Winner: Seven Wherewithal Way Series Prize Pack

Our lucky winner is ...

Joseph Spagnolo, NSW

Congratulations!

You have a set of the epic portal-series, Seven Wherewithal Way including the recently released, third book, Over The Mountains and Through the Desert by Samantha Ellen Bound. Enjoy!

Thank you to ALL who entered. 

Book Lists: Welcoming a New Baby

We’ve grouped together some of the many book lists we’ve shared over recent years, in case you missed them the first time around. 

We hope they inspire you to pick up a book you’ve not read before, or find a book to help explore and better understand a particular subject with readers of all ages.

A new baby is a big event for everyone.

Whether you're welcoming a baby into your own family, or you're looking for a book to give as a gift for a newborn baby, we've got you covered.

The first link below is to a list of books about preparing for a baby. These are the kinds of books that can help explain the entrance of a new member of the family, and can be especially helpful with young children. 

The second and third links are lists of books that make great gifts. They include some titles about babies, and some that explore relationships, early learning concepts, and the world around us. All are favourite with the KBR team.

http://www.kids-bookreview.com/2017/03/terrific-10-preparing-for-new-baby.html

http://www.kids-bookreview.com/2020/07/book-list-gifts-for-newborns.html

http://www.kids-bookreview.com/2017/06/terrific-10-beautiful-gift-books-to.html

Review: Little Matilda And The Lost Bunny

It took Little Matilda a while to find friends so it is understandable that she isn't always aware of how important it is to treat our friends (indeed, anyone) with kindness.

And, as we know, for Smalls their emotions can run rampant, as they haven't quite yet learned to self-regulate these.

Little Matilda and friend, Jack, are off on a day adventure to explore nature: ducks to feed, koala and joey to admire, baby possum to oooh-ahhh over and all the glorious bush to explore. It's been a wonderful outing, until they reach home and Little Matilda cannot find her bunny.

Review: Two Rabbits

Once harsh words are said between friends, they cannot be unsaid.

 It is the hardest thing to correct if left unattended.

On a dark windy night, Little Grey Rabbit and Little Brown Rabbit have a disagreement.

They part in anger. One goes right, the other goes left.

They move so fast to put space between them, even the wind can’t catch them.

12 Curly Questions with author Seth Malacari

1. Tell us something hardly anyone knows about you.

I’ve been slowly teaching myself piano. It’s never too late to learn a new skill!

2. What is your nickname?
Malarkey, which is a play on my surname but also fairly fitting. I talk a lot of nonsense.

 
3. What is your greatest fear?
The dark, especially when there are strange noises in the dark and I’m all alone. Luckily I have a very tiny dog to keep me safe.

4. Describe your writing style in 10 words.
Unapologetically queer stories that inspire young people to be themselves.

Review: Computer Technology for Curious Kids

Let’s face it. Computers are a big part of our lives. 

We use computer technology every single day when we turn on our laptops, look at our phones or even when we watch morning cartoons. 

Computer games, the internet, emptying the dishwasher and riding the bus to school all happen with the help of computers. And Computer Technology for Curious Kids is here to tell us how and why.

This is a great non-fiction book for kids interested in how things work and what they mean. 

Giveaway: Seven Wherewithal Way Series Prize Pack

The epic portal fantasy series for middle-grade readers returns! In celebration of the third instalment in Samantha-Ellen Bound's epic portal fantasy series, Seven Wherewithal Way: Over the Mountains and Through the Desert, our epic friends at Affirm Press are giving away books 1, 2 AND 3!

Enjoy the first 3 books in this epic 4-book portal fantasy series full of heart-in-your-mouth action, unconventional families, and fascinating magic.

For the chance to win this awesome three book set simply tell us in 25 words or less what mythological/fantastical creature you'd like to meet?

Review: Footprint

Walk into morning, the open air.

Wake to the wonder you find there.

Explore the wild with Footprint, a brilliant picture book for lovers of adventure, exploring and all things wild.

This lyrical tale follows a range of kids as they explore the outdoors and nature. 

It’s a bit like an instruction manual, providing inspiration for places to go but also reminding you to stop, take it slow and breathe as you go so you get to experience the moments.

Meet The Illustrator: Rebecca Timmis

Name: Rebecca Timmis

Describe your illustration style in ten words or less.
Varied! Often cartoony, but depends on the tone required. 

What items are an essential part of your creative space?
Photoshop, my Wacom tablet, some music and a glass of ice-cold Pepsi Max. Coffee is for grown-ups.

Do you have a favourite artistic medium?
I love working digitally – it’s so fast and I never worry about wasting expensive paper. Though I do miss the smell of pastels and paint sometimes.

Review: The Most Amazing Thing

What is the most amazing thing? This is the question Henry is pondering in The Most Amazing Thing by Ian Hayward Robinson and Matt Shanks.

On a rainy day, stuck inside with his family, Henry looks for something to do. His mum suggests he draws something amazing, but he’s not sure what the most amazing thing is.

So, he asks his sister and his brother and his dad. They all have very clear answers about what they think is the most amazing thing, which all focus on their own special passions.

Review: This is My Happy Place

Do you have a special happy place?

Author Emma Bowd and illustrator Jen Khatun take us on the happiest of journeys in This is my Happy Place, a stunning new picture book that will have everyone thinking about what makes them happy.

Review: Death at the Lighthouse

This brilliant whodunnit is the second title in the Montgomery Bonbon series by comedian, Alasdair Beckett-King. A new voice in children’s writing, his previous title, Murder at the Museum, was a huge success as this one is sure to be.

Clever dialogue and outstanding characters form a read you can’t put down till the last word.

Ten-year old Bonnie and her alter ego, detective Montgomery Bonbon, lead the show, with all the secondary players perfectly positioned.

Now that they aren’t investigating one thing or another, Bonnie decides it’s time to go on a holiday to Odde Causeway, as Gramps Banks longs to see the last working clockwork lighthouse in the world.

They set out in Bessie, Gramps' old, converted ice-cream truck, for their B & B & B & B.

Guest Post: Romi Sharp on A Look Into The Lens Of Our Australian HeArt

As a creative in the children’s book industry, it’s quite common for inspiration to come from memories or experiences or nostalgic moments that remind us of our own childhood. 

Then, we blend those sentiments with our here and now. It’s like tying the pieces together to form some kind of warm and fuzzy ball of string that comes back around in a full circle (or something like that!).

The Just Write For Kids anthology – Our Australian HeART – was inspired by this very ball-of-string collection of moments for me.

Review: The Big Book Of Australian Nursery Rhymes

Row, row, row your boat, Gently down the creek. If you hear a Tassie devil, Don’t forget to shriek!

Here we go round the Banksia Bush, the Banksia Bush, the Banksia Bush.

Here we go round the Banksia Bush on a dry and dusty morning.

This 96–page Picture Book contains all your old favourites, served up with a delightful and distinctly Australian flavour,

Readers of all ages will be chanting, clapping, singing and tapping along to this collection of well-known songs, poems and nursery rhymes which now incorporate some of our noisiest and most loved Australian wildlife. 

Review: History FACTopia

The fifth title in the entertaining and educational FACTopia series, concentrates on global history. It brings the past into the present, allowing exploration of things mostly unknown.

It trails through 400 facts of which many are linked in subject but can be read at random.

This book is for children and adults, as it has unbelievable, amazing, incredible, frequently funny facts about our world, the people and places in it.

For fans of trivia and short informative bits and pieces, these books should have a place on your bookshelf to be dipped into whenever you choose, simply for pleasure.

Interesting and rare subjects pop up.