Christmas Wonderland: Ella and Olivia

Christmas Wonderland: Ella and Olivia by Yvette Poshoglian, illustrated by Danielle McDonald (Scholastic Australia)

PB RRP $7.99

ISBN 978-1-74362-055-7

Reviewed by Jenny Heslop

‘Ella and Olivia love Christmas. They love the smell of the tree. They love waking up early on          Christmas morning. They love giving and receiving presents.’

Christmas is just around the corner so Dad and Uncle Stu have a surprise for Ella and Olivia that is going to be big, bold and very, very bright. 

Christmas Wonderland is a Christmas title which captures the funny tale about a friendly neighbour Christmas decoration battle. The excitement of getting ready for Christmas shines through this story.  Ella, 7, and Olivia, 5, help Dad and Uncle Stu decorate the front yard, sing Christmas songs with Mum and wait excitedly for the Christmas street fair.  Of course baby brother Max and their puppy dog Bob share in this excitement with the rest of the family.

Written for beginner readers, the text is simple. Short sentences and chapters encourage reading and the sweet illustrations help make the book appealing and manageable. The writing is evocative too.

    ‘‘Into the tree we’ll wind flashers and blinkers and winkers,’ cries Dad.’

The Ella and Olivia series is a lovely family focused series with stories well suited to the five plus readership age.

Pony Problem

Ella and Olivia: Pony Problem by Yvette Poshoglian, illustrated by Danielle McDonald (Scholastic Australia)
PB RRP $7.99
ISBN 978-1-74283-798-7
Reviewed by Jenny Heslop

Seven-year-old Ella and her younger sister Olivia are a little teeny bit jealous of Ella’s friend Zoe. Zoe has a horse, Hattie, and Ella would love to have her own horse too. So when Zoe invites the two sisters to come and watch her equestrian competition they are very excited.

But when Ella is accidentally entered into the competition on a pony called Jett, she learns there is more to riding a horse than she thought. Zoe has to sacrifice her own entry in the competition to save her frightened best friend.

Ella, Olivia, Max and Zoe are sweet characters. Aimed at beginning readers, this series is a great one for young girls. Themes of friendships, family, and in this book, horse riding, are popular and universal.
The large clear font and delightful illustrations make this an attractive series for early readers from five years up.

Pony Problem is an entertaining read and there are many more in the series to be enjoyed. This book also comes with a pony necklace.

Ella and Olivia: Puppy Trouble

Ella and Olivia: Puppy Trouble by Yvette Poshoglian, illustrated by Danielle McDonald (Scholastic Australia)
PB RRP $7.99
ISBN 978-1-74283-657-7
Reviewed by Jenny Heslop

Seven-year-old Ella and her younger sister Olivia have wanted a puppy forever. They have promised to look after him themselves, to train him and to take him on a walk every day.

Finally the day arrives when a new puppy Bob is in their arms and they have so much fun. But they also discover keeping a puppy is not so as easy as they expected. Bob can be naughty. Then on a walk, he runs away.

Ella and Olivia are sweet characters. Aimed at beginning readers, this series is a great one for young girls. Most young children would love a puppy so Puppy Trouble will strike a chord with many readers.

Bob is mischievous as puppies often are, and the sisters also, do not always behave perfectly which gives these books a realistic and relatable edge.

Puppy Trouble will be devoured by readers already familiar with Ella and Olivia and new readers can also start here. The books do not need to be read in order. There are already eight to collect and I’m sure there will be more to come.

Ella and Olivia: The Big Sleepover

Ella and Olivia: The Big Sleepover by Yvette Poshoglian, illustrated by Danielle McDonald (Scholastic Australia)
PB RRP $7.99
ISBN 978-1-74283-658-4
Reviewed by Jenny Heslop

Ella has invited her best friend Zoe for a sleepover. They plan to stay up late, telling stories and having a midnight feast. Olivia is feeling left out.

Olivia is only five-and-a-half years old, almost two years younger than her sister and not old enough yet for a sleepover. But she helps Ella with all the jobs which need to be done in preparation for the night. When Zoe arrives, Ella hopes that the bigger girls will share the fun with her.

The Ella and Olivia books are a great series for beginning readers. The text is large and broken up with sweet black and white illustrations. The chapters are short and the words and sentences straight forward and not too complex.

The story is one grounded in reality. Girls will easily identify with the sisters and recognise the excitement of the first sleepover with a friend. The relationships in the story are lovely but real, especially the one between the two sisters. They sometimes get frustrated with, or envious of, each other but they work it through, often with a little help from Mum.

There are eight so far to collect, and these books, suitable for 5-8 year-olds, will keep young readers engaged in the lives of Ella and Olivia.