Kate and Jol Temple (text), and Shiloh Gordon (illustrator), Dessert Disaster (Frog Squad #1), HarperCollins Publishers, April 2024, 144 pp., RRP $16.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781460764428 Who would you choose to protect you if the world was in peril? Frogs, of course! In the first of a brand new series by seriously funny and talented Kate [...] The post Dessert Disaster (Frog Squad #1) appeared first on Reading Time ..read more

Katie Stewart, Quokka Finds a Friend, Fremantle Press, July 2024, 32 pp., RRP $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781760994204 Quokka finds Seal sitting close to the water. Quokka unsuccessfully tries to make him smile. First he tries funny faces, decorating himself with seaweed, adding a shell onto his nose, using a shell as a mirror. Nothing works. Quokka falls into the water and Seal rushes in to help him out and offers to teach him to swim. The two finally agree that they are different: Seal can’t smile but can thanks Quokka for his efforts, and Quokka doesn’t want to learn to swim. But the two can be fr ..read more

Toni Lindsay, Everything Anxiety Ever Told You Is a Lie (*Well, Almost Everything!), Exisle Publishing, July 2024, 144 pp., RRP $37.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781922539991 In the world of ongoing chronic health conditions, mental thoughts, emotions, personalities and relationships, a book like this brings an intentional positive impact on the overall understanding of mental health. Expect to discover significant improvements on wellbeing from experiences of negative people, thoughts or behaviours. I like that this read is exceptionally resourceful for dealing with anxiety. Abusive or manipulative r ..read more

J.M. Field (text) & Jeremy Worrall (illustrator), Etta and the Shadow Taboo, Hardie Grant, June 2023, 32 pp., $27.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781760509798 In the story Etta and the Shadow Taboo there is a valuable lesson to be learned. Etta is completely unaware of the cultural tradition where one must avoid stepping on the shadows of others, because this action can be deemed harmful or disrespectful. Etta learns about the value of this Gamilaraay tradition the hard way when she stands on her baawaa’s (sister’s) shadow. Guided by the spirit tree, Etta learns the importance of respecting peoples’ pers ..read more

Tsheena Cooper, Mary Dann, Dalisa Pigram-Ross, and Sheree Ford, Country tells us when…, Pan Macmillan Australia, March 2023, 40 pp., RRP $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781922592460 While most cultures recognise that there are four seasons in a calendar year, the Yuwuru mob accept there are six distinct seasons, each identified through observations using the five senses – what we feel, see, taste, smell and hear. From the gathering of ngugngug (dark storm clouds) to wiyawiya (dragonflies) flying around, the book celebrates the unique characteristics of each season and tells of the beautiful flowers and a ..read more

Corey Tutt, This Book Thinks Ya Deadly! A celebration of Blak Excellence, Hardie Grant Explore, June 2023, 192 pp., RRP $34.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781741178159 This inspirational compendium of profiles of First Nations visionaries has been shortlisted by the Children’s Book Council of Australia for an Eve Pownall award which recognises fact-based books. Similar in style to the Rebel Girls books, the collection is distinguished by the author’s connection with each person profiled. Written in an engaging and humble style, Tutt speaks directly to young readers, particularly fellow mob. While the usual ..read more

Blake Nuto, When You’re a Boy, Affirm Press, July 2023, 32 pp., RRP $24.99 (hb), ISBN 9781922863652 When You’re a Boy is a sensitive and emotive exploration of the relationship between a boy and his father. Challenging traditional stereotypes of masculinity, the story shows that a satisfactory balance can be achieved between notions of predetermined masculine traits and behaviours, and the infinite happiness that can be gleaned from being present in the moment and marveling at the beauty that surrounds us all. When you’re a boy you are told how to be like the white-roaring oceans. But I’ve le ..read more

Laura Dockrill (text) and Lauren Child (illustrator), Grey, Walker Books, 40 pp., RRP $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781406389562 Sometimes, for no reason at all, we wake up feeling grey. The character in this story is experiencing a grey day; they state ‘I am grey today. I just am. I am grey.’ Grey is an important reminder that we have many emotions inside us, and not all of them are positive. Although aimed at readers between 3-7, the message in this story carries meaning for many older students also; While media often suggests that we should always be happy, engaging in exciting activities, and acqui ..read more

Slade Carter, The Helios Book, MidnightSun Publishing, May 2024, 211 pp., RRP $17.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781922858412 Twelve-year-old twins, Hugo and Kitty, have adjusted to their special physical difference in that they each have one blue and one hazel eye, a condition called heterochromia, but it is this difference which makes them a target during their holiday in Australia. They make friends with their neighbour Lucas who has invented a solar device which he believes will save the world’s climate and global energy. It’s the Helios Book which others want to use to help themselves. When Lucas goes ..read more

Fiona Levings, Before the Mountain had a Name, Forty South Publishing, May 2024, 32 pp., RRP $24.95 (hbk), ISBN 9780645983579 A mountain holds its story within the layers of its body; it is up to us to read it. A picture book only in form, once you delve into the rich geological history of kunanyi/Mount Wellington in Hobart, you are presented with a story that is clearly crafted from a deep love of country. Almost 200 metres taller than Table Mountain in Cape Town, kunanyi/Mount Wellington stands proudly part of Hobart life, and in palawa kani, is the only Aboriginal language in Lutruwita (Ta ..read more