John Marsden (27 September 1950 – 18 December 2024)

Image source: John Marsden website

John Marsden profoundly impacted the world of literature, particularly with his enthralling young adult novels such as the ‘Tomorrow’ series, which we have previously described as ‘the best series for Australian teens of all time’. His ability to encapsulate the essence of youth struggles and aspirations in his works has left an indelible mark on readers worldwide. A storyteller like no other, John’s books were a masterclass in the creation of characters, plot, pacing and setting.  Pan Macmillan

John Marsden was best known for his Young Adult book series and titles such as Tomorrow when the War Began but here are the titles that I would also like to highlight. I have put the covers I remember - many of these do have updated newer covers. You might also like to notice some of the wonderful illustrators featured here too - Matt Ottley, Shaun Tan, Peter Gouldthorpe, Sally Rippin and Craig Smith. I should also mention my former school and library had a small connection with John Marsden because his niece and nephew attended my school and he kindly gifted us many of his picture book titles.

This one was a very popular class read aloud in several of my previous schools

This is a very important book that explores the issues surrounding the detention of refugees. 

Read more here. 

Read more here.

Read more here

1988 Winner, CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers

Bio from Goodreads: John Marsden was an Australian writer and school principal. He wrote more than 40 books in his career and his books have been translated into many languages. He was especially known for his young adult novel Tomorrow, When the War Began, which began a series of seven books.

Marsden began writing for children while working as a teacher, and had his first book, So Much to Tell You, published in 1987. In 2006, he started an alternative school, Candlebark School, and reduced his writing to focus on teaching and running the school. In 2016, he opened the arts-focused secondary school, Alice Miller School. Both schools are in the Macedon Ranges.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese posted, “John Marsden wanted young Australians to read more, and his writing made that happen. Vivid, funny, quintessentially Australian, he wrote with a real love for our land and a true sense of our people’s character. His was a great Australian voice that spoke to all ages, here and around the world. John’s work will live long in our national memory.” Kirkus

Read some tributes and other links:

• Sally Rippin Sydney Morning Herald 19 December, 2024
• 2019 ABC Radio interview Life Matters
• The Conversation 19 December, 2024
• ABC News
• Children's Book Council of Australia

John Marsden's tips for parents (Victorian Parents Council's Facebook Post August 23rd, 2019)

1. Give children space. Back off. Let them roam. Let them be bored. Don't over-plan their lives. Cut way back on the after-school activities programs.

2. Keep away from all those ghastly, soulless, sterile playgrounds. Keep away from shopping malls. Look for real places. Wild places.

3. Be an adult. Say no to your children at least once a day. If the role of adult in your family is vacant, then one of your children will fill it. And it won't be pretty.

4. Don't take up all the space. If you are dominating, loud, forceful, your children are highly likely to become passive, lacking spirit and personality … and/or sullen.

5. Believe about 40 per cent of the dramatic stories your children tell you of the injustices, corruption and satanic practices happening at school.

6. Teach them empathy. For example, after their jubilant victory celebrations when they win a sporting match, remind them that their jubilation was only possible because someone else – the losers – have been made to feel awful.

7. Help them develop language skills. Don't finish their sentences for them. Don't correct them when they mispronounce a word – they'll work it out sooner or later. Ask them open-ended questions, that need a detailed answer, not Yes/No questions.

8. Make sure they have regular jobs/duties at home and that those jobs are done to a consistently high standard.

9. Don't whinge endlessly about the miseries of your adult life. A lot of children now are fearful about growing up because their parents paint such a grim picture of the awfulness ahead.

10. Teach them to be very wary of people who Absolutely Know the Absolute Truth about Absolutely Everything! The colour of truth is always grey. Extreme positions are for the ignorant. Every creature, every person and every situation is complex. The universe is a wonderful mystery.”

Hush! by Minfong Ho illustrated by Holly Meade

Bookseller blurb: In an endearing lullaby, a mother asks a lizard, a monkey, and a water buffalo to be quiet and not disturb her sleeping baby.

And of course there is a delightful twist on the last page. This book has wonderful illustrations and it would be a beautiful gift for a young child or a new baby. I wonder if a board book edition was ever made?

Black cat, black cat,

don't come creeping.

Can't you see that

Baby's sleeping?

Black cat, black cat,

don't you cry,

My baby's sleeping

right nearby.

Hush was published in 1996 with a new edition in 2000. My copy was purchased for the library I visit each week in 2012. Hush! won a Caldecott honor in 1997 for Holly Mead (1956-2013). This book is still available to buy. 

In this video the text has been changed into a song - this is well worth watching. 

Exceptionally beautiful cut-paper-and-ink illustrations in earth tones use the varied textures of the paper to wonderful effect, depicting traditional Thai textiles, basketry, and building styles. All of young children's favorite elements are here: a reassuringly predictable, rhyming text, animals and their sounds, a mischievous subplot in the pictures, and an ever-so-slightly naughty child who fools everyone in the end. A sure winner. Kirkus

Minfong Ho was born in Rangoon, Burma, and raised in both Singapore and Bangkok, Thailand. Her parents are of Chinese origin, so she spoke fluent Chinese in her home, Thai in the marketplace of Bangkok and English in school. She was educated in Thailand and Taiwan, before moving to the United States to attend Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. While attending Cornell University, Ho began writing her first short story, in an attempt to combat strong feelings of homesickness. She recognized that many Americans had false notions about life in Asia and she set out to change this by writing based on her own experience there. 

All the Beautiful Things by Katrina Nannestad illustrated by Martina Heiduczek

"It feels like all the beautiful things have to be hidden away ... "

"The world is a jigsaw puzzle, every person a unique piece. There's a space for each one, but it must be the space made just for them. And if we leave one piece out, no matter how small, plain, insignificant or odd it may seem, the jigsaw puzzled remains incomplete. 

The picture looks ugly because there is a gap."

In the world of Germany in 1939 to 1945 every child has to be perfect. Anna is perfect - the perfect German girl. She is athletic, clever and has that perfect blonde hair and bright blue eyes. Her sister however is not perfect. She has a disability and Mutti and Anna know if little Eva is found she will be taken away. 

"Eva was born with a disability that weakens her body and makes it hard for her to learn new things. Eva didn't walk for a long time and she's still a bit wobbly. Words came much later .... It's unlikely she'll ever learn to read. And she's so very small and thin, more like a toddler than a seven-year-old."

Eva takes delight in making paper dolls. The family have to keep her hidden, but Anna is able to collect tiny treasures - a piece of lace, a ribbon, a small piece of coloured paper - and Anna weaves a magical story for Eva as they work together to create new outfits for dolly. 

"Eva fetches her square biscuit tin and returns to the kitchen table. She opens the lid and gasps with delight even though she knows exactly what's inside - Dolly, a flat cardboard doll with woollen hair and tissue paper underwear, and eight flat dresses. They're all made from scrap paper and other treasures Mutti and I have scrounged from floors, streets, bins, barns. ... Every piece of the dress needs a story."

Anna and her friend Udo work hard to keep Eva a secret but there is danger everywhere. A boy in their neighborhood - Manfred is especially dangerous. "He is fourteen, tall, strong and handsome. He is in the special patrol group, Hitler Youth's very own police." 

Woven into All the Beautiful things we meet Eva Braun, visit the countryside home of Hitler, and in some awful scenes witness the indoctrination of the children in class against anyone who is not perfect - people with disabilities, people who are different and of course Jewish people. In one scene we see brave Anna quietly taking Nazi propaganda posters from her school and at home she burns them.

Luckily Anna and Udo do find friends in their town and one of these is seamstress Fraulein Linz. Little do they know that this lovely woman will be the one to hide little Eva when it becomes too hard to keep her at home and keep her safe. Fraulein Linz is living a double life. The Nazi wives visit to have her make their beautiful clothes and she even appears to be friendly with Eva Braun but this is all just a ruse. 

"How do we tell the monsters and the angels apart?"

This book has 327 pages, and I read it all in one sitting - YES, it is that good. In fact, this book is wonderful! I actually read this book about 3 weeks ago but I just wanted to sit and think and let it settle before penning something here on my blog. I actually feel I am quite inadequate as a blogger and lover of middle grade children's books to even begin to talk about this amazing book. One of the most precious parts of this story is the emotional intelligence of young Eva. 

There are some quite terrifying scenes in this book which I think demonstrates the power of this writing. One that has lingered with me is when Anna is stopped and told to empty her pockets by a member of the Gestapo. They have been watching Udo. He is part of the resistance and their communication is via train tickets. Udo has slipped it into Anna's pocket and now Anna needs to take it to Pastor Almendinger.

"The railway station's a perfect exchange for messages. Always busy. ... I'm there all the time, looking for discarded tickets for Dolly's dresses. In fact, there are four in my pockets right now. ... 'I'd like to see what's in your pockets.' ... I stick my hands into my pockets, grab the lining at the bottoms and turn them inside out. Everything that was inside spills. The tiny folding scissors, bottle tops, acorns and buttons fall into the snow, but the wind grabs the rest and sends it fluttering along the street. Including the very important train ticket for Pastor Almendinger."  

All the Gestapo see is a collection of rubbish.  

Here are a couple of text quotes:

"We're crying for Eva, who is safe, but whose life has grown smaller yet again. How many times must her world darken and shrink? How long can she live this way without the light in her eyes fading, before hugs in her arms slacken?"

"And then I shudder. Not because of Manfred's fanaticism. That's old news. It's just I've never been called a traitor before. I realise that a person can be both a hero and a traitor. It depends on your point of view. To Eva and Mutti, I'm a hero. To Hitler and Manfred, I'm a traitor." 

All the Beautiful Things is certain to be a CBCA Younger Readers Notable, and I am also sure it will be shortlisted. Here are a set of teachers notes from the publisher. I highly recommend All the Beautiful Things for readers aged 11+. 

This is a great read, suffused with love and humour. As usual Nannestad has got the balance just right, presenting the reader with thought provoking situations while keeping them enthralled with suspense, some mystery, and lots of giggles. A must for every school  and home library. Storylinks

All the Beautiful Things is as much a story of resistance as it is about loyalty and family, but also, finding out what it means when the rules you think exist start to crumble, and your world changes in so many ways. It is a book that will make you question prejudices and what we assume disabled people are like, and ponder how we can help people who need it. And I think makes us ask ourselves what we would do if we ever found ourselves in a similar situation. Another wonderful novel from Katrina Nannestad. The Book Muse

History can be tough to understand, especially when it comes to things like war and prejudice. But Nannestad takes the real stories of the past and wraps them up in a way that is both accessible and heartwarming for kids. You’ll not only get to see the struggles of people who lived through WWII, but you’ll also learn about what it was like to be different in a world where difference meant danger. Better Reading

Some things to think about:

• It is interesting that Katrina named Anna's little sister Eva and Anna also meets and 'befriends' the famous Eva Braun. 
• When you read a book like this as a reader you put your trust in the author that there will be a 'happy ending' and that characters you love will be kept safe. What happens if this 'rule' is broken?

In November I attended a terrific 'fireside' chat at Gleebooks Kids with Katrina Nannestad.  Here are some things I discovered:

• Katrina will appear at our Sydney Writer's Festival in May 2025
• Her favourite character from her books so far is Udo (from All the Beautiful Things) and also Sasha from Rabbit Angel Soldier Thief
• Silver Linings is her personal family story and a sequel is planned
• Katrina reads and researches history through personal accounts. She likes to find lesser-known stories of World War II
• She plots her stories and has a clear plan of the way the plot will be structured
• When Katrina is writing one of her novels, she writes every day of the week and often becomes totally absorbed in the journey of her characters. Each book from this series takes 8-9 months to write.
• Her new books - another Lottie Perkins title and a new series about a character named Frances Bloom.

In November Katrina Nannestad ran a competition where people sent in their own paper doll creations. Take a look here.

After reading All the Beautiful Things you will want to read every book by Katrina Nannestad especially her stories set during World War II -   

Rabbit, Soldier, Angel, Thief; Waiting for the Storks; We are Wolves

Here are some other companion books:

The Little Riders

I am reading this one at the moment so I will talk further about it here in the coming weeks. 

Check out the Kirkus review.

Goodnight Songs by Margaret Wise Brown

Goodnight Songs are a set of previously unpublished lullabies by Margaret Wise Brown with illustrations by twelve different illustrators. I knew six of the names and six I needed to investigate.  You already know I do enjoy books like this that bring together the work of different illustrators. 

Jonathan Bean; Carin Berger; Sophie Blackall; Linda Bleck; Renata Liwska; Christopher Silas Neal; Zachariah O'Hora; Eric Puybaret; Sean Qualls; Isabel Roxas; Melissa Sweet; and Dan Yaccarino. The cover illustration is by Isabel Roxas. You can see more of her books here. My fabourite pages are the ones by Eric Puybaret (from France) and Sophie Blackall.

Melissa Sweet

Watch this video to see and hear some of the illustrators and learn more about how this book came to be discovered and published. 

Listen to a two-minute audio sample here of the first lullaby - The Noon Balloon. There are links here to all of the songs (but this site does have advertisements). You can see all the pages from Goodnight Songs here. 

As for the poetry, it feels wonderfully, authentically Margaret Wise Brown. Though full of fanciful ideas and imagery, Brown’s work never gets to be “too much” for kids to digest. Her specialty has always been simple words and phrases, rocking repetition, and a youthful perspective—a kid’s-eye view, so to speak. These new poems are no different and employ the familiar language and lilt of her classics. Barnes and Noble

"One can hope to make a child laugh or feel clear and happy-headed as he follows the simple rhythm to its logical end. It can jog him with the unexpected and comfort him with the familiar, lift him for a few minutes from his own problems of shoelaces that won't tie, and busy parents and mysterious clock time, into the world of a bug or a bear or a bee or a boy living in the timeless world of a story." Margaret Wise Brown

Goodnight Songs was published in 2014 so it is now sadly out of print but if you can find a copy and you have a music teacher in your school you should share this book which comes with a CD so you can hear and sing each of the twelve lullabies. 

'Twas the Night Before Christmas illustrated by Matt Tavares

I picked this book up at a recent charity book sale. I only paid $1 but this book now retails for over AUS$43. I have seen many editions of The Night Before Christmas which is attributed to Clement Moore but this one caught my eye because as the Kirkus review says:

Tavares provides monochromatic pencil illustrations with old-fashioned details and a period setting complementary with the poem’s original period, but his sophisticated perspectives and cinematic lighting pull the whole into the modern era. ... The moody illustrations suggest the drama and excitement of the magical night in an unusual way.

Here is the newer edition:

Read more here on Matt Tavares web page

I previously talked about this book by illustrated by Matt Tavares:

Dasher

Books written and illustrated by Matt Tavares

Zachary's Ball, Candlewick, 2000

Oliver's Game, Candlewick, 2004

Mudball, Candlewick, 2005

Henry Aaron's Dream, Candlewick, 2010

There Goes Ted Williams, Candlewick, 2012

Becoming Babe Ruth, Candlewick, 2013

Growing Up Pedro, Candlewick, 2015

Crossing Niagara, Candlewick, 2016

Red & Lulu, Candlewick, 2017

Dasher, Candlewick, 2019

Hoops, Candlewick, 2023

Dasher Can't Wait For Christmas, Candlewick, 2023

Books illustrated by Matt Tavares

'Twas the Night Before Christmas, Anonymous, Candlewick 2002

Jack and the Beanstalk, E. Nesbit, Candlewick, 2006

Iron Hans, retold by Stephen Mitchell, Candlewick, 2007

Lady Liberty: A Biography, Doreen Rappaport, Candlewick, 2008

The Gingerbread Pirates, Kristin Kladstrup, Candlewick, 2009

Jack's Path of Courage, Doreen Rappaport, Disney, 2010

Over the River and Through the Wood, L. Maria Child, Candlewick, 2011

Helen's Big World, Doreen Rappaport, Disney, 2012

Jubilee!, Alicia Potter, Candlewick, 2014

Lighter Than Air, Candlewick, 2017

A Ben of All Trades, Michael J. Rosen, Candlewick, 2020

Twenty-One Steps, Jeff Gottesfeld, Candlewick, 2021

The Shape of Things, Dean Robbins, Knopf, 2024

Lion of the Sky by Ritu Hemani

"How can anyone draw a line

between neighbors?

between brothers?

between friends?"

"Even if all the Hindus

in the world stop liking

all the Muslims in the world,

I never will."

Raj is twelve. He is a Hindu boy who loves flying kites with his grandfather and his best friend. He dreams of winning the big kite competition. Iqbal is his best friend but he is Muslim and India is about to be divided by partition. Their precious friendship will be cut in half just as their country is divided and their homes now become places of danger and violence.  This is so confusing - it is all because some one from far away has drawn a line on a map.  

People smile with tight lips,

and it's no coincidence

that everyone is dressed in white

the colour we wear 

when someone dies.

Raj and his family become refugees and they have to move from Hyderabad in Sindh to Bombay. The train journey is dreadful and all their possessions are taken by thieves and then the most unimaginable thing happens - in the chaos and confusion Raj's sister Maja aged nine disappears.

This book is sure to make you curious about the partition of India and also about traditional Indian foods. 

We sit down

to a breakfast of dal pakwan,

the creamy-flavoured lentils,

spicy mint coriander chutney

and deep-fried crispy sweetbread

mingling in my mouth

before I swallow with relish.

... with our baskets filled with

diamond-shaped Kaju mithai.

I inhale the scent

of cashew nuts and cardamom

and hope there will be some left over ...

The blended scent

of saffron and cardamom

fills the air

as Amma prepares to slice

her freshly rolled varo.

With careful force

she cuts across the center,

and I lick my lips,

imagining the sweet crunch

of pistachios, almonds, 

cashew nuts, and poppy seeds

with hardened caramel.

The British have left India and Raj is also caught up in the politics of the times. His brother explains:

You would not be sad

if you knew what they have stolen

how they have treated us,

burning out fingers to serve 

them phulko, while they burn

our money and drink out chai. ...

They charge unfair taxes on salt,

take the cotton, spices, 

and crops from our land,

use the modern railways you boast of

to steal what is ours,

and sell it back at inflated prices ...

They keep every last rupee,

while our country starves,

they look at us like we're

uncivilized dogs ...

This is a complex story about a time in history that will be unfamiliar to most young readers aged 10+ here in Australia but it is well worth the reading journey. I am quoting in full the book description by the author:

An evocative historical novel in verse about a boy and his family who are forced to flee their home and become refugees after the British Partition of India. Twelve-year-old Raj is happiest flying kites with his best friend, Iqbal. As their kites soar, Raj feels free, like his beloved India soon will be, and he can’t wait to celebrate their independence. But when a British lawyer draws a line across a map, splitting India in two, Raj is thrust into a fractured world. With Partition declared, Hindu, Sikh, and Muslim families are torn apart—and Raj’s Hindu and Iqbal’s Muslim families are among them. Forced to flee and become refugees, Raj’s family is left to start over in a new country. After suffering devastating losses, Raj must summon the courage to survive the brutal upheaval of both his country and his heart. Inspired by the author’s true family history, Lion of the Sky is a deeply moving coming-of-age tale about identity, belonging, and the power of hope.

Listen to an audio sample here. I read Lion of the Sky as an ebook. The hardcover novel with 416 pages is way too expensive for your library here in Australia. It was published in 2024 so I imagine there will eventually be a paperback edition. 

There are some powerful words of wisdom in this book:

"Holding on to your anger is like drinking poison and expecting your enemy to die."

"Because we don't need your kind and my kind ... only kindness."

Ultimately this is a tale about being lion-hearted, soaring after falling many times, and still reaching for the sky. It’s also about lines that divide, that cut across hearts and countries, and that are seared into memories. An exquisite, memorable story about new beginnings and the quest to belong. Kirkus Star review

Here is an interview with the author. Lion of the Sky is her debut book. 

Companion book:

The Night Diary

Shooting Kabul

Two Little Trains by Margaret Wise Brown illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon

"Two little trains went down the track, two little trains went west. Puff, puff, puff and chug, chug chug, two little trains to the West."

On the cover you can see the real train - the silver train - at the station. On the station there are two cases and a present. The present is a toy train and as you turn inside the present is unwrapped and then the dual story begins. On the left side we watch the journey of the huge silver train across a variety of landscapes meanwhile on the right or facing page the little toy train navigates landscapes inside the house. This idea is just genius and so different from the interpretations of the text by the two previous illustrators. My edition from 2001 takes this simple text to a whole new and completely wonderful level.

Look down, look down that long steel track

That long steel track to the west.

Take your time when you read this with your young reading companion because each pairing of outside and inside is such a visual treat. See inside here.

Two Little trains was first published in 1949 with illustrations by Jean Charlot. In 2000 the publisher released a new edition with illustrations by Greg Pizzoli. All editions are now out of print but you might be lucky and find one in a library - hopefully the one illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon.

Image from the Jean Charlot foundation

The Dillons illustrate both the charming domestic interiors and the sweep of landscape with elegant geometric forms, colors of great depth and richness, and their magical touch ... The relationship between the two trains is also illuminated on the cover, where, next to the silver train sits a set of luggage with a beribboned gift whose box is stamped with the image of the toy train. Kirkus Star review

I am little bit obsessed with Margaret Wise Brown (1920-1952) although oddly not because of her really famous book Goodnight Moon. Luckily my friend from Kinderbookswitheverything has plenty of books by Margaret Wise Brown in her school library but of course this is only a tiny portion of her amazing output which was over 100 books.