Tag Archives: children’s novel

Jan8

Wings & Co: Operation Bunny by Sally Gardner

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IMG_3647Wings & Co: Operation Bunny by Sally Gardner and illustrated by David Roberts, paperback, 185 pages, published by Orion Children’s Books in 2012.

Emily Vole was abandoned in a hatbox as a baby, and she is adopted by the very rich Ronald and Daisy Dashwood. Daisy is very vain and rather stupid, and when she falls pregnant with triplets, she turns Emily from adopted daughter into a Cinderella like slave. Emily works from sun-up to sun-down cleaning, washing, and caring for the triplets. She is not allowed to go to school and has to sleep in the laundry. One day by chance Emily meets her wonderful and elderly neighbour Miss String, and her man-sized talking cat, Fidget. They help and teach Emily, and open her to the world of magic and fairies. When the evil witch, Harpella, comes wreaking vengeance, Emily and Fidget set off on the run. They team up with the grumpy and rather self-important Buster who is a fairy detective, and together they try to destroy the evil Harpella.

I really enjoyed this story, and am looking forward to the next instalment to see what Emily, Fidget and Buster get up to. It was well written with some funky black and white illustrations to enhance the story. I found it to be an entertaining read that I wanted to keep reading to the end. I will be encouraging my first grader to read this, as I think it is suitable for school aged children. Emily is a quirky character with independence and smarts, and I liked her. Fidget was also a good character, with many cat and fish related phrases, and a rather sardonic sense of humour. I will enjoy reading this again to my pre-schooler.

Oct23

There’s a Fly Guy in my Soup by Tedd Arnold

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IMG_3405There’s a Fly Guy in my Soup by Tedd Arnold, hardback, 30 pages, published by Scholastic Inc. Cartwheel Books in 2012.

This simple book is part of the Fly Guy series, which follows the adventures of Buzz and his pet fly Fly Guy. In this story, Buzz and Fly Guy are on holidays, and Fly Guy finds himself in some trouble in the hotel restaurant when he mistakes a bowl of soup for a warm bath.

This book has easy to read text with very short chapters and colour illustrations. It could be considered an early or first chapter book and would be suitable for children in lower primary school to read themselves, but also suitable for reading to younger children. My preschooler thought it was quite funny and is interested in reading more Fly Guy stories.

Sep16

Rain May and Captain Daniel by Catherine Bateson

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IMG_3407Rain May and Captain Daniel by Catherine Bateson, paperback, 138 pages, published by University of Queensland Press in 2002.

When Rain’s parents separate, her mother, Maggie, decides that they will leave Melbourne and move to Clarkson, a small country town in rural Victoria. There’s not much to the town, it doesn’t even have a pizza place, and the old cottage they move into is tired and rundown. Maggie is determined to make a go of it in their ‘dream house’, even if Rain isn’t happy with the move. Then she meets Daniel, the boy next door. Rain and Daniel are about the same age, and despite their differences they become firm friends. Rain has to cope with visits to her father in Melbourne where he lives with his new girlfriend Julia, and this situation isn’t easy for her. But when she discovers that Daniel is ill, it gives her life some perspective, and the strength to make the most of what she has.

A friend lent me this book, and I enjoyed it. It is written in a somewhat unconventional way, with most of the story told from Rain’s perspective, including some fridge poems her and Maggie write to each other. The rest of the story is told in a log-book format from Captain Daniel’s perspective, as he records events in Star Trek style.

The characters are interesting, well written, and believable. Rain’s friendship with Daniel sees her stand up for him, but she still resents him sometimes. And Daniel doubts that Rain will want to be friends with him once she gets to know the ‘cool’ kids. Diana, Daniel’s mum, worries too much, and is obsessively tidy. Rain’s father and Julia work a lot and have trouble finding time for her, while Maggie has a steadfast resolution to make their new life work and goes at it with gusto. These flaws and quirks add reality to the characters and to the story.

The book itself is a fairly easy read, but I think some of the content and themes, such as divorce and dating, might be more suitable for middle to upper primary school age kids and beyond. Younger children, though they may be capable of reading the text, wouldn’t necessarily understand or appreciate the story very well.

 

* Rain May and Captain Daniel was the winner for the 2003 Children’s Book Council of Australia Book of the Year in the Younger Readers category.