Eric Vale: Super Male is a funny and comical book and I recommend it to everyone! In the Eric Vale book there is always disasters happening and I reckon that there should be more parts where things work out for Eric. Poor Eric! I like how the book has been written like a primary school boy would say or have in a journal. This book has lots of parts where everything is going fine and then there are lots of parts where things are embarrassing and wrong. I like the illustrations because they really describe how the characters feel. Eric gets distracted in class because of his Secret Agent Derek 'Danger' Dale comic story that he keeps in his journal. In this book the writer doesn't really bring Eric's family into the story. There is only one small part about his sister. I think it would have been nice to bring Eric's family into this a bit. I like this book because it is like a journal (you could turn it into a journal). At Eric's school there is a super hero week and at Eric's sharing time it goes wrong! Overall I would give this book 10 out of 10.
Asha Roberts, age 8
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I think it might be a good idea to pop over to the lovely Readings blog and check out the interview with Michael Gerard Bauer and his son Joe about their new book Eric Vale Epic Vale out this month from Omnibus. Yes, that would be time well spent.
What would happen if a spoonbill or a pelican or even an
osprey came to your house? Fun and mayhem, that’s what! Don't Let a Spoonbill in Your Kitchen is written and illustrated by Narelle Oliver who has created many distinctive and
beautiful picture books.
A swashbuckling adventure story complete with a
gang of pirates, evil villains, a trusty friend, a lost
explorer, and a fabulous treasure, The Pirate Company: On the Trail of the Golden Toucan is the story of Tom Applecross, who found himself all alone in the world. Till he met up with a gang of pirates. Some would say, Any port in a storm. Others would say, Abandon ship while you’ve still got the
chance!
New Mates! In Larrikin Lane, written by Kate Darling and illustrated by Ben Wood, the farm animals next door are making Mr Meyer very cranky. But Arkie has a plan. With Lola the sheep and Delilah the goat to help, what could possibly go wrong?
And in Drongoes, can Jack beat Rocket Robson in the cross-country this year? If only! But his best mate Eric might be the real winner in this race. Written by Christine Bongers and illustrated by Dan McGuiness this is a funny story about how winning isn’t always everything.
The second in a new illustrated junior series from popular, award-winning
author Michael Gerard Bauer, is Eric Vale: Super Male. It’s Superhero Week at school and Eric Vale is in for some
SUPER surprises. A killer beast, a giant bully, a mutant orangutan bear and the dreaded Oogily-Boogily Man await him.
This looks like a job for Eric Vale SUPER MALE! But will it end in a SUPER FAIL? Or will Eric finally go from ZERO to SUPERHERO?
Dog Tales is one of Emily Rodda’s most popular novels for younger readers. The Dolan Street dogs were Max 1, Max 2, Barney, Scruffy,
Gina and Mavis. Mavis was actually a goat, but she did not
know this, and none of the others liked to tell her ... Life for the Dolan Street dogs is not all lying around
watching ‘Dog Hospital’. It can be very exciting. With a great new cover this is a funny, kid-friendly story from Australia’s most popular children’s author.
Boomer & Me is a memoir of mothering a child who happens to have Aspergers syndrome. This is a work in progress (the bringing up of Leo, not the book) as the author's son is still young but so far she's doing an awesome job. I first met Jo when we worked together at Wakefield Press in our first jobs in publishing. Then she had her son and moved to the glamorous lights of Melbourne and I started working as a freelance editor. Jo's book is a closely observed, sensitive and moving story about Leo's early years. He is a super smart and a genuinely likeable kid who has some issues relating to other kids and controlling his passions. Jo's descriptions of other school yard mums and the politics of playdates are brilliant, and her excursions with Leo on her bike and Melbourne's trams remind me of the best bits of that Melbourne classic Monkey Grip (without the adult-rated content) and I'm not the first to compare Jo's writing to Helen Garner's. Boomer & Me is a courageously honest and humorous memoir that perfectly captures the complexity of modern motherhood.
