Whistle up the Chimney by Nan Hunt illustrated by Craig Smith

Tuesday Treasure

Mrs Millie Mack lives alone in her little cottage. She is content with her routine. Looking after her garden and enjoying seasonal produce. She makes raspberry jam in summer, pickles, chutneys and relishes in autumn and in the winter she knits beside her fire.

"When winter came she waited for the truck to bring the heavy wood she had ordered. ... 'This is old railway wood and that's half a door from a bogey louvre.' When he said that a most delicious tingle ran up Mrs Millie Mack's spine."

A most surprising and wonderful thing happens when Mrs Millie Mack puts this new wood on her fire. A huge steam train - an express train - rushes out of her chimney and disappears out the door and into the night. The next night there is another steam train - a mixed goods train and on the third night "out trundled a four-coach all-stations passenger train. It slowed down (and) ... she just had time to wave to the children sitting with their faces pressed against the windows..."  Mrs Millie Mack has the best winter of her life. It is so exciting but she never "did find out what a bogey louvre was."

Discover a bogie louvre here https://www.victorianrailways.net/freight/freight%20pages/vlx/vlx.html

Whistle up the Chimney was published in 1981 and it won the CBCA Picture Book of the Year award in 1982. I need to ask again why is this treasure out of print? Surely our award winners should stay on a publisher back list. I'm sure this book will still be on the shelves of many Primary school libraries in Australia. You could read this book as a way to explore steam trains and perhaps even knitting!

Here is an interview with Craig Smith where he talks about his many books. You might like to look at my review of Black Dog his earliest book.