The Book of Gold by Bob Staake

Isaac visits the New York public library with his parents:

"Isaac's parents loved books. They adored how they smelled and the way they felt in their hands, but most of all, they loved discovering the answers hidden inside."

Isaac is not interest in books but later his parents take him into a curiosity shop and the owner tells Isaac:

"There is a legend,' she explained, 'that somewhere in the world there is one very special book that's just waiting to be discovered. It will look like any other book, but it holds all the answers to every question ever asked, and when it is opened, it turns to solid gold."

This idea puts young Isaac Gutenberg, a boy who has declared he does NOT like reading, on the road to discovery. He hunts high and low looking for this promised golden treasure and along the way he finds a love of reading, develops his curiosity and finds answers to his questions. Perhaps the "book of gold" will never be found but Isaac finds an even better treasure. I hope you have guessed what this is.

Here are some of the questions Isaac asks:

• Why don't the pyramids have windows?
• How can something as heavy as a ship float?
• Who invented pizza?
• Were dinosaurs covered in fur?
• Why don't elevators also travel sideways?

and my favourite question

• How did the number eight get its name?

It is also fun to think about the name Gutenberg. 

You might like to use this book when you talk about the 2024 CBCA Book Week Slogan "Books are Magic." 

For adult readers here is something you need to know about The Book of Gold.  I picked up a copy of this book at a 50% off sale and so now I have seen under the dust jacket - it is truly special but of course difficult for libraries to cover the book and still allow the removal of the jacket:

The book has two covers. If you detach the wraparound cover with the image that everyone associates with the book, you'll find the paper-on-board cover -- which I designed to look like an artifact squirreled away in the recesses of any dusty attic. It's my hope that children will find the book years from now (minus the wrap) and realize that THEY have indeed found the elusive Book Of Gold.

Publisher blurb: Young Isaac Gutenberg isn’t a curious boy . . . that is, until he meets an old shopkeeper who tells him about The Book of Gold. This special book, hidden somewhere in the world, holds all the answers to every question and turns to solid gold when opened. Isaac is determined to find the book—it will make him rich! He opens many books in his search, but quickly closes them when they don’t turn to gold. That changes one day when he opens a book, looks at the page, and a question pops into his mind. From then on, he reads every word. Time passes and Isaac ages, but he still scours dusty attics and flea markets, crisscrossing the world, searching for The Book of Gold. This sweeping picture book asks important questions: Is searching for knowledge better than having it? How important is curiosity? And what makes a life meaningful?

Here is the author web site. You can see a few pages inside this book on the publisher web site. There are some lovely touches in this book. The sepia pages that give that olden days feel, the name Gutenberg of course and the scenes inside and outside the splendid New York city Public Library. Make sure you look for another special book by Bob Staake - a wordless treasure called Bluebird. Here is a CNN interview where Bob talks about the ideas behind Bluebird.

Storm by Jane Bunn illustrated by Dasha Riley

"The sky was menacing and dark. It looked like it could swallow anything and everything."

The television weather presenter advises everyone to say indoors. Jane's little dog Stampy is terrified. Jane is a problem solver and so she decides to research storms and write her discoveries in her journal which she then shares with her pup. To complete her research, she uses the library and talks with a meteorologist (her aunt). The result is a partially fiction book with full pages of weather facts. 

The author of this book is a television weather presenter from Channel Seven. Celebrity books do make me cringe - but I guess a television weather presenters would know her topic and also, she is perhaps a fairly minor celebrity - unless you live in Melbourne. She talks about her book here with Reading with a Chance of Tacos. (25 minutes) She might do further books and make a series. Hope she can take a look at this book set:

I had a little girl in my school a few years ago who was terrified of storms and especially upset of there was thunder and lightning. One day we had a very wild storm at school - actually this happened fairly often at home time. The little girl was with me in the library - I don't remember why - but I do remember comforting her during the storm and the kind reaction of her mum when she finally arrived. I would have loved to loan her this book once the storm had passed. 

I am not a massive fan of the illustrations in this book, but I do really like the combination of a fictional narrative about Jane and her dog linked with the fact pages about storms; lightning; wind; hail; storm safety; and predicting weather.

Publisher blurb: When a dark, menacing storm rumbles over Jane’s house, she has lots of questions ... Where do storms come from? What causes lightning? How does hail form? And most importantly, how do we stay safe? Discover all the wild-weather answers you need to know in this imaginative and informative story from weather presenter and meteorologist Jane Bunn.

Pair this with:

I am the Storm

My May reading pile

It's been quite a while since I did one of these reading pile posts. I do have books on my pile of course but these days I very rarely have access to advance reader copies of new books and that was often the impetus to share titles in this form. I used to snaffle piles of ARCs from a wonderful local bookshop but sadly that business has now closed.  I now get a few from Three Sparrows Bookstore (take a look at Freddie Spector) and also very occasionally from University of Queensland Press (UQP). Check out the one they just sent me.

One of our very large chain bookshops has been having a sale all through April. I have been there twice and picked up a few novels and a good pile of fifty percent discounted picture books. We also had our Lifeline Bookfair during the recent school holidays. And finally, I do still have few books left over from previous book list posts which have not yet made it to the top of my to-read pile (sigh).

Freewater by Amina Luqman-Dawson

This book won a Newbery award and a Coretta Scott King award and so of course it was on my book shopping list. I have been reading Freewater this week. It is SO good and I am taking my time rather than my usual style of racing through a book. Decades ago, I read another powerful book about slavery - Nightjohn by Gary Paulsen. This story has lingered with me for over thirty years. I also read the sequel - Sarny.

More recently I read Crossing Ebenezer Creek and the Chains trilogy. I live in Australia and the topic of slavery in the US was not covered in our school history curriculum but through these books (and others) I feel as though I have gained a small insight into these horrible events.

Crossing Ebenezer Creek

Chains

And I read and was deeply affected by Stella by Starlight and Running out of Night.

Stella by Starlight

Running out of night

Freewater blurb: Under the cover of night, twelve-year-old Homer flees Southerland Plantation with his little sister Ada, unwillingly leaving their beloved mother behind. Much as he adores her and fears for her life, Homer knows there’s no turning back, not with the overseer on their trail. Through tangled vines, secret doorways, and over a sky bridge, the two find a secret community called Freewater, deep in the swamp. In this society created by formerly enslaved people and some freeborn children, Homer finds new friends, almost forgetting where he came from. But when he learns of a threat that could destroy Freewater, he crafts a plan to find his mother and help his new home. Deeply inspiring and loosely based on the history of maroon communities in the South, this is a striking tale of survival, adventure, friendship, and courage. 

Fly me Home by Polly Ho-Yen

I previously read two books by Polly Ho-Yen - Two sides (which is a junior novel) and How I saved the World in a week.  I saw Fly me home on the 50% off table and the cover looked appealing.

Blurb: Feeling lost and alone in a strange new city, Leelu wishes she could fly away back home - her real home where her dad is, thousands of miles away. London is cold and grey and the neighbours are noisy and there's concrete everywhere. But Leelu is not alone; someone is leaving her gifts outside her house - wonders which give her curious magical powers. Powers which might help her find her way home ...Fly Me Home is an incredibly moving portrait of one family's struggle to adjust to life in a new country. 

The Travelling Bookshop - Mim and the Anxious artist by Katrina Nannestad

I did enjoy the first book in this series Mim and the Baffling Bully. I saw this third book from the series at the Lifeline sale for just $2. It is in mint condition so perhaps the child owner didn't read it which is a shame. These books have such appealing covers by Cheryl Orsini. Book three is set in Paris.

This is the Walker Books Australia cover. The US one is quite different.

Ferris by Kate DiCamillo

I have read this and it is a FIVE star book but before I talk about it here on this blog I have a plan to read it again - this is something I never do. Every tiny idea, phrase, word choice by Kate DiCamillo is liquid gold. 

Blurb by Kate DiCamillo: It’s the summer before fifth grade, and for Ferris Wilkey, it is a summer of sheer pandemonium: Her little sister, Pinky, has vowed to become an outlaw. Uncle Ted has left Aunt Shirley and, to Ferris’s mother’s chagrin, is holed up in the Wilkey basement to paint a history of the world. And Charisse, Ferris’s grandmother, has started seeing a ghost at the threshold of her room, which seems like an alarming omen given that she is also feeling unwell. But the ghost is not there to usher Charisse to the Great Beyond. Rather, she has other plans — wild, impractical, illuminating plans. How can Ferris satisfy a specter with Pinky terrorizing the town, Uncle Ted sending Ferris to spy on her aunt, and her father battling an invasion of raccoons? 

The Upside Down River: Hannah's Journey by Jean-Claude Mourlevat

The first book from this series - Tomek's story was a revelation to me. I gave it five stars and I said: "This book is an absolute page turner. It is such a wild ride. You will never guess what will appear around the next corner. It's all a little like The Phantom Toll Booth but without the silliness. There is a forest where you forget everything and everyone forgets you, giant bears who are desperate for meat and who have outstanding hearing, flowers that cause hallucinations, a village of tiny people who make perfume, a dangerous rainbow and even a friendly panda-like creature who offers warmth and comfort."

I picked this up for 20% off today. I might need to re-read the first book but that's okay these are quite short.

I also have The Strange Library by Murakami on my pile - but I am think it might actually be an adult book. I do love the cover which looks like a library date due slip. 
 

The Shelterlings by Sarah Beth Durst

The name Sarah Beth Durst has been mentioned on blogs and review sites. I have a couple of her books on my bookshop wish list including this one which is now in paperback. 

Publisher blurb: Holly, a grey squirrel, and her animal friends have accepted that they will never be wizards’ familiars. Though they are each magical, their powers are so offbeat—Holly herself can conjure pastries (and only pastries)—that no professional magic-worker would choose any of them as a companion for noble quests. So instead of going on adventures, they languish at the Shelter for Rejected Familiars, where they are known as “shelterlings.” When an old friend appears with a plan for curing the shelterlings’ defective magic, everyone is on board to help him locate and retrieve the ingredients for a powerful spell. But when they learn that his offer is not what it seems, Holly and the shelterlings must fight to defend their magic, discovering in the process that their unorthodox skills may just be what is needed to save the day.

The Monsters of Rookhaven by Pádraig Kenny

Bookseller blurb: Mirabelle has always known she is a monster. When the glamour protecting her unusual family from the human world is torn and an orphaned brother and sister stumble upon Rookhaven, Mirabelle soon discovers that friendship can be found in the outside world. But as something far more sinister comes to threaten them all, it quickly becomes clear that the true monsters aren't necessarily the ones you can see.

This book has a sequel - The Shadows of Rookhaven. I have also read Pog and Tin by Pádraig Kenny. My friend Dr Robin Morrow is currently reviewing another new book by Padraig Kenny - Stitch. It is due out in a few months. 

The Pickpocket and the Gargoyle has been on my pile for a whole year!  I first listed it here in May, 2023. I did start to read it but I think this is the kind of book that needs to suit my mood. Hopefully I will read this before another whole year passes.

When secrets set sail has been on my pile since October last year. I did start this one a couple of times but I just couldn't settle into the complex storyline. I did deeply love a previous book by Sita Brahmachari - Where the River runs gold - so I will get back to this one soon. 

Mr Mornington's Favourite things by Karen George

Mr Mornington lives next door. Our narrator, a young girl, visits him through a gap in their hedge fence. She knows Mr Mornington likes gardening, cherry cake, his woolly hat and playing his saxophone. The friends share a love of music and when he plays his sweet tunes the little girl thinks of all her own favourite things - her cat, her mum, her friends, special shoes and socks and cherry cupcakes. 

Over time, though, it is clear Mr Mornington is beginning to forget things. He offers to teach the little girl so she can become the second-best saxophone player in the world but then he forgets, and he doesn't even tell them he is leaving. Sadly Mr Mornington has now moved into an aged care home.

Our little girl is not deterred however. She is given a small saxophone and she works hard and practices and when she and her mum go to visit they take cherry cake and music. Mr Mornington is sometimes sad but sometimes, there are glorious days, when he does remember some of the things that make him happy - his wife, his dog, music, cups of tea, his garden and cherry cupcakes. You can see these things and more on the book cover. And the cherry cake recipe is in the back of the book.

Karen George uses colour and white space to express emotion: when everything is great fun there’s not much space on the pages and she uses bright primary colours; when Mr Mornington has left, rather like the use of white space in John Burningham’s ‘Granpa’, the page is almost blank, the plants have shrivelled from lack of care and an empty cup lies upturned on the floor. But when Mr Mornington does occasionally remember his favourite things, there is a riot of flowers, slippers, gardening tools, the dog, his woolly hat, cherry cakes, the radio, a car and, of course, his saxophone. And the colour remains as the girl grows older and remembers her friend when she plays their favourite song for others. Just Imagine

I would pair this with Grace and Mr Milligan. You might also think of Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge. 

I also thought of sharing The Sound of Music song - My favourite things. 

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens
Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens
Brown paper packages tied up with strings
These are a few of my favorite things

Cream-colored ponies and crisp apple strudels
Doorbells and sleigh bells, and schnitzel with noodles
Wild geese that fly with the moon on their wings
These are a few of my favorite things

Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes
Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes
Silver-white winters that melt into springs
These are a few of my favorite things

When the dog bites
When the bee stings
When I'm feeling sad
I simply remember my favorite things
And then I don't feel so bad

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens
Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens
Brown paper packages tied up with strings
These are a few of my favorite things

Cream-colored ponies and crisp apple strudels
Doorbells and sleigh bells, and schnitzel with noodles
Wild geese that fly with the moon on their wings
These are a few of my favorite things

Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes
Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes
Silver-white winters that melt into springs
These are a few of my favorite things

When the dog bites
When the bee stings
When I'm feeling sad
I simply remember my favorite things
And then I don't feel so bad

The Midnight Children by Dan Gemeinhart

"The feeling that woke Ravani Foster on this moonlit night? 
It was loneliness."

"This story, like all stories, is about choices. And Ravani in that moment, chose to not hide. Instead he raised his hand in a silent wave. 

Sometimes, when two lonely souls find each other, there is a reaching out. 

The girl bought her own hand up. But not in a wave. She raised a single finger to her lips. She made no sound, but there was no mistaking what she was saying: Shhh."

Ravani lives in a town named Slaughterville. Yes, it is a small town with an abattoir and this place is the main employer. Ravani's dad works there, and I do need to give a warning that sensitive readers might find the early scenes in this book very distressing but stick with me this book is fabulous!!

Late one night Ravani sees a strange scene outside from his upstairs window. Ravani lives at the end of a dead-end street called Offal Road. Up until this night the house next door has been empty. The old man who previously lived there, he was the local undertaker, has now moved into an aged care home. As Ravani Foster, who has woken in the middle of the night, looks out from his room he sees a large white truck arrive, and from out of the back step seven children ranging in age from five or six up to sixteen or seventeen. The final child, a girl about his age, takes a little longer to emerge. There are no adults.

"Her hair, which was tied back with a black ribbon, looked silver in the moonlight. But Ravani thought that in the sunlight it would look gold. She wore blue jeans and a white T-shirt. One hand held a suitcase, just like the other children, but the other held something else: A white umbrella. The lacy, pretty kind that fancy ladies carried at fancy events like horse races or country picnics. ... She looked left, and then she looked right, and then she looked up."

These children, especially that girl, are set to change Ravani's life and later even the whole community. 

I don't want to give away too much of the plot, but this book feels like a jigsaw - you need to pay attention to every little piece because Dan Gemeinhart very cleverly and neatly ties all the pieces together into a very, very satisfying ending. 

Here are some important text quotes:

"The cow watched his approach. Its ears perked up. Ravani stopped in front of the condemned creature. He put his hand on the barbed wire and looked into its eyes. There was a sparkle there. A warmth.  ... Ravani looked around quickly. There was no one in sight. ... A choice was made. A mistake, perhaps, but a choice to be sure. Ravani undid the latch."

"I'm not looking for a friend' she said. 'Me neither,' he lied."

"Tears spang hot to Ravani's eyes. Tears because Donnie's knee hurt, tears because he had dirt in his mouth, tears because he was tired of the cruelty and the loneliness, and tears most of all because he knew it was no use. That no matter what he did, no matter what he did or didn't say, that he would always be the sparrow caught in the kestrel's claws."

"He was tired to his soul of being lonely. And he'd thought for too long: Someday. Someday I'll be happy. Someday I'll have a friend."

"The first secret is that I have secrets ... the rest you'll have to wait for."

"The paper was long - really four of five pieces taped together. Drawn all the way down it, in ruler perfect neatness, were piano keys. Pencil lines marked the ivory keys, black keys scribbled dark with black crayon. 'This is my practice piano,' Virginia said ...'It's almost as good as having a real piano.'"

I also love some of the words and expressions used by Virginia - bullspit; no sweet Juniper; cheese and rice Rav - I said a spider not a rattlesnake; and holy spit, mister. Oh and the character names like Hortense Wallenbach - editor of the local newspaper and Mrs Grunchly - boat race official. And when Rav's mum invites Virginia over for piano lessons the piano I sighed with happiness. Oh, and each kid has a special talent - thank goodness for this. (You might relate this to Savvy by Ingrid Law).

Bookseller blurb: In the dead of night, a truck arrives in Slaughterville, a small town curiously named after its windowless slaughterhouse. Seven mysterious kids with suitcases step out of the vehicle and into an abandoned home on a dead-end street, looking over their shoulders to make sure they aren't noticed. But Ravani Foster covertly witnesses their arrival from his bedroom window. Timid and lonely, Ravani is eager to learn everything he can about his new neighbors: What secrets are they hiding? And most mysterious of all...where are the adults? Yet amid this shadowy group of children, Ravani finds an unexpected friend in the warm and gutsy Virginia. But with this friendship comes secrets revealed—and danger. When Ravani learns of a threat to his new friends, he must fight to keep them safe, or lose the only person who has ever understood him.

The place names in Slaughterville set the tone for life in this town - Carcass Creek; Skinister Slaughterhouse; and Red River.

Ranani loves birds - try to find Twitch by MG Leonard. And the way the children are being hunted reminded me of the movie scenes with Robert Helpmann from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. 

Listen to an audio sample from page 2 onwards. In this interview Dan talks about his book. And here is Dan reading his first few pages. Here are some very detailed teachers notes. 

Reading a book like The Midnight Children I marvel at the imagination of authors like Dan Gemeinhart. This is a story of extreme contrasts, of the deepest of friendships and it is an exploration of complex relationships.

A story of fierce friendship, bravery, loyalty, and finding—or making—a place to belong. Kirkus Star review

Colby Sharp 'This is the book that will stay in their heart. ... from the opening pages you will know that this book is special! ... Read it, it's PERFECT.'

Stop and look at the cover - a young boy has filled a jar with fireflies, his face is bathed in their light, it is very dark and we assume very late. Stretch out the cover - there are five other children watching this boy - hidden among the trees. The boy looks quite well dressed whereas one of the other children is wearing patched pants that are perhaps too big or too small. 

One of the things that happens when you read lots of books (from around the world and from here in Australia too) is you start to 'know' some authors and this makes it easy to anticipate a terrific story. I was so keen to read this book I bought it in hardcover so here in Australia it cost over AUS$30. I do hope a paperback edition is released so you can add this to your own shelves or library collection.  I also adored this book by Dan Gemeinhart:

The Remarkable story of Coyote Sunrise I really want to read the sequel Coyote Lost and Found

Years ago, I read another book by Dan Gemeinhart and then I am so happy to say I convinced a Grade Six teacher to read it to her class - and everyone (children and teacher) enjoyed it! This is important because this teacher (as with many others) was locked in to reading the same books to her class year and year - I rejoice that I expanded her horizons just a little.

The Honest Truth

Here is the third book I have read by Dan Gemeinhart - but I need to give a warning - there are some very violent parts to this story - it was a harrowing book to read but it also a very powerful story of redemption that is sure to linger with you.

Good Dog

Read these quotes from Dan Gemeinhart about his writing - ithey resonates with me:

I do agonize over every line, and I do a lot of cutting things out and putting things back in and changing things out and all that kind of stuff, trying to make it right, especially for a young reader. Like, I take that responsibility really seriously, that these kids have a lot going on in their lives, these younger readers, and a lot you’re competing with, you’re competing with sports in school and PlayStations and all these things and Tik Toks, phones and all that stuff. And so, I want my books to be books that young readers enjoy, and they want to read the next chapter, and they’re drawn into it to the magic of the story. And I don’t want to waste their time because they’re pretty busy.

So, one of my steps of revising, because I’ve got three kids, is when I finish a rough draft, I then read it out loud to my family because we read books together every night anyway. And so, when I finish a book okay, now we’re going to read Dad’s terrible rough draft, and reading it out loud is a great way to find those false notes where it looks good. You on the page, in your head, it sounded fine, and then you read out loud, and it sounds fake, or it sounds cheesy, it sounds too much, or it just sounds false.

... books aren’t just a great way to spend a summer day or to entertain you. Like, you can learn something, you can say something, you can really experience something bigger than yourself through stories.

Companion books:

The Greatest Show on Earth

The Collected works of Gretchen Oyster

The truth as told to Mason Buttle

When Zachary Beaver came to Town

The Parrot and the Merchant by Marjan Vafaian translated by Azita Rassi

Mah Jahan was a merchant. She collected beautiful things to sell but she also collected birds.

"She kept them in cages or in chains so they couldn't fly away and leave her."

Her favourite bird was a colourful talking parrot from India. Setting off to trade in India, Mah Jahan asked her parrot:

"Tell me what I can bring you to make you happy."

Do you know what will make this parrot happy? 

Here are all her goods loaded onto her camels:

Just as she was about to head back home, Mah Jahan remembered to ask the wild parrots for advice - what will make her parrot at home happy? These parrots cannot talk of course and sadly one dies after hearing the question. On her return, Mah Jahan tells her parrot she has no answer to the question of happiness and that one of the wild parrots had dropped dead. 

"Mah Jahan's parrot said nothing, but after a moment it too suddenly went still, and it dropped to the floor of the cage."

Can you guess what happens when Mah Jahan opens the cage and gently lifts out her precious parrot. YES, it is a trick, and the parrot flies off to freedom (and back to India).

This book has the most wonderful art and a very satisfying story. Be quick - this book in hardcover is available now for a really good price. Since it was published in 2017, I am sure it will soon be out of print. I highly recommend adding this one to your library collection - the art is scrumptious. Or look for the paperback edition [9781910328255]. 

Publisher (Tiny Owl) blurb: This exquisitely illustrated story is an enchanting fable exploring how hard it is to give something you love freedom. The merchant Mah Jahan loves to keep colourful birds in cages, especially a parrot who can talk to her. But when the parrot asks her to bring something back from her trading trip to India, Mah Jahan learns a valuable lesson about how to treat the things and people you love.

This old Rumi tale is adapted by making the merchant a woman but is not otherwise significantly modernized. Iranian illustrator Vafaeian’s ornamented, often surreal illustrations depict Mah Jahan in enormous, colorful skirts and frequently surrounded by comparatively tiny servants. The parrot’s cage is likewise stylized, an ornamented circle that contains the unhappy captive. ...  This 900-year-old story has not lost its classic feel. Kirkus

Read about Marjan Vafaian here.

Try to find some other books about the thirteenth century poet and philosopher Rumi.

Read more about this book here.

Read more about this book here.

This story might remind you of The Nightingale by Hans Christian Andersen.

Freddie Spector Fact Collector: Space Cadet by Ashleigh Barton illustrated by Peter Cheong

Freddie has a new obsession - space. He collects every fact he can, and he shares these on post-it notes all around his house. If you met Freddie you could ask him any question about space and he is sure to know the answer. Actually, questions are one theme in this book because five lucky students from Freddie's school have been selected to ask one question each of Astronaut Lilly Jun who is on the International Space Station. She will talk to the students via a video call. Freddie really wants to ask a great question - not something silly. I won't spoil the question he does ask but it is brilliant! You do need to read the whole book which is just over 100 pages, however, before this is revealed. 

The other thread in this book, one that keeps the plot moving, is the mystery next door. Freddie is woken by a noise in the night. He looks into the neighbor's backyard and he is shocked to see a huge hole. Freddie is certain a UFO has arrived and that means an alien is now inside the neighbours home. All of this is confirmed when the neighbour almost slams the door in Freddie and his sister's faces and later when Freddie sees a strange red light in the upstairs rooms of their house. There is also the mystery of green slime on the path leading into school. Did the aliens leave this here?

I did not expect to enjoy Freddie Spector Fact Collector as much as I did. This book is the first in a new series and it is one your readers in grades 2 and up are sure to enjoy. The scattering of illustrations by Peter Cheong are also sure to appeal to newly confident readers and they will enjoy the pages filled with Freddie's sticky notes. I did learn a few interesting things about space myself after reading these.  

• Astronauts on the Internationa Space Station see sixteen sunsets and sunrises over earth every day.
• Halley's comet will return in 2061.
• Black holes don't last forever - they slowly evaporate.
• Mercury's moons are named after famous people like Dr Seuss, Beethoven, and Maya Angelou.

Huge thanks to Three Sparrow Books for the advance copy of Space Cadet due out in July this year. It is published by Hachette. I have previously talked about other books by Ashleigh Barton. And Peter Cheong - Every Night at Midnight. 

Publisher blurb: Freddie Spector loves collecting facts - about anything and everything. His latest obsession is space. It's all he talks about: stars, planets, galaxies, astronauts, space travel - and, of course UFOs and extraterrestrials. Freddie writes all his facts on sticky notes that his mum and big sister, Henrietta, keep finding in weird places - like in their sock drawers or their sandwiches. But whenever Freddie collects facts on a topic, his very active imagination always gets involved too. And, after noticing some very suspicious goings-on, Freddie realises it's up to him to discover the answer to a burning question: could aliens have landed in his neighborhood? Fast-paced and funny, this series is all about an everyday eight-year-old boy whose love of facts and extraordinary imagination come together with unexpected and hilarious results.

Here is the second book in the series which will also be released in July, 2024.

General Waste by Michel Streich

When you pick up this book don't rush to open it. Spend a little time - stretch out the cover; touch the cover (it is embossed) and then stop and think about the meanings of the title. Now turn to the hectic end papers which are filled with - yes waste! Can you and your young reading companion or library group identify some of these objects - I see a toaster, clothing, toys, a hair dryer, plants, a stapler, a flower vase, a trombone, a bucket, several pots and pans, a toy dinosaur (at least I hope it's a toy), a arrow, a fish, chicken drumsticks, a spade, an electric toothbrush, a golf club, pliers, assorted cutlery, and so much more.

Turn the page to meet the man himself - General Waste. 

"He had a different toothbrush for every day of the week, six hairdryers, (and) his house was filled with a myriad of machines, power tools, widgets and contraptions. There were so many he could hardly remember what they were used for."

"Every day, General Waste took a very long shower, just for fun. He called it the 'hour of shower'."

General Waste lives on the top floor of the house - meanwhile on the bottom floor we meet Gram-Gram and she lives an opposite life.

"Gram-Gram saved every morsel of food, and she carefully stored leftovers in the fridge. She had a pantry ... filled with preserved vegetables, meats and fruits."

Gram-Gram rides her bicycle everywhere and she carefully mends her well worn clothes so they can last a lot longer.

An astute reader will know something has to happen - especially when we see the enormous pile of packaging in the yard and even more when General Waste himself is burried in all those boxes and packets. 

Luckily Gram-Gram is sensible, brave, and resourceful. She rescues the silly little man and then sets about showing him other ways of living. How to repair broken stuff, how to make new things from old stuff, how to cook, how to create, and how to grow a productive garden filled with food to share.

This book is didactic but it is also funny and wise and the illustrations are so lively. I think a class could find a lot to talk about on topics like consumerism, pollution, waste disposal, environmental action, packaging, and so on. 

Bookseller blurb: General Waste loves stuff! Wasting lots of stuff! He tosses away apples after one bite, he has hour-long showers, he must have the latest uniform fashion, and he rides around in a monster truck! He shares a house with Gram-Gram. She always saves her leftovers, does her own repairs and cycles everywhere! One day, when General Waste finds himself trapped under a mountain of his own stuff, Gram-Gram comes to the rescue ... General Waste is a hilarious tale about how to find joy in the simple things in life.

I picked up this book because I loved a precious book by Michel Streich. I also talked about The worst dog in the world.

Scary Bird

About Michel: I was born in the Westphalia region of Germany, where I grew up and studied visual communication and graphic design, specializing in illustration. After graduating, I moved to London and started my career as a freelance illustrator. Three years later, in 2000, I relocated to Australia, first basing myself in Sydney, and now in the Blue Mountains West of Sydney.

Three Dresses by Wanda Gibson

I was so proud of my three dresses. I took care of them so I'd always have 

one to wash, one to wear and one spare. 

This is a book that should be shared with children all over Australia (and beyond). For many children this story will be so thought provoking. Imagine if your Christmas present was a new dress - I am sure most little girls would be excited. And what if you were given three dresses - now that is sure to make you extra happy. But what if the three dresses were not new? These are second-hand dresses given to you by the Lutheran church. Have your emotions just been through a roller coaster? Now think about how you feel if these are your only dresses - your best dresses - your special dresses. 

"You should have seen the joy on our faces when we put on those second-hand dresses. We were so happy."

Wanda and her family live at Hope Vale Mission. This is her story. She was born in 1946. 

"When I was a kid, I went to school and had to work on the farm. After school, I did domestic duties for the Mission staff."

Now let's continue the story. The next thing to think about as you read this book is holidays. How long do your family have for a holiday? Where do you go and how do you get there? What do you do on your holiday?  Wanda and her family have just two weeks each year. Wanda packs her three dresses, one to wear, one to wash and one spare. 

"We didn't have bags, so we'd lay our dresses on the ground and roll them up like a little swag to carry on our backs. Mum and Dad would take tools, blankets, and mayie to eat. We all had to carry so much."

Compare this with your class discussion. The family will walk to their holiday destination, they have no suitcases and on the next page we read the journey takes two days. 

So now think about where they might be going? What will they do there? Where will they stay and what will they eat?

The group arrive at the beach. They set up a camp and catch fish, gather bush tucker and tell stories. Of course, eventually the holiday ends but the little girls in the family still have their precious dresses. And for Wanda, recalling her childhood, this is a very special memory. 

Blurb UQP: When Wanda Gibson was a little girl, her mum would tell her this as they packed to go on holidays. Wanda grew up on Hope Vale Mission in Far North Queensland, and her family were allowed only one short break away from work each year. At their special spot at the beach, they camped in the sandhills, cooked fresh fish on the fire and swam in the ocean. Beautifully illustrated with Wanda’s paintings, this heart-warming true story celebrates family time, connection to place and finding joy in the simple things, like your favourite three dresses.

Thank you to UQP for sending the advance copy of Three Dresses which will be published on 30th April, 2024. Make sure you add this to your library collection - Primary and High School. Here are the teachers notes. And take a look at this excellent review from The Bottom Shelf. 

Wanda Gibson is a Nukgal Wurra woman of the Guugu Yimithirr people (on her mum’s side) and lives in Hope Vale on the Cape York Peninsula, Queensland. Her dad is a Yuuethawarra man and his country is around Cape Melville. Both of Wanda’s parents were Stolen Generation and were brought to Cape Bedford Mission when they were ten or twelve. Wanda is a master weaver – she weaves baskets, birds and fish from dried grass. She is also a painter and completed a Diploma of Visual Arts at Cairns TAFE in 2014. Wanda has five kids, eleven grandkids and five great-grandkids.

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