BfK 5–8 Infant/Junior continued


while Mr Egmont is selling us a later reworking with the plates tidied up by the chap who became the regular series illustrator. Back in those days the Rev. Awdry had a hard time of it — an innocent novice being ripped off by his publisher and, to some extent, his agent. Now in heaven, he’s probably groaning about even more indignities.


BA


My Favourite Animal Families


HHH


Steve Bloom, text by David Henry Wilson, Thames & Hudson, 64pp, 978 0 500 54390 0, £9.99 hbk


My extreme youth was dominated by an Edwardian publication – The Zoo Book – a collection of fuzzy mono- chrome photographs of the inhabitants of what we then called London Zoo. Its extravagant landscape format and


considerable weight demanded that two laps support it; the other one was invariably my dad’s. Any text completely passed me by. Here’s the 21st-centur y equivalent. Bloom’s photographs – in the colourful wild – are essential; Wilson’s text can be taken or left. A selection of winsomely or awesomely picturesque creatures is presented en famille. There are 13 mammals and a penguin.


Wilson – hither to pur veyor of lightweight domestic comedy (c.f. Jeremy James and Superdog) – decorates the impressively good pictures with a text that provides insights into the subjects’ family life,


8–10 Junior/Middle Goal! HHH


Mina Javaherbin, ill. A G Ford, Walker, 40pp, 978 1 4063 2771 7, £5.99 pbk


Ajani and his friends (all boys) are crazy about football in their shanty South African township where water must still be collected from the well. His prize for being the best reader in class is a new Federation-size football. Stored in a battered red bucket, Ajani’s ‘brilliant’ black and white leather ball replaces a dir ty old blue plastic one. But the dusty streets between the shacks are not safe and must be checked. ‘Left is clear./ Right is clear’ is a vital refrain for Ajani, Jamal, Magubani, Hassan and Badu. With older bullies as their chief danger, they draw straws for who must stand guard on top of a roof so the others can play and not worry. ‘I follow the ball to the end of the alley;/ I follow the ball to the end of the world.’ When their game is interrupted by three older boys on rickety pedal bikes, the prize ball is hastily hidden under the red bucket. The menacing big boys seize the old blue ball and the friends pretend to cry. The bullies speed away laughing. Ajani and his friends feel like World Cup victors as they resume their game with their beautiful leather ball.


Javaherbin tells Ajani’s story in vividly rhythmic language in this large format picture book, ending with a powerful message: ‘When we play together,/ we are unbeatable.’ In an Author’s Note, she points to the universal nature of football ‘in the face of pover ty, bully rulers and unsafe alleys’. The children in her story play to stay connected as children, to stay human. ‘But mostly, they play to play.’ It’s an uplifting message endorsed by Archbishop Desmond Tutu and my only quibble is that the author could have done a little more research into South African names. In A G Ford’s oil- painted illustrations, the ball, often foregrounded and huge, could almost be a character in its own right, alongside his realistic, expressive focus on the boys. Ford contrasts the gritty browns of the township with a startlingly blue sky. However, there’s a static uniformity in his depiction of


sealed-up dwellings. No details like pumpkins on roofs or improvised wires and aerials! The suggestion is more of a run-down ghost town than a real place where a whole community breathes through ingenuity and resilience. I miss that background vitality in this stylised rendering. However our attention is focused on the young footballers who are certainly this story’s survivors.


BN


when they take the filly home, feed her up and start to train her that Sammy understands that his father may be right after all.


The story moves at a leisurely pace. There’s little suspense or conflict. But it is satisfying and also, informative. It’s a real ‘horsey’ book in the best sense of the word, with the author’s obvious love and knowledge of horses permeating the writing. It also provides an insight into the ways of Travellers, their everyday lives and interests – and the prejudices they experience. Realistic and beautifully executed pencil drawings capturing individual expressions and postures of both characters and horses add a great deal to the narrative.


AF


repair. He joins the other pets on board – the two dogs John and Madge, one a gentle giant, the other peevish and yappy, and Freda, a chicken with a huge personality. Intimidated, Doris struggles to find acceptance among them, only gradually finding his place. But when he takes to exploring the boatyard, he discovers new terrors in the shape of shipyard bullies Jasper the cat and the Queen’s pet dog. Their behaviour has a lasting impact on him and does much to affect life on board ship.


The stor y describes Doris’ experiences as he grows from kitten to tomcat. He and the other animals speak like humans but their behaviour, acutely obser ved, is realistic and true to their nature. Though there’s some sadness in the story as he faces ordeals, forges friendships and finds his place in the world, this is, above all, a charming, at times humorous, read.


AF Bitter Chocolate HHH


Sally Grindley, Bloomsbury, 192pp, 978 0 7475 9502 1, £5.99 pbk


Road Horse HHH


Caroline Binch, Frances Lincoln, 160pp, 978 1 84780 070 1, £5.99 pbk


Horses are at the core of Sammy’s life. As part of a Traveller family whose dad trains and races trotters, he is looking forward to owning his own horse. So when their mare gives bir th to a dead foal, he is heartbroken. To cheer him up, his dad suggests that they visit the forthcoming Appleby fair. Maybe there they will find a suitable horse for him. Sammy invites Billy his best mate along to the fair, bustling with horses and fellow Travellers. He finds his perfect horse, but, after he and Billy have made enemies, it’s suddenly unavailable to him. As consolation, Dad insists on buying a bedraggled young filly, sure that she has potential, but Sammy has no interest. It is only


24 Books for Keeps No.184 September 2010 Ship’s Cat Doris HHH


Jane Simmons, Orchard, 176pp, 978 1 40830 895 0, £9.99 hbk


The author, best-known for her picture books and luminous illustrations about river creatures Daisy the duck and Ebb and Flow, shows herself to be equally at ease with words and small black-and-white drawings in this story about growing up.


New owners take the little kitten away from a horrible family and from the warmth of Mummy Cat. They call him Doris and introduce him to a completely new life on board a dilapidated old fishing boat awaiting


Here Sally Grindley turns her attention to children in troubled West Africa. Two phases of Pascal’s short life are gradually revealed: his present hand to mouth existence as a worker on a cocoa plantation, little more than a slave; and his past as a victim of civil war in which his family has been lost, probably killed, and he has been kidnapped to serve as a child soldier. The real experience of children like Pascal would make disturbing reading even for adults, and Grindley has been careful to keep this story within the understanding and emotional capacity of a nine- or ten-year-old unacquainted with such cruelty, which means that the worst aspects of Pascal’s experience are left to the reader’s imagination. This literary anaesthesia sometimes makes the stor y less credible and, paradoxically, more documentary than fiction, but avoids treating Pascal’s suffering either as adventure or as serial atrocity. Pascal and his friends are not just victims but children with their own hopes and fears, who can act on their own behalf, as they do to escape the


including the surprising facts that cheetahs can’t roar, hippos can’t swim and rhino hide is very sensitive. A recurrent feature is that of the absentee father; for all the creatures here apart from Emperor penguins and zebras, paternity appears to consist of procreate and disappear.


It’s a fine and informative collection of images which will do best spread over two laps, with perhaps Dad interpreting the text and quietly congratulating himself on his presence. An eternally interesting subject and a wide age and appeal range make this an excellent addition to any family.


TP


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