Nettie’s tender years, beguiling naivety and
childlike foibles are neatly offset however by the fact that she is the fourth
daughter of a farming family with the ability to write and think beyond her
years. Couple this with the assured determination of a person set on visiting
the moon and you’ve got a character exploding with charm, wit and wonder. In short,
Nettie is larger-than-life adorbs! Nettie’s singular desire is for a mother to
love and cuddle having lost hers at birth.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Her dreams come true in the shape of
Alice, a woman who reignites the light in her father, Snow’s, life and fills
Nettie’s with the warm gentle loving glow she has always longed for. Life on
the Sweeny place settles into a rugged yet reassuring routine for them all.
Cows are milked daily, school is endured, friendships ebb and flow like capricious
breezes. Just when Nettie thinks life couldn’t get any better it does in the
shape of a baby brother named, Billy; who’s better than a piglet! Even the
horrid sharp, prickly bits of her despised Aunty Edith soften under Billy’s gaze.
Then tragedy strikes and every ounce of loveliness is sucked into a vortex of despair,
sadness and depression. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">A forlorn and impenetrable silence
suffocates the Sweeny household. To Nettie, it feels as though every skerrick
of happiness has been removed so that even memories of better times are
unreachable. Nettie’s frustration and anguish spill into action as her innocent
aspirations result in another near tragic set of circumstances. She is again
overcome. How can one little girl’s desire to instal happiness into her home
overcome the incredible magnitude of loss and grief?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780733342257/silver-linings/">Silver
Linings</a></span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">, is a heart
tugging, superbly rendered exploration of family ties, love, pain, perseverance
and the forces of nature set against a backdrop of Coronation festivities and
post war vigour. For me, it resounds of the simplicity and wholesomeness of country
life reminding me of my grandparents’ farm and the day-to-day burdens that
necessitated survival. Every morning, rain hail or shine, my grandad would trudge
up hill to the bails to hand-milk the house cows, just like Nettie’s father and
sisters. Hardships were the daily de rigueur of farming life but the rewards
were equally as encompassing. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Readers needn’t be from a rural
background though to fully enjoy the humour and disasters that make up Nettie’s
world. This novel pulses with at least one recognisable emotion: love. It’s a
celebration of tenacity and friendships, of family bonds and of <i>life</i>, in
all its forms including death. It reminds us that ‘feeling’ is okay. We are allowed
to laugh out loud, so too should we be able to cry out loud with equal
voracity. In fact, we might be a whole lot better off for allowing ourselves the
freedom of emotional expression. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Thank you, Nettie, for indulging us with
your company and permitting us insight into a childhood that is full of simple
sweetness and perfect logic. Yours is a story that I know will appeal to
youngsters and resonate with older people, like me, who eventually realise that
it is not the age of a person that matters but the size of their character and intestinal
fortitude that counts. And that silver linings – those wonderful serendipitous,
joyful elements of life – can be found anywhere at any moment, disguised as
anything. Beautiful. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Silver Linings<br />
<b>Author: </b> Katrina Nannestad<br />
<b>Illustrator:</b> Astrid Hicks<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> HarperCollins, $19.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> 1 November 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Hardcover<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9780733342257<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 11+<br />
<b>Type:</b> Middle Grade Novel for Younger Readers <br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book:<a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780733342257/silver-linings/"> HarperCollins</a>,
<a href="https://www.booktopia.com.au/silver-linings-katrina-nannestad/book/9780733342257.html">Booktopia</a></b></span><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-66139045880874823462023-09-18T05:00:00.020+10:002023-09-18T05:00:00.142+10:00Double Delight: Celebrating Beauty with Sophie Blacknall<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv71DJywQnHkAQToRv8q_R9mx0hIboPgDZFM4ZTLW7qFrN1VZcH2XWIYigox0zzlhR3n4el9t5uChA63qKqUi-7Caje2F4JH_aeM8Ikoiy8C-pES2Vc78ycURAMZlW7Hmr_0nXABFseiVo84YckpyPl_cfDTO0Bktylvm1sdZ9Wbe083312Vm-ixBM7M7U/s5120/Blogging%20Pics4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2880" data-original-width="5120" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv71DJywQnHkAQToRv8q_R9mx0hIboPgDZFM4ZTLW7qFrN1VZcH2XWIYigox0zzlhR3n4el9t5uChA63qKqUi-7Caje2F4JH_aeM8Ikoiy8C-pES2Vc78ycURAMZlW7Hmr_0nXABFseiVo84YckpyPl_cfDTO0Bktylvm1sdZ9Wbe083312Vm-ixBM7M7U/w640-h360/Blogging%20Pics4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />Beauty comes in many forms: the bizarre,
the whimsical, the wondrous. Author illustrator and two-time Caldecott
Medallist, Sophie Blacknall embraces the very best of beauty in her visual and
imaginative picture book narratives creating imagery that makes your heart
swoon. Here are two of her latest masterpieces.<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSQKlRqHpRC1ik0soH4OQ9JL8EfCzQWIbKazVNBxLGIchmCKZiFSV3vR0t4oRWsfnOPurl6KmsN-HXv_bfVs7O8JNEXd3XvQD7k8EmlcRN8C2kxuUNMAMzYOLWAKOmoi_v6T9Hjvfgqi-X8-1mlX3-u_emrOrP5TMLC4k9jo-PiycpnFrIqtPlOK3frV2w/s3076/If%20I%20Was%20A%20Horse%20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3075" data-original-width="3076" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSQKlRqHpRC1ik0soH4OQ9JL8EfCzQWIbKazVNBxLGIchmCKZiFSV3vR0t4oRWsfnOPurl6KmsN-HXv_bfVs7O8JNEXd3XvQD7k8EmlcRN8C2kxuUNMAMzYOLWAKOmoi_v6T9Hjvfgqi-X8-1mlX3-u_emrOrP5TMLC4k9jo-PiycpnFrIqtPlOK3frV2w/w640-h640/If%20I%20Was%20A%20Horse%20.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<p><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://www.hachette.com.au/sophie-blackall/if-i-was-a-horse#:~:text=From%20two%2Dtime%20Caldecott%20Medallist,I%20would%20gallop%20all%20day.&text=If%20you%20were%20a%20horse%2C%20what%20would%20you%20do%3F">If
I Was A Horse</a><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">When I was much shorter, I dreamed
of owing a horse. It was a dead-end desire however my love for all things
equine never diminished so instead of walking, I galloped. Instead of speaking,
I whinnied. Instead of sitting in the shelter shed at lunchtimes, I careened
around the school oval …like a horse. I didn’t just want a horse. I was a horse.
This is the premise of Blackall’s 2023 release; exploring what a child would do
if she were a horse. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This joyful expose of imaginative
play and sense of self is splendidly supported by Blacknall’s exquisite
illustrations created with a combination of media including watercolours,
pencils, and collaged materials resulting in a rich tapestry of textures and
feelings. Being a horse poses intriguing questions like, how would you fit into
your clothes? How would your school friends react? And is bath time really a
die-hard necessity after all! <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Conversely, a universe of wild
exciting possibilities also results from being a horse not least of which is
being your little sister’s best most faithful companion. <i><a href="https://www.hachette.com.au/sophie-blackall/if-i-was-a-horse#:~:text=From%20two%2Dtime%20Caldecott%20Medallist,I%20would%20gallop%20all%20day.&text=If%20you%20were%20a%20horse%2C%20what%20would%20you%20do%3F">If
I Was A Horse</a></i> reflects the beauty of unharnessed imagination in one of
the most child-relatable ways; through empathetic character identification. At
least it does for this little horse lover.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> If I Was A Horse<br />
<b>Author / Illustrator:</b> Sophie Blacknall<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Lothian Children’s Books (Hachette imprint), $24.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> 27 September 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Hardcover (with dustjacket)<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9780734422712<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 3+<br />
<b>Type:</b> Picture Book<br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: </b></span><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.hachette.com.au/sophie-blackall/if-i-was-a-horse#:~:text=From%20two%2Dtime%20Caldecott%20Medallist,I%20would%20gallop%20all%20day.&text=If%20you%20were%20a%20horse%2C%20what%20would%20you%20do%3F">Hachette
Australia</a>, <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/if-i-was-a-horse/sophie-blackall/book_9780734422712.htm">Boomerang
Books</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpmpaXvgPTwExEgVsp0pWIyyYr_ujIyihv0aDkusRkZpgLRIseF9ANYIhZ5HPcUv5ViQOMsVzFlVxRwGH1r7w-Kgajl5H3u1irO9k7a85xvPlK46hWpBEXP_1A-rErLG_MzdOlfrNAz6Ud-3epFtzqSnKwLVaMVJh2SEKJfZJtURaazFIjHTXfeKRiKSuI/s3059/Farmhouse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3059" data-original-width="3058" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpmpaXvgPTwExEgVsp0pWIyyYr_ujIyihv0aDkusRkZpgLRIseF9ANYIhZ5HPcUv5ViQOMsVzFlVxRwGH1r7w-Kgajl5H3u1irO9k7a85xvPlK46hWpBEXP_1A-rErLG_MzdOlfrNAz6Ud-3epFtzqSnKwLVaMVJh2SEKJfZJtURaazFIjHTXfeKRiKSuI/w640-h640/Farmhouse.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><a href="https://www.hachette.com.au/sophie-blackall/farmhouse">Farmhouse</a><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Released last year, <i><a href="https://www.hachette.com.au/sophie-blackall/farmhouse">Farmhouse</a></i>
is another example of unfettered beauty; that which is current, past and lost.
Rather like filming one scene of a movie in one take, Blacknall employs a
similar technique by telling the tale of a farmhouse in one continuous sentence.
This gorgeous ambling poetic piece perfectly suits the location of the
farmhouse (<i>by a glittering stream that twists and turns …), </i>its
personality and the inhabitants that dwell within, all 14 of them!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Through the years and lilting prose,
we come to know the farmhouse’s 12 children, their quirks and squabbles, their
triumphs and misgivings. We are privy to their dreams and hidden treasures. We
are witness to their daily routines and simple pleasures like apple picking and
fishing in the stream. Moments blossom into years and years turn into lifetimes
until one by one, the children leave the home that sheltered, nurtured and
embraced them. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Bereft of human occupation, the
house falls into decline but is not entirely empty. As it ages and slumps into
disrepair, nature reclaims its organic components. Nooks and crannies, basements
and even parlour organs become places for creatures that flutter and fly and
snooze throughout winter until finally the narrator, the one creates this ode
of love, happens upon an overgrown farmhouse and discovers its many treasures.
These in turn prompt her to record the farmhouse’s story and that of all who dwelled
within its walls.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><a href="https://www.hachette.com.au/sophie-blackall/farmhouse">Farmhouse</a></span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> is based on Blacknall’s real life
experiences told additionally through the beautiful endpapers that grace this
book. (As a fan of resonating endpapers, Blackall’s are exceptional). The
luxuriously multi-layered illustrations abound with rich colour and intricate
detail each breathing life into the house and its inhabitants.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The old derelict farmhouse she discovered
in the woods is now demolished but its story, or rather the potential tales once
hidden within its timbers, resound in this exquisite picture book, <i>where
they’ll live on, so long as they’re told. </i><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Farmhouse<br />
<b>Author /Illustrator:</b> Sophie Blacknall<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Lothian Children’s Books (Hachette imprint), $24.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> 31 August 2022<br />
<b>Format:</b> Hardcover (with dustjacket)<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9780734421654<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 5+<br />
<b>Type:</b> Picture Book<span style="mso-tab-count: 2;"> </span><br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: <a href="https://www.hachette.com.au/sophie-blackall/farmhouse">Hachette Australia</a>,
<a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/farmhouse/sophie-blackall/book_9780734421654.htm">Boomerang
Books</a></b></span><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-47659827096024826352023-09-11T05:00:00.030+10:002023-09-11T05:00:00.140+10:00Review: Honey And The Valley Of Horses<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwkJ5dfXAxThljfsX7KXRvLl0LNE1r07LcAGnqZLju-CgMTwwioth9Tf98Fhg2sAlfiTR_46d7wyWQTPAzYeqdM2TQhRdADyiUqym_1WJ3oDUF71aN1tuKvWeYBweFNtTb21A9KtW7pYY2IfBW1WHRSaXhgeRJbVfOYDFU4s4Gg0pEwrqt0DO8sqIaBeDB/s2339/9781761068492.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2339" data-original-width="1512" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwkJ5dfXAxThljfsX7KXRvLl0LNE1r07LcAGnqZLju-CgMTwwioth9Tf98Fhg2sAlfiTR_46d7wyWQTPAzYeqdM2TQhRdADyiUqym_1WJ3oDUF71aN1tuKvWeYBweFNtTb21A9KtW7pYY2IfBW1WHRSaXhgeRJbVfOYDFU4s4Gg0pEwrqt0DO8sqIaBeDB/w414-h640/9781761068492.jpg" width="414" /></a></div><br />As a young tween, the closest
phenomena I encountered resembling pestilence and epidemics was the odd mouse
and locust plague. Both highly irregular, indescribably disturbing occurrences
that eventually, mercifully passed. For the generations before me, war assumed
similar levels of upheaval and unrest. Imagine though being born into an era of
extreme disruption, disease and prolonged uncertainty as your 'new normal' as recently experienced by many
modern-day Gen Alphas. How would you function? What expectations
of the future would you possess? Would you want to escape to a better
place?<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This is the unspoken premise of
Wendy Orr’s latest middle grade fiction, <i><a href="https://www.allenandunwin.com/browse/book/Wendy-Orr-Honey-and-the-Valley-of-Horses-9781761068492/">Honey
and The Valley of Horses</a>.</i> ‘Horses’ was my immediate pull card as I’m
sure it will be for hundreds of equine enthused fans but the horses in Honey’s
tale are much more than decorative incidental whimsy. They inhabit an enchanted
valley and hold the key to the family’s survival and subsequent escape. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Beset by the constant threat of illness
and decline of the human race, Honey’s family, along with grandmother, NanNan decide
to pack up their converted ice cream van and drive off into the sunset in
search of a better existence. Honey is just four when she and her baby brother,
Rumi, accompany their parents into the unknown to survive for goodness knows
how long and somehow prosper. It’s a far cry from common sense but the sheer
tenacious positivity and, it has to be said, ingenuity of them all, achieves
that very purpose.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">For the next seven years, the family
not only survive, they assimilate so absolutely into the Valley’s paradisaical nuances,
that, for the children at least, the before world ceases to exist, except as the
strange fairytale recollections of the adults which the children find hard to
believe. In the Valley of Horses, they have everything they need: plentiful
food, an enriching environment and of course, horses which they all learn to
communicate with, ride and learn from. These huge beautiful steeds appear almost mystically,
remaining aloof but ever present to ‘magically’ assist the family in
their day-to-day lives. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Orr handles the seven-year stint
with can-do-realism and practical exposition that loosens up as the story accelerates
towards a hair-raising climax. Despite the ambrosial existence, lessons for
learning are still enforced by Mumma (with her wild ponytail </span><span style="font-family: "Segoe UI Emoji",sans-serif; mso-ascii-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-char-type: symbol-ext; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-symbol-font-family: "Segoe UI Emoji";">😉</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">*) and chores are strictly adhered to. But
perhaps what is most interesting is that absolute lack of entitlement Honey and
Rumi assume. Theirs is a world of perceived freedoms and divine privilege. They
know no different having zero comprehension of modern devices or the value
humanity placed upon them. They eat off the land with no concept of that which lives
outside of their frames of reference like … the taste of ice cream! Living
their best lives equates to thrilling rides abreast their favourite horses and
climbing the sturdy branches of the giant mango tree under which they reside. Can
you imagine …<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The artful turning of a dystopian
future on its head enables Orr to explore the removal of technology and modern
anchors and its effect on young people whose foremost inclinations are not to
swipe devices and barter for more screen time but to glory in nature and
function within a family unit for the betterment of each of its members. <i><a href="https://www.allenandunwin.com/browse/book/Wendy-Orr-Honey-and-the-Valley-of-Horses-9781761068492/">Honey
and the Valley of Horses</a></i> invites introspective thought accompanying it
with lashings of age-appropriate adventure and fantasy to boot. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">It is not just a tale of placid escapism
for when Honey’s father falls gravely ill, the need to relinquish paradise and
escape the inescapable becomes a matter of life and death. Again, the horses
aid the kids in achieving what none of them could do for the past seven years; find
a way out of the Valley. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Will Honey ever live to experience
the sweet sensation of ice cream or be trapped in an eutopia we can only dream
of? <i><a href="https://www.allenandunwin.com/browse/book/Wendy-Orr-Honey-and-the-Valley-of-Horses-9781761068492/">Honey
and the Valley of Horses</a></i> is an exciting expedition into the surreal realities
of imagination with just enough familiarity to give it plausibility. Oh, and let’s
not forget – beautiful horses!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Honey and the Valley of Horses<br />
<b>Author: </b> Wendy Orr<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Allen & Unwin, $17.99 <br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> 1 August 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Paperback<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9781761068492<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 9 – 13<br />
<b>Type:</b> Middle Grade Fiction<br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: </b></span><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="https://www.allenandunwin.com/browse/book/Wendy-Orr-Honey-and-the-Valley-of-Horses-9781761068492/">Allen
& Unwin</a>, <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/honey-and-the-valley-of-horses/wendy-orr/book_9781761068492.htm">Boomerang
Books</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">*Allusion to the author’s inspiration for describing Mumma’s hair.<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Segoe UI Emoji",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-char-type: symbol-ext; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-symbol-font-family: "Segoe UI Emoji";">😊</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-42095796114966992362023-09-06T05:00:00.043+10:002023-09-06T05:00:00.146+10:00Book Bites: Keeping it Real with Historical Narrative Non-Fiction<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjrGCIsqabiRZIe4oJttYEA4m1aTX8YEPXtNFZa4jNcGSBfB0RdBNkgP0KxAfuxOI7iMPEnTdH5rkukQiqkqZnLHMDPA2HH7JSTPUdvFBkclFcntSd8YLQhWmDYoguP3tEDEMnKphobGcn5Rp9yOTmPgRy6X5tAOt64p1UiRyIOsS0PWYaU2kscYpVubQO/s5120/EUREKA%20IN%20SCHOOL%20Term%201%202021-001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3413" data-original-width="5120" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjrGCIsqabiRZIe4oJttYEA4m1aTX8YEPXtNFZa4jNcGSBfB0RdBNkgP0KxAfuxOI7iMPEnTdH5rkukQiqkqZnLHMDPA2HH7JSTPUdvFBkclFcntSd8YLQhWmDYoguP3tEDEMnKphobGcn5Rp9yOTmPgRy6X5tAOt64p1UiRyIOsS0PWYaU2kscYpVubQO/w640-h426/EUREKA%20IN%20SCHOOL%20Term%201%202021-001.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />Despite having no interest in
history as a school kid, my exposure to the past has increased in my adult
years thanks to a deepening love for narrative non-fiction. Weaving historical
events, facts and figures into an engaging narrative with larger-than-life
characters is (for me and many kids) one surefire way of infusing history and
those who peopled our past into meaningful context. Novels do this with ease.
Here are a few recently released picture books that manage to portray the past
in captivating words and pictures for younger readers.<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbTbxJd5M3c5sg-9oGC6YC6Rd0sUuJ0D_ws-EUnFuFyIFtpLJuv4obhALpwIbrOzhGeKqqwdoA2vkCiU8LT1YO2gH4xzEcxIowHXqOvQ1eeSjVR0kUyLnpOba2fbXM04sGru_SVeFdc_MwCtAOxHeteI_aGdup4PrVXm2X2dkLelFOjd1BYQSBT13j4QZe/s1054/Shearer__9781760653163.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="944" data-original-width="1054" height="574" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbTbxJd5M3c5sg-9oGC6YC6Rd0sUuJ0D_ws-EUnFuFyIFtpLJuv4obhALpwIbrOzhGeKqqwdoA2vkCiU8LT1YO2gH4xzEcxIowHXqOvQ1eeSjVR0kUyLnpOba2fbXM04sGru_SVeFdc_MwCtAOxHeteI_aGdup4PrVXm2X2dkLelFOjd1BYQSBT13j4QZe/w640-h574/Shearer__9781760653163.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760653163/"><b>Shearer</b></a> by Neridah McMullin and Michael Tomkins <br /><br />Jack Howe was a tower above men and legend among shearers in the late 1800s. Not only was his sheer physical prowess awe-inspiring but his I-can-do attitude enabled him to beat and set a new hand-shearing record that remains unbeaten. This is his story set in Jack’s day when the wool industry was experiencing a boon like no other before the advent of mechanical sheep shearing. Howe is portrayed with hero-like vigour and heart by McMullin and Tomkins in a story coloured in warm hues and words that chimes of the outback and a stirring part of our Australian heritage. Suitable for lower primary schoolers.
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Shearer <br />
<b>Author: </b> Neridah McMullin<br />
<b>Illustrator:</b> Michael Tomkins<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Walker Books, $26.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> 1 September 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Hardcover<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9781760653163<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 4 – 8<br />
<b>Type:</b> Picture Book<br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: <a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760653163/">Walker Books
Australia</a>, <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/shearer/neridah-mcmullin/book_9781760653163.htm">Boomerang
Books<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></a></b></span><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhokzT1qj6i9nY6nzJx3yw5eLwYgHlT0HRMfJ3jU2S2xlp2sVhEiHqsOTQSJEf-OV6JPuv_hJnGilm-gf6Mz-ZpK09pdVY8_9RIBVj0JS-otBX08JX20l28AwtVR0rh6Mr8dw4Kts06JrOmNFnqfpuCTxUV9qFPmE-gSUTrSO8wP04GQjZYz9qom-ffvLSg/s1054/Eat%20My%20Dust!__9781760654191.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="944" data-original-width="1054" height="574" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhokzT1qj6i9nY6nzJx3yw5eLwYgHlT0HRMfJ3jU2S2xlp2sVhEiHqsOTQSJEf-OV6JPuv_hJnGilm-gf6Mz-ZpK09pdVY8_9RIBVj0JS-otBX08JX20l28AwtVR0rh6Mr8dw4Kts06JrOmNFnqfpuCTxUV9qFPmE-gSUTrSO8wP04GQjZYz9qom-ffvLSg/w640-h574/Eat%20My%20Dust!__9781760654191.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760654191/"><b>Eat My Dust! </b></a> By Neridah McMullin and Lucia Masciullo<br /><br />Flick through the ‘dusty’ endpapers of this beguiling picture book and you’ll be treated to the story that stirs up images of Thelma and Louise, not that youngsters will care about that, but the verve of adventure and devil-may-care determination is something they will undoubtedly resonate with. Jean Robertson and Kathleen Howell were two women with a penchant for cars, racing and breaking records; all activities deemed unseemly for women in the 1920s. Regardless, they jumped into their gutsy Lancia lambda car and drove (without maps!) from Perth to Adelaide in just over two days, smashing the land speed record by five hours (and many pre-conceived stereotypes along the way). What is great about this retelling is the degree of adventure, action and ambivalence (towards derisive comment) both author and illustrator manage to imbue into just 32 pages. True grit is the flavour of the day amply magnified with personality revealing dialogue and illustrations reflecting a gentle retro aesthetic. Thrilling and affirming. What a great way to reflect on energising history-making moments.
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Eat My Dust!<br />
<b>Author: </b> Neridah McMullin<br />
<b>Illustrator:</b> Luca Masciullo<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Walker Books, $26.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> 2 August 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Hardcover<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9781760654191<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 4+<br />
<b>Type:</b> Picture Book<br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: <a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760654191/">Walker Books
Australia</a>, <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/eat-my-dust/neridah-mcmullin/book_9781760654191.htm">Boomerang
Books</a><o:p></o:p></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijfmFCpT1-kRhptr4P9schP8W4w-HEJ4zMVe_-R5E-phOVYN_c-H-xftfle8eNO4M621VfYT-NbuSKpyL9_RqHrXGzs-I9SFkgm3MA-lUWDvjbFb5yahI7Dj3Zi54YDe3f0EtZB25t1jfsH3qVV4KfBmsJTE1k09nztFiTIm4FpDy6LhIyUSxsHO3Vknaf/s304/Alices_Shoe-304x215.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="215" data-original-width="304" height="283" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijfmFCpT1-kRhptr4P9schP8W4w-HEJ4zMVe_-R5E-phOVYN_c-H-xftfle8eNO4M621VfYT-NbuSKpyL9_RqHrXGzs-I9SFkgm3MA-lUWDvjbFb5yahI7Dj3Zi54YDe3f0EtZB25t1jfsH3qVV4KfBmsJTE1k09nztFiTIm4FpDy6LhIyUSxsHO3Vknaf/w400-h283/Alices_Shoe-304x215.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p></p><a href="https://midnightsunpublishing.com/2023/07/alices-shoe/"><b>Alice’s Shoe</b></a> by Julie Thorndyke and Jennifer Harrison <br /><br />This is a story of great heart and soaring spirit. The story of Alice Betteridge is historically significant because she was the first deafblind person in Australia to be educated. Alice is a country girl from Sawyers Gully in NSW. Typically, as a youngster, she roams wild and free and barefooted. Tragically, she is rendered deaf and blind following an illness. Fever may have taken her sight and hearing but it has not removed Alice’s joie d vivre and love of her country home. <br /><br />This gorgeously portrayed picture book is a joyful sensory experience following Alice’s shoeless, carefree, farm-rich first few years until she is old enough to go to school where <i>like a key opening a lock, Alice’s first word opened a door out of her grey, blanketed world.</i> Tender text and exquisite textural illustrations fill every page with (ironically) abundant light and sound. In fact, wandering through Alice’s story was reminiscent of visiting my grandparents’ farm in the Blackall Ranges as a young city slicker: every new sensation a wondrous discovery. I was entranced by Helen Keller’s life story as a child and am once again delighted and enheartened to learn about ‘Australia’s own Helen Keller’. A must have classroom addition for early primary schoolers.
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Alice’s Shoe<br />
<b>Author: </b> Julie Thorndyke <br />
<b>Illustrator:</b> Jennifer Harrison<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> MidnightSun Publishing, $29.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> July 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Hardcover<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9781922858139<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 4 – 8<br />
<b>Type:</b> Picture Book<br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: <a href="https://midnightsunpublishing.com/2023/07/alices-shoe/">MidnightSun
Publishing</a>, <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/alices-shoe/julie-thorndyke/book_9781922858139.htm">Boomerang
Books</a></b></span><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-25092470337255058582023-09-01T05:00:00.058+10:002023-09-01T05:00:00.143+10:00Meet The Author - ME!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOXm38gMh9DeV1RdnydZJD73f-S5BhZgc2a1UqVMZ_HatrOV94QbtG8GQxY6NS-rwh9TDRQAhzHAtEtmjZfHJG6bzgwXDKXpb3U-bP9ITE1JEHdGbjO0vv8Z2QEv9qXoqZ9iIz3J_JYkQhS8JAB1D39JUJgkdqRgkSkV8GdaeAbR-bxvuYLiher-GB3wLH/s1800/D%20POWELL%20Author%20Pic%20Low%20Res%20May%202018%20(7).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1800" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOXm38gMh9DeV1RdnydZJD73f-S5BhZgc2a1UqVMZ_HatrOV94QbtG8GQxY6NS-rwh9TDRQAhzHAtEtmjZfHJG6bzgwXDKXpb3U-bP9ITE1JEHdGbjO0vv8Z2QEv9qXoqZ9iIz3J_JYkQhS8JAB1D39JUJgkdqRgkSkV8GdaeAbR-bxvuYLiher-GB3wLH/w426-h640/D%20POWELL%20Author%20Pic%20Low%20Res%20May%202018%20(7).jpg" width="426" /></a></div><div><br /></div>In a wild fit of self-indulgent promotional puffiness, I'm sharing this recent <b>'Meet The Author' </b>feature courtesy of Jackie Hosking, founder of the ace <a href="https://jackiehoskingpio.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Kids' Lit e-zine, PIO</a>. If you don't already subscribe to this online publication, consider it. It's a regular veritable smorgasbord of publishing insights and opps, competitions and conferences, industry event notification and workshops and courses info to keep you on the right career trajectory. Not to mention opportunities to meet fellow creatives, like ME! So what are you waiting for. Grab a cuppa and have a chat with me ... and Pippa, of course!<p></p><b>Hi Dimity! Thanks for sharing your creative journey with us today. Are you an author, an illustrator or both?</b><br />Both - I wish! As an author, I only paint with words but I adore the alchemy of combining words with pictures.<br /> <br /><b> Please tell us about the book that you would like to talk about today?</b><br /><i><a href="https://dimitypowell.com/pippa-and-the-troublesome-twins/" target="_blank">Pippa and the Troublesome Twins</a></i> is the next thrilling episode in young Pippa pigeon's life. Since her first solo foray into the wild blue yonder, Pippa has matured a little and now faces her next exciting adventure – big sisterhood! However, her new family members, aka brothers Pepi and Penn, are more disruptive than fun. They're messy, demanding and very, very noisy! Coping with changing family dynamics and the need to fulfil her own personal destiny lies at the heart of The Troublesome Twins.<br /> <br /> Both Pippa's illustrator, Andrew Plant and I felt Pippa had more to share. So too did many of the school children we visited after the release of Pippa in 2019 so it's wonderful seeing her take flight again. Primary aged children (and their teachers) get a real kick out of this plucky little pigeon. They seem to relate to her cheek and sass whilst recognising her innate goodness despite her constant desire to just 'take off' and play or explore. She's so 'kid-like' but with feathers! The focus of her latest story, the disruption of change, in this case caused by the arrival of twin baby brothers, is a relatable shift in the norm for many youngsters as well.<br /> <br /><i> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwWrfA648IBZWfaVawKwgm2aER9rWKjfKTT4ytMBtyeUlvdk2A0_CLBTmhW6krfBkYU0H2tIfnnZsNyIDiGxMrV98YVGUKGkv84N_R2LYjm1b-zTbePcsKSS_MLgdFJjzArORfsaa9ZEkrks8pJfFaStq6m9hMzKLDoFF0pxy0pKWvYhay64GiVO32gS43/s4608/18%20July%20Norfolk%20Island%2020230718_054713%20(14).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4608" data-original-width="3456" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwWrfA648IBZWfaVawKwgm2aER9rWKjfKTT4ytMBtyeUlvdk2A0_CLBTmhW6krfBkYU0H2tIfnnZsNyIDiGxMrV98YVGUKGkv84N_R2LYjm1b-zTbePcsKSS_MLgdFJjzArORfsaa9ZEkrks8pJfFaStq6m9hMzKLDoFF0pxy0pKWvYhay64GiVO32gS43/w300-h400/18%20July%20Norfolk%20Island%2020230718_054713%20(14).jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br /><a href="https://dimitypowell.com/pippa-and-the-troublesome-twins/" target="_blank">Pippa and The Troublesome Twins</a></i><a href="https://dimitypowell.com/pippa-and-the-troublesome-twins/" target="_blank"> </a>took off in June 2023. The official launch was in Brisbane but Pippa is still making regular visits to bookshops and schools around SE QLD and beyond being the long-distance flyer that she is!<br /> <br /> In both hardcover or paperback, Pippa #2 is <a href="https://wordpress.us9.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a3c66c5e50a1a11401c5c16a6&id=f5f2c1216d&e=dfa1cc7475">available online</a>, at your favourite bookshop OR (if you'd like a personally signed copy) directly from either Andrew or <a href="https://wordpress.us9.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a3c66c5e50a1a11401c5c16a6&id=e1a4908ada&e=dfa1cc7475">Dimity (me!)</a>. You might even like your own 'pigeon pair', aka a double Pippa book pack. They're incredibly coo coo COOL! Others think so, too …<br /> <br /><i> "Powell’s playful words combine perfectly with Plant’s wonderful illustrations to create a fun picture book about family dynamics… and adventure. Ideal for reading out loud. It works well as both a follow-up to the original picture book, or a stand-alone. Love it!" <br /></i> <br /><b> Published:</b> 1 June 2023 (HB) & (PB)<br /><b> Author: </b>Dimity Powell<br /><b> Illustrator:</b> Andrew Plant<br /><b> Publisher:</b> <a href="https://wordpress.us9.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a3c66c5e50a1a11401c5c16a6&id=8cb7368062&e=dfa1cc7475">Ford Street Publishing</a>, $26.95 (HB), $17.95 (PB)<br /><b> ISBN:</b> 9781922696281 (HB) 9781922696298 (PB)<br /><b> Format:</b> Hardcover 32pp<br /><b> Ideal for:</b> 3 – 6 years <br /><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoNormalTable" style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; border-collapse: collapse; min-width: 100%; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 0cm 0cm; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr style="mso-yfti-firstrow: yes; mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes;"><td style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; padding: 6.75pt 0cm 0cm 0cm;" valign="top"><table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoNormalTable" style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; border-collapse: collapse; margin-left: -2.25pt; margin-right: -2.25pt; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 0cm 0cm; mso-table-anchor-horizontal: column; mso-table-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-table-left: left; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr style="mso-yfti-firstrow: yes; mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes;"><td style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; padding: 0cm 0cm 0cm 0cm; width: 449.25pt;" valign="top" width="599"><table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoNormalTable" style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; border-collapse: collapse; max-width: 100%; min-width: 100%; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 0cm 0cm; mso-table-anchor-horizontal: column; mso-table-anchor-vertical: paragraph; mso-table-left: left; mso-table-lspace: 2.25pt; mso-table-rspace: 2.25pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr style="mso-yfti-firstrow: yes; mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes;"><td style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; padding: 0cm 13.5pt 6.75pt 13.5pt; word-break: break-word;" valign="top"><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://dimitypowell.com/pippa-and-the-troublesome-twins/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="2815" data-original-width="2405" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeLATrLZbjCDH1TNi4wMIi1l8Ke5wr3N3DQl6ax1OzMXw-aNfqX6jXpwGY6RG2PUuFvCIwsZLIEwMgeu-vRJ91T311vNqe6UMd0bGbMo9inDF0WtLFrKKjx1sisEcYZFdnMiCP6_OMNwl9bhfCh1i8cJEB67galF_wXD1nbqT2kIE6IQjs0TZd84JU3MvY/w546-h640/Pippa%20&%20Twins%20Front%20Cover.jpeg" width="546" /></a></div><br />Can you share the book’s publication journey?</b><br />Once again, PIGEONS were the catalyst for Pippa's second adventure. The pigeons I kept in my backyard as a kid were a terrific source of inspiration for both books. For those whose pigeon lore is a little lacking, pigeons are prolific breeders and their ‘twin’ offspring are among the noisiest, most demanding of baby birds – perfect characters to represent annoying siblings! Sibling jealousy and the feeling of displacement is not new to picture book stories but it has never told from an avian or should I say 'bird's-eye' point of view. I thought that would be fun to exploit! Young readers instantly recognise this common family dynamic from their own situations while simultaneously learning even more about one of our most fascinating bird species, the homing pigeon.<br /> <br /> Almost immediately after the release of Pippa #1, I received lots of positive online and in-school feedback and requests for what her next adventure might entail and thought, why not? I was curious to know what happened to Pippa next, too!<br /> <br /> It took just moments to realise what the next storyline should be and Andrew even less time to feel enthusiastic about illustrating the next chapter. Fine-tuning the tone and rhythm took a little longer but was made easier having Pippa #1 as an example of the voice I had to follow.<br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://dimitypowell.com/pippa/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="3888" data-original-width="5184" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrws3AwVcvMF-oX5bWkq51cOPDoODEpKfrr_cZRfMqD70IWaT49Zi_JXdbu4lEg1S_YmOxJUISEShhqldDQUdeWRUwXS7BSXPrPNYpy5omrakjn8gQZ5a1PgDSAxDz8ogRrU2_Jf6HTp0NJK1dQXU1ubA7ZBJpCUldFOjoLJQgGsngqsfNV-hT-e8xsIXK/w400-h300/Pippa%20Promo%20Cover%20Shots%20May%202019%20(5).JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />Both titles are traditionally published by Ford Street Publishing in Melbourne. As with the first title, the process of giving Pip her wings a second time around was a collaborative one involving Andrew, myself and Pippa's original editor, Nan McNab. Andrew's ability as a fine artist and my knowledge of Columba livia, aka pigeons, meant our exchanges were both fun, and fluid. Working with Andrew, who also understands the intricacies of picture book texts having authored his own, and knowing Pippa and her bros were always in safe capable hands was one of my favourite parts of the publication experience. We would both love to push Pippa's boundaries further and work on a third title together.<br /> <br /> As I don't have an agent and the release of picture books often occurs faster than the publisher can provide sustained marketing for, the job of selling, publicising and marketing our own books often falls on the creators themselves. I let Pippa do a lot of the heavy lifting for me in this regard. She accompanies me on every school visit or PR event. She's been half way around the world and back, doing what she does best – exploring new places and living the adventure of life. I record these for her as she goes.<br /> <br /> She is the unofficial mascot of persistence, dreaming big and following those dreams until you reach them, no matter how far away they feel. This is something we both try to share with our young audiences be it during a school visit, holiday story-time session or writing workshop. She should have her own social's page but looking after that and all my other 'real life' pets would take up what precious little time I have to conjure up new stories, so for now, Pippa shares my <a href="https://wordpress.us9.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a3c66c5e50a1a11401c5c16a6&id=fca7b51e49&e=dfa1cc7475">social media platforms</a>.<br /> <br /><b> How did the illustrator bring your words to life and enhance the narrative? </b><br />Incredibly! Andrew is a fine artist who is able to capture the elements of nature in bold assured strokes. His affinity with birds and their habitats and appreciation of detail is immeasurable. One of the trickier illustrative aspects of this storyline is that it takes place predominantly in the treetops in and around the twins' nest, which does not allow for a lot of variation of perspective. Andrew overcame this dilemma by focusing on the emotion displayed on the faces of each of the characters. I think the results are stunning.<br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0mjuLqTGBfmjG3fQCwT-re45SMh1F1HEAvtgDZLDBs6SmGSNreE5jkEYnvmQMe6-GyCxtB0erQY3D2rfw981AADE3fdZllseykED579UB-gQrYvr3c33ztWUCzPOIjnxK71ahnfqddTwlaT4KZGjTCL1WL2-lgfx84EqNoTPZXLe-4fVYimwQ4UoZcB0x/s1112/Flying%20TFTFTF%20snip.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="489" data-original-width="1112" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0mjuLqTGBfmjG3fQCwT-re45SMh1F1HEAvtgDZLDBs6SmGSNreE5jkEYnvmQMe6-GyCxtB0erQY3D2rfw981AADE3fdZllseykED579UB-gQrYvr3c33ztWUCzPOIjnxK71ahnfqddTwlaT4KZGjTCL1WL2-lgfx84EqNoTPZXLe-4fVYimwQ4UoZcB0x/w640-h282/Flying%20TFTFTF%20snip.png" width="640" /></a></div><br />I especially love the cover which sums up the whole ‘troublesome twins’ vibe perfectly! However, one of my favourite spreads is towards the end when Pippa finally reaches her goal along with two new little allies. It’s breathtaking and epitomises the rewards of an outward looking, positive attitude towards life.<br /> <br /><b> What sort of stories are you inspired to write for children?</b><br />Better ones. I adore the challenges of creating picture books. I find the restraints of space balanced by the extraordinary freedom afforded to make words sing invigorating. I am keen however to reconnect with my older readers and produce more junior fiction narratives. Again, there is an exquisite juxtaposition of freedom and limitation involved; longer texts allow for more word play but demand greater vocab mindfulness to accommodate the abilities of independent readers.<br /> <br /><b> How many hours do you commit to your craft each day? Do you have a regular routine?<br /></b>Not enough! My 'regular routine' is constantly interrupted by hungry dogs, noisy dogs, hungry teens, stamping out minor fires, then cleaning up those fires or the dogs' mess. When I do carve a bit of time out to draft something new or edit something stuck in the quagmire of indecision, it's an exalting feeling. I think I should write more.<br /> <br /><b> Did you have a standout teacher who helped with your writing and what did they do to inspire you?</b><br />Mrs Elizabeth Jones, my primary school English teacher. She was kind and accommodating. Because of that, I felt anything was possible. It's funny what sticks with you from childhood. This is something I try to remember when I'm presenting or teaching these days. You never know when you're crystalising into someone's lifetime 'standout'.<br /> <br /><b> Why did you decide to pursue the vocation of children’s author?</b><br />My love and fascination with words, especially when they knit together into a story, convinced me this is what I wanted to do long term. It's kind of special creating and then sharing this kind of magic. Plus, I wanted to write more than just diary dialogues to myself and I'm saving my desire to be a Vet for the next life.<br /> <br /><b> When did you know that you were on the right path to being a published creator?</b><br />When the first short story I ever submitted, ever, to the NSW School Magazine was accepted. It was unexpected yet reaffirming.<br /> <br /> I think envisaging publication success is a lot like visualizing your wedding day before meeting your partner; it's something that keeps the spark and desire alive, for me anyway. If you have a clear idea in your heart (and mind) that one day it will be you launching your own book party, that you will be reading your book to assemblies full of eager young faces, and that you will have a picture book on your child's bookshelf that was written by you, then obviously, it will happen! In other words, if you think you can, you will.<br /> <br /> Every publication path and timeline are different. Validation of your progress may occur in a myriad of different seemingly modest ways. For me these were coming runner up in short story writing comps, being asked to launch other people's books, helping to coordinate at festivals and conferences. Seemingly insignificant but all steps in the right direction. And it's a path I'm still happily navigating … with Pippa. It is about being present, open-minded, committed and, above all, patient.<br /> <br /><b> Can you recommend any organisations, networking groups, websites, Facebook groups, courses, services etc. that you’ve found to be helpful?</b><br />For the first half or more of my career, I devoted time fliting around FB and LinkedIn groups exploring shared links and interacting in a symbiotic way with those communities. Groups affiliated with SCBWI, Book Links QLD, Writers Centres and other Kids' Lit creators all provided connections with like-minded people which in turn bathed me in support and encouragement and wonderful friendships. I am less visual in these spheres these days as I settle into other SM comfort zones (<a href="https://wordpress.us9.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a3c66c5e50a1a11401c5c16a6&id=919b648467&e=dfa1cc7475">Insta</a> is my preferred go-to for sharing, caring and gathering info). But I whole heartedly recommend hooking up with organisations and following their socials because presence is, whilst not everything, certainly a big something in terms of reach and an understanding the contemporary direction of kids' lit.<br /> <br /> SCBWI, ASA, Book Links, Write Links (for QLDers), your local writers' group, book clubs, state writers' association, CBCA, Your Kids' Next Read (also a podcast), PIO (E-zine), KBR (because of the constant stream of creator content and reviews) and your local bookshops are all high on my list of recommended groups/platforms to subscribe to or become a member of.<br /> <br /> Another excellent activity that helped actuate my industry-based visualisations, with the added bonus of accruing signed books, was simply to attend book launches: of mates, new friends, well-known authors, debut authors - I went to everything! There's usually always something new to learn, someone new to meet, something new to read and something scrummy to eat! Which, ironically sums up my day-to-day writerly life.<br /> <br /> Where can we find you? <br /> <br /> Website: <a href="https://wordpress.us9.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a3c66c5e50a1a11401c5c16a6&id=fb5b694890&e=dfa1cc7475">www.dimitypowell.com</a><br /> Insta: <a href="https://wordpress.us9.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a3c66c5e50a1a11401c5c16a6&id=b676a8f128&e=dfa1cc7475">@dimityspowell</a><br /> YouTube: <a href="https://wordpress.us9.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a3c66c5e50a1a11401c5c16a6&id=0fd0bb125c&e=dfa1cc7475">@dimityspowell</a><br /> Facebook: <a href="https://wordpress.us9.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a3c66c5e50a1a11401c5c16a6&id=202ee188c6&e=dfa1cc7475">DimityPowellAuthor</a><br /> Twitter: <a href="https://wordpress.us9.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a3c66c5e50a1a11401c5c16a6&id=dc624057df&e=dfa1cc7475">@DimityPowell</a><br /> Amazon: <a href="https://wordpress.us9.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a3c66c5e50a1a11401c5c16a6&id=6addac6a64&e=dfa1cc7475">DimityPowell</a><br /> Pinterest: <a href="https://wordpress.us9.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a3c66c5e50a1a11401c5c16a6&id=93f92d424b&e=dfa1cc7475">@DimityPowell</a><br /> Blogsite for DIM’SreVIEWS: <a href="https://wordpress.us9.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a3c66c5e50a1a11401c5c16a6&id=7edee20f5a&e=dfa1cc7475">Dim’s Write Stuff blog</a><br /> <br />This article first appeared in the E-zine, PIO 21 August 2023<br /><br /></td>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-7976213130258338352023-08-28T05:00:00.010+10:002023-08-28T12:01:26.407+10:00Review: Bunny and Bird: How To Hatch A Dragon<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJQpGskFp2Zk7QHYPw7ii9bLVmJfWW9Kq9lndvBzRiNrIDT7f_u7fi9GZGbz0otdkAL9LXHsRf77GxBcvVr57bsoHn6k9P1ag8zqhiU6xfgwBR7NJV3tgFzmkBFwvqY8UDOTVvvoB7CMiwCMUDvv_SYTOnwt4MCFnbiB82wBMUEPZOJpKx9YG-m5u_yI5z/s648/Bunny%20and%20Bird%20How%20to%20Hatch%20A%20Dragon.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="648" data-original-width="624" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJQpGskFp2Zk7QHYPw7ii9bLVmJfWW9Kq9lndvBzRiNrIDT7f_u7fi9GZGbz0otdkAL9LXHsRf77GxBcvVr57bsoHn6k9P1ag8zqhiU6xfgwBR7NJV3tgFzmkBFwvqY8UDOTVvvoB7CMiwCMUDvv_SYTOnwt4MCFnbiB82wBMUEPZOJpKx9YG-m5u_yI5z/w616-h640/Bunny%20and%20Bird%20How%20to%20Hatch%20A%20Dragon.jpg" width="616" /></a></div><br />Few of us are strangers to the
quirky works of author illustrator, <a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/cr-165122/nick-bland/">Nick Bland</a>
(think <i>The Very Cranky Bear series</i>) which is why it’s always a delight
feasting upon his latest creations. Bunny and Bird are best mates and as
incongruous as that pairing may sound are the stars of Bland’s new picture book
series.<p></p>
<p><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9781460764053/bunny-and-bird/">How To
Catch A Dragon</a></span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">
introduces us to the cute couple as they meet in park dressed in warm autumnal colours.
Bunny has something special for Bird, a present. His gift-giving motivation is
simply because of his regard for Bird as his <i>best friend</i>. Ahhh. Ten
points straight up for such beautiful sentiment. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Bird is curious and Bunny can’t help
himself; he unwraps his present and reveals it’s a dragon egg. If you’re curiosity
wasn’t already tickled, it surely is by now. Bird is briefly sceptical but
Bunny assures him it’s a bona fide dragon egg because it comes <i>from the dragon-egg
shop.</i> No faulting logic there. It also comes with an instruction booklet
which describes the kismet aspects of acquiring a dragon egg: one can’t be exactly
sure what type of dragon one owns until ones egg hatches.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This unpredictability excites Bird and together
they pour over the instructions trying to determine fate. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Turns out Yellow Dragons grow faster
than a speeding bus and just as big. They have ferocious appetites and a
penchant for burning things. In other words, yellow dragons are a veritable
handful, making poor pets. Blue Dragons are cute, slow to mature and dine on
fish and chips; a much better prospect. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Upon learning all this, Bunny is overcome
with regret. How thoughtless of him exposing his best friend to a life of potential
exasperation and danger with this poor gift choice. But it’s too late to change
anything because in the time it’s taken them to learn about dragons, the egg
hatches. Will Bird become the owner of a fantastic new pet or an unmanageable
demise?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9781460764053/bunny-and-bird/">How To
Hatch A Dragon</a></span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> is
frothing with comedy, dramatic irony and an engaging unreliable narrative that
gives both kids and adults reading with them much to chuckle over. Kids will
delight in seeing what Bunny and Bird are too involved to notice what we the readers humorously see unfolding behind them. The hatching
of the egg invites a thrilling sense of expectation, realisation then relief
for the reader while the friends chatter on naively. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">This is a series that is sure to
charm and entertain in big doses thanks to this winner-beginner. I mean dragons
… what’s not to love! Along with a lovely smothering of warming friendship, a clever
title, glistening scaly cover and inviting tones throughout, this is a picture
book you’ll want to gobble up again and again.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> Bunny and Bird: How To Hatch A Dragon.<br />
<b>Author Illustrator:</b> Nick Bland<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> HarperCollins, $24.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> 6 September 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Hardcover<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9781460764053<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 3+<br />
<b>Type:</b> Picture Book<br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: <a href="https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9781460764053/bunny-and-bird/">HarperCollins</a>,
<a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/bunny-and-bird-how-to-hatch-a-dragon-bunny-and-bird-1/nick-bland/book_9781460764053.htm">Boomerang
Books</a>, <a href="https://www.dymocks.com.au/book/9781460764053">Dymocks</a></b></span><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-72621520276058922732023-08-25T05:00:00.171+10:002023-08-25T05:00:00.149+10:00Diverse Themes in Kids' Lit<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWQzSPYwSM0-_B9RqLwjqpM-3iqJbaFUu8Ryl9nXhIn31YRCkO7ICpP543svpPKvhAE4M5zqmH5UD-umgvnXlQM6wsAw_XXDbMxIwkwOojOLCW4WFhavVMRRUCkSZP8IVFyfp2pBqN8pG97184jVOpmn7i1poYISvv5xmXyDoOMqvtyX2hKrj-znrnrydq/s5120/Covers%20&%20Cards.jpg%202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3413" data-original-width="5120" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWQzSPYwSM0-_B9RqLwjqpM-3iqJbaFUu8Ryl9nXhIn31YRCkO7ICpP543svpPKvhAE4M5zqmH5UD-umgvnXlQM6wsAw_XXDbMxIwkwOojOLCW4WFhavVMRRUCkSZP8IVFyfp2pBqN8pG97184jVOpmn7i1poYISvv5xmXyDoOMqvtyX2hKrj-znrnrydq/w640-h426/Covers%20&%20Cards.jpg%202.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />As part of the recent <a href="https://nationaleducationsummit.com.au/brisbane/diverse-learners" target="_blank">National Education Summit (Diverse Learners Symposium</a>) held in Brisbane, Queensland's own award-winning children's author, <a href="http://www.aleesahdarlison.com/resources.html" target="_blank">Aleesah Darlison</a> was invited to discuss diversity in Kids' Lit via the <i>'Portrayal of ADHD, Mental Health, Anxiety, & The Spectrums in Children’s & Young Adult Literature'.</i><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx6CSp8Ppyan3ZMXqAeBrJ7EjDKR9TzKxrqqzqX5C55SRcFsxpdMhSf6kNxyUGqOEkPS33cYyrSxfx3etrE2-C0NRBWdl2T2o2eGe3v7C5LD_Ww0f24STRByuQFGPR_mbmeihV0zG1zEg8qg_9yZ7ATijgUsbZddlyKblfq2hvbBuEoa9UisKicp_quKwx/s500/Diverse+Learners+SYMPOSIUM+logo.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx6CSp8Ppyan3ZMXqAeBrJ7EjDKR9TzKxrqqzqX5C55SRcFsxpdMhSf6kNxyUGqOEkPS33cYyrSxfx3etrE2-C0NRBWdl2T2o2eGe3v7C5LD_Ww0f24STRByuQFGPR_mbmeihV0zG1zEg8qg_9yZ7ATijgUsbZddlyKblfq2hvbBuEoa9UisKicp_quKwx/s320/Diverse+Learners+SYMPOSIUM+logo.png" width="320" /></a></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The role of a children's author is vast and varied but for me involves sharing and caring. To create stories that elicit emotional connections with young readers while still fascinating and entertaining them is a challenging mix to perfect. Luckily, these are just the sort of tales I love to tackle; ones often embracing difficult subject matter, that speak to different people from multiple levels and in so doing, echo and normalize real life situations. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://dimitypowell.com/oswald-messweather/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="3441" data-original-width="5148" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYFp6gQpBVuNI8CdZacbLTMgnrgRgcxQ1gBCEuDuyoKt4E9ZkI4HFaH_TSB4tgfNxz8BWtZmkk7IcvXE32AVECWFVSBdF_cIJS6ltZg1kGZOYASepmR-MX1woX8rLGUI97NPxa8Wuw-vjf8JomXlNknDr4XY9MKFBJOy_s7F7391AU0ginfBf4FRsWyaN1/w400-h268/Covers%20&%20Cards.jpg%20focus%20B&W.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />Many of <a href="https://dimitypowell.com/books-stories/" target="_blank">my titles</a> reflect this premise, including <i><a href="https://dimitypowell.com/oswald-messweather/" target="_blank">Oswald Messweather</a>, </i> a picture book that focuses on the emotional aspects associated with the debilitating condition of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). Mental health disorders, social issues awareness, neurodiversity, inclusion, anxiety, and wellness are just some of the themes that comprise the diversity umbrella. There are dozens more, which is why Aleesah invited us (kids' lit authors) to share their stories for this especially curated list: <b style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.aleesahdarlison.com/uploads/4/7/2/7/47274465/diverse_themes_in_kids_and_ya_literature_aleesah_darlison.pdf" target="_blank">Diverse Themes in Children's and YA Literature.</a> </b>You'll find Ozzie nestled among some other great titles.<div><b><i><br /></i></b></div><div>If you're looking for diverse books that appeal to preschoolers, primary students and young adults, you can download the full list along with a resources guide, free of charge simply by clicking on the images below. Attribution: Aleesah Darlison.</div><div> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir3IuUnCgQrazYnq1ErPjpjm6j2DmJoBkSly949pUE3s1DW8eF4zBrHmcYIS9Z5veW4aTBSg8xXsv9m-tTe1x9DU0dM5-pQkvBaawirkaGYQ2XcpbmC_yxj__SGf3ixmNfa5_HdWeNJf5sDcTCv7wpWUNDlHCqKqXKkF_EsDnqKOHgaEnoHNllQydp3Zp1/s1280/Aleesah%20Darlison_Neurodiverse%20Books%20Presentation_July%202023_res.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir3IuUnCgQrazYnq1ErPjpjm6j2DmJoBkSly949pUE3s1DW8eF4zBrHmcYIS9Z5veW4aTBSg8xXsv9m-tTe1x9DU0dM5-pQkvBaawirkaGYQ2XcpbmC_yxj__SGf3ixmNfa5_HdWeNJf5sDcTCv7wpWUNDlHCqKqXKkF_EsDnqKOHgaEnoHNllQydp3Zp1/w640-h360/Aleesah%20Darlison_Neurodiverse%20Books%20Presentation_July%202023_res.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.aleesahdarlison.com/uploads/4/7/2/7/47274465/diverse_themes_in_kids_and_ya_literature_aleesah_darlison.pdf" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="772" data-original-width="531" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicH_D-ABJT2ZpohAN7DC9EfqF0nLIbLBx0QJEjZjTnkHkczTTKuTBbIZ6Am7hdG7et4AF_KDfTSd-mgacqy3f4GGP-CgxgKSVmfIHgKY-NpIho4UfLck98J9VQG41F09rLyr_7Fes8yRmPH74GsoIf1PVq6IV7M8Hf8Zd8MbtHmAOgI0Cm6rqHj9kfFfBg/w440-h640/Cover%20Image_Resource.png" width="440" /></a></div><br /><div>Attribution: Aleesah Darlison<br /><br /><br /><div><br /></div></div><br /></div>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-91863476833931029982023-08-21T05:00:00.063+10:002023-08-21T05:00:00.147+10:00Review: The Lincoln Highway<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfTChxPhXWiVw5rdeRjEZWOUMcNpRNn8TsC_YXvq-3WEIw-ofku-EWO6o4mVYmsS9fs_LGdxGsjygoBXtCgkA1tCWMCM3VIIMEyeps254_f0P4L4S6xIvvfDc3D9JSP2oO7eABo0vTLYdQW-bvRH8YiaKc83-oNr-fLCC3ONKv3tJlJB5T6HB5CRHxzDaE/s5000/The%20Lincoln%20Highway.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5000" data-original-width="3231" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfTChxPhXWiVw5rdeRjEZWOUMcNpRNn8TsC_YXvq-3WEIw-ofku-EWO6o4mVYmsS9fs_LGdxGsjygoBXtCgkA1tCWMCM3VIIMEyeps254_f0P4L4S6xIvvfDc3D9JSP2oO7eABo0vTLYdQW-bvRH8YiaKc83-oNr-fLCC3ONKv3tJlJB5T6HB5CRHxzDaE/w414-h640/The%20Lincoln%20Highway.jpg" width="414" /></a></div><br />I have to admit, I'm a bit of a Towles fan. Such eloquence of expression is truly spell-binding. This is undisputedly an adults' novel but I'd recommend it for YA readers, as well. Here's why ...<div><br /><div>Towles writes with such wit, intelligence, compassion and sophistication, to experience one of his novels is less of a reading event rather an exquisite pilgrimage into a world so beautifully crafted and portrayed, so cleverly multi-layered, it's an effort to farewell it. Admittedly, the following does not reveal a great deal about the plot. I'll leave that for the back cover blurb. It's the purpose of the thing that truly resounds. <div><br /><i><a href="https://www.penguin.com.au/books/the-lincoln-highway-9781529157642" target="_blank">The Lincoln Highway</a></i> exhibited elements of <i>The Outsiders</i> and <i>The Rain Man</i> for me but all encapsulated in its own big, bold, unique personality. And just like these two former tales, larger than life characters dripping with charm, tragedy and heart-hugging humour steal the show; characters so finely honed, their hurts and happy moments pierce like a tattoo artist's needle, forever leaving an imprint that is hard to erase. </div><div><br /></div><div>And no, I didn't find the alternating voices and exposition confusing or distracting. More fascinating was the reverse chronological listing of chapters or parts; perhaps a notation of the fact that the whole story is in fact based around the 'snag' Emmet encounters thanks to the appearance of Duchess and Woolly before his and Billy's journey even begins. Ingenious. Once these disruptions are overcome, our protagonists' true story can begin. <i>In medias res</i> as it were ...<br /><br />There is a sustentive balance of light and shade throughout this expedition of duty, provenance, retribution and faith. Indeed some moments are decidedly dark. Yet each turn and twist adds to immensity of Emmet's and Billy's quest: ostensibly to find their mother and start a new life. Each mile achieved, then lost then retraced, takes them closer to a future they as yet have only dreamt about. But the journey on the Lincoln Highway is also a magnificent coming of age experience. Symbolically and veritably, lives are enriched by their journey including their own. Souls are saved. And ultimately an awful lovely solace is found.<br /><br />Just like the great Ulysses' journey, Emmet's and Billy's adventure is tale of determination, road blocks, perceived integrity and above all love in its many stupendous guises. Towles explores them all - eros, philia, storge, agape, pragma - at all levels and I encourage you to do so as well.<br /><br />Highly recommended.</div><div><br /></div><div><b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> The Lincoln Highway</span></span><br />
<b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Author: </b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Amor Towles</span></span><br /><b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Publisher:</b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> Penguin Random House, $22.99</span></span><br />
<b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Publication Date:</b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> July 2022</span></span><br />
<b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Format: </b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Paperback</span></span><br />
<b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">ISBN</b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">: </span></span>9781529157642<br />
<b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">For ages: </b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif" style="font-size: 12pt;">15+</span><br />
<b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Type:</b><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> Contemporary Young Adult Fiction</span></span><br />
<br />
<b style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Buy the Book:<a href="https://www.dymocks.com.au/book/9781529157642" target="_blank"> Dymocks</a>, <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/the-lincoln-highway-a-new-york-times-number-one-bestseller/amor-towles/book_9781529157642.htm" target="_blank">Boomerang Books</a>, <a href="https://www.booktopia.com.au/the-lincoln-highway-amor-towles/book/9781529157642.html?irclickid=Ud%3AXvbShGxyNWv2QoYSIDVqQUkF1xrRg4SzzRk0&utm_campaign=PRH2018%21&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=Impact&bk_source=1298845&bk_source_id=1298845&irgwc=1" target="_blank">Booktopia</a></b></span></div></div></div>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-58111297279304033532023-08-14T05:00:00.062+10:002023-08-14T05:00:00.141+10:00Review: Inkflower<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimbOP-UfJWlIPpMEr2sXSECQ0sjfhJuhSnK7tGH5FbuOkvNXMm2vYkMopa5o8u3LofJ3HH1zuHY9vEZ3DFZVctY9WeeGBWzEbe_GiUsnb3YkypLgic7emPnaKDYLguqWSkBP2Tw5NaUKw35tILoRBpHYwtORz44BjJnvfGOYV0MKQHFIrc23Vi4ZEbg0g4/s1225/Inkflower__9781760653736.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1225" data-original-width="798" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimbOP-UfJWlIPpMEr2sXSECQ0sjfhJuhSnK7tGH5FbuOkvNXMm2vYkMopa5o8u3LofJ3HH1zuHY9vEZ3DFZVctY9WeeGBWzEbe_GiUsnb3YkypLgic7emPnaKDYLguqWSkBP2Tw5NaUKw35tILoRBpHYwtORz44BjJnvfGOYV0MKQHFIrc23Vi4ZEbg0g4/w416-h640/Inkflower__9781760653736.jpeg" width="416" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>When a masterful storyteller distils the essence of the past and reinstates it into a meaningful, moving context for those for whom that past never existed, the result is forcibly compelling. <i><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760653736/" target="_blank">Inkflower</a></i> by Suzy Zail is this and more. Here is <a href="http://www.kids-bookreview.com/2023/07/review-inkflower.html">my review</a> of this incredible tale which first appeared on <a href="http://www.kids-bookreview.com/">Kids' Book Review,</a> 11 July 2023.<br /><br />Zail weaves truths and imaginings into a novel for young people that both spellbinds and beleaguers belief. <br /><br />She states her father taught her <i>we have to talk about the things that scare us before we can change them,</i> so too must the reader experience some uncomfortable realisations just as teen protagonist, Lisa Keller, is forced to after learning about the terminal condition of her beloved father.<br /><br />Emil Keller (formerly Rosenfeld) has a successful career, comfortable home and doting family. And only a handful of months left to enjoy them. Diagnosed with the debilitating Motor Neuron Disease MND, Emil embarks on one last quest before his time ends; to share a past that he has never before uttered aloud to anyone, including his wife and children.<br /><br />For Lisa, a bright student with solid social standing, a promising future and burgeoning love interest, these unexpected confronting truths are horrifying. Shame, dread and confusion suffuse every cell of her being. As she is exposed to more and more of her father’s past and present suffering, so too does her own life begin to unravel. Her relationship with her bestie deteriorates. First crush and love, Adam Winter is pushed further and further aside as a bubbling embarrassment threatens to capsize everything Lisa thought she knew as absolute.<br /><br />Discovering she is a Jew and what her father and ancestors endured as outcast condemned Jews in WWII discolours Lisa’s sense of self so dramatically, she is not able to share it with anyone. To dispel some of the manifested emotional build up and grief, and somehow preserve her father’s presence, she instead transcribes the recordings her older brothers make of her father’s weekly ‘anecdotal dumps’. These writings transform their family history into a tangible legacy of a man who each day becomes less and less of the father she thought she knew.<br /><br />However, the recollections of the Holocaust and his survival of Auschwitz form an unexpected raft of salvation and healing. As his physical shell weakens, his and Lisa’s relationship strengthens. She is privy to his most vulnerable moments which in turn solidify into her most profound principles of living. Wisdoms like<i>: letting others in … is freeing </i>and <i>when making a decision ask – if I’m not here tomorrow, what would I wish I’d done?</i>, remind us we need not be dying to value living. <br /><br />This tender coming of age tale is part memoire, part homage to the tenacity of life’s survivors (as we all are) and part deep dive into a recent past (for me) told in alternating ‘then’ and ‘now’ chapters that slide gently into each other. The revisit to the 80s, a time of corded phones, five-hour long phone conversations with your bestie and bouffant hairstyles provide an added dimension that modern day kids might find amusingly curious; a double dose of history as it were and suitable foil to the atrocities of wartime events.<br /><br />A writer’s job often involves pulling their hearts out and adhering them firmly to their sleeves for all to see and ogle over, sometimes at great personal cost. Zail has done this to create<i><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760653736/" target="_blank"> Inkflower </a></i>with consummate grace and infinite fearlessness. A read of the highest recommendations that resounds with hope and love. <br /><br /><b>Title: </b>Inkflower<br /><b>Author: </b>Suzy Zail<br /><b>Publisher: </b>Walker Books Australia, $22.99<br /><b>Publication Date: </b>5 July 2023<br /><b>Format: </b>Paperback<br /><b>ISBN: </b>9781760653736<br /><b>For ages: </b>14+<br /><b>Type:</b> Young Adult Fiction<br /><br /><b>Buy the Book: <a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760653736/" target="_blank">Walker Books Australia</a>, <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/inkflower/suzy-zail/book_9781760653736.htm" target="_blank">Boomerang Books</a></b><p></p><p>Stick around for more middle grade reads about this period of human history, coming soon.</p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-56978314694792154562023-08-07T05:00:00.020+10:002023-08-07T05:00:00.139+10:00Review: Birdie Lights Up The World<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO_Tqrt1sZGLlCffcFrQTKeXVzbjamhsvzyjWO_YIwXmiOpvg_YKPeElsJREFJNIAslfDB8Jeq3-tsUltPL6164C2RTjr3J_pOAoTcMYA3dvYQAkYmC03GK3G6JmHcWu7HydgbfDJNnxDiCsJJ7iOmxYwL_1zED2U66MW_-oYKm2Tsb9Yny1gG3IO2CUjY/s2560/Birdie%20Lights%20Up%20The%20World%20Alison%20McLennan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2451" data-original-width="2560" height="612" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO_Tqrt1sZGLlCffcFrQTKeXVzbjamhsvzyjWO_YIwXmiOpvg_YKPeElsJREFJNIAslfDB8Jeq3-tsUltPL6164C2RTjr3J_pOAoTcMYA3dvYQAkYmC03GK3G6JmHcWu7HydgbfDJNnxDiCsJJ7iOmxYwL_1zED2U66MW_-oYKm2Tsb9Yny1gG3IO2CUjY/w640-h612/Birdie%20Lights%20Up%20The%20World%20Alison%20McLennan.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />Not every one of us wants to be the
centre of attention however nearly all of us craves the necessity of inclusiveness
no matter how slight. To feel special and needed; purposeful is a common want
even in the very young. It can therefore come as a shock when we discover our perception
of self is not quite what the universe deigns to be true. This is the simple but
striking premise of Alison McLennan’s latest picture book, <i><a href="https://ekbooks.org/product/birdie-lights-up-the-world/?v=6cc98ba2045f">Birdie
Lights Up The World</a></i>.<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Birdie is a cuter than cute penguin
who resides in the local zoo, which the very astute reader will deduce from clues
on the half title page. The rest of us will be too busy soaking in the gorgeous
ochre and pink highlights of Birdie’s introduction as <i>the chosen one</i>.
You see, it’s Birdie’s job to <i>light up the world,</i> which she does with enthusiastic
dulcet tones each evening as the sun goes down. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Her sunset serenades, literally seem
to light up the evening skies. Fellow zoo mates gather to listen and watch in
awe as one by one the stars appear as a glorious crescendo to Birdie’s
performances. With the ominous overtones of a lightless night sky firmly at bay
thanks to Birdie’s intervention, the animals can rest in peace until one day,
the threat of everlasting darkness rears its terrible head.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Birdie falls sick. Overcome by a
voice inhibiting lurgy, Birdie retreats into a fug of dismay. The animals react
with the sort of unreasonable fear young children display when faced with a
night of being alone … in the dark! How will they cope without their
chosen one?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Despite her absence of voice and
abject panic, <i>a truly strange thing happens</i>. That night, the lights
twinkle into being … without Birdie’s encouragement. This is a development even
more concerning than the loss of her voice as Birdie questions as to whether she
was ever really needed in the first place.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Determined to find her true purpose
and worth, Birdie explores other ways to make herself ‘useful’. But, with the exception
of the ambiguous actions of the monkeys, she continues to pull up short. It’s
not until the end of another near imperfect day that her buddies beg her to
sing her beautiful song, and by doing so, Birdie realises her true vocation is in
the sharing of her special gift and spreading kindness which, ultimately lights
up everyone’s heart. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The beauty of Birdie’s tale is the
way it embraces the painful moments of realisation with the more joyful ones. Birdie’s
pedestal is rocked and her self-esteem is dulled when she believes she’s become
redundant. Feelings of being ‘surplus to requirements’ are not unfamiliar to
youngsters who may be experiencing changes and uncomfortable moments of
comprehension of their own. It’s how they learn to deal with disappointment,
failure, not quite making the grade<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>– dealing
with <i>change</i>. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I’m going to
make a cheeky reference to my own picture book, <i><a href="https://dimitypowell.com/pippa-and-the-troublesome-twins/">Pippa and The
Troublesome Twins</a></i>, here to emphasis this point on changing (family)
dynamics. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://dimitypowell.com/pippa-and-the-troublesome-twins/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="2815" data-original-width="2405" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9ccPXAQSMMEGPGnBKXUUAzYiH05ZMa35ugaE-rCiJ_F8Fy0XhlHWsF-0ht2p2d-FqwwRyNkTAntZ-ZnIimkQYrRCsnHmEkXBqS4eCrfEIZLeAnDLQo6P1DO7pj7d6ua5JlYh0JerKc1Ka-0flJiFeIRzoP7T0Sib_NETwYORXOF01XYcuZnLp6zz13S3A/w341-h400/Pippa%20&%20Twins%20Front%20Cover.jpeg" width="341" /></a></div><p>Birdie’s quest to reassert her worth
and her repeated failings to do so also reflect the vagaries of life. The ultimate
ode to friendship ties this story together like a warm hug, suggesting we don’t
need dramatic dazzling results as proof that our efforts are valued and worthwhile.</p><p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">McLennan’s narrative sings as gently
and evocatively as Birdie’s song which flows along sweetly against a backdrop
of softly hued illustrations by Lauren Mullinder. I especially love how the zoo
is not depicted as a place of confinement and artificiality. Birdie and her companions
roam freely, pursuing their daily business with happy hearts. The additions of
a warming scarf and hand– (or trunk) gathered pot of honey to soothe Birdie’s
throat provide relatability, sensitive anthropomorphic qualities crucial for
relaying this message about how important and special we are, just as we are. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><a href="https://ekbooks.org/product/birdie-lights-up-the-world/?v=6cc98ba2045f">Birdie
Lights Up The World</a></span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> is a
comforting shared read equally at home as a bedside story or as an animated classroom
discussion text. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> Birdie Lights Up The World<br />
<b>Author: </b> Alison McLennan<br />
<b>Illustrator:</b> Lauren Mullinder<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> EK Books, $24.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> 7 June 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Hardcover<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9781922539489<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 4 – 8<br />
<b>Type:</b> Picture Book<br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: </b></span><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><a href="https://ekbooks.org/product/birdie-lights-up-the-world/?v=6cc98ba2045f">EK Books</a>, <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/birdie-lights-up-the-world/alison-mclennan/book_9781922539489.htm">Boomerang Books</a> <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-19505741476692252682023-07-31T05:00:00.057+10:002023-07-31T05:00:00.144+10:00Review: Riz Chester: The Counterfeit Bust<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFsdBKmeiXCt-nduv2hKMt5WPu2mzRC_952PUFgngGM_mhi__dN59aKriDsEeoUkfxl7JmIy62Bsgwjk970LqmOuDolwKdwamdj7JTRAIKze8vms9b9_SQ_hrzj7aIMfuzdUprO0NdriQOu6IhKrAC0Xr1FMbAkB_cpevOo9z2fBKyvDvVMv78QvZqD4eU/s1280/Riz%20Chester%20The%20Counterfeit%20Bust.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="837" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFsdBKmeiXCt-nduv2hKMt5WPu2mzRC_952PUFgngGM_mhi__dN59aKriDsEeoUkfxl7JmIy62Bsgwjk970LqmOuDolwKdwamdj7JTRAIKze8vms9b9_SQ_hrzj7aIMfuzdUprO0NdriQOu6IhKrAC0Xr1FMbAkB_cpevOo9z2fBKyvDvVMv78QvZqD4eU/w418-h640/Riz%20Chester%20The%20Counterfeit%20Bust.jpg" width="418" /></a></div><br />I'm a bit of a junior fiction fan, a genre I believe is almost as exacting as picture books to pen. They rely on just the right tempo, vocab choice and audience engagement with the added complexity of appealing to newly independent readers. The new <i><a href="https://wombatrhiza.com.au/riz-chester-the-counterfeit-bust/">Riz Chester series</a> </i>champions all these qualities. Here is my <a href="http://www.kids-bookreview.com/2023/07/review-riz-chester-counterfeit-bust.html">KBR review </a>that appeared earlier this month.<br /><br />Riz is a 10-year-old primary schooler with a penchant for noticing the unnoticeable. She is reticent to share this phenomenon with others even her closest friends for fear of seeming odder than she already feels. Instead, Riz records her observations in her ‘Weird Stuff Log’ with enough detail and smattering of sass to make Miss Marple grin. <br /><br />And grin young readers will for Riz’s abilities are about to be stretched to the limit after she notices some faulty banknotes on a shopping expedition with her mum. Suspicions are raised. Police are engaged and for Riz, doubts set in. Has she done something wrong just because she has identified an anomaly? Why is she being questioned? <br /><br />To determine if the money is counterfeit or not, Riz enlists the aid of her school yard chums: the twins Jenny and Sabrina and the two Lachlans.<br /><br />This enthusiastic committee of would-be sleuths are more than qualified to take on the case and do so with the elegant simplicity that primary schoolers with limited resources and access might be expected to adopt. They even name their investigation; <i>the Counterfeit Bust</i> which, it turns out, proves self-fulfilling when Riz and her team eventually do crack the case wide open or bust it as it were.<br /><br />The beauty of this cleverly crafted, pleasingly illustrated chapter book is that it combines mystery and adventure with relatable characters. Because not every kid at school is a soccer mad, handball playing devotee. By focusing on Riz’s unusual ability to tune into what is below the surface readers in turn are exposed to a wider scope of understanding, observation and tolerance.<br /><br />It's a storyteller’s greatest asset: the ability to feel, see, hear – <i>notice</i> – the minutiae that surrounds us because detail is everything. Stephens’ commentary that some kids are more attuned to this than others is delightfully straightforward without a trace of didactic explanation. When the powers of observation are harnessed to a purpose like crime solving, the possibilities are endless and exciting as some of our most famous fictitious and non-fictitious detectives have shown us in the past; isn’t that so Sherlock!<br /><br />Riz Chester finally concedes to her weirdness which, as I learnt in my student years, is a wonderfulness that cannot be matched, giving this junior fiction series instant appeal. Her ‘Weird Stuff Log’ becomes a ‘Forensic Log’ introducing her and readers to the new and absorbing world of forensics. <br /><br />Lovers of all branches of science, mysteries, sleuthing and puzzle solving from the age of seven upwards will swallow up this refreshingly original crime busting series. My ten-year-old self sure did!<br /><br />Keep your eye out for Riz’s next mystery, <i>The Fingerprint Code </i>coming out in November 2023.<br /><b><br />Title: </b>Riz Chester: The Counterfeit Bust<br /><b>Author:</b> R A Stephens<br /><b>Illustrator:</b> Em Hammond<br /><b>Publisher: </b> Wombat Books, $12.99<br /><b>Publication Date: </b>1 May 2023<br /><b>Format:</b> Paperback<br /><b>ISBN:</b> 9781761111181<br /><b>For ages:</b> 7 – 10<br /><b>Type:</b> Junior Fiction<br /><br /><b>Buy the book:</b> <a href="https://wombatrhiza.com.au/riz-chester-the-counterfeit-bust/">Wombat Books,</a> <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/riz-chester-the-counterfeit-bust/r-a-stephens/book_9781761111181.htm">Boomerang Books</a>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3244364869183406060.post-54140186389474707672023-07-05T15:34:00.000+10:002023-07-05T15:34:23.844+10:00Review: The Mud Puddlers<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2ORmsCgFCqO1FOGYzWlgmGbLIPeJAV3LKFxnLkTHMSO_VYP3oM5Qjt6FDZ2tjotkxsaL7DbniVGcq0hGDJY098bhnplqGfzoyOhNwpeHJtLTt-zdcC-Qs5GsRuNh3eEBkPk-RyATt9ywiXanUP_hGyUTt5v-fy6Es10iabUjt4jjpvkD9b0Q1N5QeNaSL/s648/the%20Mud%20Puddlers%20cover%20(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="648" data-original-width="422" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2ORmsCgFCqO1FOGYzWlgmGbLIPeJAV3LKFxnLkTHMSO_VYP3oM5Qjt6FDZ2tjotkxsaL7DbniVGcq0hGDJY098bhnplqGfzoyOhNwpeHJtLTt-zdcC-Qs5GsRuNh3eEBkPk-RyATt9ywiXanUP_hGyUTt5v-fy6Es10iabUjt4jjpvkD9b0Q1N5QeNaSL/w416-h640/the%20Mud%20Puddlers%20cover%20(1).jpg" width="416" /></a></div><br />To throw the reader immediately into
the action is a writing pre-requisite we authors often hear or try to adhere
to. Doing so creates an immediacy that snags attention in the snap of just a
few lines. Accomplished children’s writer of historical fiction, Pamela Rushby,
achieves all this and more in each and every one of her novels. <i><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760655808/">The Mud Puddlers</a> </i>is
no exception. Oozing with atmosphere, animated characters and a fascinating
glimpse into London’s not so distant history, this middle grade fiction beckons
kids to believe in the possibility of time slipping.<p></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Twelve-year-old Nina is relegated to
spend a year in London while her parents head to Antarctica on a research
mission. Although she and Aunt Bee are close, Nina succumbs to a state of
insubordinate gloom. Nothing Aunt Bee does or says can shake Nina out of her
blue funk resentment at being left behind. Not even the adventure of living on
her aunt’s converted barge on the river Thames is enough to enthuse. Nor the
fact that her aunt is a bona fide intertidal archaeologist, a modern-day term
for, mudlarker; someone who combs the river tidal mud flats for long-forgotten
treasurers. Until <i>The Mud Puddlers</i>, I never knew mud-combing as it were
was even a thing but it’s exactly these obscure, little known, intriguing
slices of the past, that Rushby takes, twists and tantalises with so very well.
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Bitter cold and banal boredom bare
down on Nina who refuses to engage with Bee or reply to her parents’ emails.
Stubbornness is her chosen weapon of retaliation until she meets, Molly a
co-barge inhabitant. Molly’s dilapidated home is full of leaks and mysterious
dark corners full of things as ancient as Molly. There’s even a resident ghost.
It’s Molly’s enigmatic energy and Bee’s urging that eventually convinces Nina
to accompany them on an evening mudlarking tour. During the tour, Bee feels the
pull of the river, a strange calling, an understanding. Molly tells her it’s
because she is ‘<i>one of us’</i>, someone with a past of scavenging and
finding things and passing them on. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">After Nina finds a thimble buried in
the mud and experiences a vision from the Tudor period, Molly is quick to warn
her of the perils of time slipping using found objects as portals to the past.
Nina acknowledges the dangers but chooses curiosity over caution. Her time
travels take her to the Frost Fair of 1814 and the Suffragette era, each
experience becoming more and more treacherous, each return to the present more
precarious, until a WWII gasmask transports her to war torn London. Rounded up
and schlepped off to the countryside as an evacuee, Nina loses the gasmask, her
transport home and has to enlist the friendship and trust of fellow evacuee,
Tom and the boatwomen of Britian if she has any chance of returning to the
world she left behind. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"></span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikYlcB_v495EYhcSseD26OojdVohyBFLDHRYQqEhyj09PJM76yuR9Q2THXv5jNHx5FdbRrBHrfGE2kBbnCTtbODJHg_8-tt_a3JLNwn9PZQ0K_Pqb_ucAh8JV2kqY03mVNQNhy5rgpP4FDqxbpdyQ9nI_nXByYHQQcwQpXAFxf55OohI_Li-LAUqjedndz/s2048/Day%203%2015%20December%202022%20(142)%20Tower%20Hill%20Hamlets%20Bridge%20Sky%20Garden%20Westminster%20Bridge%20London%20Eye%20St%20James%20Park.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikYlcB_v495EYhcSseD26OojdVohyBFLDHRYQqEhyj09PJM76yuR9Q2THXv5jNHx5FdbRrBHrfGE2kBbnCTtbODJHg_8-tt_a3JLNwn9PZQ0K_Pqb_ucAh8JV2kqY03mVNQNhy5rgpP4FDqxbpdyQ9nI_nXByYHQQcwQpXAFxf55OohI_Li-LAUqjedndz/w480-h640/Day%203%2015%20December%202022%20(142)%20Tower%20Hill%20Hamlets%20Bridge%20Sky%20Garden%20Westminster%20Bridge%20London%20Eye%20St%20James%20Park.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The mudflats of the Thames, upriver from Bermondsey </td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEvuJUgAPaHCBfWZfAAeplsGilzWmeBcPqhLQcmZdmF0CqXvi_hYwkl6vr117NTZBmpcavkSmYWDEO2m1tqq8nNqzBt9xnDpXr5WT2DZl_KGyXEjULjRqo3NgStDWtqHbFm5uS0K4fe2yUrEOQttDONQ2tuXweHbIBQxh_fTlzt-ocH_676o6RXzM9bG3U/s2048/Day%203%2015%20December%202022%20(143)%20Tower%20Hill%20Hamlets%20Bridge%20Sky%20Garden%20Westminster%20Bridge%20London%20Eye%20St%20James%20Park.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEvuJUgAPaHCBfWZfAAeplsGilzWmeBcPqhLQcmZdmF0CqXvi_hYwkl6vr117NTZBmpcavkSmYWDEO2m1tqq8nNqzBt9xnDpXr5WT2DZl_KGyXEjULjRqo3NgStDWtqHbFm5uS0K4fe2yUrEOQttDONQ2tuXweHbIBQxh_fTlzt-ocH_676o6RXzM9bG3U/w480-h640/Day%203%2015%20December%202022%20(143)%20Tower%20Hill%20Hamlets%20Bridge%20Sky%20Garden%20Westminster%20Bridge%20London%20Eye%20St%20James%20Park.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The banks of the River Thames looking down river </td></tr></tbody></table><br />Seat-of-your-pants adventure is
steeped with arresting moments in history all encrusted in a fascinating
storyline that literally lies hidden from view for most of us most of the time.
I was in London shortly before reading this novel. It was Christmas time. Snow
made a rare visit to the country’s capital. The biting cold and watered-down
colours of a city in the grips of winter instantly reasserted themselves as I
read <i><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760655808/">The Mud
Puddlers</a></i> because of Rushby’s ability to relay words and characters as
palpable reality. I photographed the muddy banks of the Thames at low tide, not
far up river from <a href="https://www.walks.com/our-walks/undiscovered-london/">Bermondsey</a>
where Nina’s story takes place, where barges still lie upon the mud. I wondered
about those banks but had no idea of the wonders they held and still conceal to
this day.<o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760655808/">The Mud Puddlers</a></span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> is an extraordinary and highly recommended
read. One where you feel both relaxed with the telling, absorbed by the detail
and thrilled by the outcomes. Esoteric moments, historic forays and staunch
relationships make this an unforgettable experience. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Title:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> The Mud Puddlers<br />
<b>Author: </b> Pamela Rushby<br />
<b>Publisher:</b> Walker Books Australia, $16.99<br />
<b>Publication Date:</b> 5 April 2023<br />
<b>Format:</b> Paperback<br />
<b>ISBN</b>: 9781760655808<br />
<b>For ages: </b> 9 – 12<br />
<b>Type:</b> Middle Grade Fiction<br />
<br />
<b>Buy the Book: </b></span><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> <a href="https://www.walkerbooks.com.au/book/9781760655808/">Walker Books,</a> <a href="https://www.boomerangbooks.com.au/the-mud-puddlers/pamela-rushby/book_9781760655808.htm">Boomerang
Books</a><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p></div>DimbutNicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13096525380334377442noreply@blogger.com1