The Great Phoenix of London by Lindsay Galvin

"We already mentioned that many sources agree that the phoenix is very old, and there can only be one of them at a time. The myth links to Egypt and Arabia, and is tied to beliefs about the sun god, expecialy in Greek and Egyptian myth. The theory that it arises from its own ashes, or that of the parent bird, are agreed. So it is everlasting."

The Great Fire of London is a topic studied in UK schools and so this is a perfect book for those students because it is a story which combines history with magical realism. Children here in Australia will be unfamiliar with this historical event but the action in this story is sure to make them curious to know more. This book could also be a terrific one to share in a family if you are planning a family holiday in London - you are sure to want to visit St Paul's cathedral after experiencing the gripping scenes at the end of The Great Phoenix of London. The maps in this book are also splendid.

Read more about the Great Fire:

• Kids' Britannica
• History for Kids
• BBC Bitesize
• National Geographic for Kids

In this video Lindsay Galvin talks about her books (one hour).

Lindsay Galvin offers a most exciting, brilliantly researched and presented historically based novel. It’s full of wonder, drama and excitement so that we can scent the embers, feel the fear and realise the destruction. Book Wagon

Among the many things I loved about this book were the illustrations, including maps showing the fire’s spread each day and descriptions of Guild members descending on St Paul’s cathedral to store belongings in what they hoped was the safety of the stone crypt. Bucket chains were formed to throw water from the Thames onto the fire, and there was frantic digging to uncover the underground Fleet River for another water source. The latter two failed, of course. The ending is emotional and stunning. Historical Novel Society

This well-known period in history has never before been brought to life in such an engaging way. Familiar names and places weave their way through the pages pulling together the strands of the story in a manner that makes sense. The Great Fire of London will no longer be just something that happened, but rather, something that happened to real people. Readers will begin to empathise with those who lost their homes and businesses. They’ll see the impact this tragedy had on everyday lives and how communities reacted in fear and disbelief. King Charles II, the Duke of York, the Mayor of London and Samuel Pepys himself highlight the difference between the social classes and how London was so unprepared for such a challenge. Scope for Imagination

The School Reading list (a UK resource) has an excellent detailed plot summary with text examples and discussion questions for The Great Phoenix of London. You can read a book extract on the Chicken House web page. 

I previously really enjoyed this book by Lindsay Galvin:

My Friend the Octopus

Beware Beware by Susan Hill illustrated by Angela Barrett

Kitchen's warm.

Smells of spice.

Kettle sings.

Fire bright.

But what's out there?

Beware, beware.

The little girl keeps looking out the window. While her mother is distracted over the cooking pot, she slips outside. 

In long shadows lies the wood.

I knew I could!

I'm here, out there.

Beware, beware!

I will take care.

It is cold and the sound of every footstep echoes against the bare branches of the trees. Who is there? Turn the half page.

Trolls Goblins

Elves Sprites

Mysterious lights

Fingers beckon

Eyes stare

Wolf 

Bear

Dragon's lair

Beware! Beware!

The tension builds and builds until we see the mother come outside to look for her daughter. She finds her thank goodness and brings her back into the safety and warmth of their home but ... The ending is open - it seems this little girl will one day once again venture outside.

If you share this book with a group of older students there is a whole lesson hiding here about the use of repetition and more importantly the use of exclamation marks.

Look at these lines and think about how they might impact the way you read this book aloud.

Beware, beware.

Beware, beware!

Beware! Beware!

Beware! Beware!

Book seller blurb: An atmospheric prose-poem, shortlisted for the Kate Greenaway Medal, about a child wandering out into the dark. A little girl looks out at the cold snowy night, while her mother is busy at the kitchen stove. "What's out there?" she wonders. "Don't go!" a voice inside her warns. But curiosity prevails over fear, and she steps out into the snow towards the dark wood. Who knows what scary things await her there? 

It seems impossible to read every book in a school library but my friend from Kinderbookswitheverything actually does this! AND she has an encyclopedic knowledge of the books in her library and also their creators - authors and illustrators. This week, as she packed up her Halloween book display, she passed me Beware, Beware. I will confess I did have this book in my previous school library and while I might have flipped it open at some stage I had not sat down and read this wonderful book until this morning.

Very young children aged 5 and 6 often used to ask me for scary stories. I would give them a Dark, Dark Tale or The Flat Man but given this same opportunity now I would also give them Beware, Beware. Another book illustrated by Angela Barrett - The Hidden House - is one of my most favourite picture books. Angela Barrett has been shortlisted three times for the Kurt Maschler Award and has won the 1989 Smarties Book Prize 6-8 Category for "Can It Be True?", and the 1991 W.H.Smith Illustration Award for "The Hidden House". Her other titles include "The Snow Queen" and "The Walker Book of Ghost Stories". "Beware Beware" was shortlisted for the Kate Greenaway Medal. She also illustrated another wonderful book which is fantastic to read aloud - The Night Fairy.

Of course, you know I am going to say Beware Beware (1993) is now out of print. IF you have a mint condition new copy it is worth more than AUS$200. I did find a copy from an Australian online seller for just AUS$4 so I have made an enquiry about the postage cost. I think I do need to own this very special book!

Versatile full-spread illustrations, delicate and haunting, reflect and enhance the text. The movement from the poetic calm of the salmon pink sky to the frenzy within the wood is graceful and realistic. Split pages in two spreads allow Hill and Barrett to intensify still further the suspense of their wintry drama.  Publisher's Weekly

Elf dog and Owl Head by M.T. Anderson illustrated by Junyi Wu

 

"Clay had never seen a dog like her. She was thin like a greyhound or a whippet. She was milk white. She had tall, pointed ears. And the inside of those ears was red. That was the strangest thing. The red pointed ears."

This wonderful dog has come from Under the Mountain. She was part of a pack chasing an old, clever wyrm. Later we discover her name, written on her collar in an ancient script, is Elphinore. 

Wyrm is derived from the Old English word “wyrm,” which means serpent or worm. It is often used to describe dragons that are more snake-like in appearance, with long, slender bodies and no wings. These dragons are typically associated with European mythology and are often depicted as evil or malevolent creatures. On the other hand, dragon is a more general term that can refer to any type of dragon from any culture. Dragons can vary greatly in appearance and abilities depending on the culture they come from. In Western cultures, dragons are typically depicted as large, winged creatures with scales and the ability to breathe fire. In Eastern cultures, dragons are often seen as benevolent creatures that bring good luck and fortune.

Here are some text quotes which might help you understand the plot:

"Except there was one dog left behind. The young elegant elf-hound with the sharp eye."

"She ran through the spruce woods and pine woods and a stand of maples. She ran to the bottom of the mountain. It was almost night when she got there. She sniffed at the ground, following the scent of her brothers and sisters. She smelled the horses of the Royal Hunt. Their track led right up to a huge cliff face. Then it stopped. But wasn't that where they had come out? Hadn't they all tumbled out into the sunlight in exactly this spot? But now time and magic and the curtain between worlds had shifted, and the door was not there anymore."

Clay is stuck at home because all of the world has shut down. (Covid is not mentioned but readers will link the fear, isolation, and home schooling to these times). Clay is allowed to wander in the forest area near his home and that is where he finds this glorious dog. Little does he know she will lead him to another world.

Clay stumbles on a village filled with strange people. He watches them using a strange powder and it seems to make their vegetable garden grow before his very eyes. Without thinking Clay steals the container and he takes the magic powder home but of course there are consequences.

"They were dressed in old-fashioned clothes, as if it were still 1800; long brown coats and wide black hats. one of the men started to turn his head. He did not stop turning his head. His head turned all the way around on his neck. A face was looking backward toward Clay. It was the face of a huge owl. The eyes were metallic like gold foil."

A young member of this strange community follows Clay and explains he must return the magic shaker. His name is Amos. Now the adventures can begin.

"Elphinore led them to places they had never seen before; seas of ferns and boulders in pure white marble. She bought them to a clock growing out of a tree, still ticking, but keeping the wrong time. She led them to a waterfall deep in the forest, where the river tumbled down a hillside and split into two - one part flowing toward the sea, and the other fell into a deep back hole, down into the world below the mountain."

I have one question for MT Anderson: Why did you name Clay's sister DiRossi?

Spoiler alert - I love the scene on page 154-155 and the way it links to the magical ending. 

"Nobody mentioned to Clay that they'd actually thrown Elphinore's old collar into the trash. A couple of days later, Clay's mom took the trash to the dump. No one in the family noticed."

I also loved the relationship that forms between DiRossi and the once sleeping pessimistic giant. I highly recommend Elf Dog and Owl Head. It would be a wonderful book to read aloud to a Grade 3 or 4 group or each night with your family. After reading this book you will want to keep your eyes open incase you  also find a wonderful dog like Elphinore.

Publisher blurb: Clay has had his fill of home life. A global plague has brought the world to a screeching halt, and with little to look forward to but a summer of video-calling friends, vying with annoying sisters for the family computer, and tuning out his parents' financial worries, he's only too happy to retreat to the woods. From the moment the elegant little dog with the ornate collar appears like an apparition among the trees, Clay sees something uncanny in her. With this mysterious Elphinore as guide, he'll glimpse ancient secrets folded all but invisibly into the forest. Each day the dog leads Clay down paths he never knew existed, deeper into the unknown. But they aren't alone in their surreal adventures. There are traps and terrors in the woods, too, and if Clay isn't careful, he might stray off the path and lose his way forever.

A hilarious, heartfelt triumph. Kirkus Star review

Elf Dog and Owl Head is a sly novel, told in a droll, wry cadence that conceals the increasingly fantastic nature of the story. Just as Clay begins to slowly realize the extent of the hidden worlds around him, so does the reader begin to understand the depth of the story being told. Book Page

It is a really good story, with the real world and the fantasy balanced beautifully.  The characters and relationships are rock solidly constructed, and the places appeared in glorious technicolor, as it were, in my mind's eye.  I especially was pleased, in one memorable scene of a nighttime magical revelry, to be reminded of my favorite bit of Moominland Midwinter, which doesn't often happen; probably not the author's intention, but it made me happy. Charlotte's Library

Clay and his family are complex, engaging characters whose love-hate-mostly-love relationships will feel familiar to many readers still remembering the frustrations of lock-down and learning from home. Although the story draws on familiar fantasy elements, such as the wild hunt and the wicked dragon, many of the fantastical elements of the story feel fresh and new – especially the severe Owl Heads and their magic gardens. The Children's Book Review

MT Andersen talks to SLJ and Betsy Bird about the real dog and forest wilderness that inspired him to write this story during Covid. 

A veritable plum pudding of energetic action and witty delights, but a -foundation of traditional folklore elements—standing stones, half-buried sleeping giants, fairy mischief, portals to the underworld, the Wild Hunt, and predatory wyrms—creates an underlying hint of genuine menace. Balancing this chill is the devoted relationship between Clay and his dog companion, a theme that stands sturdily in the middle of the mayhem. Black-and-white full-page pencil illustrations contribute to both coziness and eeriness. The Horn Book

Here is a discussion guide to use with this book.

Listen to a four minute audio book sample.

John Newbery Award 2024 - WINNER Eyes and the Impossible. 

Honour books:

• Eagle Drums written and illustrated by Nasuġraq Rainey Hopson
• Elf Dog and Owl Head written by M.T. Anderson, illustrated by Junyi Wu
• MexiKid: A Graphic Memoir written by Pedro Martín 
• Simon Sort of Says written by Erin Bow
• The Many Assassinations of Samir, The Seller of Dreams written by Daniel Nayeri, illustrated by Daniel Miyares

Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell

In this book you will meet - beautiful Al-mirajes; Dragons of every size; a Kanko; a vicious Karkadann; some little Lavellans; a huge Longma; a very special Ratatoska; a herd of Unicorns and many others.

Publisher blurb: Impossible Creatures tells the story of a boy called Christopher who is visiting his reclusive grandfather when he witnesses an avalanche of mythic creatures come tearing down the hill. This is how Christopher learns that his grandfather is the guardian of one of the ways between the non-magical world and a place called the Archipelago: a cluster of magical islands, where all the creatures we tell of in myth live and breed and thrive alongside humans. They have been protected for thousands of years from being discovered; now, terrifyingly, the protection has worn thin, and creatures are breaking through.  Then a girl, Mal, appears in Christopher’s world. She is in possession of a flying coat, is being pursued by a killer, and is herself in pursuit of a baby griffin. Mal, Christopher and the griffin embark on an urgent quest across the wild splendor of the Archipelago, where sphinxes hold secrets and centaurs do murder, to find the truth – with unimaginable consequences for both their worlds. Together the two must face the problem of power, and of knowledge, and of what love demands of us.

As I read this book I added about 40 post-it notes marking my favourite scenes and sentences.  Here are some of them:

"This world has always had magic in it, Christopher. Aren't you holding a griffin in your arms? The magic grew with the Earth's first tree, from the tree it flowed into the soil, into the air and the water. In the Archipelago, they call it the glimourie."

"Some sentences have the power to change everything. There are the usual suspects: I love you, .... But the words with the greatest power to create both havoc and marvels are these - I need your help."

"He knew that sometimes, if you are among the very lucky, a spark of understanding cuts like lightning across the space between two people. It's a defibrillator for the heart. And it toughens you. It nourishes you."

Thank you, Katherine Rundell for mentioning delicious and essential food - this is something I always look for in longer complex books like this one.

"She spent hours running through trees with Gelifen (a griffin), looking for unicorns and gorging on waterberries."

"There was a wall of blue glass jars, containing sweets from across the Archipelago. There were balls of soft gum, harvested from the sea by sylphs, which gave you brief bursts of great physical strength, but if you chewed too long gave you a rash of scales across your hands. There were ruinously expensive candies called voulay-drops, made my centaurs in the mountains of Edem. They tasted of that which craved most, but also, if you ate more than one, made you vomit something black for days afterwards."

"The table was laden with food. There was a beautiful moist nut cake, and fresh cinnamon twists, and a plate of biscuits still hot from the own.  Leonor was grey-haired, untalkative, unsmiling - but she showed her care in her cooking. She was the finest baker in the whole of Icthus: it was there that she put her patience, and her love."

"His grandfather had said that unicorns had a taste for mint. Quickly he tore open the pack and held them out in one hand. The unicorn dipped its mouth and sucked them from his palm, leaving it wet with unicorn spit. Then it touched its muzzle to his face, and breathed. Christopher felt the warmth on his skin and it smelt of mint and animal and something magnificently wild ..."

"There was a dark flat bread, which they ate dipped in olive oil. There was a slab of cream-coloured dried fish, delicious and so salty it was like eating the sea itself."

"He had been given a woven bag of apples, of plums and pears and apricot: dryad fruit, like nothing else on earth. They tasted still-living fruits with opinions and jokes and laughter in them."

Overtones of folklore; mythology; fairytales; and CS Lewis (the final scenes are sure to make you think of Aslan and Narnia):

"It had been years now since Mal had first learned to fly. a travelling seer had given her the flying coat soon after she was born. He had named her and laid the coat at her small feet." I thought of Sleeping Beauty.

Vocab: phalanx of swans; rhinocerosed; gainsay; scrofulous. And there are lots of invented words too. 

Names are important in this book too (think of A Wizard of Earthsea). Mal is short for Malum - and malum has a deep meaning - one that Mal herself has yet to discover. 

There is also a tiny thread of a love story in Impossible Creatures. I am not going to spoil this with any details, but adult readers might think of scenes from a favourite movie where the two main characters briefly glance at one another and then look away or brush hands and it's electric - these tiny moments were thrilling for a romantic reader like me. 

The Guardian's Bestiary at the start of this book has art by Tomislav Tomić. He is from Croatia. The cover is by Daniel Egnéus. (I have talked here about two of his books - Fox and Raven Child. In the UK the hardcover edition has phoenix sprayed on the page edges - it looks so magical.

Image source: Instagram

One of my favourite parts of writing Impossible Creatures was creating a bestiary to go in the front of the book: a collection of twenty-one of the creatures you might meet in the Archipelago. It’s illustrated by Tomislav Tomic, whose artwork is magnificent - 

kluddes and kankos and karkadanns, longmas and lavellans. 

I am not a big fan of endorsements, but this book has a huge list of celebrity praises - Michael Morpurgo; Catherine Doyle; Philip Pullman; Neil Gaiman; Jacqueline Wilson; and Kiran Millwood Hargrave. 

Everyone on social media is so excited about this new Katherine Rundell book - and justly so. I have seen bookshop window displays here in Australia (Three Sparrows) and in UK (my bookish friend has shared them) and the Australian children's book podcast Your Kids' Next Read included an interview with Katherine Rundell [begin at 16.45]- this is quite amazing because this group (Facebook and Podcasts) are usually, almost exclusively, focused on Australian books. I was also amazed that that interviewer had not previously read any of Katherine's books - how did she miss them and why didn't she prepare for the interview?  Anyway, if you listen you can hear Katherine Rundell's absolutely beautiful, lyrical speaking voice. 

I completely agree with these review comments by Just So Stories: I cannot tell you how much I love this (book), and that will be demonstrated by the fact that I will be keeping my copy and will re-read it, more than once I suspect. Though I read it immediately it was received, in swift binge fashion (and cried), it has taken me two weeks to compose this review – which I fear still does not do it justice.

I also agree this book is best for mature readers aged 11 or 12+. 

Here is Katherine Rundell on Instagram. Here is a one hour video where Katherine talks with Michael Morpurgo about her book. I do need to warn you, I just read on the UK publisher site (Bloomsbury) that Impossible Creatures is the first book in a trilogy. The good news is that at the end of the first book we are not left hanging. Yes, another book will be very welcome but enough is resolved at the end of the first installment thank goodness. Listen to this short introduction by Katherine Rundell. 

Writing fantasy has been a huge joy. Impossible Creatures has been a long time in the making – I pitched the idea more than five years ago, and I’ve found it a magnificent challenge. I loved fantasy as a child, and I love it now as a writer – for the freedom it gives to wholly unleash your imagination. Fantasy seems to me one of the most exciting ways to wield metaphor: so that, in writing about griffins and dragons and horned hares and immortality and flying coats, you might offer children (who have such allegiance with the fantastic, in every sense) a way to fathom their own world. Katherine Rundell

I have read and LOVED so many books by Katherine Rundell and the delicious thing about her writing is that it defies categorization. She covers so many genres and themes but the one thing that links these books is that they are all page turners and for me, they are all FIVE star titles.

The Explorer

The Good Thieves

Wolf Wilder

Cartwheeling in Thunderstorms

I also loved these:

One Christmas Wish

Why you should read children's books

All through this book I kept thinking about this book illustrated by our Australian Hans Christian Andersen winner - Robert Ingpen and I have discovered he has a new book about mythical creatures too.

Companion reads:

The Wintrish Girl by Melanie La'Brooy

"After eleven long years, the most famous day in the Empire of Arylia had returned. Today would be filled with celebrations and feasting and the all-important Talisman ceremony, during which young Arylians would be matched to their lifelong Talismans by the powerful Casket of Fate."

So lets look more closely at this text quote:

What are the Talismans? They can be any kind of useful object - a weapon, clothing even a musical instrument. each one is linked with magic or marvellance. Talismans allow citizens to defeat the Malevolents.

How does the Casket of Fate work?  On the day of the ceremony, every child reaches into the casket and takes out their talisman. Seraphine will not pull out a talisman. Instead she will receive the Orb and Scpetre which gives her power as a future ruler.

Who is Penn? How is she connected with Princess Seraphine? Penn is a knot sister. Princess Seraphine is too young to rule so for now Regent Gertrude is in charge. A knot sister is a child born on the same day as the Princess. Up until now Penn has lived in the castle and shared lessons with Seraphine. Now Penn lives with Goody - an old woman - she is from Wintrish but she can still talk. All other Wintrish are mute - they are The Grey Ones. Penn and Seraphine wear knot bracelets. These cannot be destroyed or removed. Penn is now training in Quintessence or spell making because she has been banished from the palace. 

Things to fear - the Panthera - a great beast that sleeps at the foot of the throne. This creature is kept asleep using Marvellance. The lava river. 

Non Human Characters - the Clock Immemorial. It is given to strange pronouncements that oddly might be true. A dragon who is afraid, desperately afraid of unicorns. Bestials - a half and half creature such as half Bloodhound and half Vampire Bat. Implings - small creatures with webbed feet, bat-like ears and shrill voices. The Huggle Beast named Ned. He is a true friend. 

Eslit -  the ruling council of Ayrlia. There are thirteen members and each belong to one of the Talismanic Guilds - weapons, treasure, lore and art. 

This is a new children's book by Australian author Melanie LaBrooy and it will be published by UQP tomorrow. Do you like the cover?  I'm not so sure this cover will entice young readers to pick up this book but I do hope I am wrong. With over 400 pages The Wintrish Girl is a long book but it is a rewarding one. I enjoyed the world building, the small touches of humour, the heroism of Penn and the loyalty of her new friends Juniper and Arthur. This book has been created by someone with an enormous imagination. 

The Wintrish Girl will be enjoyed by fans of Nevermoor - The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend along with these:

The Trials of Morrigan Crow

The Wild Magic Trilogy

The Girl who Drank the Moon

Prisoner of Ice and Snow

Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy

Tell me a Dragon by Jackie Morris

One day someone asked me, if I had a dragon, what would it be like. I realised that almost every day it would be different. Some days I would like a big dragon to fight battles for me, sometimes a small dragon to curl around my ear and tell me stories. Each day a different dragon, but each one mine. And so I wrote Tell Me a Dragon. Jackie Morris

I am a huge fan of Jackie Morris and her art. Take a look at my previous post. 

It seems essential to me that we share picture books with our children that contain breathtaking art and scrumptious language - and that is the combination you will find in Tell me a Dragon.

Here are a few text samples:

"My dragon is made from the sun and the stars. Sparkled with stardust."

"My dragon eats sweet, perfumed flowers. When she laughs, petals ride on her breath."

"My dragons are tiny, with whisper-thin wings of rainbow hues."

Tell me a Dragon has a cover that extends across the front and back and the end papers are filled with eggs of all colours and sizes at the front while at the back the baby dragons have begun to hatch. Just a perfect book design and inside you will find, as I already said, the most wonderful illustrations. 

Here is a video of Jackie Morris reading her book. 

This book is still in print (first published in 2009) but it is way way too expensive for any school library to consider purchasing which is such a shame. In 2009 the school library where I borrowed Tell me a Dragon paid $28 but today this same book is nearly $43 from one online Australian supplier. The new edition was published in 2018. So I really want to say this book should be an essential addition to any school library - mine always had lots of very keen dragon fans - but really I am sure no one could afford this hefty price. Perhaps you might be lucky and find a second hand copy - I do hope so. 

Images from Jackie Morris come from her Twitter page. You could use this book with an art class as jumping off point to talk about portrayal of dragons by children's book illustrators:

Jackie Morris - Tell me a Dragon "My dragon is an ice-dragon. His breath is snowflakes".

Jackie Morris Tell me a Dragon - "My dragon is snaggle-toothed. Fierce and brave".

Brian Wildsmith

David Wiesner

Eric Carle

PJ Lynch

Tomie DePaola

Emma Chichester Clark The Minstrel and the Dragon Pup

The Paperbag Princess by Robert Munsch

Axel Scheffler

Ellie's Dragon

Tiny Tales by Kallie George illustrated by Genevieve Cote

 

I am so excited to discover this series - Tiny Tales - Spark; Flare and Splash. Flare, for example, has five short chapters spread over 32 pages. Flare is a phoenix and he boasts that he never cries. High in the sky Cloud, Sky and Wind watch over Flare. They decide they need to show Flare how to cry and so each in turn sets up a situation to "test" Flare. Cloud drops rain all over Flare but that doesn't work. Wind makes howling noises showing Flare what crying sounds like but that plan doesn't work. Now it is the turn of Sun - third time lucky. Sun takes Flare through the woods to see a tiny baby bird that has fallen out of his nest. Flare feels so sad - what can he do? He begins to cry and his tears heal the baby bird. Phoenix tears are magic.

Kallie George is the author of a wonderful series - The Heartwood Hotel. Spark, Flare and Splash are written for a much younger audience. These little treasures are perfect for newly independent readers. And of course they also contain very satisfying stories. These were published in 2014 and 2016 but they are all still available.

Here is the blurb for each book:

Book One Spark:

"Spark is a little dragon with a big problem. He can't control his fiery breath. Even practising doesn't help. Will Spark ever be able to tame his flame? The first book in an early reader series about baby magic animals, "Spark" is a gentle reminder that there is a perfect time for everything."

Kirkus Review

Book Two Flare: 

"Flare is a tough little phoenix. He never cries. But everyone needs to cry sometimes. Will his guardians, Sun, Wind and Cloud, find a way to show him how? The second book in the Tiny Tails series provides comforting reassurance that it's okay to express our emotions."

Book Three Splash: 

"Splash is a little sea serpent who makes big splashes. But sea serpents need to be quiet sometimes. Will Splash learn how to keep calm? The third book in the Tiny Tails series explores the notion of self-control in a playful way."

Click on each cover image here to read reviews of each title.

Here are two page examples so you can see the text level, text size and use of white space - all perfect ingredients for a beginner:

If, like me, you're ready for something new in easy readers, these are a perfect choice. Accessible text and lovely illustrations will make these a favorite with both parents and children. Highly recommended. Jean Little Library

Flight of the Phoenix by R.L. LaFevers illustrated by Kelly Murphy

Nathaniel is summoned to the lawyer's office. His parents have been missing for three years and so now they are declared dead and it is time to read the will.  Nathaniel has been cared for by Miss Lumpton. The lawyer explains she will receive a 'tidy sum' and with that news she heads off out the door. Now Nathaniel truly is alone. Well not quite. He has one relative - Phil A. Fludd.  The lawyer puts Nathaniel on the train and he heads off alone. He has no idea so many surprises are in store. Phil A Fludd is a lady called Philomena. She is a Fludd and the Fludd family have a long history of exploration of the planet. Phil is also an aviatrix and within one day of his arrival Nathaniel finds himself on board a tiny plane flying off to Arabia to see the Phoenix. This is an event that only happens every five hundred years

"As the sun sets on the Phoenix's five hundredth birthday, it returns to its place of birth and builds a funeral pyre. Amid the rays of the setting sun, it sets itself on fire, burning until it is reduce to a pile of ash. The secret to a phoenix hatching is to be sure the pile of ash never grows cold."

Nathaniel has to fly across the world with Phil, ride a camel, cope with a new friend who is a Gremlin called Greasle. When they arrive Phil is taken away by the Bedouins and so Nathaniel has to tend the phoenix by himself.

My favourite scene is when Nathaniel has to repair the plane while it is in flight:

"Very glad for the rope that anchored him to the plane, Nate stood up. Struggling to keep his balance, he crawled out of the cockpit and lowered his feet over the side until they touched the wing. Gripping the side of the plane for dear life, he shuffled his feet along the wing, inching closer to the propeller."

I loved all the loose threads in this first installment. There is the dodo Cornelius, the mystery of the missing parents who I like to imagine are not really dead, there's the 'black sheep' of the family who may be the mysterious thief who tried to steal the The Book of Beasts and of course there are sure to be more beasts to discover.

Read more plot details by clicking these review comments:

Playing freely with historical detail and using traditions of English boys’ adventure stories and colonial clichés about Bedouin culture, this American author has crafted an exciting tale. Straightforward sentences, chronological narrative, short chapters and Murphy’s plentiful black-and-white illustrations make this appropriate for middle-grade readers looking for a series to grow with.  Kirkus

La Fever does a graceful job of keeping the story hovering around a third grade reading level while sprinkling historical, mythical and adventurous details here and there along with some great vocabulary.  Books4YourKids

I find it really exciting when a book series has its own web site. The pages for the Nathaniel Fludd Beastologist series are fabulous. So far there are four books in this series. There is also a Wikipedia entry.  I was assisting with the stocktake (inventory) in the library of a friend when I spied this book. I have talked about Kelly Murphy in previous posts. I adore this cover, I recognised Kelly's art and so I was sure this would be a terrific book - and I was right! On Kelly's page you can see some illustrations from this book and on  R.L. LaFevers (Robin Lorraine) own web site you can read an extract from each book.

This series are perfect for confident readers from Grade 2 and up. The first paperback was published in 2011 so if this series sounds appealing I suggest you rush out and order them today - books do seem to go out of print so quickly.  It would be good to follow this series by reading The Doldrums. These books are for older children but would make a terrific family or class read aloud.

Aspects of this story also made me think about one of my favourite book series which begins with Time Stops for no Mouse. This book is also not at the same level as the Nathaniel Fludd Beastologist series but I highly recommend it as a brilliant read aloud.