Posts

Review: What Makes A Family

Image
Halloween may be all but over - bar the sugar rushes and tummy aches - but this recently released picture book celebrating the Filipino Day of the Dead lingers with gentle compassion and tender sentiments, rather like the memory of a dearly departed one. What Makes a Family by Eric Ruiz Roxas and Aldy C Aguirre resonates love with a warmth that belies the subject matter. Pedrito and his sister Pipay are all dressed up and on their way to the local cemetery. They are not alone, swept up in a tide of families also headed for the gravestones. Pipay is confused, reminding her brother that they no longer have a father or mother as many of these families appear to have so why are they going there. Before entering, candles are purchased along with a delicate flower necklace. As they head further in, they pass groups of domestic harmony, families enjoying meals together, laughing, singing, dancing even performing karaoke! It is less of a place of the dead and more of a place of unbridled fe...
Post a Comment
Read more

Review: Blunderbore

Image
Not all fairy tales are happily ever afters. Or are they? Not all graphic novels commit to a bright and cheery disposition. Or should they? But one thing's for sure - not all giants are Hagrid-esque friendly, so you'd better beware.  Blunderbore by consummate creative duo, Sofie Laguna and Marc McBride , is a superlative example of colouring outside the lines of expectation, ripe for readers of middle grade fiction, lovers of fantasy and graphic novel aficionados. Although to be frank, every single line both sketched and scribed of this work is rendered with pencil sharp precision.  Chapter One, enter the giant; Blunderbore the aforementioned not-so-beguiling baddie in this thriller. He is impressively large, grotesque with a fierce appetite for village livestock and bright shiny things aka gold. All this is painstakingly depicted in the first six or so pages with nary a word spoken. The villages are far too busy running for their lives to explain the direness of their situa...
Post a Comment
Read more

Review: The Underwear Wolf

Image
Strange things can occur around a full moon. So, it's little wonder the nephew of Uncle Larry experiences a questionable episode at that time after said uncle bestows him with a bevy of birthday undies (aka underwear). How he then becomes The Underwear Wolf is the basis of this wonderfully witty and winsome new picture book by Gideon Sterer and the ineffable Charles Santoso . Our young wolf-to-be is like any youngster; when faced with stern instructions about when and how to don his favourite pair of underwear, he blithely interprets them to suit his own impetuous nature. Thus, a furry pair of undies is worn on a ... full moon despite instructions not to.  What follows is an hilarious romp through the suburban streets by the light of the moon, not as a young boy rather as a large-eared, hairier than a thousand hamster s, werewolf. Seemingly under the whim of the moon, our hairy monster takes off with grunts and growls and an uncontrollable urge to rampage his neighbourhood stre...
Post a Comment
Read more

Review: Into The Storm

Image
For those who like their YA reads studded with action and prickling with peril, Into The Storm is your next unputdownable read. Like Hayley Lawrence's first novel, Into The Wild , this tale is unashamedly rugged in nature and refreshingly wild.  Teens Silas and Eve couldn't be more different yet are linked by the same overriding emotions; unfathomable grief and the urge to live by brushing shoulders with death in order to erase past mistakes and shortcomings. Both share an almost obsessive addiction to adrenalin, with a continuous pull towards the wilds of nature, albeit for different reasons. Silas is the son and sole heir to revered mountaineering legend and tycoon, Will Black while Eve is the estranged daughter of an off-the-grid family entrapped in their own cocoon of loss.  Following the tragic death of his father on a far-flung mountainside, Silas spirals into an abyss of despair. Alone, questioning, empty. Miles away, Eve fights her own demons and the smothering pro...
Post a Comment
Read more

Review: Bandoola: An Elephant's Story

Image
I first encountered the remarkable Bandoola amidst the pages of a non-fiction picture book by William Grill - Bandoola: The Great Elephant Rescue.   The recount was as magnificent as the elephant himself. Bandoola by Beverley McWilliams takes my awe and appreciation of this might moment in history to another level.  What makes this work of fiction so enthralling and thoroughly absorbing is its delivery, through the eyes, mind and heart of Bandoola himself. McWilliams uses first person presence that allows middle-grade readers to experience every fear, thought and determination that Bandoola experiences. For those unfamiliar with the tale of this noteworthy Asian elephant, Bandoola was born in 1897 in Burma known now as Myanmar. It was the age of logging and using elephant labour to facilitate a mighty industry deep within the Burmese jungles. In the forties, just before war and unrest interrupt the customary way of life for both elephant and human, Bandoola meets Elephant Bil...
Post a Comment
Read more

Review: Possum Skin Cloak

Image
A person's identity, their story may begin before the day they are born. From that day though, their living, growing narrative takes shape and form, evolving into a tapestry of ancestorial significance. For many First Nations peoples, that tapestry is a possum skin cloak. Possum Skin Cloak describes not just a precious article of clothing, it's a picture book that stitches together the delicate weaves of belonging, family and cultural identity. Penned by Aunty Faye Muir and Sue Lawson , Possum Skin Cloak , begins at birth with the wrapping of a newborn in the warmth of possum skin. It's a practical way to keep baby dry and warm and safe but also close to their mother's heart. As the child grows, so too does their story, their connection to Country and their understanding of their place within it all.  The handcrafted cloak is cobbled together with additions and subtractions, imbued with language, sacred stories and places . Understanding. The appreciation of one's...
Post a Comment
Read more

Guest Post: Yashika Mody on FUNcles

Image
  As a semi-frequent visitor to Singapore and unashamed appreciator of her creatives and the kids' content they produce there, it fills me with immense pleasure to introduce, Yashika Mody as she invites us to learn more about the genesis of her latest picture book realease, FUNcles . So, sit back, grab a cup of kopi (or your favourite caffeniated beverage) and enjoy! "Hi, Uncle!"   "Thank you, Aunty!" "One kopi (local Singaporean coffee), Uncle!" For those of us living in Singapore, these are phrases that you’ll hear on almost every corner, street, and neighbourhood. You'd be hard-pressed to find a child or adult refer to community elders by their formal names; instead, we use terms of respect and endearment like 'Uncle' and 'Aunty' here. It's one of Singapore's most memorable cultural traditions, but you can find beautiful parallels all around the world—from the Philippines to Latin America, and even in Hawai'i! Th...
Post a Comment
Read more