Brambly Hedge series by Jill Barklem

I was so sad to hear that Jill Barklem, creator of the Brambly Hedge book series died late last year.  I loved having these sweet books in my school library. The idea of living in the hedgerow seems so special especially to a reader from Australia where we have no hedgerows.   Yesterday I visited an excellent Vintage book store and I found two little Brambly Hedge stories - Summer Story and Autumn Story.

In Summer story, after many months of quiet meetings beside the mill stream Miss Poppy Eyebright and Mr Dusty Dogwood "officially announced their engagement."  Everyone is involved in the preparations for the midsummer day event which will take place on the river.  Dusty makes a 'raft' using a flat piece of bark which is tethered with plaited rush and nettle ropes.  In the kitchens cool summer foods are prepared such as cold watercress soup, fresh dandelion salad, syllabubs and meringues with wild strawberries and special wines.  Reading this book to a young child there would be so much to explore and perhaps even cook.

On the day of the wedding everything goes well until the vigorous dancing makes the ropes holding the raft snap.

"The raft floated gently past fields of buttercups and meadowsweet. ... Eventually, the raft was caught in a leafy clump of rushes and forget-me-nots. The ropes were made fast, and the dancing began again."

The mice set off to collect ripe blackberries in Autumn Story.  Young Primrose, daughter of Lord and Lady Woodmouse, becomes lost just as a storm is about to begin. Primrose has become distracted as she collected flowers and she finds herself in the home of two elderly harvest ice. "They sat Primrose down, gave her a slice of cake, and handed her their album of family portraits to look at."  After this delightful visit she continues on her way and spies an interesting hole. Inside is a maze of tunnels and Primrose quickly becomes lost.  Eventually she finds the way back outside but she is so exhausted and the rain is falling so she huddles under the brambles and tries to stay brave "when to her horror she saw five little flickering lights coming through the woods towards her. She could just make out five strange figures behind them. They were shapeless and bulgy, and seemed to have no heads at all."  The five are in fact her family and friends and Primrose is rescued. Her mother takes her home, puts her in a clean nightie  and they share a mug of hot acorn coffee.

You can watch a little of the television series here.  Once you could even buy Brambly Hedge china from Royal Doulton.  You could follow the Brambly Hedge books with a visit to Beatrix Potter and her famous titles and also the Tumtum and Nutmeg books.

A great big cuddle - Poems for the very young by Michael Rosen illustrated by Chris Riddell

It feels like there’s something for everyone in this collection, but the takeaway is how well it holds together. A treasure in a treasury.

It is also worth noting that without including any verbal instructions, even the dullest of parental readers will catch on pretty early that many of these poems are interactive. 

Delightful to read aloud again and again (a good thing since I’m afraid you will have to, if only to please your rabid pint-sized audience) and lovely to the eye, Rosen and Riddell aim for the earliest of ages and end up creating a contemporary classic in the process.

School Library Journal

Here is an absolutely perfect, must own, must read, must buy poetry book for children aged 2-6. I loved every single poem by the amazing Michael Rosen. The large format and the funny, colourful illustrations Chris Riddell are perfect for each of the 35 poems.  Here is the Kirkus review and one from Kids Book Review.

Here are a few poems I enoyed :

Inside Out

Inside out
Outside in
You can't lose
I can't win

I've got a sausage
You've got a pie
I can't whistle
And I don't know why.

I've got a letter
You've got a phone
You like sandwiches
I like to moan.

Moan
moan
Moan
Moan
Moan
moan
Moan
moan.

Your voice needs to get softer and softer towards the end.

Mrs Hobson-Jobson Says :

Itty-bitty . Bat . Tittle-tattle . Tat
Shilly-shally . Shout . Dilly-Dally . Out
Willy-nilly . Woo . Silly Billy . Boo!
Roly-poly . Rip . Pitter-patter . Pip
Wibble-wobble . Woe . Namby-pamby . No
Hunky-dory. Hop . Topsy-turvey
Stop

Meet at the Ark at Eight by Ulrich Hub illustrated by Jörg Mühle

Not for every reader, but sweet in its own way. Kirkus

I think I smiled right through this little quirky book but here is a warning some people might find all the questions about the existence and role of God quite confronting and yet I would say the questions are probably the same ones all humans (young and old) have had at some time.

Three penguins are living in the land of ice and snow and snow and ice and ice and snow. A butterfly arrives and the three begin to ponder the existence of God. 

Here is an abridged version of their conversation :

"So who is God?
Oh, God ... that's a difficult question
Well, God is great and very, very powerful. He came with with all sorts of rules and can become quite grumpy if you don't stick to them. Other than that, he's very friendly.
There's just one small disadvantage to God
What's that?
God is invisible.
Well, that's a huge disadvantage ... If you can't see God, you can't be sure whether he really exists."

As this dialogue continues a dove arrives with news of Noah and his ark.  He tells the penguins to meet at the ark at eight.  The problem is God and Noah only want two penguins. The first two decide to take their friend in their suitcase. The are worried about drowning and are in a rush to get over to the ark. (Take a minute to think about this).

Hiding the third penguin on the ship gives rise to a hilarious series of events. Of course the flood eventually subsides after the obligatory 40 days. The three penguins are saved but what about the dove. She kept having a niggling thought that she was missing something :

"I've got it, at last! The whole time, I've had this funny feeling I'd forgotten something!"

Read an interview with the publisher here.  Here is a review by a young reader. Try to find some books by Nicholas Allen if Meet at the Ark at Eight tickles your funny bone.  You could also read Meet at the Ark at Eight to a class familiar with the story of Noah's Ark then you might look for these other odd ball versions too.

I think kids will enjoy this version of Noah’s Ark, if not for the questions it will raise, then  for the humorous story of three best friends trying to help each other through life. KidLit reviews

Accidental Heroes - The Rogues Book 1 by Lian Tanner

Be warned: it is not for the very young or faint-hearted. There are some truly terrifying scenes of the Wild Hunt and not a small amount of bloodthirstiness. Books and Publishing

I have had Accidental Heroes - The Rogues Book One on my reading pile since late last year. I know books by Lian Tanner always contain richly imagined worlds and strong characters so I wanted take my time to read her newest book.

The opening scene really drew me in.  Duckling lives with her grandpa and he "had the sweetest smile you could imagine ... It made him look kind-hearted and trustworthy and good. But Duckling new better."  I just knew Duckling would be a hero I could really get behind.

Grandfather is a schemer.  He needs a boy for his newest plan which he promises Duckling will be his last. The power of this writing is that while nothing is directly stated it seems obvious that this actually won't be the last scheme.  Duckling goes into the town to look for a boy "strong. Not too bright. ... a disposable boy."  The boy she finds is Pummel - a farm boy who has come into town to find a job so he can support his mum who is struggling back on their farm. 

Pummel has found a job as a Snuffigator.  He has to watch out for snares, poisonous vapours and frogs.  The people of Berren do not believe in magic and yet it is clearly everywhere. Meanwhile The Bayam of Saaf, Mistress of Winds and first Hag is dying.  She must pass on her skills. Time is short.  "What she needed was a girl with some Saaf blood in her veins. A cunning girl ... but she could not find such a child. The paths showed her a boy whose great-great-grandmother was Saaf, though he did not know it. They showed her a girl as cunning as any Hag."  And so the magic is shared. Duckling can tame the wind and Pummel has the raashk - an ancient relic that allows him to see ghosts and walk through walls. 

Grandfather takes the children into the castle (at this point we have no idea about his dastardly scheme) and all three are trapped there just as the city ruler, called the Margravine, and her court and son are also trapped in this strong hold.  Someone is trying to assassinate the heir.  Pummel, Duckling and a special cat must now take on a mission to save him but at every turn they also need to make decisions about whom to trust beginning with each other.

I love the way Lian Tanner takes the reader right into the atmosphere of this place - Berren, capital city of Neuhalt.

"Gas-fueled omnibuses blew their horns to announce their importance. Street rigs and butchers' carts rumbled over the cobblestones ... Bells rang, gazette-sellers shouted, men and women hurried down the footpaths talking loudly."

Here is a review in Reading Time.  I will make one of my predictions and say this book is surely certain to be short listed for our CBCA awards.  Accidental Heroes is the first book in a planned trilogy.  I would follow this book A very unusual Pursuit by Catherine Jinks and Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy by Karen Foxlee.  Fans of the Skulduggery series might also enjoy Accidental Heroes.

More read aloud books for Grade 2 and 3

Yesterday was World Read aloud day. Earlier this week I shared some read aloud titles for Grades 3 and 4 and since I shared my blog post on social media I have had a record 800+ views.  I did not put some of my library favourites on the first list - these are the books I like to read to our classes when they visit the school library. Again some appear on this blog so click any in colour to read more.  Here is a simple one page list of hints about reading aloud with a class.  The most important message here that resonates with me is not to interrupt the flow of the story.  Yes sometimes we do need to stop and talk but keep this short or consider doing some of this before or after the reading experience.

Read Aloud to Grade 2 or 3

Mike's Magic Seeds by Alexander McCall Smith
The finger eater by Dick King Smith
Hot Stuff by Margaret Clarke
Poor Fish by Jane Godwin
The vanishment of Thomas Tull by Allan Ahlberg
Jeremiah in the dark woods by Allan Ahlberg
O'Diddy by Jocelyn Stevenson
The amazing adventures of Chilly Billy by Peter Mayle
Freckle Juice by Judy Blume
The Dunderheads by Paul Fleischman
Meanie and the Min Min by Pamela Shrapnel
Bob the builder and the elves by Emily Rodda
Happy Mouseday by Dick King Smith
Lulu and the Brontosaurus by Judith Viorst

Read aloud titles for Grades 3 and 4

“The single most important activity for building the knowledge required for eventual success in reading is reading aloud to children.” 

Jim Trelease, The Read-Aloud Handbook

I am often asked about ideas for books to read aloud as a serial with a class.  Last night I worked on this list for a colleague and since nearly every title came from this blog I thought it might be helpful to share this list here with links(colour titles) to my pages.  Start with this short video where Kate DiCamillo talks about the impact and importance of reading to a class every day.

Year Three

Detective Gordon The First Case by Ulf Nilsson

Tumtum and Nutmeg by Emily Bearn

The Night Fairy by Laura Amy Schlitz

The story of the seagull and the cat who taught her to fly by Luis Sepulveda

Hector the Rat by Tony Wilkinson (Sprinter series)

Gooney Bird Greene by Lois Lowry

Thalia the failure by Robin Klein

Victor’s Quest Pamela Freeman

Nathan and the ice rockets by Debra Oswald

Stella by the sea by Ruth Stark – Aussie Chomp

The world according to Humphrey by Betty Birney

The trumpet of the swan by EB White 

Chocolate Fever by Robert Kimmel Smith

My father’s dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannet

Fortunately the Milk by Neil Gaiman

Ollie’s Odyssey by William Joyce (save for Term 3 or 4)

Donavan’s word Jar by Melissa DeGross

Little dog lost by Marion Dane Bauer

The Whipping boy by Sid Fleischman

Keena Ford and the second-grade Mix up by Melissa Thompson

Year Four

The year of Billy Miller by Kevin Henkes

Mrs Frisby and the rats of NIMH by Robert C O’Brien

A rat’s tale by Tom Seidler

A book of Coupons by Sally Morgenstern

The Wonderling by Myra Bartok 

How to Steal a dog by Barbara O’Connor

There’s a boy in the girls bathroom by Louis Sachar

Emmy and the incredible shrinking rat by Lynne Jonell

The Willoughbys by Lois Lowry

Spunky tells all by Ann Cameron

The tale of Angelino Brown by David Almond

Masterpiece by Elise Broach

The chocolate Touch by Patrick Catling

Beetle Boy by M.G. Leonard

Mr Stink by David Walliams

Jamil’s shadow by Christine Harris

The one and only Ivan by Katherine Applegate – later in the year

Darius Bell and the glitter Pool by Odo Hirsch

Crenshaw by Katherine Applegate

Figgy in the world by Tamsin Janu

The tuckshop kid by Pat Flynn

The Real Thief by William Steig 

The legend of little fur by Isobelle Carmody

Stone Fox by John Reynolds Gardiner

Here is a challenge. Do you have a read aloud book that you love to use with Grade 3 or 4?  Tell me about it in the comment section and these lists can grow!

Run, elephant, run by Patricia MacCarthy

I picked this picture book up at my local library today.  Run, elephant, run - an Indonesian rainforest adventure is a little outside the scope of books I usually talk about but I really liked the onomatopoeic style and the lively illustrations so I will talk about it here because this would be a lovely book to buy as a gift for a very young child and yes this is a very new book so it should be easy to find.

The storm is coming, the herd are on the move, little elephant is afraid but he sticks close to his mother.  A huge, old tree falls down and little elephant is separated from his mother and the herd. Now he needs to run for his life because a tiger is headed his way. As the rain becomes heavier and heavier the chase accelerates then just as it seems the tiger will pounce little elephant slides down a muddy slope and bumps straight into his mother. She trumpets and stamps her big feet and the tiger turns to run for his life.

If you need a book about rain this one is perfect.  So many words to describe the way rain sounds and feels. These words show a how the best picture books are actually poetry.

spit spot spit spot
pitter patter pitter patter
rattle rattle rattle rattle
drumming drumming drumming
whoosh swoosh whoosh swoosh
pitter-patter spit spot spot spot


If you need a book about rainforest animals this book is perfect. On the last page thirty five are revealed and then you can go back and try to spot them in the book. Exotic sounding animals such as the red leaf monkey, Javan banded pitta, Sunda Sambar deer, pygmy tasier, mouse-deer and the Asian Tapir.

Make sure you check the end papers - you know I love them and in this book we see the storm beginning and ending which is of course the perfect way to bookend this story.

Here are two other books in our school library with illustrations by UK illustrator Patricia MacCarthy.  I was excited to see she is the illustrator of several books by the wonderful New Zealand writer Margaret Mahy including 17 Kings and 42 Elephants.  I was not familiar with this UK Publisher Otter-Barry but I recommend you take a look at their web site.