An Aussie Year is a new picture book (out this month!) about what Australian children love to do each month of the year. There’s a Blog Tour to celebrate (we’ll be featuring a book review of the book on our stop of the tour).
Would you like to see one of your stories published? Then DON’T FORGET to enter the ‘An Aussie Year writing competition‘. The winning entry will be published on the Kids’ Book Review site as part of the book launch celebrations! (Entries close 27 October, so get those entries in!)
I’ve read The 13-Storey Treehouse and The 26-Storey Treehouse, so when The 39-Storey Treehouse came out I looked for it at my library and saw with horror that every copy had four reserves on it already. I added my name to the waiting list and waited MORE THAN A MONTH for it to be my turn. When I got the library email to say it was waiting for me I thought ‘YES!’
This is the third book in the series and there are 13 more levels than in the previous book. I wanted to know what storeys they had added and I thought some were very clever like the not-very-merry-go-round. My favourite storey would be the Top Secret Not-Yet-Finished one and I thought the name of the machine on that level was great but I’m not going to tell you what it is because it’s better to get a surprise.
It was worth the waiting — this book is just as funny and interesting as the first two, though I still think that The 26-Storey Treehouse is my favourite because I really liked the new storeys they added in that book. The illustrations in this book made me laugh out loud and I really like the colour maps inside the covers of all the Treehouse books that give you a cool look at the new storeys each time.
I can’t wait till The 52-Storey Treehouse comes out in September 2014 to see what the new storeys will be.
Now I’ve finished it, I’d better rush this book to the library so the next kid on the waiting list can enjoy it too. I would recommend the Treehouse books to kids aged 6 to 12 and cheeky grownups too. I rate it 9/10.
The 26-Storey Treehouse by Andy Griffiths, ill. Terry Denton, ISBN 9781742611273, Pan Macmillan Australia
Reviewed by Celine, 11, WA
Have you read The 13-Storey Treehouse? Well, Andy and Terry are back with another 13 new storeys! When Andy tries to tell us a story, he is rudely interrupted by Terry, who’s apparently made the sharks sick by feeding them his underwear. Then Jill comes and helps. Inside one of the shark’s bellies, Andy finds a wooden head that belongs to Captain Woodenhead. This leads into the story of pirates with Jill, Andy and Terry. Then a real pirate ship pulls up at their shore, and out comes a captain with a disgusting head. Apparently he found it in a fish’s tummy.
Could this possibly be Captain Woodenhead, and if so, how will Andy and Terry shoo away the captain and his crew?
I liked this book, however — it was quite gruesome and this book would suit pirate lovers better. I would give this book a rating of 7/10.
Liar & Spy by Rebecca Stead, ISBN 9781921922947, The Text Publishing Company
Reviewed by Philippa, 11, WA
(A review copy of this book was provided by the publisher)
Georges has just moved house. His mum has gone away to the hospital and his dad is keen for him to ‘meet friends his age’. Then a notice for a Spy Club meeting appears and Georges meets Candy and Safer and is recruited to the Spy Club. He starts tracking the comings and goings of Mr X, a mysterious man in the building.
But the Spy Club’s activities start becoming dangerous and Georges has to decide — how far will he go for his new best friend?
I really liked that you never knew what was going to happen next in this book. The author gave you jigsaw pieces of the story and the plot had twists and turns. This story was set in the USA and usually I prefer books that are set in Australia because I like it when the school-settings and the places are familiar … but I couldn’t put this book down.
This is a great book for 11 to 14 year olds.
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Philippa is one of Alphabet Soup’s Junior Reviewers. If you are aged 12 or under, you can email us your book reviews, too — check out our submission guidelines!
Tania McCartney is one of our favourite visitors and — hooray! — today she’s visiting again. We’re celebrating her newest book Caroline Chisholm: The Emigrant’s Friend. This is the fifth book in the ‘Aussie Heroes’ series of junior historical fiction, it’s an illustrated chapter book for children aged 8–12. (Illustrations are by Pat Reynolds.)
There’s a saying you may have heard: fact is stranger than fiction.
What does this mean?
Well, it means that Real Life — and the many quadrillions of things that happen in Real Life — are often more shocking, more exciting, more adventurous, more interesting, funnier and crazier than anyone could ever make up in a storybook.
History and its stories are particularly stranger than fiction — and the further you go back in time, the more bizarre these stories can be. Some of you may have read the Horrible Histories books, and you’ll know exactly what I mean!
The history of the Australian people is, of course, many thousands of years old. It all began when our First People arrived — some say over 60,000 years ago. Other than the precious relics of our Aboriginal stories and cave paintings, our country’s recorded history is a lot shorter than that — just over 200 years.
In that time, many people have dedicated their lives to shaping this great country of ours — standing up against injustice, providing a helping hand or creating something beautiful. There are simply too many people to choose from, but I’ve chosen five people I think are some of the coolest Aussies in history.
To me, these people are cool because they were either brave or talented — or both. The brave ones were ferociously brave. The talented ones were the best in their field.
I wonder who will make this Cool Aussies list in 100 years’ time. Will it be you?
May Gibbs (1877–1969). Cecilia May Gibbs was an artist and author responsible for the beautiful Snugglepot and Cuddle Pie series of children’s books (among many others) that celebrate our Australian flora. Once upon a time, the only books Australian children had to read were from British or American authors! May Gibbs was one of the very first authors with a true focus on Australian life and our environment, and of course, many Aussie authors have since followed in her footsteps. Very cool indeed.
Donald Bradman (1908–2001). Australia is a nation of sport-lovers and quite possibly our most famous Aussie sportsman would be Sir Donald Bradman. I’m sure you’ve heard of him. He was such a fine cricketer, people said he was the equivalent of three batsman, not just one. He was also cool because he was a vibrant, entertaining sportsman; his skills would attract enormous crowds. I must admit, I still don’t ‘get’ cricket but there’s no doubt Mr Bradman was probably responsible for making it so popular.
Ned Kelly (c.1855–1880). Some people would argue that a murderous bushman is not the coolest of historical Australians, but much has been written in support of Ned Kelly — that he was misunderstood and targeted by the authorities — perhaps even set-up. Some have even called him a modern-day Robin Hood, robbing from the rich and giving to the poor. When he was hanged at age 25, his final words were ‘such is life’.
Eddie Mabo (1936–1992). Eddie Koiki Mabo was born in the Torres Strait Islands and was a champion for Indigenous land rights. He was deeply committed to forging a landmark decision with the High Court of Australia that allowed Aboriginal people to claim back the land that was taken from them when white man arrived in Australia. Today, we celebrate Mabo Day on 3 June every year, in honour of Eddie’s important achievements. Not only cool — awesome.
Caroline Chisholm (1808–1877). Caroline was born in England but emigrated to Australia with her family, where she began helping the penniless, homeless young women sent by boat to Australia. As more women and families began to arrive, Caroline helped them find work and housing. She also reunited families and improved appalling conditions on immigrant ships and on the Victorian goldfields. Caroline helped families make the best of terrible situations and dedicated her life to the wellbeing of others. Not much cooler than that.
What do you think of my 5 Coolest People in Australian History list? Do you agree with it? Who would be on your list and why?
Leave a comment below, with YOUR top 5 Coolest People in Australian History, and I’ll publish your picks on my blog! Make sure you leave your first name and age with your comment.
~ Tania McCartney, author of Caroline Chisholm: The Emigrant’s Friend.
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Tania McCartney will be stopping here on Tuesday to share her list of The Coolest People in Australian History — in celebration of her newest book about Caroline Chisholm. Now here’s a question … will Caroline Chisholm make it onto the list? See you back here on Tuesday to find out!
We love receiving your poems, stories, artwork and book reviews! Today we share a poem by 10-year-old Jaya. Thanks, Jaya!
Imagination by Jaya, aged 10
It flashed in my head
It appeared on my bed
Where ever I go
It follows me high and low
Holding me close
Or pushing me far
It leaves me the one
Same small scar
A scar of joy
A scar of fright
I feel the scar day and night
Deep in dreams
Deep in thought
The scariest thing a prince has fought
Has no name
Has no shape
From its reach
You won’t escape
THE WIND HAS SUCH A RAINY SOUND by Christina Rossetti
The wind has such a rainy sound
Moaning through the town,
The sea has such a windy sound,
Will the ships go down?
The apples in the orchard
Tumble from their tree.
Oh will the ships go down, go down,
In the windy sea?
We’re so excited to be running a writing competition (in conjunction with Kids’ Book Review) to help launch a new book! An Aussie Year will be launched in October 2013 — and YOUR story can be part of the celebrations!
alphabetsoup.net.au 