Frankie Fox, Girl Spy: READY, SET, SPY

Frankie Fox, Girl Spy: READY, SET, SPY by Yvette Poshoglian
(Lothian/Hachette)
PB RRP $12.99
ISBN: 9780734415684
Reviewed by Hilary Smillie

Eleven-year-old Francesca (Frankie) Fox, motherless but with a millionaire Dad, has a boathouse for her room which she shares with Boss, her West Highland Terrier. It is located on a cliff 178 steps down from the main house called Griffin where Hanna the housekeeper keeps house for her Dad and cooks for the three of them when her Dad is home. He is a brilliant scientist and runs a secret set of labs on Fortress Island which Frankie can see from the boathouse window. Frankie's Dad protects his property with an electric fence, and is concerned that his wealth and scientific knowledge could make him a target of an evil group called the Alliance, a threat to the whole world.

Frankie has always wanted to be a spy. She is studying The Spy's Handbook which belonged to her Dad and pours over it every free moment. There is a code scribbled inside it that she needs to decipher and so far has been stumped. Unusual things have been happening. Frankie thinks she is being watched and her room has definitely been searched. Later, when kayaking, her boat is almost overturned by a woman in a kayak who she recalls later was the stand-in bus driver on the school bus. Also, strange underwater lights are puzzling.

James Jensen (JJ), a new neighbour but previous resident returned from Iceland who attends Frankie's school, arranges to kayak across to Fortress Island with Frankie and Boss. The two kayakers set off one evening and once again Frankie sees the underwater lights. When they land on the island, they come across soldiers and are captured. Their captors are agents for Griffin and are fighting the Alliance. When Frankie is told her father has been kidnapped by the Alliance, she is amazed to discover both JJ and herself have been in training as Griffin spies, and as things fall into place, she knows whatever she has to do to rescue her father, she will do it. It is vital she deciphers the code in her spy handbook and completes Mission Icefall. And Boss and JJ have a role to play, too.

Yvette Poshoglian, a Sydney-based high school teacher involved in creative writing workshops, has created an exciting story with plenty of intrigue and drama. She uses retrospect cleverly to keep the momentum charged and pacey. Each chapter is headed by a quote from The Spy's Handbook which alludes to the content and increases interest.

The Arrival

The Arrival by Shaun Tan (Lothian/Hachette)
PB RRP $19.99
ISBN 978 0 7344 1586 8
Reviewed by Hilary Smillie

Shaun Tan's stunning 128-page wordless picture book, first published in hardback in 2006 with sales of over 500,000 copies worldwide including 60,000 in Australia, is now available in paperback. The imaginative and haunting pictures will no doubt attract the attention of art lovers and readers alike, for in this book, the old adage, "A picture paints a thousand words" is truly confirmed.

The Arrival is the story all refugees and immigrants will relate to, especially those travelling to a country whose language and lifestyle is completely foreign to them. The differences have been demonstrated by surreal images of strange creatures and modes of transport. The black, white and sepia tones of the illustrations add to the atmospheric effect, and readers will no doubt be stirred emotionally in various ways as they study the pictures and the meaning behind them. The story is broken into 6 chapters which relate to each step the man who has made the journey takes.

Glimpses into the man's fears and loneliness and memories of the beloved wife and daughter he has left behind; the kindness of others towards him and the stories of their own lives; the friendships he slowly forms; the correspondence written and then the opportunity to return home and tell his family of the new country which is their future are a few of the impressions I gathered as I studied this amazing artist's work.

The Arrival has won many awards including the WA Premier's Prize 2006, CBCA Picture Book of the Year and Australian Children's Book of the Year for Older Children in 2007. Shaun Tan himself was awarded in 2011 the Dromkeen Medal for services to children's literature and the Astrid Lindgren prize, the world's richest children's literature award.

This fascinating and moving picture book is worthy of a place on both adult's and children's book shelves, a book to which a reader will be drawn time and time again.

Gus & Me The story of my Grandad and my first Guitar

Gus & Me The story of my Grandad and my first Guitar by Keith Richards Illus. by Theodora Richards (Orion/Hachette) CD voiceover James Langton
HB with CD RRP $28.99
ISBN: 978 1 4440 1176 0
Reviewed by Hilary Smillie

Theodore Augustus Dupree lived with seven daughters near the Seven Sisters Road, in a house that was filled with instruments and cake. Thus begins a charming and nostalgic picture book reflecting on the happy childhood of Rolling Stone and music legend, Keith Richards, who was greatly influenced by his granddad, Gus.

Gus was a talented musician of the piano, violin and saxophone, but more significantly, he could strum the guitar. Keith loved visiting his grandparents' home and Gus loved giving Keith his time. He took him on long walks and hummed all kinds of tunes as they went. He took Keith to the workshop of a London music store and Keith was fascinated, not only by the workers who plucked strings or tested drums as they fixed broken instruments or made new ones, but by the instruments themselves, particularly the guitars going slowly around on a conveyor belt. That's when he fell in love with musical instruments.

Gus kept a guitar on top of the piano but Keith was not tall enough to reach it. He kept trying and one day his granddad handed it to him, showed him the major chords and taught him to play the classic piece "Malagueňa". This was the stepping stone to his musical career.

Keith's artist daughter, Theodora Richards, has enhanced the simply worded story with lively dashes of colour, some in streams across the page, or e.g., capturing just the legs of Keith and Gus with the family dog, Mr Thompson Wooft. Stars and musical notes abound, and the pen, ink and collage illustrations on the crisp white background have an exhilarating effect. Hand-drawn letters of all sizes have been incorporated, and a couple of pages of these were drawn by Keith himself. Part of the musical score of Malagueňa is on the inside and back inside covers. Unusually, a loose cover accompanies the picture book giving it a classy touch.

Keith Richards wrote the text with Barnaby Harris and Bill Shapiro and a very warm and loving story has resulted. Many family photos are included, and as an extra bonus, a CD of a reading of the story by actor James Langton, along with a spoken introduction and additional guitar music from Keith.

Gus & Me is an impressive picture book and would make an equally stunning gift.

 

You Are (Not) Small

You Are (Not) Small by Anna Kang Illust. Christopher Weyant (Hodder Childrens/Hachette)
HB RRP $24.99
ISBN: 978 1 444 91830 4
Reviewed by Hilary Smillie

I loved this picture book! The most words on a page are 12; some have none; and often just one or two, and yet it gets its message across beautifully.

Two furry creatures are comparing their size. The big one thinks the little one is small and the little one thinks the big one is big. Things get very heated. But then someone even smaller and someone even bigger arrives -- and that settles the issue of size.

Anna Kang and Christopher Weyant are a husband and wife team. Together they have produced this very amusing and succinct picture book which is a delight to read. Anna's sparse text is complemented by Christopher's bold and lively illustrations and his experience as a cartoonist has been put to excellent use. He has used a restricted palette to great effect and the plain yellow inside and end sheets continue the theme. The font size is large and easy to read, and the bright red cover with its super-large title and black-nosed orange head of the fuzzy larger creature demands a second glance.

Children will thoroughly enjoy You Are (Not) Small and before long, will be able to read the short sentences by themselves.

 

Found

Found by Harlan Coben (Orient/Hachette)
PB RRP $29.99
ISBN 978 1 4091 2452 8
Reviewed by Hilary Smillie

Following on from Shelter and Seconds Away, this new Mickey Bolitar novel continues Mickey's search to find out the truth about his dead father, and sets out to unravel other mysterious secrets including the identity of the Butcher of Lodz. Mickey and his high school friends, Spoon, Ema and Rachel are following in the footsteps of the secret society, Abeona Shelter, which rescues children from bad circumstances. But now Spoon is in hospital without the use of his legs having been shot, and the para-medic who told Mickey his father had died has tried to kill him in a house fire. Mickey now lives with his dad's brother, Uncle Myron because his mother in her grief turned to drugs and is in rehabilitation.

Mickey has further problems: As a talented basketballer, he is being given a hard time by the other players who have been team members for years. They are afraid Mickey will be chosen over one of them for the big competition, so resentment is high. Also, Spoon's mother has blamed him for her son's condition, and Rachel who he admires is ignoring him. Meanwhile Ema, his goth friend, is worried about her online boyfriend. He's suddenly stopped all contact. Mickey offers to help find him.

Mickey receives another request for help, this time from one of his chief tormentors in the basketball team, Troy Taylor. Ema is suspicious of his motives but Mickey is convinced that his change of attitude towards him is genuine.

The author is adept at building up tension in this thriller, but I question whether a morbid mix of murder, deceit, drugs, revenge and grief with very little positive input produces a balanced teenage read. However, a few highly improbable situations takes the story out of the realm of reality, thus somewhat reducing its negative impact. To Coben's credit, he has shown skill in portraying the emotions in play in relationships and his main characters are well rounded. There are also a lot of twists and turns to engage the reader. Perhaps the most impressive point made is Mickey's realisation that achieving a dream is not always as important as it first seems.

I found the conclusion somewhat abrupt but nevertheless satisfying with the resolution of one important issue in particular. A ray of hope at last glints through. Fans will be anxious for the Mickey Bolitar series to continue. 
   

 

 

The Mapmaker Chronicles: Race to the End of the World

The Mapmaker Chronicles: Race to the End of the World by A.L.Tait (Lothian/Hachette)
PB RRP $14.99
ISBN 978 0 7344 1577 6
Reviewed by Hilary Smillie

The first book in a trilogy, Race to the End of the World is set in a fantasy world and yet reflects history, when sailing explorers sought to discover whether the rumour that the world is round was true and if other countries lay beyond their own horizons.

Quinn Freeman is chosen by Zain, slave to King Orel to be mapmaker on board the Libertas, one of three ships competing in a race to bring back the best map of the whole globe and make the kingdom of Verdania superior to that of neighbouring Gelyn. The king firmly believes that knowledge is power.

Quinn has already received mapmaking training, coerced into agreeing to leave his parents farm by the promise of a generous payment to learn these skills. He could not refuse, knowing that the money would make a huge difference to the prosperity of his family. Quinn, regarded as the runt of the litter compared to his muscular and tall older brothers, has a well-guarded secret: a photographic memory and the ability to learn languages quickly. However, Zain has found out, and knows the boy will prove invaluable on the expedition which he will lead.

Quinn has a friend, Aysha, who had left the area where they grew up because her mother, a healer, had been labelled a witch. Her mother died, and Aysha found work as a servant at the place where Quinn was to receive his mapmaking training. It came as a huge surprise when, five days after the Libertas set sail, Aysha, disguised as a boy, is discovered as a stowaway. But Aysha (Ash) turns out to be a vital member of the crew.

The author has produced well-rounded characters and detailed backgrounds to underpin the storyline. While it may unfold somewhat slowly in the early chapters, explaining in depth the conditions and operations on board a sailing ship, once the hair-raising adventures commence, the reader can quickly detect he is in for a good yarn. The fierce competition between the three ships increases the strength of the story.

The author's good imagination coupled with plenty of action propels this initial book of the trilogy to a satisfying end leaving a sense of longing for the second, Prisoner of the Black Hawk, to arrive. Readers will have to be patient until 2015.