Category Archives: Children’s Book Council of Australia winners/shortlisted

Aug20

Violet Mackerel’s Possible Friend by Anna Branford and Sarah Davis

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IMG_1445Violet Mackerel’s Possible Friend by Anna Branford and illustrated by Sarah Davis, hardback chapter book, 109 pages, published by Walker Books Australia Pty Ltd in 2013.

Violet’s family has just moved into a new house. Violet is busy exploring the backyard when she discovers a knot in the fence, and accidentally turns it into a hole. She worries that the neighbours might be angry about the hole, so she writes a little apology note and leaves it, along with a small present in the hole. A reply arrives in the hole from Rose, a young girl that lives next door. Is Rose Violet’s possible friend, or maybe she could be a very good friend?

This is the story of a young girl making a new friend and all the uncertainty that comes with it. The story is well written and enjoyable. Violet reminds me of some children I know, and all her worrying and planning gave me a chuckle. While this is not the first book in the Violet Mackerel series, it is the first one we have read. It will not be the last. My preschooler is taken with Violet. She really enjoyed the story and I think she identified with Violet, they have some things in common, such as their collection of small items. She’s keen to read more Violet books.

There are very nice black and white illustrations throughout the book. My preschooler was particularly impressed with how Violet was depicted in the illustrations, just like she imagined her to be (apparently)! The notes that are passed between Violet and Rose are actually drawn as notes in the book too, with writing that even looks like the writing of a young girl. I thought these were a lovely addition.

Violet Mackerel’s Possible Friend is a chapter book that is suitable for lower to middle primary school children. My second grader read the whole book before school one morning, finding it an entertaining story, but a very easy read. I think it would be a good book to help build reading confidence in young children.

 

 

Aug17

The Treasure Box by Margaret Wild and Freya Blackwood

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IMG_1398The Treasure Box by Margaret Wild and illustrated by Freya Blackwood, hardback picture book, published by Penguin Group (Australia) in 2013.

Peter and his father are forced to flee their home during the war. They take with them a book in a small iron box. This book is special to Peter’s father, and is the last remaining book after the local library was bombed. The road to safety is long , cold and arduous. When Peter’s father dies, he struggles on, taking the box with him, but when he can go no further, he buries the box beneath a tree. Peter escapes with his life, but he never forgets the iron box holding the treasured book.

The Treasure Box is a poignant story of war, death and loss. Peter loses everything he has ever known, yet he never forgets his father, his home or the treasured book. Some things are more important than gold, silver and rubies. Peter’s book is about his people, the people that were persecuted and forced from their homes, it is an important part of their history. When everything is lost, we still have our history and our memories. The Treasure Box reminds us of the importance of the written word and of history, which can help shape the future for the better.

The illustrations in The Treasure Box were perfectly matched to the story, creating just the right tone as the story progresses. Using subtle shadowing made some of the pictures appear to rise from the page, or created a looking-through-a-window effect. I also liked that some of the pages had parts made up of ripped texts, as if they had been made from the bombed library books.

This is a thought-provoking read for both young and old, and I found it incredibly sad. My preschooler and second grader were shocked when Peter’s father died, and the refugees buried him by the side of the road. They have never been exposed to war or its consequences, and this book was a real eye-opener. They asked a lot of questions, many of which I could not answer. They wanted to know why anyone would go to war, why they would force people to leave their homes, why they would bomb innocent people, why they would kill children, and how can we stop war. I wish I knew the answers and the solutions, and I wish no one had to endure the atrocities of war. The Treasure Box gave us a sorrowfully beautiful, age appropriate and heartfelt opening to discuss this very complicated and saddening topic.

 

Aug16

Rules of Summer by Shaun Tan

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IMG_1396Rules of Summer by Shaun Tan, hardback picture book, published by Lothian Children’s Books in 2013.

Two brothers navigate the landscapes of their imaginations in a series of rules as learnt last summer by the younger brother. Never step on a snail or eat the last olive or drop your jar because you never know what the consequences might be!

A magical story about the power of the imagination, and the childhood belief that anything is possible. Rules of Summer reminds me of that old rhyme “Step on a crack and break your mother’s back” that we would sing as we jumped over cracks in the pavement as children. These rules are similar to that rhyme, with nature overtaking the lounge room if the backdoor is left open, a giant red bunny appearing when a sock is left on the line, and a tornado appearing when a snail is squished. As adults it’s easy to say that these things will not really happen, but in a child’s vivid imagination these are only some of the possible outcomes if you break the rules.

With the most engaging illustrations, it is easy to lose yourself in the pictures and re-ignite the spark of imagination and curiosity that may have floundered on the way to adulthood. Sharing this book with your child is a special journey for both children and adults, and is especially good for children in primary school.

Rules of Summer is a reminder to us all of the power and beauty of the imagination.

 

* Rules of Summer was the winner of the 2014 Children’s Book Council of Australia Book of the Year in the Picture Book category.

Aug16

Kissed by the Moon by Alison Lester

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IMG_1393Kissed by the Moon by Alison Lester, hardback picture book, published by Penguin Group (Australia) in 2013.

The wishes of a mother for her child. From waking to birdsong, experiencing the great variety of nature, and drifting into dreams, Kissed by the Moon, reads like a lullaby of love between mother and child.

This heart-warming book captures the beauty of the mother and child relationship. For her child she would like the simple pleasures of love, happiness, contentment, safety and experiencing nature in all its forms, things that many parents want for their own children. It is also beautifully and brightly illustrated, a pleasure to see. Kissed by the Moon is a lovely book to read to children before bed, from toddler through primary school, it will remind them of their parents’ love and help them to settle down for a peaceful sleep.

 

Aug15

Silver Buttons by Bob Graham

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IMG_1392Silver Buttons by Bob Graham,, hardback picture book, published by Walker Books in 2013.

Jodie is drawing a picture of a duck, in top hat with a cane and silver buttons on his boots. She is just about to draw the second button when her brother takes his first step, an ambulance goes past, phones ring everywhere, children sail boats in the fountain and a baby is born. As her brother tumbles to the ground, Jodie finishes her picture, only a minute has past, but so much has happened.

It’s just a short moment, but many things are occurring, in Jodie’s house, in her neighbourhood and right across the city. For Jodie, her brother taking his first step is a very important moment, but outside and elsewhere, important and not so important things are happening to other people and animals too. Things that we don’t think about much, unless we are the person experiencing them. This is a thought provoking book that can open a new world to children as they contemplate life outside of themselves.

Bob Graham’s distinctive illustrations are beautiful and full of life. We like to study the pictures to see what we can find, and these illustrations gave us plenty to look at. My preschooler spied the jogger in many of the pictures, and this helped her to understand that all of these pictures were happening simultaneously.

Both my second grader and preschooler enjoyed Silver Buttons, and I enjoyed reading it with them. It is a very good picture book for preschoolers and children in lower primary school, though I think some older children would also enjoy this book. As a parent, I was able to use this story to get my kids thinking and talking about things that are happening outside of their own small sphere. It was an interesting conversation! Silver Buttons has already been requested for a re-read, and is sure to read many times in our home.

 

* Silver buttons was an honours book for the 2014 Children’s Book Council of Australia Book of the Year in the Picture Book category.

Aug15

The Windy Farm by Doug MacLeod and Craig Smith

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IMG_1391The Windy Farm by  Doug MacLeod and illustrated by Craig Smith, hardback picture book, published by Working Title Press in 2013.

Living on the windiest farm on Windy Hill is difficult when the wind tries to blow away family members and the pigs. They all have to wear special heavy shoes to avoid being blown right off the hill, but part of their house isn’t so lucky. What will they do with so much wind? Why build a wind-farm of course!

My kids and I really enjoyed The Windy Farm, it was an interesting story with an environmental message. By harnessing the wind, the family was able to produce so much electricity they could sell it and become rich. This book highlights that wind is an infinite resource that we can make use of to fuel our modern lives, as opposed to using oil and coal which will run out in time, just as Uncle Jeff’s well does in the story. This was a nice way to introduce young children to wind power as an alternative energy resource.

I liked both the story and the illustrations. My preschooler loved that the pigs were pictured being blown away by the wind, though Grandpa was just too large for the wind to take him. She has asked me to read this book a number of times, and becomes engrossed in it every time. My second-grader also enjoyed The Windy Farm, taking it away to read on her own. Both kids laughed a lot at the ending! A fantastic book for preschoolers and lower primary school children, it is also a pleasant read for adults, making this book perfect for sharing.

Aug15

Parachute by Danny Parker and Matt Ottley

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IMG_1397Parachute by Danny Parker and illustrated by Matt Ottley, hardback picture book, published by Little Hare Books in 2013.

Toby is an anxious child, frightened and worried about many things. He especially doesn’t like heights. To combat his fear, he wears a parachute all the time. The parachute helps him to feel safe when getting out of bed, playing at the park and even hopping off the step stool in the bathroom after brushing his teeth. Then his cat needs the parachute more than he does, and Toby realises that he can face and conquer his fears all by himself.

A simple story about overcoming one’s fears and learning to rely on oneself. The illustrations in Parachute are a bit quirky, but I liked them. The pictures showing the exaggerated height of things, as perceived by Toby, were particularly well done. My kids weren’t wrapped in this book though, and have declined to read it a second time. My second grader is an anxious child, so I thought this story would appeal to her, but she thought it was a bit silly that Toby wore a parachute all the time, since she didn’t think it would be much help if he did fall out of bed or off the breakfast stool. My preschooler liked the pictures, and seemed to enjoy the story well enough, so perhaps this book is just more suitable for preschoolers.

Aug13

Song for a Scarlet Runner by Julie Hunt

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IMG_13590Song for a Scarlet Runner by Julie Hunt, paperback novel, 315 pages, published by Allen & Unwin in 2013.

Peat was cast out by her village as a baby for nothing more than her red hair and different coloured eyes. She is banished along with her sister and mother to the Overhang, where they tend the cows and make cheese for the village. A village that is four days walk away with no other settlements in any direction, only marshes and the Badlands. They live a life of work and isolation, until a stranger appears on the road from the Badlands. He continues on to the village, but brings with him a terrible disease, a disease that hits the village hard, and for which Peat is blamed. Suddenly she finds herself running for her life, knowing she cannot return, but not knowing where she might go either.

Peat encounters a small reddish furred creature with small sharp claws and teeth, which attacks her, steals her food, and then saves her life. She calls him the sleek, and he guides her through the marshes, helping her, feeding her, and occasionally biting or scratching her. The sleek leads her to a island in the marshes where she is trapped by a Marsh Auntie called Eadie. Peat finds herself learning the art of storytelling from the old healer. But, the healer has a secret, a long while before, she made a bargain and now she must pay up, and Peat is the price. Peat is trapped again, this time in a strange, far away land where time has stopped, and her only companions are a little boy that is 900 years old and his ghostly hound, who are also trapped there. Together and with the help of the sleek, can they find a way to escape, to re-enter the world they once lived in? Can they find the happy ending to their own stories?

An excellent read, Song for a Scarlet Runner, was unputdownable, a truly magnificent novel for younger readers from Julie Hunt. This fantasy adventure story was engaging and exciting, with vivid landscapes and detailed characters. The descriptive qualities of this novel were superb, bringing the adventure to life. I could hear the sleek chittering in impatience at Peat, see the multi-pocketed coat that Eadie always wore, and feel the wiry hair of the giant hound as they rode him away from the river. I became immersed in the story as I followed Peat through misfortune, injustice, friendship and love. Ultimately this was a journey of discovery to find her place in the world, and though pushed to take the first steps along the road, Peat makes the most of this opportunity to create her own destiny.

Song for a Scarlet Runner would be most suitable for middle to upper primary school children, though I would be happy for my second grader to read this book. The length of the novel is probably more prohibitive to very young readers than the content or the language. Though, as always, parents should help guide their children to make good book choices for their reading ability and interests. And, of course, reading a book like this with or to your child can be very rewarding!

Aug12

Jeremy by Chris Faille and Danny Snell

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IMG_1357Jeremy by Chris Faille and illustrated by Danny Snell, published by Working Title Press in 2013.

Jeremy is a baby kookaburra that has fallen out of his nest. The family cat brings him home when he is just a wrinkly little pink ball with closed eyes. The nest is too high to return the bird to, so the family look after him, keeping him warm and feeding him. Jeremy grows feathers, and gets bigger and stronger. All too soon he is ready to face the world on his own.

Jeremy is a heart warming tale of survival, that also serves to introduce the reader to the basics of how a kookaburra develops. The story itself is a simple narrative following Jeremy’s progress from ugly newborn to young adulthood, when he is ready to fend for himself.

Inside the front and back covers, lots of facts about kookaburras are presented, considerably increasing the depth of knowledge gained from this book. The illustrations in Jeremy are an asset to this book, as they are wonderfully life-like, and so detailed. They bring Jeremy to life as he grows and changes.

Several times as a child I found a poor baby bird that had fallen or been pushed from its nest, and tried to save it. None of mine were as lucky as Jeremy though. I was pleased that Jeremy grew into a healthy young kookaburra that could be released back into the wild, despite his shaky start. My preschooler was surprised, having never seen a newly hatched bird,  that baby birds have no feathers and are completely defenceless. She enjoyed the extra facts about kookaburras, and I’m pretty sure she learnt some things!  As this book is mostly non-fiction disguised as a picture book, I think it would be an excellent tool to help encourage children into reading more non-fiction. Good for curious kids in primary school and preschool, I enjoyed sharing Jeremy with my daughter very much.

 

* Jeremy was the winner of the 2014 Children’s Book Council of Australia Book of the Year in the Eve Pownall Award for Information Books category.

Aug12

The Swap by Jan Ormerod and Andrew Joyner

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IMG_1358The Swap by Jan Ormerod and illustrated by Andrew Joyner, hardback picture book, published by Littler Hare Books in 2013.

Caroline Crocodile is very jealous of her baby brother. Mama Crocodile is always saying how wonderful he is, and giving him big smoochy kisses. Caroline thinks her brother is just a big smelly and drooly mess, and she really wants Mama Crocodile to herself. So when Mama Crocodile asks Caroline to look after her brother while she pops into the hat shop, Caroline decides to trade her brother for a new baby  at The Baby Shop. She tries a baby panda, twin tiger cubs and an elephant, but none of them are quite right. Perhaps her baby brother really is the best brother to have after all?

A beautiful picture book about the love of a sister for her brother, this story touched my heart. My preschooler chose this book to read before bed last night, and it was lovely to share it with her. She has a baby brother of her own, who she thinks is often smelly and dribbly just like Caroline’s little brother. I’m pretty sure my preschooler has considered swapping her brother on occasion (when he threw her toothbrush in the toilet, bit her tummy hard enough to draw blood, emptied a water bottle into her bed…), yet she loves him dearly, and knows that he is her perfect little brother. Baby brothers or sisters often get a lot of attention, but this doesn’t diminish an older sibling’s love or importance, it’s just that babies are so messy and dependent! It can take a while for an older sibling to realise this, just like Caroline. And just like Caroline, sometimes older siblings might be jealous of a baby in their family. My preschooler really related to Caroline Crocodile and laughed a lot when Caroline tried to trade her brother in. She also thought that the antics of the substitute brothers were hilarious. I liked the twin tigers that were “too tiring”, as they quickly destroyed a toy shop and menaced the other children, while my preschooler liked the baby elephant sitting in the fountain. The illustrations in The Swap are colourful and entertaining. There were plenty of things for my preschooler to spot, especially in the town scenes. We enjoyed looking carefully at all the pictures. Caroline Crocodile’s facial expressions are wonderfully realistic and it was easy to see how she was feeling.

Especially good to read to big brothers and sisters, The Swap is a great story for all preschoolers and lower primary school children.

 

* The Swap was the winner of the 2014 Children’s Book Council of Australia Book of the Year in the Early Childhood category.