Spirit by Cherri Ryan illustrated by Christina Booth

To me, the title of Spirit sums up the theme of the book. It conjures up the strength of spirit that each of us has inside ourselves and our character has to find when Spirit encounters a big crash. 

Cherri Ryan

I built a ship from this and that.

I named her Spirit.

Could Spirit sail?

I knew she could.

In the garden Spirit's handkerchief sail helps her glide across the lily pond. Over the coming days the little girl takes Spirit into larger and larger bodies of water. At night, in her dreams, she imagines herself on board her boat oiling the hull, polishing the deck, tightening the sails. But this little vessel is fragile. What will happen when she is pushed against the rocks?

"I searched for her, left and right. Where was she? There! I plummeted into the reeds. I lifted my broken Spirit and cradled her. All through the night, I tended her, and mended her, from this and that. By morning I knew Spirit was not broken. She was stronger. My Spirit was stronger than ever before."

How did I miss this book back in 2018? And how did the CBCA miss it in their 2019 Notables? This is one of those special books you could share with your younger group aged 6+ and also with upper Primary readers. Christina Booth is a fabulous Australian illustrator - you can see more of her books here. We (IBBY Australia) did contact Christina Booth asking if she might like to participate in our Mini Masterpiece art auction. If we run this again in 2027 I hope we can entice her to support us - I would love to own a piece of her art. 

Spirit is a NSW Premier's Reading Challenge title. If you read PRC titles your library Spirit is a K-2 PRC title [31130] or you could encourage a teacher of Grades 4-6 to share this with their class. Sailing fans will enjoy all the nautical references but there are also deeper themes to consider and discuss. 

Here is an interview with the author and a quote:

Approximately five years ago, I came up with a story idea, which I originally called ‘My ship won’t sink’ which was about a child going through some difficult times and he turned his bed into a pirate-style ship and added planks and all sort of bits to it whenever he felt he needed to add strength to his life. That story sat in my mind for a long time while I worked on other things. One day, I was driving to work when the story began to change in my mind and I pulled over my car and scribbled it onto the back of a receipt in my glove box as I knew that this was how the story was meant to be. At that stage it was called ‘Hope’ but other than a few small changes, it was very similar to the final story. I learned that a child’s first sailing boat is called an ‘Opti’ which is short for ‘Optimists’ and I thought that concept also captured my story.

Reading Time said: This is a special picture book that sends a message of persistence and resilience, and the importance of trying again and again if we do not first succeed. Highly recommended for all school and public libraries, this is one to watch out for.

This is a wonderfully positive story to read with young children, reaffirming the reality of not always being successful but encouraging them to try again. Read Plus

Spirit is a deceptively simple story about a boat being mended after each foray into the world but as the title indicates Spirit is also a parable for everyone who has ever set out into the perilous unknown seeking their destiny and as such is a positive message to children to persevere and believe in themselves and their dreams. Story Links

Companion book:

The Little Boat

Bapa's Last Canoe by Maree McCarthy Yoelu illustrated by Samantha Campbell

"Bapa is a traditional canoe maker. 

He makes them out of kapok trees."

Today we are going for a long canoe ride to fish and visit family - we have done this before but this trip is special because it will be last one. 

The repeated refrain will make this book easy to share with your youngest students but it also (if read slowly) could help add that all important layer of poignancy and sadness for your older readers and lead to a discussion about loss of culture and loss of cultural traditions. 

On the way we sing, we tell stories, we fish, we listen, 
we look, we laugh! I love my country!

"We must leave our country ... I don't want to leave my home."

"Bapa lets the canoe go and it drifts away."

Baba's Last Canoe was published last month by Magaba Books - thanks for my review copy.

Publisher blurb: Bapa’s Last Canoe is a simple, heartfelt picture book about Bapa, the author’s grandfather, a traditional canoe maker, and the making of his last canoe. Bapa takes his three daughters (the author’s mother and aunties) away on a canoe ride to connect to family and Country for the last time before his daughters leave for school in the city. They set off on the long journey and along the way they camp out and meet family, fish, roast periwinkles and longbums on the fire, tell stories and laugh.

“I love my country so much. It’s going to be hard to say goodbye, but I know one day we’ll all return… and we’ll sing, tell stories, fish and laugh again like we used to in Bapa’s canoe.”

• Take a look at this detailed review by The Bottom Shelf.
• Listen to an interview with Maree McCarthy Yeolu on ABC Darwin. 
• Read about the Kapok Tree.
• Read about canoe making.

This book is based on the story of Liman (Harry Morgan) who was a respected Wadjigamy man born at Mandjimamany (Point Blaze) in the Northern Territory in 1916. He was a canoe maker, hunter, community mediator and family man, who lived off the land and travelled the seas. Lipman frequently travelled the coasts with his wife Kitty and their kids in their canoe visiting family and exploring country. The author's mother shared her memory of the last canoe journey. "I could see in my dad's face, that he was sad, he was sad."

Maree McCarthy Yeolu is also the author of Brother Moon. Read more about Samantha Campbell here.

I would pair Bapa's Last Canoe with this book:

Leaving home behind and sending children to a faraway (white) school reminded me of this book from Canada which explores lost culture (Content warning this book is for older and very mature readers).