Children

Children

Backyard Buddies by Andy Geppert

Reviewed by Patricia Simms-Reeve This book of backyard buddies, delightfully depicted in just twenty pages, could soon be regarded as an historic document, as grandparents are known to bemoan the changes that have occurred in their lifetimes when their yards were once visited by a great variety of creatures, including grasshoppers, beetles, butterflies and lizards.

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Children

August & Jones by Pip Harry

Reviewed by Patricia Simms-Reeve Children’s books are responsible for some of the best writing available today.  Such is their quality that many which were published decades ago (Harry the Dirty Dog is just one example) are still very much loved today.  One that is bound to join the group is the recently published August &

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Children

The World’s Worst Pets by David Walliams

Reviewed by Patricia Simms-Reeve David Walliams never fails to strike an irresistible and funny chord with young children. His latest series of books, including The World’s Worst Parents, The World’s Worst Teachers and The World’s Worst Children, have sold millions of copies and establishes him as one of the most successful children’s writers of all

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Children

The Suitcase of Belonging – Twinkl Originals

Reviewed by Patricia Simms-Reeve In the very competitive educational resource field, the exciting news is that the English-based ‘Twinkl’ has arrived in Australia offering materials that are Australian Curriculum-aligned. The initial impression is that it is an excellent tool for teachers. The fact that one of the first books in the Twinkl Originals collection is

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Children

Under the Moonlight by Susannah Crispe

Reviewed by Gail McDonald Susannah Crispe is a Canberra based children’s book author and illustrator with a background in zoology. Susannah has previously partnered in writing and illustrating two children’s books but this one Under the Moonlight is written and illustrated by Susannah alone. The book is a delightful tale of Moose who is an

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Children

Penelope Snoop, Ace Detective by Pamela Butchart

Reviewed by Patricia Simms-Reeve Brilliant female detectives are not exclusive to the adult world of books and television. Penelope Snoop believes she has the skills to solve any mystery. Accompanied by her dog, Carlos, and both wearing their eye-catching pink hats, they both set out to find the missing smelly sock.  Penelope’s imagination takes her

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Children

The Ogress and the Orphans by Kelly Barnhill

Reviewed by Gerard Healy A charming tale for older children and adults about greed, kindness and community by American author Kelly Barnhill. The setting is a small rural town named Stone-in-the Glen, which could be almost anywhere and which used to be a lovely town (everyone said). The townsfolk are a typical cross-section of humanity.

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Children

Rainbow the Koala and Star the Elephant by Remy Lai

Reviewed by Patricia Simms-Reeve Delight and charm, quite rare in adult fiction, is often used in discussing children’s books. Remy Lai, the young Brisbane based author, has this in abundance in her series ‘Surviving the Wild’. She has a contract to write three books for the series. These are the first two, which will be

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Children

Dare to be Different by Ben Brooks

Reviewed by Wendy Lipke The book Dare to be Different: Inspirational Words from People who Changed the World is a hard covered 19.5 x 25.5 cm publication which is a rich and exciting compendium for children of quotes from speeches, letters, lyrics, stories, and poems by people who have done wonderful things during their lifetime.

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Children

Eyes that Speak to the Stars by Joanna Ho

Reviewed by Antonella Townsend I have long since been an enthusiastic reader within the category of Young Adult Fiction, but had never anticipated loving so very much a book produced for ages 4+.  Such is the magic of Eyes that Speak to the Stars by Joanna Ho, illustrated by Dung Ho. Joanna Ho is passionate

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Children

Ouch: Tales of Gravity by Kate Simpson

Reviewed by Clare Brook Learning made easy and fun sums up Ouch: Tales of Gravity. Illustrated beautifully by Andy Hardiman, Kate Simpson’s Ouch: Tales of Gravity, is an excellent example of science being presented via charming, colourful, and amusing illustrations.  The illustrations are a mixture of full-page colour, or individual pictures surrounded by white space,

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Children

A Mouse Called Miika by Matt Haig

Reviewed by Patricia Simms-Reeve Matt Haig, well known for his bestselling children’s books, (A Mouse Called Miika is his twelfth) is also a much-admired author for adults, his most recent success being The Midnight Library. Miika, a Finnish mouse, has fun adventures which involve special powers, (drimwicked) which enable him to overcome a snow owl’s

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Children

A Hundred Thousand Welcomes by Mary Lee Donovan

Reviewed by Wendy Lipke Writer Mary Lee Donovan, an editorial director at Candlewick Press, and artist Lian Cho have produced a beautiful 27.5 x 26cm hard covered children’s book about hospitality and acceptance featuring the word ‘welcome’ from more than fourteen languages. Readers are told in the first couple of pages that the text is

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Children

Fantastically Great Women by Kate Pankhurst

Reviewed by Wendy Lipke For most of her life, children’s author and illustrator Kate Pankhurst had no idea she was distantly related to Emmeline Pankhurst, and a cousin of the suffragette’s direct descendants. It seems that she, like her forebear, has the drive and determination to record the contribution women have made in game-changing discoveries and

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