Swashbuckler by James Moloney

This is the cover of the edition that seems to still be in print

This is the original cover with art by Annmarie Scott

"If you really want to know, I'm wild, I'm mad, I'm absolutely furious with him. 

Why does he have to die? And my biggest fear of all is that I'll go up to that hospital and stand next to him and I won't be able to stop myself. I'll start shaking him and yelling at him. You see, now, why I can't go up to the hospital, don't you?"

Publisher blurb: ‘Cease and desist! Stand fast and release your prisoner!’

Peter, a new boy at Park Ridge school, is thankful to be rescued from the school bullies by Anton the Swashbuckler. Even if Anton does speak in such a weird way and wears outlandish garments. After this Peter and Anton become firm friends and discover that they each have family problems. Together they turn those problems into challenges to be tackled in true Swashbuckler style.

Here is a summary from the excellent Teachers Notes: Peter, along with his mother and two younger sisters, are forced to move house after his father gambles away everything that they own. Bitter and angry, Peter finds it impossible to forgive and accept his father back into his life. In fact, in Peter’s mind, he has no father. To make matters worse, Peter is cornered on his first day at Park Ridge school by the school’s most notorious bullies. He is rescued by classmate Anton, a self-proclaimed ‘swashbuckler’, who speaks in character and dresses in costume. Most kids at school think Anton has gone completely mad. However, this colourful facade hides the painful fact that Anton’s father is dying from cancer.

Swashbuckler was published in 1995. When I saw it in a school library recently I thought it would be very interesting to revisit this book as I remembered really enjoying it and also I think I have referenced it here on this blog several times as a companion book.

Has this book stood the 'test of time'?

Yes and no. The actual plot certainly has but possibly some of the reference feel outdated - such as watching videos; going to the video shop; using a camcorder; and there is one reference to smacking a child. None of these tiny things though, will reduce enjoyment for a reader.

What I liked about this book:

• It is fairly short with only 83 pages however the print size is too small. If this book is ever reprinted, I would like to see a larger font.
• The characters in this story are so well developed especially Peter.
• The 'authentic' weird way Anton speaks means this book would be good to read aloud. I will look for an audio book version. Here it is.
• There is a sequel so if young readers aged 9+ enjoy Swashbuckler they are sure to want to read about the two bullies Buzzard Breath and Brains and hear their perspective on the school rose bush vandalism.
• I like the cover of the newer edition.
• Both boys have different life struggles, but both need to find a way to forgive, in this case, their fathers.
• The issues raised in this book about terminal illness and an addiction to gambling are just as relevant today.
• The ending is very sad (I cried), but it is also realistic. Yes, there is a good outcome for Peter with his dad, but it is not a saccharine or silly happily ever after. 

Swashbuckler was part of a series from University of Queensland Press called Storybridge. All these years later I think short, action stories like this are needed especially for upper primary aged boys. I found this list of titles. I remember enjoying Sally Marshall's Not an Alien by Amanda McKay; Nathan Nuttboard Hits the Beach by Anthony Eaton; and I adored (still adore) The Big Bazoohley by Peter Carey. James Moloney also wrote one of my BEST ever Grade six read aloud titles - The Pipe - from the After Dark series. In 2014 I read Disappearing Act and I loved his Aussie Bites title Moving House. 

Swashbuckler won the CBCA Younger Readers category in 1996. I was interested to see James Moloney's book made several of the older readers short lists 2009 Kill the Possum; 2006 Honour title Lost Property; 2004 Black Taxi; 2001Touch Me; 1997 winner A Bridge to Wiseman’s Cove; 1996 The House on River Terrace; 1995 Honour title Gracey; 1994 Honour title Dougy and in 1999 the sequel to Swashbuckler - Buzzard Breath and Brains was a Honour title. You can see many of the covers here and read more about James Moloney.

Read more here

The Young Vikings

The Wonder Horse by Mark Greenwood

Even if you have heard of Phar Lap, the famous race winning horse, you are sure to discover even more when you read this book. Readers who love history and mysteries will thoroughly enjoy this intriguing story and it is also one to share with horse lovers. I especially loved the descriptions when Phar Lap (also known as Bobby) was taken into a field to enjoy sweet grass and clover. I did find the descriptions of adding heavy weights to make racing harder for Phar Lap, who kept winning, very distressing. I guess I should disclose I am not a fan of horse racing but I was fascinated to read about this special horse/hero.

Discover the answers to these and many other questions in this book:

• Do you know how Phar Lap go this name?
• Where did Phar Lap run his final race?
• Did Phar Lap look like a champion when he was a young colt?
• Did this famous horse win every single race he ever entered?
• Is Phar Lap from Australia?
• What is the sweet treat his trainer always gave him?
• How many races did Phar Lap win?
• What happened on the day of the Melbourne Cup in 1930 before the race?
• Why did the owner and trainer need to protect Phar Lap?
• How do you feel about horse racing after reading this book? 

Here are some other books about Phar Lap that might be in your school library:

Last week I talked about another book from this splendid, thoroughly researched, series. These books are perfect for young curious readers in your library. They are easy to read with short chapters, big print, and page turning stories from history. Huge thanks to Freemantle Press for sending me copies of these two books from the History Hunter series. The Wonder Horse was published early in June 2025. Here are the teachers notes and these are well worth exploring because they contain extra web links and a vocabulary list. Read more details about The Wonder Horse in this blog post from The Bottom Shelf.

Who needs a time machine when you’ve got the History Hunter? He’s your fearless guide, taking you back through time to investigate mysteries that have puzzled the world for generations. From royal treasure rooms to racetracks, you’ll follow the clues, ask the tough questions and maybe even crack the case. These books are a history adventure double-pack that’s cooler than any video game! Better Reading

I previously talked about these horse racing picture books:

Subbie and his mate

Fabish the horse that braved a bushfire

The Epic Race

One Day by Michael Rosen illustrated by Benjamin Phillips

"A true story of courage and survival in the holocaust"

Begin here where Michael Rosen talks about his book.

Michael Rosen was commissioned to write this book. He had been researching what happened to his father's uncle and aunt in France during the holocaust. "They didn't come back."

Publisher blurb: “Get through one day and then on to the next. One day at a time. One day after another.” Eugène Handschuh was a Jewish member of the Resistance in occupied Paris. After he was captured by the Nazis, he was placed on a convoy to Auschwitz. Against all the odds, with the help of strangers and fellow members of the Resistance, Eugène and his father escaped the convoy and survived – when so many others did not. Former Children's Laureate Michael Rosen was inspired to tell this story after discovering his father’s uncle and aunt were on the same convoy as Eugène but never returned. With powerful illustrations from Benjamin Phillips, whose work has been shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal for Illustration, this sensitive true-story picture book reminds us of the best of people, in the worst of times.

Rosen uses a refrain to capture the determination of Eugène and his fellow prisoners: ‘Get through one day and then on to the next. One day at a time. One day after another.’ Elsewhere, Rosen celebrates other forms of courage, for instance the French couple who put themselves at risk to hide Eugène’s father. ‘I’ve never forgotten them,’ Eugène tells us, inviting us also to pause and reflect on their selflessness. This would be an excellent book to share with readers across the primary age range, particularly around Holocaust Memorial Day: for younger readers it introduces the topic in a safe and respectful way, and might lead into discussions around how we treat those who are different from us; for older readers it might inspire further research into Handschuh or other members of the Resistance. Just Imagine

Companion books:

Let the Celebrations begin

White Bird

I am also keen to find Stone Angel by Jane Yolen; The Whispering Town by Jennifer Elvgren; What Rosa Brought by Jacob Sager Weinstein; and The Harmonica by Tony Johnston.

Faceless by Kathryn Lasky

"She realised she had entered the twilight world of evil, and at its very center was the dark heart of hatred. A hatred that was seeping through everything good, everything honorable. This was to be her mission now. Her war. To find out the secrets of this evil Nazi regime and report them to His Majesty's secret service."

Blurb: Over the centuries, a small clan of spies called the Tabula Rasa has worked ceaselessly to fight oppression. They can pass unseen through enemy lines and “become” other people without being recognized. They are, essentially, faceless.  Alice and Louise Winfield are sisters and spies in the Tabula Rasa. They’re growing up in wartime England, where the threat of Nazi occupation is ever near. But Louise wants to live an ordinary life and leaves the agency. Now, as Alice faces her most dangerous assignment yet, she fears discovery, but, most of all, she fears losing her own sister.

There are moments reading this book that I am sure, like me, you will begin to think perhaps all of this is real - perhaps this is the way spies work - perhaps the Tabula Rosa was a real resistance organisation in World War II. Of course, there is no way children were used like this for espionage let alone as part of the plan to assassinate Hitler, but other parts of this story are linked with just enough history of this period and so it will appeal to Young Adult fans of historical fiction.

The story begins in London early in 1944 and the final scenes come with the news in 1945 that Hitler is dead. Alice and her mother and father travel to Berlin. Her father gains a job as a motor mechanic working on cars for high-ranking Nazi officers. Alice goes to school with the idea of becoming a perfect student so that she too can get close to the German authorities. She has to learn the culture, the language, and above all she has to be completely 'forgettable'. She also has to know every part of Wagner's Ring Cycle - a favourite of Hitler. Later she even has to perform parts of this for Hitler himself. 

Here is the full review/plot summary from Publisher's Weekly (quoted by Kathryn Lasky on her blog):

Set during WWII, Newbery Honoree Lasky’s intense historical drama follows a white family of spies whose tradition of serving Great Britain dates back to Henry VIII. Thirteen-year-old Alice Winfield has for years trained for her first A-level mission, and her celebrated older sister, Louise, once promised to be her guide. But when Louise opts out of the family business, only Alice and her mother join the teens’ undercover father on a secret mission in Berlin: taking down Hitler. Upon arrival, Alice becomes Ute, a German girl “certified to be... Aryan, with no contamination of foreign blood.” As Alice works to achieve high marks in school and remain as unnoticeable and unmemorable as the “tabula rasas” from which she is descended, she finds herself dangerously drawn to an unhoused boy. With a well-detailed historical backdrop and a puzzling familial mystery, this novel delivers intrigue via tense scenes involving Hitler himself. Albeit fictional, this up-close glimpse at the historical figure’s inner circle and last days centers an unnervingly calm protagonist maintaining an elaborate ruse while navigating the increasingly dangerous streets of Berlin, where knowing who is friend and foe determines survival.

Fascinating and riveting, especially for history buffs and spy aficionados. Kirkus

Take a look at this review from the Jewish Book Council and this one from the Historical Novel Society.

I did enjoy Faceless but it is a long book with nearly 300 pages of very small print. I think it will best suit readers aged 12+. Parts of the plot from Faceless do overlap with the two books I have put as companion titles - All the Beautiful Things and Max in the House of Spies (or more specifically the sequel Max in the Land of Lies). 

Kathryn Lasky comes from a Jewish family. Here are three other Young Adult books she has written about World War II and which can be linked with Faceless.

Companion books:

All the Beautiful Things

Max in the House of Spies

Kathryn Lasky has a huge and impressive body of work - over 100 books. I think the first book I read by Kathryn Lasky was Night Journey. In 1985 in one of my first school libraries the Principal (without reference to the Teacher-Librarian) ordered nearly every book from the Puffin Books catalogue. The Night Journey was published in 1981 so it was among the books that arrived from a distant bookshop. In some ways having him order all of these books was very frustrating but now I realise it gave me the opportunity to read so many fabulous 1980s children's books such as The Night Journey which is where I read about the samovar for the first time.  I also had her Show and Tell Bunnies picture book series in my two of my previous school libraries and all of the Guardians of Ga'Hoole books. On this blog I recently talked about the first book from the Glendunny series. 

The Secrets of Glendunny

Clara and the man with books in his window by Maria Teresa Andruetto illustrated by Martina Trach translated by Elisa Amado

"What does courage mean?' 'Courage is being brave enough 

to live the way you want to, the way you believe."

Before you read this book stretch out the cover and think about the girl, her basket, the distance she is walking and why the colour is yellow - to my eye this denotes a nostalgic memory.

On the title page you will see some very curious objects - with a group of students you could use these to either predict the plot of this book or better yet you could use the objects as student writing inspiration. There is a faded flower in a vase, a book, a clock, two wooden birds, a tiny picture of a house and one item I cannot identify.

The setting for this true story is 1920s Argentina. Clara's mother is a laundress. Clara has the task of delivering laundry to Juan - a man who never leaves his house. Juan is a wealthy man with a huge book collection but he also has deep shame about an event from the past. 

"What is your name?"

"Clara. 

Why are you shut in?"

This is a gentle story or as Mark Macleod once discussed - a quiet book. The illustrations are stunning and so powerful showing a story well beyond the minimal text.

I picked up this book at Gleebooks a few weeks ago because:

• I liked the book shape and landscape format
• There is a medal on the cover (Hans Christian Andersen award)
• The title is intriguing
• The copy I purchased has a dust jacket
• Many pages have no text
• The designer has used two fonts - one for the words in Clara's head and one for conversations with Juan
• This is a translated books (I always look for these) This book was originally written in Spanish in 2018 and the publisher Greystone Books has produced an English edition in 2025. The Spanish title is Clara y el hombre en la ventana.
• Greystone books are a Canadian publishing company - Canadians make fantastic books
• Finally a staff member recommended this book because I asked to see some picture books for older readers and high school students. 

This is the page with the text I quoted at the beginning of this post.

Trach’s illustrative style is so different from what I am used to, I want to own the book just for that.  Andruetto’s story is more one that an adult will enjoy more than a child, so it would have to be read to children.  Kiss The Book Jr

The spare text leaves ample room for illustrations to co-narrrate the story, from the a spread of the girl making letters with a stick to her shadow-like outline as she watches the birds and later reads the books she’s borrowed while making her laundry delivery rounds. They show as well the passage of time as she matures both as a reader and as a friend to the man. Readers imagine the relationship between the dreamy protagonist and her practical, hardscrabble mother, as well as with the absent grandmother who taught her to read and in this way fed her dreams. The entire story has the feel of a fairy tale, one that parallels the fairy tale that the man has gifted her and she has taken to heart. Global Literature in Libraries

The publisher list this book for readers aged 5-8 but I disagree. I would share this book with mature students aged 11+ because it is important to talk about what has happened to this man and why he is afraid to go outside. He didn't follow his friend? Was he afraid of persecution or imprisonment? Older students may understand the role of the Catholic Church during this time. I searched the Canadian library archives for a list of subject headings that have been applied to this book:  Library of Congress Subject Headings Friendship—Juvenile fiction; Identity (Psychology)—Juvenile fiction; Recluses—Juvenile fiction; Gay men—Juvenile fiction; Courage—Juvenile fiction; Books and reading—Juvenile fiction; Argentina—Social life and customs—20th century—Juvenile fiction

And there is a whole art lesson you could use with this book about the symbolism of colour and the use of colour as a way to convey relationships and memories. I guess with younger students this might not be an issue - reviewers like the School Library Journal list this book for K-2.

See more art by Martina Trach here. Just take a look at this brilliant illustration:

Jacket flap information is important! This is how I discovered the author of this book who comes from Argentina, Maria Teressa Andruetto, won the Hans Christian Andersen award in 2012 for Writing. Nearly all of her books are in Spanish. 

Companion books for younger readers and also senior primary students:

The Bridges

The Book of Gold

Nour's Secret Library

Drum Dream Girl by Margarita Engle illustrated by Rafael Lopez

On an island of music

in a city of drumbeats

the drum dream girl

dreamed

 

of pounding tall conga drums

tapping small bongó drums

and boom boom booming

with long, loud sticks

on big, round, silvery

moon-bright timbales.

 

But everyone

on the island of music

in the city of drumbeats

believed that only boys

should play drums

 

so the drum dream girl

had to keep dreaming

quiet

secret

drumbeat

dreams.

You can read the whole poem which is the text of this picture book biography here. 

A beautiful account of a young girl’s bravery and her important contribution toward gender equality in the creative arts. Kirkus Star review

Here is a video (very well done) of the whole book. You can see more books by Margarita Engle here. And more books by Rafael Lopez here. And here is some more information about Millo Castro Zaldarriaga.

Blurb from author web page: Girls cannot be drummers. Long ago on an island filled with music, no one questioned that rule—until the drum dream girl. In her city of drumbeats, she dreamed of pounding tall congas and tapping small bongós. She had to keep quiet. She had to practice in secret. But when at last her dream-bright music was heard, everyone sang and danced and decided that both girls and boys should be free to drum and dream. Released in March 2015, this story is inspired by the childhood of Millo Castro Zaldarriaga, a Chinese-African-Cuban girl who broke Cuba's traditional taboo against female drummers.

I borrowed this book from a library because it is one of the titles on the Kirkus Best Books of the 21st Century (So Far). This book is still available but you will need to shop around - I have seen prices ranging from AUS$39 up to AUS$48. I would expect this book to be found in many public libraries. If you can find this book it would be a good one to share with a group of Grade 5 or 6 students or better yet pop it into the hands of your school music teacher especially if he/she is planning on doing some drumming or your school have invited drums for a performance. 

Some of the awards for Drum Dream Girl:

• Kirkus Reviews Best Books of the 21st Century So Far
• NYPL 125 Books We Love For Kids
• National Geographic Around the World in 20 Books for Kids
• This Picture Book Life's 20 Terrific and True Picture Books
• Charlotte Zolotow Award for best picture book written in 2015
• 2016 Pura Belpré Award for illustration (Rafael Lopez)
• ALA Notable Children's Book
• APALA Award Honor
• International Latino Book Award, Most Inspirational Children’s Picture Book
• Book Riot's List of 100 Must-Read Picture Books For Kids and Adults
• A Mighty Girl 25 Books to Inspire Your Mighty Girl in 2017
• We're the People 2016 Summer Reading List
• Finalist, California Book Awards
• 2016 Bank Street Best Books of the Year
• School Library Journal Top 10 Latino Books for 2015
• School Library Journal Best Books of 2015
• Kirkus Best Informational Picture Books of 2015
• Top 15 Mighty Girl Books of 2015
• 100 magnificent Children’s Books of 2015 – SLJ Fuse#8
• 10 Books That Empower Kids to Stand Up and Speak Brightly Readbrightly.com

The Doll Box by Deborah Kelly illustrated by Joanna Bartel

Young Isla is afraid of the climbing frame at the park. 

"Her legs were too shaky. Her arms were too achy. She would never make it to the top."

Isla takes comfort at home by playing with an old small blue tin. Inside there are three dolls. Isla has played with them many times but today is the day her mother tells her the story of each one. Grand Great Grandma Sarah was so brave. She couldn't swim and had no idea what lay ahead but she got on a ship and sailed to a new country and a new life. Great Grandma Phyllis worked so hard during the war when all the men had gone away. She ran a farm and grew vegetables for the soldiers. And then there is her grandmother - Gaga. When she was a young woman girls did not go to university but she was so clever so after she finished school she did study engineering even though she was the only girl in the class.

Hearing these family stories gives Isla the courage to conquer the climbing frame and perhaps, I would like to think, knowing, albeit very briefly, these stories will also give the courage to try other difficult or scary things in the future. 

I wish this book had a timeline at the back or perhaps an expansion of the family tree that we anticipate from the cover. I do like the way the pages showing the grandmothers as younger women are presented in a sepia style. The end papers are filled with a sweet nostalgic pattern rather like old wall paper. 

If I was sharing this book with a group of young children I would bring along some of my own old dolls and use them to talk about my grandmother who raised four children on her own while living in the CBD of Sydney in Pitt Street as a building superintendent. I don't have any of her dolls and my own mum only had one doll which she had to share with her sister but I do have my doll and her beautiful set of hand stitched clothes made by my grandmother and I have the doll someone important and rich gave my mum when I was born - she is a walking doll called Rosemary. This is not her photo but she is similar:

You might be thinking this is a book that will appeal more to girls. Again if I was sharing this book with a group of children in my library I would also take along my antique toy fire engine - it belonged to a relative of my father, then my father, then my older cousin (a boy) and then finally it came to me! Talking about this toy links perfectly with a discussion about the 1930s depression here in Australia. 

Image source: Buddy L museum

There are also lots of picture books which use quilts as a way to talk about family history. 

Publisher blurb: Whenever Isla’s mother brings out her small blue doll box, Isla knows she will hear the stories of the women in her family’s past. Their incredible tales of immigration, war, and fighting for their rights show Isla the strength she has in herself and lead her on a journey of self-discovery. Inspired by the author’s own family, The Doll Box is a testament to the power of our personal histories, and the spirit of the many women who had to overcome incredible odds to achieve their dreams.

The Doll Box might be a 2025 CBCA Early Childhood notable title although this category is for readers aged 0-6. It was better when the CBCA set up this category for ages 3-8.

The Doll Box looks at who we are, how we came to be the way we are, and to understand courage, sometimes we must search for answers in the lives of the those who have gone before us. Kids' Book Review

There is so much we can learn by handing down stories, by listening to the stories of our grandparents, by asking questions, finding connections, discovering things about our predecessors, the grandparents who came before us, inside ourselves. NZ Poetry Box

Companion books:

This Old thing

Other books by Deborah Kelly:

The Thing about Oliver

Read more about The Mosaic

Other books illustrated by Joanna Bartel:

Violin and Cello

The Cave by Victor Kelleher

"no fire burns forever, and the Beast is always out there, waiting. 

No, something more was needed it they were to claim victory."

For a few hours yesterday I was living in the world of Paleolithic man. Fire is a precious commodity; tools are treasures made by skilled members of the community and I watched as bows and arrows were discovered and refined. I really was there - the writing in this book is so evocative of place and time and most of all harsh weather conditions. 

Irian and Ulana have seen their families massacred by a creature they call the Beast. 

"The eyes a golden yellow, almost beautiful in their sheer savagery; the fur of the head a snout patterned with the ugly scars of old wounds; and the fangs! Ivory white, and more like tusks than actual teeth, they curved down past its lower jaw and ended in jagged spikes."

It is late Autumn, and the Winter will be bitterly cold and dangerous. Ulana has been injured in her own confrontation with the Beast and Irian is so traumatized he has lost the power of speech. The pair are hopelessly underprepared for their journey, and they have no fixed destination except to get away from the cave where they have lived all their lives. Cave dwellers live precarious lives constantly on watch for the Beast and other huge predators such as the Pard. They use fire for cooking of course but also for protection. As the story opens Irian and his father have the task of maintaining the fire through the night but exhaustion overcomes them, they fall asleep and the Beast attacks. 

"For a mere split second, he glimpsed a scene of carnage; a nightmare vision of strewn bodies, of smashed pots and weapons, all of them corpse-grey in the uncertain dawn. Then the whole scene was replaced by a huge head and a great scared face, no more than an arm's length away."

The two young people on their own could never survive their journey or escape all the dangers that surround them except for the help of Trug. Trug is an old loner woman who survives by trading. She is a skilled traveler, and she carries a huge bag filled with all manner of tools. After their meeting she is able to help Ulana, whose wounds have begun to fester. Then she helps the friends make a shelter and together they survive a violent storm. Ulana is heading to the flint fields for trading. In spite of her grumbling, she teaches Irian and Ulana how to trade and by the end of that visit both have warm coats and more importantly Irian has discovered his own skill as a tool maker. Irian meets an old reclusive man who has brilliant tool making skills but sadly he dies. With his dying breath he gifts Irian some small strange very small weapons. 

"A tiny thing. A sliver of stone, no more, but chipped into a strangely curved shape that gave it a beauty and mystery that made it stand out from the rest. ... What used could there be for such a tiny weapon?"

I loved the care people take with transporting fire and the discovery that Trug finally shares about using a flint to make fire rather than need to rely on occasional lightning strikes and burning bushes. 

"she pulled apart the clay ball, splitting it neatly in two. At its core lay a tiny bed of hot coals. With two sticks, tong-style, she removed one of these tiny spots of glowing red and placed it carefully in the grassy nest. Working quickly now, she closed up the clay ball, preserving the rest of the coals; then folded the nest on itself and blew gently on it. Puffs of smoke immediately billowed out, followed by a spurt of flame that grew and grew."

There are also interesting issues in this book about kindness, sharing, trade, using your gifts and talents and trust.

If you read this book with a class I am sure you and your students will notice the way Victor Kelleher weaves in the seasons as a plot device moving from the dangers of Winter (danger and despair) through Spring (hope) to Summer (good times ahead). 

"Within minutes the temperature plunged and they were caught in a complete white-out that transformed even the closest trees and rocks into indistinct ghosts. The driven show, in the form of tiny ice crystals, stung their faces and hands; while the intense cold bit into their very bones and made each breath a form of torture. Worst of all was the wind, cutting and cruel ... "

The Cave just has to be a CBCA (Children's Book Council of Australia) Notable title either in Older Readers or perhaps Younger Readers. This book might better suit readers aged 12+ or very mature readers aged 11+. The print size is quite small. You will see in the reviews below that the age recommendations do vary widely. Our Australian journal Reading Time said Grades 4-6; Buzz Words said 12+; and Kids' Book Review say 10+.  There is a one scene in the story where Trug tells Ulana to be very careful at the flint fields. Ulana is a pretty girl and the men there could be dangerous.  Check chapter 7. 

Don’t miss this outstanding novel that will leave you as enriched in knowledge as were the characters of the story from their journey. Kids' Book Review

The cave is a scary adventure story. The little group have to travel through snow, rain and flood, always on the alert to danger from leopards and other wild creatures. Along the journey, Irian has to rediscover his selfhood and find the courage to stand tall and take his place in the world. There are strong moral lessons about caring for others, sharing knowledge, and working together for the better of the community. Read Plus

Kelleher laces the fairly straightforward text with hints of more complex philosophical tension—Ulana’s utilitarian idealism favours sharing resources and knowledge, while Trug relies on more defensive trade tactics, with Irian suspended between them, fighting his own demons and slowly fostering a sense of purpose in the aftermath of losing his known world. Books+Publishing quoted on Facebook.

Kelleher creates a prehistoric world in a way that is both familiar and unfathomable. He leads the characters on a journey where the descriptive writing is detailed enough that the reader can easily imagine being on the journey with them. The characters he has created are so unique, so individual and so enjoyable that they will each stay with the reader long after the final page has been read. Buzz Words

Reading The Cave I kept thinking about earlier books by Victor Kelleher. Sadly, these are both long out of print. If you are lucky one or both of these might still be held in your school or local library. I adored both of these when I read them many decades ago.

Companion books:

This is the first book in a series called "Chronicles of Ancient Darkness" 

I highly recommend these books.

Tarin of the Mammoths

Also try to find these two non-fiction books - they are so interesting:

Cave Paintings

Ancestory

Also look for this book recently written by Victor Kelleher:

Wanderer