New Zealand

Broken Book Trailer

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Critically injured in a motorbike accident, Zara Wilson lies in a coma. She is caught between many worlds: the world of her hospital room and anxious family, and that of her memories and a dream-like fantasy where she searches for her brother Jem. Jem proves elusive but Zara s adventures in her subconscious unlock dark secrets of a troubled childhood. Zara must face up to her past in order to accept her future.

Broken is the latest book from NZ author, Elizabeth Pulford (due out in June from Walker Books Australia).  It sounds really interesting and I can’t wait to read it.

Red Rocks by Rachael King

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A great book can transport you to a place that you’ve never been to.  You can picture it so vividly in your mind and you can smell the smells, feel the warm sun on your skin or the biting wind in your bones.  I especially love books set in New Zealand, because they can show me a part of the country that I’ve never seen and make me want to visit it desperately, just so I can imagine the characters walking around the place.  Rachael King’s new book for younger readers, Red Rocks, transported me to Wellington’s wild south coast and immersed me in a magical story about the mystical selkies.

While holidaying at his father’s house, Jake explores Wellington’s wild south coast, with its high cliffs, biting winds, and its fierce seals. When he stumbles upon a perfectly preserved sealskin, hidden in a crevice at Red Rocks, he’s compelled to take it home and hide it under his bed, setting off a chain of events that threatens to destroy his family. Can he put things right before it’s too late?

Red Rocks is a magical adventure story, set in New Zealand, that children and adults alike will love.  Rachael King has taken the Celtic myth of the selkies and transplanted it into a New Zealand setting that kiwi kids will relate to.  Jake is an average kid who gets sent to live with his dad for a few weeks, and like any kid, soon gets bored and sets off to explore the coast.  I really liked Rachael’s interesting cast of characters, from old Ted who lives in a run-down shack along the coast, to the mischievous Jessie and mysterious Cara.  Jake’s dad is a positive father figure who cares a lot about his son (something that I like to see in children’s fiction and is often missing).   There is a hint of darkness running throughout the story (you’ve probably already guessed this if you know the myth of the selkies) and you get a feeling of foreboding right from the start.

One thing that I particularly love about Red Rocks is Rachael King’s beautiful writing.  She’s very descriptive so she paints a vivid picture of the wild, windy coast.  It’s the sort of book that you want to read snuggled up in bed because you almost feel the biting wind and the freezing ocean.

Red Rocks is perfect for age 9+ and would be a great read-aloud for Year 5-8.    Grab a copy from your library or bookshop now.  You can also enter my Red Rocks competition to win a copy.

5 out of 5 stars

Win Red Rocks by Rachael King

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Red Rocks is a fantastic, magical adventure story for younger readers from local author Rachael King.  It’s a wonderful story that’s set in New Zealand that’s perfect for age 9+ and would be a great read-aloud for Years 5-8.  To find out more about it and why I thought it was so good, you can read my review here.

Thanks to Random House New Zealand I have 2 copies to give away.  All you have to do to get in the draw is leave a comment below telling me: What is your favourite children’s book set in New Zealand?  Competition closes Monday 11 June (NZ only).

Thanks to everyone who entered.  The winners are Cath and Lee-Ann.

The LIANZA Children’s Book Award 2012 Finalists

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The shortlist for the 2012 LIANZA Children’s Book Awards were announced last week.  Awarded by Librarians for outstanding children’s literature in New Zealand, the LIANZA Awards are for excellence in junior fiction, young adult fiction, illustration, non-fiction and te reo Māori.  There are a great bunch of finalist books this year including some fantastic books that weren’t on the NZ Post Children’s Book Awards shortlist.  I was especially pleased to see Des Hunt’s The Peco Incident, Susan Brocker’s The Wolf in the Wardrobe, and Juliette MacIver and Sarah Davis’ Marmaduke Duck and Bernadette Bear in the shortlist.  What are your favourites?

LIANZA Junior Fiction Award – Esther Glen Medal

  • The Travelling Restaurant by Barbara Else
  • The Peco Incident by Des Hunt
  • The Wolf in the Wardrobe by Susan Brocker
  • Super Finn by Leonie Agnew
  • The Flytrap Snaps; Book One in The Fly Papers by Johanna Knox


LIANZA Young Adult Fiction Award

  • The Shattering by Karen Healey
  • Pyre of Queens by David Hair
  • Dirt Bomb by Fleur Beale
  • The Bridge by Jane Higgins
  • Recon Team Angel: Assault by Brian Falkner

LIANZA Illustration Award – Russell Clark Award

  • Rāhui (Māori ed) by Chris Szekely and Malcolm Ross
  • The Call of the Kokako by Maria Gill and Heather Arnold
  • Fantails Quilt by Gay Hay and Margaret Tolland
  • Bruiser by Gavin Bishop
  • Marmaduke Duck and Bernadette Bear by Juliette MacIver and Sarah Davis
  • Waiting for Later by Tina Matthews


LIANZA Non Fiction Award – Elsie Locke Medal

  • Digging up the Past: Archaeology for the Young & Curious by David Veart
  • Nice Day for a War by Chris Slane and Matt Elliott
  • The Call of the Kokako by Maria Gill and Heather Arnold
  • New Zealand Hall of Fame: 50 Remarkable Kiwis by Maria Gill and Bruce Potter

Te Kura Pounamu (te reo Māori)

  • Rāhui (Māori ed) by Chris Szekely and Malcolm Ross, translated by Brian Morris 
  • Te Poiwhana by Te Kauhoe Wano and Andrew Burdan
  • Ihenga by Aunty Bea – Piatarihi Tui Yates and Katherine Quin Merewether
  • Kei Wareware Tātou by Feana Tu’akoi and Elspeth Alix Batt, translated by Katerina Mataira
  • Nga Taniwha i Te-Whanga-nui-a-Tara by Moira Wairama and Bruce Potter

My Most Anticipated June New Releases

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The Drover’s Quest by Susan Brocker (Children’s Fiction – NZ)

Rumour is flying around the west coast gold fields that Tom McGee has struck it rich and found a nugget of gold as big as a man’s fist. So no one is surprised when next his campsite is found wrecked and abandoned. Men have been killed for a lot less on the tough goldfields of 1860s New Zealand. But one person is convinced Tom is not dead. His headstrong daughter, Charlotte. Solving the mystery is not her first task, though. First, she must get to the coast. A skilful horse rider, she disguises herself as a boy and joins a cattle drive across the Southern Alps. To survive the dangerous drive over Arthur’s Pass and to keep her identity hidden from the vicious trail boss, she’ll need the help of her dog, her horse, and her father’s friend, Tama. She knows she can do it – she has to – but what will she find? And will her new American friend, Joseph, help or hinder her quest? Charlie is in for the ride of her life – and the stakes couldn’t be higher.

Red Rocks by Rachael King (Children’s Fiction – NZ)

While holidaying at his father’s house, Jake explores Wellington’s wild south coast, with its high cliffs, biting winds, and its fierce seals. When he stumbles upon a perfectly preserved sealskin, hidden in a crevice at Red Rocks, he’s compelled to take it home and hide it under his bed, setting off a chain of events that threatens to destroy his family. Red Rocks takes the Celtic myth of the selkies, or seal people, and transplants it into the New Zealand landscape, throwing an ordinary boy into an adventure tinged with magic

The Obsidian Blade by Pete Hautman (Young Adult Fiction)

The first time his father disappeared, Tucker Feye had just turned thirteen. Tucker begins to suspect that the discs of shimmering air he keeps seeing – one right on top of the roof – hold the answer to restoring his family. And when he dares to step into one, he’s launched on a time – twisting journey. Inevitably, Tucker’s actions alter the past and future, changing his world forever.

The Tribe: The Interrogation of Ashla Wolf by Ambelin Kwaymullina (Young Adult Fiction)

“There will come a day when a thousand Illegals descend on your detention centres. Boomers will breach the walls. Skychangers will send lightning to strike you all down from above, and Rumblers will open the earth to swallow you up from below … And when that day comes, Justin Connor, think of me.” Ashala Wolf has been captured by Chief Administrator Neville Rose. A man who is intent on destroying Ashala’s Tribe – the runaway Illegals hiding in the Firstwood. Injured and vulnerable and with her Sleepwalker ability blocked, Ashala is forced to succumb to the machine that will pull secrets from her mind. And right beside her is Justin Connor, her betrayer, watching her every move.

Broken by Elizabeth Pulford (Young Adult Fiction)

Critically injured in a motorbike accident, Zara Wilson lies in a coma. She is caught between many worlds: the world of her hospital room and anxious family, and that of her memories and a dream-like fantasy where she searches for her brother Jem. Jem proves elusive but Zara s adventures in her subconscious unlock dark secrets of a troubled childhood. Zara must face up to her past in order to accept her future.

1.4 by Mike Lancaster (Young Adult Fiction)

In the far future, people no longer know what to believe… Did Kyle Straker ever exist? Or were his prophecies of human upgrades nothing more than a hoax?

Peter Vincent is nearly 16, and has never thought about the things that Strakerites believe. His father – David Vincent, creator of the artificial bees that saved the world’s crops – made sure of that.  When the Strakerites pronounce that another upgrade is imminent, Peter starts to uncover a conspiracy amongst the leaders of the establishment, a conspiracy that puts him into direct conflict with his father.  But it’s not a good idea to pick a fight with someone who controls all the artificial bees in the world.

Unrest by Michelle Harrison

Seventeen-year-old Elliott hasn’t slept properly for six months. Not since the accident that nearly killed him. Now he is afraid to go to sleep. Sometimes he wakes to find himself paralysed, unable to move a muscle, while shadowy figures move around him. Other times he is the one moving around, while his body lies asleep on the bed. According to his doctor, sleep paralysis and out of body experiences are harmless – but to Elliot they’re terrifying. Convinced that his brush with death has opened up connections with the spirit world, Elliott secures a live-in job at one of England’s most haunted locations, determined to find out the truth. There he finds Sebastian, the ghost of a long-dead servant boy hanged for stealing bread. He also meets the living, breathing Ophelia, a girl with secrets of her own. She and Elliott grow closer, but things take a terrifying turn when Elliott discovers Sebastian is occupying his body when he leaves it. And the more time Sebastian spends inhabiting a living body, the more resistant he becomes to giving it back. Worse, he seems to have an unhealthy interest in Ophelia. Unless Elliott can lay Sebastian’s spirit to rest, he risks being possessed by him for ever, and losing the girl of his dreams…

The Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (Adult Fiction)

The third in a series of novels that began with The Angel’s Game and The Shadow of the Wind. The Prisoner of Heaven returns to the world of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books and the Sempere & Sons bookshop.

It begins just before Christmas in Barcelona in 1957, one year after Daniel and Bea from The Shadow of the Wind have married. They now have a son, Julian, and are living with Daniel’s father at Sempere & Sons. Fermin still works with them and is busy preparing for his wedding to Bernarda in the New Year. However something appears to be bothering him.

Daniel is alone in the shop one morning when a mysterious figure with a pronounced limp enters. He spots one of their most precious volumes that is kept locked in a glass cabinet, a beautiful and unique illustrated edition of The Count of Monte Cristo. Despite the fact that the stranger seems to care little for books, he wants to buy this expensive edition. Then, to Daniel’s surprise, the man inscribes the book with the words ‘To Fermin Romero de Torres, who came back from the dead and who holds the key to the future’. This visit leads back to a story of imprisonment, betrayal and the return of a deadly rival.

Peaches for Monsieur Le Cure by Joanne Harris (Adult Fiction)

It isn’t often you receive a letter from the dead. When Vianne Rocher receives a letter from beyond the grave, she has no choice but to follow the wind that blows her back to Lansquenet, the village in south-west France where, eight years ago, she opened up a chocolate shop. But Vianne is completely unprepared for what she finds there. Women veiled in black, the scent of spices and peppermint tea, and there, on the bank of the river Tannes, facing the square little tower of the church of Saint-Jerome like a piece on a chessboard – slender, bone-white and crowned with a silver crescent moon – a minaret. Nor is it only the incomers from North Africa that have brought big changes to the community. Father Reynaud, Vianne’s erstwhile adversary, is now disgraced and under threat. Could it be that Vianne is the only one who can save him?

Books with bite from Scholastic NZ

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Scholastic NZ has just released two great books for younger readers with some real bite – Fishing Fame by Melanie Drewery and Dinosaur Rescue: Spino-rottysaurus by Kyle Mewburn.

Fishing Fame by Melanie Drewery, illustrated by John Bennett

Mark and Dan are desperate to get their names onto the fishing fame board.  But when they start breaking the rules they catch much more than they bargained for.

Fishing Fame is a short, illustrated chapter book perfect for boys.  Kids will love the crazy antics that Mark and Dan get up to and will want to keep reading to find out how they get out of their awkward situation.  John Bennett’s illustrations break up the text into small chunks for easy reading, and the cover will appeal to boys.

 

Dinosaur Rescue: Spino-rottysaurus by Kyle Mewburn and Donovan Bixley

How do you stop a rampaging sinosaurus from eating the last dracorex?  Arg has to get help fast or he’ll be extinct too!  A spino-rotty-trocious Stone Age adventure that’ll make your teeth tremble.

Kyle Mewburn and Donovan Bixley are back with their 5th Dinosaur Rescue book.  This series just keeps getting better and better (not to mention more disgusting!).  In this book you can learn why prehistoric insects didn’t make good pets, how to train your giant dragonfly, how to hunt with Arg’s dad, and some interesting facts about dinosaurs.  Get this book for your children and they’ll be rolling around on the floor laughing (or possibly looking very green).  They’re perfect for fans of Captain Underpants. 

Scholastic NZ are publishing some really good books for early readers (7-9 years), like those mentioned above.  Check out Diary of a Pukeko by Sally Sutton and Do Not Push by Kyle Mewburn.  These books are the short, with lots of adventure and laughs, so they’re perfect for this age group.

Guest Post: Glenda Kane on Anzac Day Parade

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Today I’m joined by Glenda Kane, author of the picture book, Anzac Day Parade.  Glanda tells us about her Anzac memories and why she wrote her story.

My husband is Australian and I’m a Kiwi, so we’re Anzacs. Having travelled a lot, we realise we’re pretty lucky to live in this peaceful corner of the world.

We have three sons who love playing war games. To them, it’s fun. But I wanted them to understand that, in real life, war is not a game.

“There he stood on the sun-parched hill, a straggler from 18th Battalion.”

I’d attended an Anzac Day service at the Auckland Cenotaph with my family. Afterwards, I noticed an old man dressed in his best jacket – complete with medals – leaning on a walking stick, staring out towards Rangitoto. A small boy was looking at him with an expression of awe.

At that moment, I wondered what the old soldier was seeing as he gazed into the distance. What was he remembering? What had he been through? And what did the little boy think?

I’ll never know who they were. I just went away and made up the story.

“Did ya shoot them dead,” asked the bright-eyed boy. “Did it feel real cool to kill?” With a voice bereft of joy, he sighed: “No son, it was no thrill.”

When the illustrator, Lisa Allen, needed an old soldier to become her model, we contacted 92-year-old Crete veteran Noel Dromgool and his wife, Peggy. They allowed us to photograph Noel while he reminisced about training, battle, defeat, and his long internment in a prisoner of war camp.

We were privileged to hear his stories over the course of an afternoon. We left with immense respect for a man and his mates who sacrificed so much for their country and for future generations – us, and our children.

Quite a long time passed before the book was printed. Finally, I phoned Noel and Peggy to tell them it was published. There was no reply. Eventually I called another number listed under ‘Dromgool’ in the phone book. It turned out to be Noel’s son.

I explained who I was and said I wanted to show his father the new book. “Bad news, I’m afraid,” he said. “Dad died.” I wanted to cry. Instead, I asked if I could send the book to Peggy. “I’m afraid she died, too.”

The youngest soldiers from the Second World War are now at least 85 years old.

If anyone has a grandparent or great-uncle or neighbour who fought in the war, talk to them; ask them questions; write down their story. Do it now. There isn’t much time left.

I’m proud to say that when Noel’s son saw Anzac Day Parade he said he thought it was “pretty bloody good,” and that his dad would’ve thought so, too.

I hope young readers think it’s pretty good as well.

Guest Post: Feana Tu‘akoi on Lest We Forget

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Today I’m joined by Feana Tu’akoi, author of the picture book, Lest We Forget.  Feana tells us about her Anzac memories and why she wrote her story.

When I was a kid, war horrified me. The terror, hardship and ruined lives – it seemed like such a stupid way to sort out our countries’ differences. I didn’t want any part of it. And I definitely didn’t want to celebrate it.

But I was a brownie and then a girl guide in small town South Canterbury. So, every year I had to march in the ANZAC parade.

I hated it – all those speeches, raving on about the brave soldiers who fought for victory. How could it be a victory when so many people died? What about the fathers, brothers and sons, on both sides, who never came back? What about the people who did come back, but were permanently damaged? I thought we should have been able to find a better way.

When my family moved to the North Island, I stopped going to the parades. But then I studied history at university. I talked to people who were involved in World War II and I realised that things weren’t as black and white as I’d thought.

Lots of people actually wanted to go to war, for lots of different reasons. They thought that they were protecting their families and helping to make the world a better place.

So my husband, Sione, and I went along to a Dawn Parade. I was shocked. Nobody talked about how glorious war was, or even that it was the right thing to do. They just talked about how important it was for us to remember, so that we could all continue to live in peace.

That was when I realised. We weren’t there to celebrate war. We were there, Lest We Forget. And that’s why I wrote this book. We need to remember the past, so we can make better decisions in the future.

I think that the next generation is smart enough to do just that. And that’s why I dedicated this book to my kids.

Feana Tu‘akoi, March 2012.

Guest Post: David Hill and Fifi Colston on The Red Poppy

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This year there are a bumper crop of books about New Zealand’s involvement in war being published to coincide with Anzac Day on April 25.  The Red Poppy is one of them that really stands out for me because of it’s well-told story by David Hill and it’s stunning illustrations by Fifi Colston.  It’s a story full of tension, but ultimately about the friendship between enemies and the loyalty and bravery of one little dog.

I asked both David and Fifi if they would be able to tell me a little about their book and what it meant to them:

David Hill

The Red Poppy is a senior picture book which tells the story of a young soldier in a terrifying battle on the Western Front in France, during World War 1. Jim McLeod and his battalion have to attack across the open ground, into the face of artillery and machine-gun fire from the German trenches. With them goes the little black messenger dog, Nipper, whose job is to carry back requests for help, to save wounded men. As they charge across the open ground, past a place where red poppies grow among the shattered trees and buildings, Jim is hit by a bullet. He falls into a deep shell-hole, at the bottom of which lies a wounded German soldier. What happens between the two men, and the part played by Nipper in trying to save them, is the rest of the story.

I’ve dedicated my part in The Red Poppy to my uncles who fought in both World Wars. Their stories of the great battles and the courage of soldiers fascinated me from when I was a kid, and finally I had the chance to honour them in a story. Mud and huge guns and fear and the red poppies that have become the symbol of Anzac Day are all in this book.

Fifi Colston

My husband’s grandfather Rothwell, wrote postcards to his fiancé Hilda, from 1914-1918. Particularly poignant were two from France; they said simply “Am O.K” and “Keep smiling!” I was in the process of scanning and blogging these cards for the family (http://wartimepostcards.blogspot.co.nz/) when Scholastic asked me if I would look at a very special story to illustrate. I had decided some time ago that the next book I illustrated had to really mean something to me on a very personal level. Illustrating a book is a labour of love and I wanted to make a body of work that would enthrall me and push me to produce as excellent work as I could. For that I’d need to relate to the story; it had to move me. Then I read David’s manuscript. Jim’s letter home never mentioning the horrors of the trenches struck an immediate chord with me; those cheerful words from a young man, disguising the reality of his situation. Rothwell did come home from France to be a husband and father, but was far from ‘o.k’; dying just a few short years later from the cruel ravages of his war experience. Illustrating this book has been a journey through his time for me. I visited war museums, studied WW1 uniform, grew red poppies, photographed mud and rubbed chalk pastel until my fingers bled. I have learned much and my artwork is a tribute to him. It’s been a real pleasure working with David, Diana and Penny at Scholastic and Penny Newman the brilliant book designer who created the vision with me.

 

New Zealand at war: New books from Ken Catran

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Ken Catran is one of New Zealand’s most prolific authors for children and young adults.  He’s an incredibly flexible writer because he writes for different age groups and in different genres.  One of my favourite books by Ken Catran is the New Zealand Post Children’s Book Awards 2011 finalist, Smiling Jack.  A lot of Ken’s books deal with war and the way that it affects those both at war and at home.

Ken has recently had two new books published which focus on New Zealand’s role in war. These two new books focus on two wars that most New Zealanders know very little about, the second Boer War (1899-1902) and the Malayan Emergency (1948-60).

When the Empire Calls – published by Scholastic New Zealand

It is 1899 and the Boer War has just begun in Africa. The Boer War is the first overseas conflict that New Zealand as a nation is involved in. Young men and women are eager to sign up to help the British Empire. Patriotism sweeps through New Zealand, even reaching small farming communities like Huia.

James McDonald is a teenage boy who lives on a farm in Huia with his parents and brothers and sisters. When his two older brothers sign up James is left to help his father run the farm. Left behind by his brothers and two sisters who are training to be nurses James has to assume extra responsibility and also grow up quickly. The reality of war is illustrated vividly by James’ brother Edward in his letters home and James begins to worry that he may never see his brothers alive again.

“Croaky Fred” who owns Fred’s Grocery Emporium is a person who believes that war is neither glorious nor justified. He challenges James to question his assumptions and ideas about the war. Fred’s outspoken views are considered unpatriotic by many townsfolk, who are unaware that Fred is himself a war hero who knows only too well the horrors of war. Unfortunately for James and his family, Fred’s concerns and dire predictions don’t turn out to be unfounded.

Earth Dragon, Fire Hare – published by HarperCollins New Zealand

New Zealand’s forgotten war, fought in the deep green jungles of Malaya. In 1948, Britain and her allies are pitted against Communist terrorists in a struggle for freedom. On opposing sides are Peter Hayes, a young Kiwi soldier, and Ng, a dedicated guerrilla. They are enemies but, as the bitter conflict deepens, both will ask questions. Who fights for freedom? Who is the oppressor?

And then a chance horoscope links them … to meet in battle. Destiny also decrees that Peter and Ng will become unlikely comrades. But in this treacherous and bloody war, nothing is as it seems – not even trust. The path to honour and the search for peace promise to be hard-fought and come at the highest cost. EARTH DRAGON, FIRE HARE is the ultimate tale of war.

Enter my Anzac books giveaway to win a copy of When Empire Calls and Earth Dragon, Fire Hare.