Great children's books for home or classroom

UPDATE: Quick update to the post that follows and was written last week. This week ALDI is selling some brilliant Australian picture books, many that are award winners. These include 'Edward the Emu' by Sheena Knowles, 'Olga the Brolga' by Rod Clement and other excellent books by Jackie French & Bruce Whatley. All for $4.99.

Regular readers of this blog will know that I've discovered at least two previous caches of 'book treasure' at my local ALDI store. Known more for the food items from international companies sold at cheap prices, occasionally their centre aisle promotional products feature some good children's books. This week the Australian stores are featuring quality non-fiction at VERY cheap prices.

Part of the selection of DK Eyewitness titles

ALDI has a whole range of the excellent Dorling Kindersley (DK) 'Eyewitness' non-fiction books. While there are almost 200 titles in this series, ALDI has about 20 of them on sale for $2.99 each. DK has sold over 50 million of these books, published in 36 languages. The books have been available in an ever-increasing range of titles for over 20 years. They helped to revolutionise non-fiction books for school-age children and young adults. The key to their success has been the non-linear way that content is presented with lots of wonderful illustrations and graphics and bite-sized chunks of information. Another feature of the books is that each page has a chunk of slightly larger and easier text, with more detailed information in slightly smaller type associated with other detailed images and graphics (see samples below). The above photo shows a selection of those available and includes 'Medieval Life', 'Climate Change', 'Aztec', 'Ancient Rome', 'Seashore', 'Shark, 'Volcano', 'Flight', 'Ancient Egypt', 'Pyramid', 'Shakespeare', 'Great Scientists', 'Shark, 'Arms and Armour' and 'Predator'. At $2.99 AUS they are very cheap and well below the recommended price on the Australian DK website.

The books use many illustrations and graphics and short text segments

Each comes with a large poster

The books are actually of excellent quality and were designed for readers from about 12 years to late high school. They are softcover but quite durable. They are beautifully designed and illustrated and filled with information that has been prepared by expert teams.  For example, Dr Simon James has written the book on 'Ancient Rome', with the support of the photography and resources of the British Museum.  If your children like history and science they will find a wealth of wonderful knowledge in these books. Each book is 72 pages long and is quarto sized with full-colour illustrations throughout.  You can 'look inside' the books on the DK website (not that it's an easy site to get around, use the search function). The books available at ALDI all come with a large wall chart inside the front cover (see below). The books are ideal for teachers and classroom and library use, or for children to explore at home. You can check out the 'Ancient Rome' book HERE.

DK has also just released a wide range of books similar to this range in e-book format via iTunes HERE.

You can read some of my other posts on non-fiction books and their value HERE.

Great New Children's Books for 5-18 year-olds (July 2012)

This post is my latest review of children's books.  All except 1 or 2 have been published this year. They are mostly Australian authors with a few English and one Canadian. They arranged in an age appropriate order from youngest to oldest.

Picture books for beginning readers

1. 'Demolition', by Sally Dutton (illustrated by Brian Lovelock). Published by Walker Books (2012).

Swing the ball. Swing the ball. Thump and smash and whack. 
Bring the top floors tumbling down. Bang! Clang! Crack! 
Work the jaws. Work the jaws.
Bite and tear and slash.
Dinosaurs had teeth like this!
Rip! ROAR! CRASH!

What rollicking action, fun and wonderful play with language as busy workers and noisy machines demolish a building and build a new playground. This book is a great follow up to Sally's wonderful book 'Roadworks', which won the Picture Book category at the New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards in 2009. Brian Lovelock brilliantly illustrates this book with bright, bold and rugged illustrations to match the excellent text.

2. 'Dotty Inventions and some real ones too', by Roger McGough (illustrated by Holly Swain). Published by Frances Collins Childrens Books (2005).

Curious children just love creating new things, or strange distortions of old things. Creating a new type of dinosaur, a strange spacecraft, or a car that can fly, to name a few. This book taps into that urge to invent everyday things. Professor Dotty Dabble uses a mix of fantasy and science to create some crazy things, and a few sensible ones. Professor Dabble sets off to London with Digby her pet robot. The aim is to enter a competition for the world's best invention. While reflecting on the professor's invention we learn about many real inventions like the parachute, frisbees, Velcro, the biro and lots more. Children aged 5-8 years will just love this crazy book. The slightly stylised illustrations by Holly Swain are as lively and as much fun as the text. A wonderful, quirky and interesting book that teaches and entertains at the same time.

3. 'The Greatest Liar on Earth' "A true story" by Mark Greenwood and illustrated by Frané Lessac. Published by Walker Books (2012).

I love the winning team of Mark Greenwood and Frané Lessac (see my review of their work and interview HERE). I've reviewed many of their wonderful books on this blog; two recent notable examples were 'Simpson and his Donkey' and 'Ned Kelly and the Green Sash'. 'Simpson and his Donkey' was CBCA Honour Book for the Eve Pownall Award for Information Books in 2009. This latest book is the story of Louis de Rougemont, a man who turned the world upside down in the 1800s with tales of great adventure. This book brings to life the rise to fame and eventual fall from grace of perhaps the greatest liar of them all. It is a story in which truth and fantasy become horribly confused. It is brilliantly told by Mark Greenwood and as usual Frané Lessac's bright, simple and unique illustrations engage child and adult readers alike. The book ends with a wonderful postscript that shows how some of Louis de Rougemont's stories were not quite as far-fetched as people might have thought. Plain coincidence, or was there some truth to his stories?


A picture book for older readers 

4. 'In the Beech Forest' by Gary Crew and illustrated by Den Scheer. Published by Fordstreet Publishing (2012).

My first peek at this remarkable new book led me to put it straight down again; almost scared by the strange images the youthful Den Scheer (sorry Den) had drawn. What type of picture book is this, I thought? My second peek, led me first to the words and the realisation that this was a picture book for readers aged 10 to 100! The exquisitely crafted text of the less youthful Gar Crew (sorry Gary) captured me first. In fact, Crew's opening paragraph had me as a reader. And as I glanced across at Den Scheer's haunting image of a boy wandering into a forest I entered the forest too! As I read further, image and word captured me with their composite story.

"He was an ordinary boy, nothing special, and he went into the forest alone. He had no particular purpose other than to look, as adventurers do, or to slay imaginary monsters, as children do, so he held his head high, and gripped his toy sword, in case". 

 As the boy wanders into a beech forest, he remembers the words of his father who no doubt experienced this forest in his way - 'Antarctic beech; ancient, primal. The oldest of trees.' It was here that the images spun their magic, helping to bring something of the fears of a child when alone flooding back to me as reader, five decades after they were experienced.

As the boy negotiates the 'real' and imaginary world of the forest, he remembers the experiences of his computer games, and the forest is suddenly much more threatening. Each tree, rock, shaft of light and shadow brings new fears, but then he thinks of 'the safety of home'. The valiant young hero continues his journey and the forest's heart, and his own heart, are revealed. There is life in the forest, as real as the blood in our veins and he is in the presence of both. 'So the boy left the forest, wondrously renewed'.  

Read this book and marvel at the power of words, image and book design in unison! Congratulations to author, illustrator and the book production team, so many subtle 'touches' (love the buttons for the page numbers!).

Chapter books for younger readers


5. 'Little Witch' by Juliette MacIver, illustrated by Cat Chapman. Published by Walker Books in the Walker Stories series (2012).

'Walker Stories' are one of a number of new series for young readers ready to transition from picture books to chapter books. Each title features three highly illustrated, individual short stories linked by one character. In this book, we meet Little Witch who's favourite things are broom races with her best friend Billy Wicked and lemon-and-slime ice cream with crunchy spider sprinkles. She would love to eat marshmallows for breakfast too, but she’s stuck with toadflakes. Little Witch doesn’t mean to get into mischief. Somehow though, she always does. This is a lovely 60-page (large print) book that 6-7 year olds will enjoy. Its themes include friendship, politeness and tolerance all mixed with a dash of magic! MacIver and Chapman are both from New Zealand.


6. 'Come into this poem' by Tony Mitton and illustrated by Caroline Holden. Published by Frances Collins Children's Books (2011) and distributed in Australia by Walker Books.

This is an exceptionally varied collection of poetry for children aged 7-10 years. It includes lyric verse, legend, everyday narrative verse like 'The Sandwich', riddles and lots more. The book showcases the versatility of Mitton with delightful line drawings from Caroline Holden that add to the collection.

7. 'The Language of Cat and other poems' by Rachel Rooney and illustrated by Ellie Jenkins. Published by Frances Collins (2011) as a companion to the Tony Mitton collection.

Find out who cast the P from a spell; read about the queen who dreams of eating burgers and chips; see what happened to the friend who swallowed a DVD; best of all, learn the language of Cat. With wordplay and riddles, and poems that make you laugh, tell you stories and make you think. This is such an excellent and varied collection of poetry that it's hard to believe that it is a debut collection from an exciting new children's poet. There are some remarkable poems in the collection. I love 'Mirror', 'Halfway', 'Boast' - "I've got a friend who swallowed a lie-detector. Honest!" No I love them all. The poems are a little more challenging than the Mitton collection. Once again, beautifully illustrated, this time by Rachel Rooney. Great for children aged 8-11 years.

7. 'The Windvale Sprites' written and illustrated Mackenzie Crook. Published by Faber and Faber (Nov 2011).

Many readers of this blog will know the author from his starring role in television comedy 'The Office' as Gareth, or as one of the pirates in the 'Pirates of the Caribbean' movies. This debut novel is wonderful. How can a 40-year-old crazy man write such a sensitive story about a young boy who sets out to discover if fairies exist?  The fantastic line drawings sparingly used are also his work. The book was nominated for the 'Waterstones Children's Book Prize' in the fiction section for children aged 5 to 12 years.

A great storm sweeps through the countryside and Asa Brown wakes to find an unrecognisable town. Trees and power lines are down and houses have collapsed. As he explores the debris he sees something remarkable in his own garden. Floating in a pond face up, is a creature he'd only ever seen or heard of in storybooks. Not more than 6 inches long with large black eyes and four transparent wings - it was a fairy! A mission begins that leads him to the lost journals of an eccentric, Benjamin Tooth, and a quest to discover what he could about fairies.  He sets out on a secret trip to Windvale Moor, where he discovers much more than he could have expected.

Books for older readers

8. 'Other Brother' by Simon French. Published by Walker Books (2012).

'Other Brother' is the latest novel for older readers from acclaimed Australian author Simon French. Simon will be known by many readers for his brilliant novel 'Cannily, Cannily' published first in 1981 but released again just recently by Walker. This was Simon's first novel, that won Book of the Year in 1982 in the CBCA awards and was made into a very successful film as well. Of course, Simon has written many books since and all have been well received and he has won many awards. His latest offering will not disappoint devotees and new readers.

This is a story about an ordinary boy, in an ordinary family, in an ordinary town. But like every Simon French book, in the ordinariness of life he manages to find telling stories. Kieran is an unremarkable kid in a family that loves him. He meets a cousin on the day of his father’s birthday - an unhappy 'meeting' - and things are changed. It will be two years until he sees Bon again. This boy, who is different to Kieran, turns up in his life again at an inconvenient time. Kieran seeks to be part of the in crowd, and then Bon turns up at his school, on the same day as an 'interesting' girl named Julia. And so begins a struggle within him as he tries to work out where he 'sits' in life and, what type of person he really is. What is most important to him? Will the need for popularity win out, or will he stand with his cousin in the face of bullying and other challenges? This is an excellent novel for readers aged 10+ who like Kieran need to deal with issues of identity and acceptance and the negotiation of complex relationships and how to judge others. All this, while they are trying to grow up.

9. 'Forget me not' by Sue Lawson. Published by Black Dog Books (2012).

In the centenary year of the launch and sinking of the Titanic, Sue Lawson has contributed a wonderful piece of historical fiction. The story is based on facts about the Titanic, but uses a fictional family, the Gilmores. The story tracks their experiences on the eight days of the ill-fated liner, using the alternating voices of teenage siblings Thomas and Evelyn as narrators. Thomas is excited about the journey and a new life, but not so Evelyn, who sees it as taking her away from all she knows and loves

"I am filled with the worst feeling. Everyone says it is the safest, most luxurious ship in the world, but something about it is extremely unsettling."

The cross over from fact fiction is bolstered at the end of the book with a two-page glossary of nautical terms, some 'real' people who were on the Titanic, and a detailed timeline of the events of the voyage and the days that followed.  The true story is one not easily forgotten generations later, and this book will help a new generation to grasp something of the calamity evoked by the word 'Titanic'. Ideal reading for children aged 10+.

10. 'Rainbow Street Pets' by Wendy Orr. Published by Allen & Unwin (2012).

Wendy Orr has written six wonderful multi-chapter stories about kids and animals; all within the one 352-page book. While the animals and their relationship to the children is always central, each story is set against a backdrop of different families, complex relationships and the Rainbow Street Shelter for animals. They are delightful stories about the companionship and love pets offer, as well as the responsibility, pain and complexities that pets can bring to families.

The author was born in Edmonton, Canada, and spent her childhood in various places across Canada, France and the USA, but she now lives in Australia, on the beautiful Mornington Peninsula in Victoria. She is the author of a number of award-winning books for children, including 'Nim's Island', 'Nim at Sea', 'Mokie and Bik', 'The Princess and her Panther', 'Raven's Mountain' and for teenagers, 'Peeling the Onion'.

11. 'Metro Winds' by Isobelle Carmody. Published by Allen & Unwin (2012).

Isobelle Carmody is one of Australia's most loved fantasy writers who also has a big following in Europe and North America.  She is perhaps known best internationally for her brilliant 'Obernewtyn Chronicles', however, she has been prolific and has won many awards for her work. For example, 'The Gathering' won the Children's Literature Peace Prize (1993) and the CBCA Book of the Year Award (1994) and 'The Red Wind' (first book in 'The Kingdom of the Lost series') won the 2011 CBCA Book of the Year Award (for Younger Readers). The back cover blurb alone is interesting enough and promising:

'In this stand alone novel for young teenagers and young adults (ages 16+) a girl is sent across the world to discover her destiny in the dark tunnels of the Metro. Another seeks a lost sister in a park where winter lasts forever. A young man fulfils a dying wish. A mother works magic to summon a true princess for her son. A man seeks an ending to his story. An old man goes in search of his shadow.'

But the first lines have a hook that will get most readers. It begins:

‘So there was a girl. Young but not too young. A face as unformed as an egg, so that one could not tell if she would turn out to be fair or astonishingly ugly. She was to be sent to a city in another land by a mother and father in the midst of a divorce.'

The book is a collection of five short stories, with the to be expected elements of fantasy, but it is still very much situated in the 'real' world.  As with all great writers, Carmody's words are used sparingly, and powerfully. They evoke emotions, imagery and stretch imaginations. Wonderful stuff!

As a postscript, let me add that Isobelle Carmody's previous collection of short stories 'Green Monkey Dreams' (1996) has been released again by Allen & Unwin in 2012. Two great collections for older readers to enjoy (16+ to young adult).

12. 'Sea Hearts' by Margo Lanagan. Published by Allen & Unwin (2012)

Margo Lanagan is a multi-award winning, internationally acclaimed Australian author well known for her exciting speculative fiction. This story tells of an unremarkable young woman, Misskaella Prout who struggles to find her place in the stormy and isolated island of Rollrock. She discovers she has natural magic gifts and can use them to coax selkies (mythological creatures found in Icelandic, Irish, and Scottish folklore) out of their sealskins. Her world is changed and is the community in which she lives. One by one the local men are captivated by the allure of the beautiful sea-wife. Will all the men fall captive to her as all the 'real' women leave the community. This is a powerful story of desire and revenge, human weakness, as well as all-consuming love and even a dash of loyalty.

Stimulating the imagination of the gifted child

Above: Imaginative creation with mixed media

Once giftedness was defined primarily in terms of intellectual skills and knowledge that could be tested with a narrow range of intelligence tests. But increasingly we recognise that giftedness has multiple dimensions (see for example my post on Howard Gardner's Multiple Intelligences). While some gifted children demonstrate exceptional abilities across a wide range of capabilities (e.g. memory, language, mathematics, problem solving etc), others are gifted in narrower and more specific ways (e.g. visual arts, music, leadership, sport etc). If you are interested in more information on the nature of giftedness you can read a previous detailed post HERE.

Imaginative play starts early

One aspect of giftedness is rich imagination. While I addressed the importance of the imagination in a previous post earlier in the year (HERE), I want to revisit this in more practical detail.  While all children demonstrate imaginative qualities at a very young age, many seem to lose much of their uninhibited almost natural ability. But some grow and demonstrate this to a greater extent as they age. The gifted demonstrate high levels of imagination, which in turn reflects high levels of creativity and significant knowledge. The latter is important, for creativity requires knowledge (e.g. knowledge of subject, language, mathematics etc), and in most instances associated high levels of skill and proficiency (e.g. hand-eye coordination, observation, computation, bodily dexterity, memory, verbal fluency etc).  

Imagination requires the mind to take existing data or knowledge and reintroduce it in a variety of new forms. If your child demonstrates to a significantly greater extent than most children - a large number of the following types of imaginative activity, they are likely to be gifted. If so, they will need support, encouragement and some adaptation by teachers and parents. I will list just some ways in which imagination is demonstrated and how each form can be stimulated.

1. The ability to invent or create novel or original things, or look at their world in unusual ways?

Here a 6 yr old looks at prey from above

Encourage children to look for different perspectives with lots of 'what if?' questions. What if the penguin's wing was bigger? What if we tried to do this another way? What if we had a small city in Antarctica? What if 'The Wind in the Willows' was set in Australia not England? What if you spent most of your life flying, how differently would you understand the world?

2. Using real world objects and knowledge in unusual ways?

Most 'what if' questions can end up here but there are other paths. It requires children to investigate their immediate world (this requires skills), to see the unusual and observe things that others don't notice.

Simple cubby made from a box

• Make a cubby house from boxes, old sheets etc (see previous post on cubbies HERE).
• Create a clubhouse in the back yard with membership rules, club motto, a logo and so on. 
• Create a new board game with a theme of interest. You can use many formats adapted from existing games or create a new form. It requires them to think of a theme (dragons, 'Polly Pocket', Spider Man etc), a format (e.g. series of boxes with a start and finish), rules for playing and scoring etc. 

3. Encourage the child's extreme curiosity that is typically demonstrated by experimentation, investigation and in-depth study

Encourage the study of a topic of interest (but don't be afraid to nudge them on to new areas) by helping to find books, key websites, by taking them to movies, enrichment activities, museums, zoos, special sites, and by helping them to acquire knowledge, buying key tools (e.g. binoculars, microscope, sewing machine, tools). Help them to start an insect collection, a resource book on whales, a short history of your community, a study of one animal, a short talk on the challenges of interplanetary space, a short video on a topic (see my previous post on simple animation HERE), or write their own blog (see my post on children as bloggers HERE).

4. Encourage children to use extended vocabulary, complex sentence structure and varied language forms.

• This is perhaps the easiest area to enrich. Immerse your children in a rich diet of poetry, literature and drama. Share literature and talk about it, make it a key part of the home or classroom. 
• Play with language, rhyme, introduce new words and technical terms never use an approximate word in the face. 
• Play with words as part of life, as you play with your children, drive with them in the car, walk with them along the road. 
• Play word games with them and make it fun! Dr Seuss is a great place to start with general language silliness (see my post on Dr Seuss HERE). 
• Give them new words in the midst of real life experiences. 
• Introduce them to literature beyond their immediate experience.

5. Introduce your children to imagery and metaphorical language.

The gifted child will begin to become aware that language has more than literal meanings. Point out some of this richness, encourage them to observe it, and eventually to use it. Point out that language is enriched by simile, metaphor, homophones, homonyms and so on. Again, this can be done in everyday life as you play, travel, share meals (see my previous posts that deal with this HERE , HERE & HERE)

6. Encourage imaginative discovery in as many varied situations as possible.

Play is one way to achieve this, sometimes with adults, sometimes alone, and also with other children (see my previous post on this HERE).

Another way is to provide rich firsthand experiences from a very young age. Many of these are very basic:

• The squelch of mud between toes on a wet day in the back yard.
• Running on a sandy beach for the first time.
• Watching a worm wiggle in the palm of a small hand.
• Going outside on a dark and cloudless night to gaze and talk about the stars (if you have an iPad, you might use Star Walk).
• Watching a bird build its nest in a tree in the playground in spring.
• Doing hand painting.
• Observing chickens as they grow bigger day by day, collecting the eggs, sweeping the cage.

7. Encourage your child to try to imagine and generate multiple solutions to problems of varied kinds

This will include problems that are verbal, mathematical, scientific and even practical in nature. Let your children see how you or others solve problems. Draw attention to novel solutions that engineers, doctors, builders and artists come up with. Encourage them to discuss and generate novel solutions to hypothetical as well as real problems.





 Summing Up

Some will look at the above list and feel as if all children could benefit from them. There is truth in this, but it's a matter of degree and regularity. All children need to have their imaginations stimulated, not shut down. But the gifted child will experience painful boredom and frustration if their school experience is filled with repetitive and unchallenging work that does little to stimulate their imaginations.

You might like to consider some of the other ideas in my previous post on giftedness HERE
 

Jacob (4 years) draws Grandad from the unusual vantage point of the fish inside the aquarium looking out

Technology takes author to the bush & animals to the classroom

About Aleesah Darlison

Aleesah Darlison has written picture books and novels for children and is also a book reviewer for the Sun Herald newspaper. Aleesah loves animals! In her words, "animals have always been a part of my life, which is why they feature in so many of my stories". She travels around Australia and internationally, delivering author talks and workshops for children and adults on creative writing and marketing.

Her latest project is to offer exciting author and illustrator 'visits' to children in remote areas. This has been made possible by a partnership with Education Officers at Sydney's famous Taronga Zoo and the availability of the NSW Department of Education and Training's 'Connected Classrooms' initiative. This has provided video conferencing technology to public schools across the state, even in the most remote regions.

‘Books and Animals’ sessions with Aleesah Darlison

It’s rare that small or isolated schools have the opportunity for children’s authors or illustrators to visit. Not only are there time and distance limitations involved in travelling to outlying regions, there are also cost factors that mean country schools often miss out. Thanks to video conferencing technology, students everywhere can now benefit from having an author visit at minimal cost.

To help celebrate 2012 Book Week, children’s author, Aleesah Darlison, has developed amazing ‘Books and Animals’ video sessions in conjunction with Taronga Zoo. On Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 August, Aleesah will be joining Kristy Robberts at Taronga Western Plains Zoo (Dubbo) to run two sessions: ‘Echidnas and Aussie Animals’ and ‘Bats and Nocturnal Animals’. The sessions can then be broadcast anywhere.

The sessions focus on Aleesah’s picture books, 'Puggle’s Problem' (listed on the NSW Premier’s Reading Challenge) and 'Warambi' (shortlisted for the 2012 CBCA Eve Pownall Award for Non-Fiction and the 2012 Wilderness Society’s Environmental Award for Children’s Literature).

Several sessions are scheduled throughout each of the two days and run for 45 minutes each. The sessions are suitable for K – Year 3 and include an author talk and book reading by Aleesah plus factual information about the Aussie animals featured by Kristy Robberts. Animals at the zoo will make special guest appearances so students can see them up close and ask questions about them.

The sessions fit well within the NSW Curriculum and are supported by Puggle Packs and Bat Packs, which include Teacher’s Notes for both books. For more information, visit Aleesah’s website at: www.aleesahdarlison.com or email her at aleesah@bigpond.net.au.

NSW teachers can also make bookings at DART Connections:

http://dartconnections.org.au/upcoming/litlive.html#8-2012.

Photo courtesy 'Screen Central'

 Teacher Feedback from past video conferences:


"My class and I loved participating in the VC last week. It was very engaging for the students, and they really enjoyed the experience. Love the echolocation song!"

"Today's conference went very well and the kids couldn't stop talking about Puggles and echidnas afterwards!"

"Thank you for such a fabulous video conference. It was our first video conference and the children and staff thoroughly enjoyed it. The children were talking about it all day!"

The over-achieving parent: It could be you!

I had a scary experience recently at a park in the inner-west of Sydney while I was out with one of my daughters, her husband and two of their children. This was a time for all of us to play and have fun together. To climb on everything that could be climbed, dig sand with the mechanical shovel, pretend we were warriors defending our stone fort, trying desperately to keep the marauding hordes at bay (my grandson Sam and I were the warriors, and the hordes were, well... the local pigeons!). It was also a time to see how fast we could go down the slippery dip (that is, the kids plus my son-in-law), and for my grandson and me to ramble along the shore nearby to collect some sticks (vital to create arrows, never destined to be fired), look at emerging mangroves, discuss the wind turbine, talk about the difference between light rail and heavy rail trains, read a sign that spoke of re-vegetation near the water's edge and discuss how mangrove trees grow in water. We also discussed how people were being kept off the site, talked about the working harbour across the bay, peered at distant buildings and Sydney's great bridges and so on. There was even time for an ice cream. All the while we were there we were talking, telling each other stories, occasionally bursting into rhyme, song and laughter. It was a wonderfully enjoyable and rich time of learning.

And then something scary happened. My daughter and I noticed a woman talking VERY loudly on her mobile phone. She was there with her 7-8 year-old son who had just finished a game of Australian Rules football on an adjoining oval. It was one of those conversations that was difficult not to hear, or not to listen to, as painful as it was. I kept wondering (as did my daughter), is this lady serious? We eventually left the sandpit just near where she was sitting, led by the children to the next fun 'station'! But each time we came back near the sandpit, she seemed to be still talking loudly to the same person about the same content, and her son was still playing by himself. I'd estimate that her phone conversation lasted for over 30 minutes, most of the time they were at the park.  The following is the mum's side of the conversation. It reflects the rough record of the encounter hastily written down later on my iPhone. The conversation of course is not continuous, but it would seem that it was rather repetitive and cyclical, so it seems almost linear:

"I'm worried about his school work."
"He's under-performing, because he's deliberately not putting in the effort because he's scared he's going to lose."
"He got 73% in maths, but that was the bottom 20 in year so he got a pass..."
"It's hard for me because I'm not in classroom. I can't control what goes on there."
"He needs a goal..like, you know, what do you want to achieve with each task. So in spelling it would be every word correct, all sentence structure complete..."
"They need to tell him, now look at your portfolio and set a goal. Don't necessarily aim for 5 [i.e. I assume the reporting uses a 5 point assessment scale]. But 2x 4's and the rest 3's...."
"That will be enough to say he's succeeded this semester."
"Then we make them harder goals next semester."
"Just like in his AFL, we need to measure success. He may not win the game, but set goals, this game.. I may lose 8-20, next game 8-16."
"I'm not going to let you bench yourself because you can't 'win'."
"He needs mental toughness."

Now, I have to say that I wasn't using listening equipment, nor was my daughter. This was an animated conversation you could hear across the park. I need also to stress, that this mother no doubt loves her son and wants to do the best things she can for him. But I found this a scary conversation because I suspect that what she is doing is not in his best interests at all. Why? Let me give you just five reasons.

First, here is a parent for whom the judgement of the worth of her son's life seems to be shaped in a major way by the need for him to be successful as assessed on a limited range of academic attainment measures at school.

Second, here is parent who cannot accept that her son might not outperform the majority of his age cohort.

Third, here is a mother who wants to control her child's life so much that she almost cannot cope because she can't be in the classroom directing it.

Fourth, here is a mother who is failing to grasp that her son has worth that cannot be measured in the way she and the school is trying to do it.

Fifth, here is a mother that has missed the chance to have a variety of rich experiences with her son that she would struggle to have in many other ways.

What had both the boy and the mother missed out on? The boy missed an opportunity to learn in a manner that isn't common in most schools. The mum missed the chance to interact with her son informally at a much deeper level and to enrich his knowledge and learning at the same time. Both missed the opportunity to strengthen their relationship, listen to each other and grow in their understanding of one another. This was a significant missed opportunity.

My encouragement to readers of this blog is that if you find yourself drifting in the same direction as this mother, take a 'chill pill', to quote some of the residents of my college. Then reassess your own expectations and ask yourself, "what is driving my expectations, and what might be the consequences if left unchecked?"

'A Monster Calls' wins Carnegie & Kate Greenaway Medals - A Review

In Great Britain there are two major awards for children's books - the Carnegie Medal and the Kate Greenaway Medal (here). The Carnegie Medal is awarded to an outstanding book for children and young adult readers. The Kate Greenaway Medal is awarded for excellence in illustration. The Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) runs both awards. The winners of both 2012 medals have been announced.

In an historic announcement on June 14th both medals were awarded for one book, the first time in 75 years. Both medals have been awarded for a brilliant graphic novel 'A Monster Calls' (Walker Books) by Patrick Ness (illustrated by Jim Kay). Also worthy of note is that the young American born author also won the Carnegie medal last year for his novel 'Monsters of Men', the final book in his 'ChaosWalking' trilogy. This is only the second time this feat has been achieved.

The book, its story & my review

This is an extraordinary book, on multiple levels. The book had its genesis in the final story idea of Siobhan Dowd who died in 2007 from cancer before she could act on the idea herself. Dowd was also a Carnegie Medal winner in 2009 for 'Bog Child' (awarded posthumously). Patrick Ness was approached by Walker Books and asked to take Dowd's idea, develop and complete it. Dowd had the premise for the book, the characters and the beginning. Ness never got to meet her, but agreed with a great sense of responsibility to write the story. He set out, in his words, not 'mimicking her voice' but rather taking the 'baton' and running with it.  Jim Kay the illustrator was enthusiastic from the moment he read some of the manuscript and was asked to do some illustrations for one chapter. The author and illustrator didn't meet before the book was completed, but both seem to have approached the task as an unusual collaborative partnership, between three people, two living and one deceased. 

'A Monster Calls' is the story of 13 year-old Conor whose mother has cancer. His parents are divorced and his father is now in another country, with a new family. His mother is undergoing chemotherapy and while there seems little hope, Conor appears to be trying to escape the scary knowledge that his mother is dying. He has a recurring dream each night at 12.07pm in which someone is slipping out of his grasp into a deep chasm. And in the midst of this dreaming he is visited by a monster. The book opens with the line: 'The monster showed up just after midnight. As they do.'

Each night the monster emerges by the transformation of a Yew tree outside Conor's window; a tree that has had special significance for Conor and his mother. As large and hideous as the monster is, Conor doesn't seem to be afraid of this creature that is full of threats. The monster warns him, You really aren't afraid, are you? "No." Conor said. "Not of you, anyway." The monster narrowed its eyes. You will be, it said. Before the end.

Conor tries to deal with the reality of what is happening to his mother, his life at school is complicated by three bullies who torment him, and a girl named Lilly, who has been a lifelong friend. But Conor feels Lilly has 'betrayed' him by sharing with others that his mother is dying. His somewhat detached grandmother comes to care for him, grieving in her own way, while trying as best she can, to support Conor and his Mum. Into this already complex emotional cauldron, his father arrives from America. And Conor continues to avoid that which is unthinkable.

As Conor struggles each day in all areas of his life, there is one certainty, the monster will return. He calls again and taunts, I am this wild earth, come for you, Conor O'Malley. "You look like a tree," Conor said. The monster lifted him and squeezed him and as he released him he said, Here is what will happen, Conor O'Malley, the monster continued, I will come to you again on further nights...And I will tell you three stories. Three tales from when I walked before...And when I have finished my three stories...you will tell me a fourth...and it will be the truth. The monster taunts him to reveal the truth he hides, the thing he is most afraid of.

The book that has resulted is a triumph for Ness and Kay. Please don't underestimate just what Kay has contributed to this work. This is no mere illustrative adornment of fine words. No, this is a veritable symphony of image and word, rich in metaphor and poetic intent. The words and images dance around one another in unison, drawing the reader into this remarkable story. It is moving and memorable. I read the book at a single sitting (something that I'd recommend with this book), in tears at several points, with tension and varied emotions rising within me. And when the book was finished, I sat quietly, holding the book against my nose as I contemplated the journey that author and illustrator had just opened up to me. This story of grief, and a boy who faces his deepest fears, is told in a way that opens the pain of loss to you as the reader, touches your own aches and fears, before bringing you back to the hope that life and the future can always bring. Wonderful! A modern classic if ever there was one.

The award ceremony

In awarding the Carnegie Medal the judging panel commented:

'A Monster Calls" is an exquisite piece of writing. It is a beautifully economical, structurally brilliant and lyrically descriptive account of a challenging episode in one child's life. One of our judges - bereaved at a young age - said she wished that she'd had "A Monster Calls" to read then, because while it describes the nature of grief with an extraordinary clarity it also fills the reader with a spirit of hopefulness and a love for life that is profound and lasting. We'd go so far as to say that this is one of the defining books of its generation'.

In accepting the Carnegie, Patrick Ness commented:

'It's extremely humbling - and a little unnerving - to win the CILIP Carnegie Medal two years in a row. I also can't tell you how happy I am that not only has the extraordinary work of Jim Kay been recognised with the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal (truly couldn't happen to a nicer guy), but that this will all help keep people reading and talking about the wonderful, wonderful Siobhan Dowd, which was the best outcome I wanted when I set out to write the book'.

In awarding the Kate Greenaway medal to Jim Kay, the Kate Greenaway judging panel commented:

Jim Kay's illustrations for 'A Monster Calls' are absolutely stunning, and so much part of the experience of reading this extraordinary book. Using only shades of black, white, and grey, Kay conjures immense symbolism, atmosphere and emotion to beautifully complement Patrick Ness' haunting text; and the quality of the whole production makes this a very special book to hold and devour. Quite simply, one of the defining books of its generation.

Jim Kay responded:

I'm chuffed to bits! I've followed the Kate Greenaway for over 20 years, and so it felt a little unreal to be on the shortlist. I still can't quite get my head around winning, it's strange even seeing the book in shops and libraries. And to read the responses of the young shadowers has been amazing. I can't thank CILIP enough!

Age Range: Suitable for readers 12+

Price in Australia: $16.95 RRP

The Dragonkeeper Series - A Review

Carole Wilkinson is a fine Australian children's author who in her own words "...got a late start, but I’ve been trying to make up for lost time." She has now written 30 plus books, some short stories, a telemovie and some TV and planetarium scripts. Before she commenced writing at age 40 she had worked as a laboratory assistant and also a film and television writer and editor. Her books have been set in China, Egypt, and the Middle East. Her Dragonkeeper series of four books is set in ancient China and has been wonderfully received by children and critics alike. With the fourth book in the series - 'Blood Brothers' - just out, I thought it was time to review this widely acclaimed series. The series started out as a trilogy but has now had a fourth book added.  All four books are published by 'Black Dog Books' an imprint of Walker Books. The first three books are set in China in the 1st century BC, while the fourth is set in 325 AD. The books are recommended for readers aged 8+ but I would see them as ideal for children aged 9-14. If children 8-9 are less familiar with fantasy they might find some of the events depicted in the stories confronting. Mind you, 'Harry Potter' has pushed many young readers to new sensitivity 'levels' with fiction.

'Dragonkeeper' - Book 1 (2003)

The first book in the series introduces us to the main characters for the first three books. We meet a slave girl named Ping who has the job of tending to captive dragons, held secretly in a palace of the emperor in a remote region of China. We meet Long Danzi a dragon who has just become the sole survivor of what was once a collection of two dozen captives. And finally, we meet Ping's only 'friend' and companion, Hua, a pet rat who goes everywhere with her.

Ping's perception of dragon's changes with the discovery that the withdrawn and frightened dragon deep in a stone pit has a coloured 'stone' which it protects fiercely, and some strange behaviours. Through the circumstances of the death of the 2nd last dragon and the unexpected arrival of the emperor, Ping escapes with the dragon from her brutal master. A ruthless dragon hunter pursues them and the girl discovers many secrets about dragons and begins an epic journey across China. Ping carries with them a mysterious stone at the urging of Long Danzi. A stone that must be protected. This is the story of a young ten year-old girl who has been seen as worthless, unnamed and discarded, but who finds within her new strength, courage and abilities beyond her imagination. This is will be necessary to make the perilous journey and eventually, the responsibility of the 'stone' just as it breaks and Long Danzi and Hua leave her for the Isles of the Blessed.

This is a book that drags you along as a reader at a cracking pace. Within just a few pages you are hooked and reluctant to put the book down. It is a piece of wonderful historical fiction and fantasy that will appeal to children aged 9+. 

The book has won and been shortlisted for too many awards to mention in full, but these include:

Winner of the 2003 Aurelias Award
Winner of the 2004 Queensland Premier's Literary Awards
Winner of the 2006 KOALA awards

'Garden of the Purple Dragon' (2005)

In book two of the series we find Ping hiding in the shadow of the Tai Shan mountains with her precious responsibility, Kai the baby dragon. The young dragon tests her patience with its playful ways and attention seeking. How can she hope to care for a creature that will live many generations beyond her and whose wings may not fully even develop in her lifetime? She struggles to care for Kai, but gains skills quickly. Skills that are born of necessity. However, she knows that eventually she must find another keeper who will take over the task after she is too old. But eventually her old tormentor, now the Emperor's chief minister, finds her and must be confronted. However, Long Danzi has not forgotten her and sends back Hua to help her and the young Kai.

Once again Carole Wilkinson won a bucket full of awards and nominations for this book, including:

Winner of the 2006 WAYRBA Award
Winner of the 2009 KOALA Awards
Winner of the 2009 KROC Awards

'Dragon Moon' (2007)

In the third book in the series Ping and Kai continue to evade the enemies who search for the elusive dragon and its keeper. They have travelled far, but much more is to be done as Ping discovers that Long Danzi's intention all along has been to see Kai returned to live with free dragons. But danger is everywhere and deceptions of many kinds, as they set out to find the home of the remaining free dragons. Their guide is a set of complex instructions from Long Danzi that take the form of a riddle. This is the only hope that they have. But will they unravel the Chinese language puzzle? Ping knows that she must continue in her final great quest to find Kai a safe home. This is eventually accomplished and Kai is safely in the dragon haven hidden away from others and with a new responsibility. Ping makes a sad departure and begins a new life with a new companion, a boy named Jun, "the only friend who had ever come back to her".

The third book in the series has also received many awards. Principal amongst these was winning 
2008 Book of the Year in the Younger Readers Category from the Children’s Book Council of Australia. As well, the book was 2008 Winner, of the KROC (Kids Reading Oz Choice) Award (Fiction for Years 7-9).


'Blood Brothers' (2012)

The Author's Afterword in the fourth book of the Dragonkeeper series explains that there was never meant to be a fourth book; it truly was meant to be a trilogy! But Carole Wilkinson has revisited the dragon Kai, four centuries later. He is still young in dragon terms, for dragons can live for up to 3,000 years. This would place the story in the 4th century AD, a Chinese form of the Dark Ages, when there was no dynasty. It was the period of Chinese history known as the Sixteen Kingdoms, a time for which little is known allowing even more historical gaps to be filled by the author.  We enter the story in 325AD. The powerful Han Dynasty is a distant memory and tribes of barbarian soldiers fight over what was once the Empire. These are dangerous times, but Kai who is now 465 years old (a mere teenager in dragon years) is bored and leaves the safe dragon haven. He begins a search for the predestined person who is to be the next dragonkeeper. He finds his way to a Buddhist novice named Tao who is quite certain he is not the one; he has no interest in caring for a difficult dragon. But, Kai is drawn to Tao and the young man must learn to listen to the voice within him and journey with Kai. Their relationship is slow to begin but eventually they bond and a new phase in Kai's long life begins. You can download a sample chapter below.

Download a chapter sample from Blood Brothers

The Dragonkeeper series is brilliant. I'm sure that it will captivate many generations of young readers. The stories will appeal to boys and girls alike and will engage them from the start. One suspects that now Carole Wilkinson has made the decision to turn a trilogy into at least four books, that there might be more as the possible future storylines would seem almost endless.