Andrew McLean Aussie Bites and Aussie Nibbles

It is Christmas and the tradition is to give the garbage men (garbos) a gift such as some beer. The me of the title is Mickey. He agrees to help some older kids collect beer left out for the garbos. Sebby is his duck - the one on the cover. Sebby or Sebastian made so much noise when the kids left their house at 4.30am Mickey thought the only solution was to bring him along. 

The older boys are so greedy and they pinch way more than they can carry and of course there is a disaster and all the bottles are smashed. But Mickey still has some under his shirt. It is impossible to carry beer and a duck so his brother puts Sebby into a nearby garbage bin. Oh no Sebby is picked up by the garbos and he is heading for the tip or perhaps the garbos think he is a gift for their Christmas dinner! And there is another name in the title - Stee - that is Stephanie. She is the one who eventually is able to help Mickey retrieve his precious duck. I wonder if this book (1988) would be published today. It does contain a lot of beer and beer drinking and the dad even drives the kids home after he shares a beer with the guys at the tip. 

Andrew McLean posted a picture of the cover of Sebby, Stee, the Garbos and Me by Jane Godwin - Andrew did the cover and internal illustrations.

Here is what he said in his post:

Sebby,Stee,the Garbos and Me(was) a Puffin Aussie Bites paperback book. Written by Jane Godwin and illustrated by me. Published in 1988. ...  Jane Godwin wrote a wonderful adventure story that begins when Sebby starts quacking loud enough to wake everyone up, Mike can’t just leave him behind so off they set together and that’s when the adventure begins. ...  The cover is one of few that I have done with soft pastels on dark pastel paper. ...  The book sold very well and earned more than some picture books that I might have worked on for months.

Image source Instagram

Here is an interview with Andrew McLean. 

The library I visit each week still has nearly all the Aussie and Nibbles titles. I have talked about these two wonderful series previously. Next year a new series will be published here in Australia called 'Your Kids Next Read' aimed at younger readers. I have every finger and toe crossed that they will be just as fantastic and contain the truly wonderful stories as we previously had in the Aussie Bites and Aussie Nibbles. And of course I am hoping for fantastic illustrations and covers!

I went hunting for more titles from these two series illustrated by Andrew McLean:

Crusher Kevin

Bio from Walker Books: Andrew McLean grew up in the Victorian country town of Bairnsdale. He trained as a painter and teacher, and taught in secondary schools before becoming a lecturer in painting and drawing at Caulfield Institute of Technology. He has been a full-time artist now for more than thirty years. Andrew and his wife Janet have created many picture books together, and Andrew also illustrates books written by other authors. Many of his books have been award winners: he has won the CBCA Book of the Year Award three times.

Here is an image I found with lots of the books from these two series. I am sure you will see some you recognise: