reviews


talking about life as a WW1 soldier and the life of those who carried on supporting their loved ones while going about their toil at home. Equally though it’s a very special book to read and cherish at home. JB


The Lotterys plus one HHHH


Emma Donoghue, illus Caroline Hadilaksono, Macmillan, 978-1- 5098-0319-4, 303pp, £10.99 hbk


Sumac is looking forward to the summer - and in particular her project on Ancient Mesopotamia. The news that the family - already numbering seven kids, four parents and assorted pets - is going to become one more is not welcome. The newcomer is their grumpy, opinionated grandfather who does not fit in. Sumac decides she will have to do something about the situation.


8 – 10 Junior/Middle continued King Coo


HHHH


Adam Stower, David Fickling, 172pp, 978-1-9102-0060-5, £9.99 hbk


Strange things are afoot in town; huge holes are appearing everywhere and something has to be done. Meanwhile life goes on as normal for Ben Pole, trying to avoid the ghastly Monty Crabbe and his gang. On the run after school his escape route down a blind alley leads to one of these holes and at the other end a strange world. This world id presided over by King Coo and her pet wombat. King Coo lives in a tree house wears


nothing but a crown and a beard (yes a full length flowing, golden beard that completely covers her modesty). From this vantage point she and Ben defend themselves against Monty Crabbe and his gang with Cow-pat-a-pults, Slug Pulp and a Springy-Flingy-Thing. This is a classic romp: bullied


boy meets strange new friend and conquers his persecutors in the most convoluted and funny way possible. None of it is ground breaking, apart from the wombat, but it will entertain and amuse its readers. The format is a good mixture of


text and black and white illustrations, including drawings of the clever plans King Coo come up with.


At a vital


point when Buster Crabbe enlists Ted Dedleigh the pest control man to capture the wombat and win a the bajillion pound reward, the whole text turns into a cartoon strip format. That really adds interest to what could have been quite a simple piece of conversation and turns it into a dark and dastardly episode. The text is fun and moves along but


Emma Donoghue made a name for her


her talents


has already herself


with


adult novels. Now she turns to writing for a much


younger audience – and proves a very welcome addition to world of children’s books. She creates a warm- hearted, eccentric family community that encompasses all ages - and all backgrounds; for the Lotterys are very much a blended family. The writing is assured and her characters emerge full of life and in glorious technicolour. This is no ordinary family, but there will be many young readers who either in imagination or even reality will recognise themselves. And what happens when the ‘normal’ meets the different? For confident readers who want a thoroughly enjoyable read that is both thoughtful and fun this must be recommended. Let us hope Emma Donoghue will continue to write in this way, joining authors in a tradition exemplified by Eve Garnett, Elizabeth Enright and Hilary McKay. FH


the illustrations make the narrative. CD The Wooden Camel


HHHH


Wanuri Kahiu, Manuela Adreani illus, Lantana, 978-1-9113-7313-1, 32pp £7.99 pbk


Etabo dreams of racing camels just as his brothers do. His siblings make fun of him as he is so little, but Etabo knows he could be faster than any of them. When his father sells their flock of camels as they can no longer afford them Etabo is devastated. He prays to the Sky God for help and is told ‘Your dreams are enough.’ Etabo isn’t convinced, he tries riding chickens, cats and goats but that just isn’t the same. Meanwhile, his sister


Akiru


has been watching, realising how sad Etabo is she makes him a herd of wooden camels. In his imagination the toy camels come to life, and he can race them. It seems his dreams are enough after all. Produced


by Lantana publishing


who specialise in culturally diverse books, this first picturebook from Kenyan filmmaker Kahiu is written sensitively and with humour. The text is complemented by Italian illustrator Adreani’s


which bring the Kenyan landscape and its people to life. A story about the power of imagination and hanging onto your dreams. SMc


Elias Martin Nicola Davies illustrated by Fran Shum, Graffeg, 978-1-9108-6250-6,


The Selkie’s Mate Nicola Davies illustrated by Claire


Jenkins Graffeg, 978-1-9108-6249-0 HHHH


Shadows and Light series, Graffeg, 40pp, £8.99hbk


Both of these titles are part of the series created by Nicola Davies in which she takes traditional folk or fairytales that allow her to explore our relationship with


the natural world. Beautifully


packaged by Graffeg these are a very welcome addition to the bookshelves and should be made available side by side with the fiction sequence. Elias Martin is, perhaps, the less


familiar of the two tales presented here. A variation on the traditional story The Snow Child in which a couple are granted their desire for a child, only to lose her when summer comes. Here, Elias is a hunter; a man warped by his experiences, at war with the world around him. The arrival of a child - naked, abandoned - gives him a new focus but he still sees the natural world, the wolverine, as his adversary. Therein lies his tragedy. Fran Shum’s bold line drawing


capture the stark power of the story. There is no sentimentality here and Davies’ prose, though literary, echoes the voice of the storyteller. No moral is drawn - that is for the reader. The Selkie’s Mate will be much


more familiar to its audience. The tale of the fisherman who captures a seal maiden, then hides her skin to prevent her return


to the sea


is well known, appearing in many anthologies and can be read in many different ways. Here Davies picks up her theme of the danger that lies in failing to work with the natural world; of imposing our will upon it and disregarding what should be a compact. The illustrations by Claire Jenkins echo the sea background through her use of clear watercolour wash, complementing the storyteller’s voice, capturing the shifting colours of the island landscape. Aimed at an older audience - top KS2/KS3 - these are powerful stories that have stood the test of time and still resonate today. FH


The Hounds of Penhallow Hall: The Moonlight Statue


HHH


Holly Webb, illus Jason Cockcroft, Little Tiger, 978-1-8471-5660-0, £5.99 pbk


attractive illustrations


Polly and her mum are seeking a fresh start after Dad’s fatal accident. They are moving to Cornwall, to Penhallow Hall, a four-hundred-year-old home now open to the public, where Mum has taken a job as House Manager. The rambling house harbours vast rooms and treasures – and a constant


Books for Keeps No.224 May 2017 25


stream of visitors – and the gardens are lush, with large terraces, broad steps, statues and lawns, one of which leads to a sandy cove. One moonlit night, while sleepwalking, Polly wanders onto the terrace, towards the two large dog statues that guard the steps. One of them comes alive, explaining that he is the ghost of an ancient dog. Shortly after this encounter, Polly discovers that the house too has its ghostly secrets, as is revealed by a sepia print, taken in 1915, of a young boy in uniform, heir to the Penhallow estate. The story is suspenseful and maintains paciness to the end. Thanks to Polly, the ghostly figures find peace while they, in turn, help her come to terms with her new life. The old house and gardens are important elements, adding mystery, mood and magic to the unfolding of events. Dark and shadowy drawings capture the other-worldliness of the story. AF


Frogkisser HHHHH


Garth Nix, Piccadilly Press, 378pp, 978-1-8481-2601-5, £10.99 hbk


This charming story opens with Princess Anya helpfully rescuing a frog, one of her older sister’s suitors. But Princess Morven refuses to kiss it to turn it back into prince Denholm and the only way to return the prince to his true form depends on a special lip balm. But the lip balm has run out and before she can work out how to make some more Princess Anya discovers her step stepfather, the evil sorcerer Prince Rikard, has plans to send her away to school on a perilous journey from which she is unlikely to return.


There is nothing


for it but to set off on a quest to find the ingredients to make the lip balm accompanied by one of the trusty royal dogs Ardent. They are joined on their journey by


some wonderfully oddball characters; Shrub a would-be thief who has been turned into a large newt, Smoothie the otter who has been turned into a half human plus any amount of frogs to be turned back into their rightful form.


They gain the trust and help of allies along the way from Roberta


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