I’ve just compiled a list for the Year 6’s of fiction titles in our Library that have a Natural Disasters theme so I thought I’d post it here. If you like the idea of a story based around a bushfire, flood, volcano, earthquake or other natural disaster you might like to take a look at one of these!
“Burnt Out” by Marguerite Hann Syme F SYM
“After the Flood” by L S Matthews F MAT
“Wreck” by Allan Baillie F BAI
“Krakatoa Lighthouse” by Allan Baillie F BAI
“Landslide” by Colin Thiele F THI
“Flash Flood” Book 1 in Code Red Series by Chris Ryan F RYA
“Wildfire” Book 2 in Code Red Series by Chris Ryan F RYA
“Twister” Book 5 in Code Red Series by Chris Ryan F RYA
“Fault Line” Book 8 in Alpha Force Series by Chris Ryan F RYA
Imagine this …. your bedroom door is wide open, your pet turtle’s bowl is empty and your 2 year old brother is smiling. I won’t give it away – what Fudge did to that turtle – but I can tell you, 9 year old Peter Hatcher, ends up needing to buy a new pet! Meet Farley Drexel Hatcher, Fudge for short, a little boy who makes a LOT of trouble for his big brother Peter. ‘Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing’ is the first of 5 books in the ‘Fudge Adventures’ series written by Judy Blume, a very well-known American author who has won many awards for her writing over more than 30 years. If you have a little brother (or sister!) you will love this book and, even if you don’t, you are still sure to enjoy the experience of this incredibly popular and long-running series, full of family fun and frustration! In ‘Double Fudge’, the last Fudge adventure, Peter is now in 7th grade and Fudge is aged a very annoying five. Obsessed with money he makes his own ‘Fudge bucks’ and combs through catalogues choosing birthday presents years in advance. I haven’t read this one yet but given it has its own website it is definitely on my list of ‘Books to Read Next’. A lot of fun and a quick easy read for 8-12’s.
DETAILS: ‘Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing’ by Judy Blume. Call Number: F BLU
I am so excited about this series … it is definitely going to be on of the most popular this year! Have you heard of Sherlock Holmes, the fictional, but legendary, English detective? … probably! But did you know that in the original Sherlock Holmes stories (written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the 1880’s) Mr Holmes was sometimes assisted in his detective work by a group of street boys called the “Baker Street Irregulars”? Enter the Baker Street Boys, a group of rag-tag street kids based on the original Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s “Irregulars”, who survive on the streets of late-Victorian London by shining shoes and doing odd jobs while always on the lookout for crime-solving adventures. (Picture Fagan’s pickpocketing boys in the Oliver Twist movie and you’ve got the look!) Written by screenwriter Anthony Read, this new series is mostly about the intelligence gathering escapades of the Baker Street Boys themselves but Sherlock Holmes and some of the other original characters from the Sherlock Holmes stories do appear in this series of books too!
In “The Case of the Ranjipur Ruby” the Baker Street gang rescue a fleeing boy from the hands of two murdering thugs. It turns out that the boy is a prince, son of the Raja of Ranjipur, in London with his father to present a valuable ruby to Queen Victoria. Why is Prince Ravi a target for these murderers and how can The Baker Street Boys stop the spree of murders which soon follows the attempt on Ravi’s life and protect the precious stone? This is a clever and intriguing story, full of action and humour and rich with dialogue so vivid you feel you are in those London alleys yourself! You ain’t gonna be sorry if you read them Baker Street Boys’ books ‘cos they’re just rattlin’ good stories and I love ‘em… me favourite this year, they are!
DETAILS: ‘The Case of the Ranjipur Ruby’ The Baker Street Boys Series by Anthony Read. Call Number: F REA
A finalist in the this year’s Children’s Book Council of Australia’s Picture Book of the Year Award this daring adventure tale is set in Africa - a very fitting setting given this year’s Book Week “Book Safari” theme! Meet calm, cool, kind and ever-so-clever Captain Congo, a gorilla, and his long suffering, faithful sidekick Pug, a penguin, who together travel to Abyssinia to look for an anthropologist who has disappeared while searching for the legendary Treasure House of the Queen Sheba. This story is fast-moving and engaging and full of tongue-in-cheek humour. Fabulously illustrated in graphic novel/comic book format by Greg Holfeld you really feel part of this rip-roaring, traditional adventure story. Complete with crocodile attacks, mysterious disappearances, hold-ups African style, and a last minute plot twist, this is a real page turner for lovers of graphic style adventures and fans of Asterix or Tin Tin. Large size book, 46 pages, hardcover. I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would … a lot of fun!
DETAILS: ’Captain Congo and the Crocodile King’ by Ruth Starke and Greg Holfeld. Call Number:F STA
Trolls Go Home Book 1 of the Troll Trouble Series by Alan MacDonald
Call Number: F MAC
When a family of smelly, hairy, goat-eating trolls move next door to the quiet, “pasty faced” Priddles family there is sure to be trouble! The Troll family, Egbert, Nora and son Ulrik, are keen to make friends in their new home town of Biddlesen but the Priddles are sure that they are murdering, child-eating cannibals and set out to prove it! All the Trolls really want is some nice goat pie!! Despite their bad manners and terrible smell you have to feel sorry for the poor Troll family as they try to fit into their new community. Ulrik especially has trouble making friends at school … thanks to his mean and meddling neighbour and classmate Warren Priddle. A funny and heart-warming story … A really uggsome … I mean awesome … read!!
Lewis has nits … thousands of them! They have been living in his wild blonde afro since he was 3 years old and he’s, well, kind of fond of them! Soon however the whole town is itching too and Ms Herrick, the deputy principal, is out to rid Lewis of his tiny mates. Although Lewis doesn’t know it, there is a very special jumping nit called Ned living on his head. Ned is the first of his kind and destined to make nit history using his unique ability to jump from scalp to scalp! Can Ned survive to make his mark on nitdom when everyone is out to shave Lewis’ head!
Each chapter in this hilarious tale tells the separate but intertwined stories of Lewis and Ned. A quick read with only 105 pages, some with illustrations and all with a laugh. I loved this book! Very fast, very clever and all Australian! Looking forward to reading ‘Bug Out’, the second in the series.
Go to Tristan Bancks’ Web Site to see a cool book trailer!
DETAILS: ‘Nit Boy’ by Tristan Bancks. Call Number: F BAN
Werewolf Versus Dragon Book 1 of ‘An Awfully Beastly Business’ by the Beastly Boys. Call Number: F BEA
Just wait ’till you see this great new series by the Beastly Boys! Check out the online trailer below and see what you think! The first 2 books in the series have arrived in the Library and there are 2 more to follow later this year. In Book 1, Werewolf versus Dragon, meet Ulf the boy werewolf and Dr Fielding, the vet of the RCPCB (the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Beasts) who live on Farraway Hill at the RSPCB Rescue Centre. Here, Dr Fielding and Ulf look after injured and endangered beasts until they are ready to be released into the wild. When a dead baby dragon is found, Ulf and the Dr set out to discover who is responsible. With the help of his best beastly friends, Tiana the fairy, Orson the gaint and Druce the gargoyle, Ulf uncovers the terrible secret of who is endangering beasts.
If you don’t mind a bit of blood and guts and the thought of dragons, giants, werewolves and villians pitted against each other in a fight to the death, then you’ll probably enjoy this easy-to-read romp through a beast infested kingdom! Don’t let the presence of a sweet little fairy fool you … this is not a story for the faint hearted!!
This is the place to visit if you don’t know what to read next! I’ll post news about great new books and well-loved favourites you might not have come across yet. Look out for links to book trailers and reviews! Watch out for info about authors and library events! And remember … Readers rock!
Imagine this …. your bedroom door is wide open, your pet turtle’s bowl is empty and your 2 year old brother is smiling. I won’t give it away – what Fudge did to that turtle – but I can tell you, 9 year old Peter Hatcher, ends up needing to buy a new pet! Meet Farley Drexel Hatcher, Fudge for short, a little boy who makes a LOT of trouble for his big brother Peter. ‘Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing’ is the first of 5 books in the 
A finalist in the this year’s Children’s Book Council of Australia’s Picture 
