Lizzie Nonsense by Jan Ormerod

"When Lizzie's mama and papa were married, the sun shone on fields of yellow wheat which grew right up to the door of the tiny church. But for as long as Lizzie can remember, she and mama and papa and baby have lived in their little house in the bush, and the church and the neighbours are far away."

Papa needs to take the timber to a faraway town, so mama and Lizzie and baby are left alone for many weeks. As mama completes her chores Lizzie tags along. She sees the world in a different way - using her imagination. The baby in the bath is really floating in the wide blue sea; the flowers from the garden become a bridal bouquet; and for dinner Lizzie declares they will have peaches and cream and sweet little cakes. Of course they are actually having turnips! The church is too far away but on Sunday's they put on their best clothes and walk along the track pretending they are returning from church. Finally papa arrives home:

"And they walk together back to their little house in the bush."

Image source: State Library of Victoria Story Island

Lizzie Nonsense has a special dedication to "my grandmother Beatrice Evelyn Harvey 1883-1972", so we know this book is based on true events. Jan Ormerod, who died in 2013, also wrote The Water Witcher based on the life of her grandfather.

Here is the full Kirkus Star review: When Papa takes the cut sandalwood into town, Lizzie, Mama and the baby are all alone in their little house in the bush. Lizzie is always playing and pretending; Mama calls it Lizzie nonsense, but her imagination helps lighten the daily chores and hard work. While Mama tends the garden, she picks flowers and becomes a bride; as she helps Mama prepare the usual turnips for dinner, they become peaches and cream; as they mend clothes, Lizzie pretends to make a party dress with buttons and bows. Mama even joins the playfulness when they dress in their best on Sunday and walk along the track and back, pretending they’ve been to church. The beautiful painterly, watercolor illustrations are a departure from Ormerod’s earlier cuddly style. The earth-hued wispy and airy paintings affectionately embellish Lizzy’s nonsense, conveying a warmhearted snippet of time when a family bond overcame the hardships of Australian pioneer life to make a home in an untamed land. Based on anecdotes from the author’s own family history.

Lizzie Nonsense was published in 2004 and shortlisted by the CBCA in 2005. In 2006 IBBY Australia selected Lizzie Nonsense as our Honour Book title for illustration. Here is the catalogue annotation:

Lizzie lives with her mama, papa and baby brother on a remote farm in the Australia bush. Papa leaves the family for weeks on end while he delivers wood to the distant town leaving Lizzie, her Mama and baby alone in the bush. Lizzie is a lively girl with a vivid imagination. Her brother in his bath is floating in the ocean, a fallen log is her brave steed and flowers in the garden become a bridal bouquet. Lizzie is such a happy girl. She finds delight in the smallest of things and her buoyant outlook and positivity help her Mama during these difficult days. Even though she dismisses Lizzie’s ideas as nonsense Mama has her own daydreams too. On Sundays they put on their best clothes and pretend they have walked to church. Finally, after all the long weeks, they hear a sound. Is that harness jangling just in the imagination? No it is papa! Lizzie Nonsense is dedicated to the memory of Jan Ormerod’s grandmother and her life in the 1890s. It is a tale told with warmth, tenderness and humour. The images are built up from pencil drawings. Watercolour and ink are used to evoke the light of the Australian bush and the simple candlelight of their home. Several illustrations are presented as an oval similar to a framed picture placed on a dresser or mantle.

Sadly, it is now out of print. I thought of it again when it was mentioned in a recent podcast when the presenter listed books about weddings. I did a blog post about this a few days ago. Today I discovered the 2013 paperback edition of Lizzie Nonsense and it does look like a wedding story even though in my mind this is still a minor aspect of the story. The cover image comes from the title page of the original book. 

I have talked about many books by Jan Ormerod in the past. Click on the label for this post to find more of her books. 

When I first read Lizzie Nonsense I thought of this wonderful Australian poem which I learned by heart for a play called Yarns and Woolley Tales in 1984:

Before the glare o’ dawn I rise

To milk the sleepy cows, an’ shake

The droving dust from tired eyes,

Look round the rabbit traps, then bake

The children’s bread.

There’s hay to stook, an’ beans to hoe,

An’ ferns to cut in the scrub below,

Women must work, when men must go

Shearing from shed to shed.

I patch an’ darn, now evening comes,

An’ tired I am with labour sore,

Tired o’ the bush, the cows, the gums,

Tired, but we must dree for long months more

What no tongue tells.

The moon is lonely in the sky,

Lonely the bush, an’ lonely I

Stare down the track no horse draws nigh,

An’ start . . . at the cattle bells.

Wedding Picture Books and Junior Fiction (and bridesmaids too)

Mr. Slinger has big news.

He’s getting married.

Married!

Lilly has big plans.

She’s going to be the flower girl.

(Lilly has always wanted to be a flower girl.

Even more than a surgeon or a diva or a hairdresser.)

The Podcast "Your Kid's Next Read" (an Australian show) shared a list of books about weddings in a recent episode because one of the presenters has just been married.  This got me thinking. I knew my friend at Kinderbookswitheverything had covered this topic. Also, the tiny granddaughter of another friend is about to be the flower girl at her parent's wedding. I previously gifted her the Kevin Henkes book at the top of this post.

I decided to search out wedding picture books and junior novels and compile them into a Pinterest. Megan Daley mentions Lissie Nonsense by Jan Ormerod. I didn't remember that weddings were a major theme of this book. Here is the Kirkus star review of Lizzie Nonsense. I plan to find this one in a library next week and check out the reference to weddings. I will write a blog post about Lizzie Nonsense over the coming days. 

Here are the covers of some of my own favourites including many that sadly are now long out of print but which could/should be held in many school or public libraries.

The Pig's Wedding is a charming story describing the preparation and celebration of the marriage of two pigs, Porker and Curlytail. As the bride and groom, and the guests, are without proper attire, Porker comes up with the brilliant idea of painting clothing on each and every one of them. Everyone has a wonderful time at the wedding celebration, until it begins to rain.  The rain washes the painted clothing off of all them!  Again, Porker has a brainstorm. He tells his guests to follow him as he runs toward a huge mud puddle.  They all toss their pink pig bodies into the mud and have a glorious time! Finally, with the wedding celebration over, Porker carries his bride into their new home--and paints the furnishings all over the stable walls!  The ingenious pig and his wife live happily ever after.

It was such a hot summer. The sky was deep blue and the sun never faltered. All along Brambly Hedge, the mice did their best to keep cool. Poppy Eyebright sought refuge in the mossy shadows of the mill wheel; Dusty Dogwood took to walking by the banks of the cooling stream. Dusty and Poppy spent more and more time together, so no one was at all surprised when they announced their engagement. They decided on a very unusual setting for the wedding ceremony, but even they didn’t realise just how unusual it was prove to be!

Here is a review

I have previously talked about this terrific book series - Aussie Nibbles - but until I listened to the podcast I had forgotten about this one. You could also look for another older junior series - Solo and the book Make me the Flowergirl by Pamela Freeman.

Lucy Willow by Sally Gardner illustrated by Peter Bailey

This is a book with so many plot twists I found myself gasping over and over again. Lucy Willow lives with her mum, dad and baby brother (Lucy names him Stench but his real name is Zac) in a train carriage. They had been living in a high-rise apartment building but mum wanted a garden and dad didn't like heights. Dad also loved trains so when he saw an advertisement to buy a real train carriage which had been fitted out like a house it seemed like the perfect solution. Of course, things are never that simple and when the family move in the train is still running but they are able to work around the train timetable and Dad can get to work in the city and Lucy can go to school in the little village of Maldon-in-the-marsh. 

Luckily for the family the train is sold which means it no longer moves back and forth between Liverpool Street Station and the village but the new owners need the family to move the train carriages off their track. Just as all of this happens dad loses his job so now they have no money.

Meanwhile in her class, Lucy and the other children are growing sunflowers. Lucy discovers she has a magical gift with a mysterious sounding name of green fingers. No her fingers are not green but any plants that she touches seem to grow extraordinarily quickly. Naturally because she is a child, a mere eight-year-old girl, no one will listen to her or believe her. But they do need to listen because dad now has a part time job at the local garden centre as an accountant and there is a big wedding coming up in the village with a famous football (soccer) player and the rival garden centre is run by crooks who will stop at nothing to stop the Peppercorns and their nursery supplying the flowers. 

Meanwhile there is a delicious extra thread in this story featuring the nasty and corrupt school principal Mrs Sparks. Spoiler alert - when Lucy saves the day it is wonderful to see this horrid woman get her just desserts. 

Here is the book seller blurb: 'There were three things that marked out Lucy Willow as different. The first was that she lived on a train. The second was that she had a snail called Ernest as a pet. And the third, the most important of all, was that she had green fingers.' It's Lucy's green fingers that save the day when Silverboots McCoy the famous footballer and his girlfriend Blossom B order flowers for their wedding - for Ricky Sparks, who runs the rival garden centre, will stop at nothing to get the contract for himself. ... Lucy Willow has all Sally Gardner's soaring imagination, enchanting humour and great heart, and is rich in scenes and characters that readers will adore and remember.

My friend asked me to read this book, which was published in 2006, to decide it she should keep it in her library. We have both read and enjoyed other books by Sally Gardner (see below). I am always thrilled when asked to read a book for two reasons. Firstly, it means she trusts my judgement and that's a huge honour and secondly it means I read the book a little more carefully knowing I have to make informed comments.

You can see I have given Lucy Willow five stars because as an adult reader I really enjoyed this story but I am going to say this book could move out of the library now partly because it is a little old-fashioned and very English (some of the references might be confusing for an Australian child). The children who use this library are aged 4-7 and with 214 pages this book might seem a little too long. There are twenty-nine very short chapters and the story does simply rock along at a perfect pace rather like an old steam train but it has not been borrowed for over four years. The copy is not in very good shape and, as with most older paperbacks, the pages are no longer white. My copy has the purple cover which is perhaps also not especially appealing. You can preview parts of the text here. 

Here are some review comments:

'A great read. In 29 short chapters we escape to a world saved by a triumphant young horticulturalist and her eccentric and likeable family. Bailey's simple sketch illustrations, lightly sprinkled throughout the book, help to depict the rich array of characters.'

'a delightful story, full of juicy characters... the warm style'

'lively and intriguing... A rollicking read, with lots of twists and turns that will thrill younger readers.'

I do have some good news. This book is available as an ebook and also as an audio book (you can hear chapter one) and I do think, even though it is very English, it would be enjoyed in a family as a nighttime read aloud or on a car journey where you could all enjoy the audio version.

Here are the perfect companion books:

I previously talked about The Boy with Magic Numbers and The Boy with Lightning feet by Sally Gardner from her Magical Children series:

Read more here

Operation Bunny

Never Let Go by Geraldine McCaughrean illustrated by Jason Cockroft

"In the whole of realm of Fairyland and in the all the sunlit world there was no man so handsome as Tamlin. He could have captured the heart of any princess with his golden hair and ready smile. So many wondered why he chose Janet for his sweetheart. Plain Janet."

Tamlin is seen by the Fairy Queen. She entices him into her world and takes away his freedom. Janet travels to the edge of fairyland determined to set her true love free. 

"What did she see that Hallowe'en? Bats and back cats, and a skeleton dancing in the wild. She saw gravestone heave and the moss crawl, heard banshee laughter drifting on the wind."

The Fairy Queen rides past with her entourage and among them she sees her Tamlin. 

"But when a milk-white mare, crossed the moonlit crossroads, she leapt at once from her hiding place and seized his fine wool cloak ..."

There is no way the queen will give up her prize and so she conjures up all sorts of horrors - Tamlin turns into a giant scaly lizard, a thick enormous snake, a violent raging bear, a lion, a horse that tosses her high into the air, then a wolf, a boar and an eagle. 

"But she did not loose her grip whether her fingers clung to tusks or antennae, pincers or curling horns."

The final transformation is possibly the most horrible of all. The Fairy Queen turns Tamlin into a red-hot iron bar but Janet does not let go. Finally, the night ends and Janet is left holding her handsome true love. 

This book was published in 1998 so it is long out of print but the copy I found in a school library is still in good condition and I think deserves a place on the library shelves. The illustrations are scrumptious and the bravery of Janet is simply amazing. I would read this book to a group of older students - they are sure to enjoy all the slightly scary elements and the wonderful happy ending along with the messages of perseverance, determination and courage. 

Bookseller blurb: On the eve of his wedding, handsome Tamlin is stolen away by the Fairy Queen into the cruel, enchanted land of the Fairies where the ground runs red with blood. Tamlin's brave love, Janet, determines to win him back - but first she must find him. Then she must never let him go, come what may, or Tamlin will be gone forever.

I found this book when I was helping my friend with her library stock take (inventory). The cover caught my eye and so did the author name. Here are some other books by Geraldine McCaughrean and books illustrated by Jason Cockcroft.

Room for a little one

See Saw girl by Linda Sue Park

We have begun collecting books for our school library to link with the Asian Focus of the new English Curriculum.  We have collected a large number of picture books and now we are adding short novels.

Set in Korea See Saw girl is a perfect Middle Primary novel  Jade Blossom lives a protected a closed life inside the walls of her home.  Boys are allowed outside but not girls.  Jade longs to see the mountains and to visit her cousin Willow who has recently been married so she contrives a way to sneak out of the Han house using the market cart.

Jade is successful but she has not considered how her clothes and status will stand out in the poor market square.  She befriends a beggar child and is able to rub dirt all over her fine clothes and get directions to the home of her cousin.  Alas protocols will not allow Willow to see Jade and she is forced to return home in disgrace.  The only reward for her enormous efforts has been a glimpse of the wonderful snow covered mountains that surround the city.  Jade longs to see these mountains again.  She makes three important discoveries.  She finds joy in painting, she sees images of her beloved mountains in the school room (an area forbidden to girls) and she makes a see saw. Historical information at the back of the book explains the significance of this and other Korea traditions.

The ending of this little book did seem rushed but in just 86 pages Linda Sue Park crafts a very authentic feel of Korea and of Jade herself. You can read some reviews here. I have been a huge fan of Linda Sue Park ever since I read A single Shard.

This book reminded me of In the Shadow of the Palace so you might like to look for this one in our school library too. You should also look at the picture book Ruby's wish by Shirin Yim Bridges.  The image below comes from the illustrator web site.