Review + Teachers’ Notes: ‘The Flying Optometrist’
Title: 'The Flying Optometrist'
Author: Joanne Anderton
Illustrator: Karen Erasmus
Publisher: National Library of Australia Publishing
Age Range: early childhood - middle primary
Themes: optometry, eye-health, glasses, remote communities, outback, flying, aviation, medical professionals.
Click on title links or cover image to...
Review + Teachers’ Notes: ‘Sonam and the Silence’
Title: 'Sonam and the Silence'
Author: Eddie Ayres
Illustrator: Ronak Taher
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
Age Range: middle - upper primary
Themes: music, resilience, courage, curiosity, Afghanistan, Taliban.
Click on title links or cover image to purchase.
A lyrical fable-like story by the well-known musician,...
Review of ‘The Bogan Mondrian’
Title: 'The Bogan Mondrian’
Author: Steven Herrick
Publisher: UQP. Teachers' Notes are here.
Themes: grief, fathers, domestic violence, gambling, family, friendship, hope, trust, prejudice.
I often wonder if it’s overwhelming to be a celebrated author with a new book about...
Once There Was A Boy: on books and empathy by Emily Gale
One of us is a bully.
One of us wants to be understood.
One of us loves a girl who loves another.
One of us remembers the past as if it just happened.
One of us believes they’ve...
Review of ‘Zobi and the Zoox: A Story of Coral Bleaching’
Reviewer: Dr Sam Lloyd
Title: Zobi and the Zoox: A Story of Coral Bleaching
Author/Illustrator/Creators: Ailsa Wild, Aviva Reed, Briony Barr and Gregory Crocetti
Publisher/Production: CSIRO Publishing (2018) in partnership with Small Friends Books, an art-science collaborative...
Students Need School Libraries
I have been a teacher librarian for over fifteen years, a teacher for twenty years and have been involved in the children’s and YA book industry in Australia for even longer, thanks in part...
Give the Treasure of Reading with Room to Read
In my last blog you may have read Tristan Bancks’s Top Ten Tips for Book Week. One of those ideas was “Give the Treasure of Reading” and support global literacy nonprofit Room to Read...
Celebrating National Tree Day
National Tree Day has just passed, but every single day can be tree day and I highly recommend selecting a native tree or plant and getting out in some sunshine very soon to plant...
Girl Zone Book Club 2018
Tonight is Girl Zone Book Club – a group I run for Year Six students and a significant woman in their life – mother, aunt, grandma, older sister, cousin, family friend…even a dad or...
2018 Environment Award for Children’s Literature Shortlist
I'm a fan of literary awards as it helps to separate the wheat from the chaff in a literary sense and they help when parents or educators are looking to purchase some quality titles....
Girl Zone Book Club
Tonight is Girl Zone Book Club – a group I run for Year Six students and a significant woman in their life – mother, aunt, grandma, older sister, cousin, family friend…even a dad or...
Grief, Widowhood and Books
Unsurprisingly, I've collected a large number of books on grief over the years. My brother died six years ago and my favourite Aunt died two weeks before Dan died. Sadly, I'm a grief veteran....
Review of ‘Finn’s Feather’
I feel like I've been waiting for this book for a long time, having read it in manuscript form some time ago and having followed Rachel Noble's own journey with grief since the loss...
‘Ready Reading’ Program Reinstated in Queensland
At the launch of the 2018 Premier’s Reading Challenge earlier this week, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and Education Minister Grace Grace announced the reinstatement of a reading program in schools which was scrapped by the previous...
New Australian Children’s Laureate Announced
DUDE! I was super excited to get an embargoed Media Release late last week regarding this announcement and while I am by now well and truly used to dealing with embargoed information, this announcement...
International Book Giving Day 2018
February 14 is International Book Giving Day and it's a day I embrace with enthusiasm. There is no better gift than a book and I love that this day encourages the giving of books as...
Review of ‘Wonder’ by R J Palacio
Jazzy from Jazzy's Bookshelf has been a long time reviewer for me and I always smile when I see one of her emails and reviews pop up my inbox. At twelve years old, Jazzy...
Review: Elly Awesome
With the Summer holidays approaching (yes I know it's only week two of Term Four, but we all know that Term Four is a blur), it's time to turn our minds to 'Summer Reads'...
A Literary Easter Gift Supporting MND
My parents regularly attend talks at The Wesley Hospital in Brisbane on many and varied topics and the latest one was on Motor Neurone Disease (MND), with Wayne Patterson as a guest speaker. MND or...
Kate DiCamillo in BRISBANE!
St Rita's College and Riverbend Books, in conjunction with Walker Books and Read Like a Girl are hosting what is SURE to be a wonderful event for Kate DiCamillo's only public Queensland event. All...