Amazon are selling a copy for $159, so I was pleased I hadn't discarded the library's copy. Abe Books has a new copy for for well over $200.
The art in this book is extraordinary and because of the length of the text it is not a picture book for very young children. The language is descriptive and the vocabulary quite challenging, but it is 'just right' for upper primary students and owl lovers.
An ode to the mother/baby relationship and ties to family and land. Join Miimi (Mother) as she shares stories with her Buwaarr (baby) about the environment, language and totems; passing on the wisdom of Gumbaynggirr culture and a mother's hopes for baby's future.
Yesterday my very zealous library volunteer put together a display of books for Mother's Day. And, it had the desired effect, many of the books have already been borrowed. Given that the students who frequent the library are under eight years old, you can imagine what most of the books are like. They are simple, have minimal text and have mums who are beautiful, amazing, magnificent, superheroic, all manner of good things even if they are quite stereotyped.
I remember a lecturer at uni saying to my children's literature class that so many 'good' picture books finish with 'food' and it is usually a very nurturing mum who supplies it. Think Where the Wild Things Are and The Elephant and the Bad Baby.
The other stereotypical mother in picture books is the all-giving, self-sacrificing, forever-rescuing mother such as in Hazel's Amazing Mother by Rosemary Wells . Do all mothers need to be omnipresent and hovering? Many of my young readers think they should be. They comment if they don't see or hear from the mother in the story. As children age and begin to read middle-grade novels, the mother is much more likely to have abandoned the children or is just absent because this allows the author much more room for conflict and adventure.
I think the books I like best for Mothers' Day are the ones that show 'real' mothers who would love nothing more than five minutes peace, such as Mrs Large would like in Five Minute's Peace; an obedient, well-behaved child such as the mother in Harriet You'll Drive Me Wild!; a mother who has a very flexible and loving child such as the daughter in Saturday. The books need real mothers in all their messy variety!
These do that:
'She's nice, my mum,' with its picture of an ordinary woman in a flowery dressing gown.
• The Kinder Hat by Morag Loh and Donna Rawlins
Jesse makes her mother a hat from an ice cream container at school. She expects her to wear it on their walk home and Mum does despite all the strange looks.
• Tucking Mummy In by Morag Loh and Donna Rawlins
Mummy is so tired she falls asleep on Jenny's bed, so Sue and Jenny tuck her in for the night.
• Tisha and the Blossom by Wendy Maddour and Daniel Egneus
Tisha is told to 'hurry up' all of the time. But hurrying up all the time can be exhausting. Thankfully, Tisha's Mummy knows a special game to help them all slow down when everything becomes too much . .
Imani is a young Maasi girl with a loving, storytelling mother and a desire to do something great. When she decides she wants to touch the moon, she works hard to reach her goal, even in the face of teasing from the naysayers around her.
While dad is caring for the child, the strong mother is off finding food and proving that she would do anything for her family.
Ayla and her marine biologist mum live on a beautiful tropical island, surrounded by a coral reef, but when a problem arises Mum and Ayla work together to find a solution.
• The Kid Whose Mother Kept a Possum in her Bra by Dianne Wolfer
A young girl just wants to be normal like her friends. And, more importantly, she wants her mum to be normal - like her friend's mums - they don't have kangaroos in the kitchen or possums in their bras.
• Pink Fluffy Slippers by Maureen Sherlock and Craig Smith
Mothers may be the backbone of their families and communities. They are also often the primary caregivers and that means they are the gateway to learning and books for children so for my young readers it is more than okay for mothers to be amazing and for them to take a book home to read with their mother that tells them they are!
This little girl's mummy makes cakes as big as a rocket and chases the night-time monsters away. Butterflies come and listen when she sings, and the sun always shines when she wears her favourite dress.
Sculpture is the art of making two or three-dimensional forms that can be representative or abstract. The artist uses shaping techniques to create a form, like firing clay, carving stone or wood, casting metal or plaster, etc.
13 Sculptures Children Should Know introduces children to some very well-known sculptures, by sculptors such as Michelangelo, Rodin, Giacometti and Louise Bourgeois. Many of these sculptors appear in picture books suitable for young children.
Alternately, you could look at more general sculpture books such as these:
• The Little Blue Hippo statue that is is on display at MOMA
The Sun Day Celebration, initiated in May 1978, aimed to promote solar energy awareness amid growing concerns over fossil fuel depletion and environmental degradation. As industrialised nations grappled with the challenges of dependence on foreign oil and pollution from traditional energy sources, the event underscored the potential of solar power as a safe, renewable alternative.
The transition to solar energy faced obstacles, including resistance from established energy interests and the slow adoption of new technologies. While innovations emerged in solar design and alternative energy sources, such as converting waste into energy, the reliance on fossil fuels persisted in the following decades. And now, more than ever we do not want to be relying on fossil fuels, oil or petrol.
We can learn all about the sun, what it does for Earth and all that lives there through exploring these picture books:
• Solar Power by Louise Kay Stewart & Diego Vaisberg
• Solar Story by Allan Drummond
While this book is a harder and longer read, it will answer all your questions.
The sun is not just a brilliant star; it holds secrets about the start of life on earth and beyond! Discover how heliophysicists study the sun and learn...
1. How the sun shapes ecosystems and supports life on earth
2. What will happen when the sun eventually runs out of fuel
3. How the sun may be key to finding alien life in outer space
4. ...and so much more
The Big Questions Answered series is narrative nonfiction series and a complete young science resource in one, with QR codes to download free teacher and parent resources.
