New Zealand

The Flytrap Snaps by Johanna Knox

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Spencer Fogle is an ordinary kid who lives in the extraordinary town of Filmington.  His hometown used to be called Flemington, until film and TV crews discovered its range of landscapes, from fiery volcanoes to snowy mountains and lush rainforests, and took over the town.  The town’s richest resident, Jimmy Jangle, controls most of the business within Filmington and holds alot of people’s futures in his hands.  When Spencer is walking home from school one day, he hears blood-curdling screams coming from one of the science labs and goes to investigate.  Spencer uncovers a dark plot involving carnivorous plants, genetically modified flies and a mysterious, hidden file.  However, Jimmy Jangle and his thugs are willing to do anything to keep the truth covered up.

The Flytrap Snaps is the first book in The Fly Papers series, by New Zealand author Johanna Knox and illustrator, Sabrina Malcolm.  It’s a quirky story with action, mystery and plenty of laughs.  I love the idea of Filmington, with it’s different companies set up for the movie and television industry.  There’s the science labs that create experiments to be used in films, catering companies to supply food and drink for the film and TV crews, and the BodySlam Stunt Wrestling Club where they train stunt people for the movies.  I really liked Spencer because he’s just an ordinary kid who has to deal with an extraordinary situation.  I can’t wait to read the second book to find out what Spencer, Dion and Tora get up to next, and to solve the mystery of The Fly Papers.

Recommended for 9+    8 out of 10

Heart of Danger by Fleur Beale

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We were first introduced to Juno and the people of Taris in Juno of Taris, what would become the first in a trilogy.  I picked up Juno of Taris on a recommendation of another children’s librarian that I worked with and was blown away by the community that Fleur Beale had created.  For those of you who haven’t read the first book, it’s best to start at the beginning, but one of the great things about the subsequent books in the trilogy is that you get a summary of the story so far before you start.  I don’t know if this was an idea of the publisher, Random House New Zealand, or Fleur herself, but I think it’s something that all trilogies/series should have, especially when the books come out a year apart.

Heart of Danger starts off exactly where Fierce September ended, with Juno and her family arriving at their new home.  It’s not long before Juno’s sister, Hera senses danger and they decide to move back to New Plymouth and Fairlands School, where they have the protection of Willem.  Juno is reluctant to move back to Fairlands, where Hilto’s son, Thomas goes to school.  There’s also the handsome Ivor, whose advances make Juno uncomfortable.  Her feelings for Ivor are confusing and she’s not sure how to deal with them on the outside world.  When Hera is taken by mysterious strangers who mean to do her harm, Juno must use her special mind powers to help her save her sister.  But will this be enough to save them both from the Children of the Coming Dawn?

Heart of Danger is the perfect conclusion to this brilliant trilogy.  There is a sense of impending doom from the opening chapter which builds to a thrilling climax, but there are also alot of questions answered about the establishment of Taris, the extent of Juno’s powers, and Juno’s biological family.  The climax of the story comes just over halfway through the book and I was wondering how it would finish, but it left plenty of time for Fleur Beale to wrap up the story of the people of Taris and end on a positive note.  I’ve really enjoyed seeing how Juno has developed over the series and how the people of Taris have adapted to the outside world.  I loved how they all managed to hold onto little aspects of life on Taris, while becoming citizens of Aotearoa.  I know I’ll miss Juno, her family and her friends, but I’ll enjoy starting from the beginning again and taking that journey with them once more.  In the mean time, I’ll go to www.randomhouse.co.nz/heartofdanger to read Nash’s Story, an extra short story that Fleur Beale has written, to be read after Heart of Danger.

Recommended for 12+    10 out of 10

 

Three of the best from Gecko Press

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Gecko Press have been keeping up their tradition of producing English language versions of curiously good books from around the world. Here are three of the best recent releases.

The Noisy Book by Soledad Bravi is a board book filled with bright, bold illustrations and lots and lots of noises (over 100 pages). There are noises you would expect to find, like ‘The cat goes meow,’ ‘The horse goes neigh,’ and ‘The rooster goes cockadoodle doo.’ But what I like most are the noises you don’t expect, like ‘The cold goes aachoo,’ ‘Mummy goes kiss kiss,’ and ‘The power socket goes NO!’ This is the perfect book to share with babies and toddlers because everyone can enjoy making the noises.

The Fierce Little Woman and the Wicked Pirate is a newly illustrated edition of one of Joy Cowley’s most loved picture books. I loved this book as soon as I set my eyes on it! Sarah Davis’ illustrations are absolutely stunning and she has captured Joy Cowley’s characters perfectly. Thank you Gecko Press for giving this wonderful story new life.

H.O.U.S.E (or Habitable, Objects, Unique, Spatial, Extraordinary) by Aleksandra Machowiak and Daniel Mizielinski is a fascinating book about contemporary architecture for kids. It’s a book for all those children (and adults) who are fascinated with buildings of all shapes and sizes. Inside, you’ll find spiky houses, inflatable houses, houses in trees and houses underground, from all over the world. The authors explain the inspiration behind the design of each house, as well as the materials used to build it, and where in the world it can be found.

These are just three of the latest and greatest books from Gecko Press. I’m sure we can look forward to more curiously good books from Gecko Press next year.