BOOK WEEK

 

CBC’s Book Week  - August 16th-22nd

The Winners !!!!!!

This years theme is ‘Fuel your mind’.  The Xavier College Libraries will be celebrating during this week with various events at all campuses. Watch out for colorful displays.  The shortlisted Books and the winners will be on display. (image accessed 25/06/08 from the http://cbca.org.au)

Older Readers Shortlist 2008
FRENCH, Jackie                  Pharaoh: the boy who conquered the Nile

HARTNETT, Sonya            The Ghost’s child   ** WINNER **

HEFFERNAN, John            Marty’s shadow    HONOUR

McDONALD, Meme            Love like water

METZENTHEN, David       Black water          HONOUR

NORRINGTON, Leonie       Leaving Barrumbi

Younger Readers Shortlist 2008

CLARK, Sherryl                   Sixth Grade style (not!)   HONOUR

FRENCH, Jackie                  The Shaggy Gully Times

HIRSCh, Odo                         Amelia Dee and the peacock lamp     HONOUR

METZENTHEN, David       Winning the World Cup

RODDA, Emily                     The key to Rondo

WILKINSON, Carole            Dragon moon       ** WINNER **

Eve Pownall Shortlist 2008

CERMAK, Michael             Australia’s deadliest and dangerous animals

COOKE, Kaz                        Girl stuff: your full-on guide to teen years  HONOUR

MACINNES, Peter             Kokoda Track: 101 days      HONOUR

NORMAN, Mark                 The Antarctica book: living in the freezer

WATTS, Frances                Parsley Rabbit’s book about books   ** WINNER **

WILKINSON, Carole          Ned Kelly’s Jerilderie letter

Picture Book of the Year Shortlist 2008

SPUDVILAS, Anne            The peasant Prince   HONOUR

GREDER, Armin                The Island

HUXLEY, Dee                     You and me: our place

INGPEN, Robert                 Ziba came on a boat

OTTLEY, Matt                    Requiem for a beast   ** WINNER **

THOMPSON, Colin            Dust   HONOUR

Early Childhood Shortlist 2008

ALLEN, Pamela                    Shhh! Little mouse

BLABEY, Aaron                    Pearl Barley and Charlie Parsley   ** WINNER **

DUMBLETON, Mike            Cat    HONOUR

GRAHAM, Bob                      The trouble with dogs!

HURST, Elise                        The night garden

 

Can you hear the nightbird call? by Anita Rau Badami

This book is one of the few I have read and related well with, purely because it relates to Indian history and the Sikhs. Set in India and Canada it is the story of three women linked and destroyed by the political turmoil that sweeps through the Punjab during partition in 1947 and then in the 1980s with the storming of the Golden Temple in Amritsar and the assassination of Indira Gandhi.

 

Badami charts the stories of three Indian women Bibi-ji, Leela and Nimmo. Bibi-ji born Sharanjeet Kaur in a Punjabi village steals her sister Kanwar’s destiny and ends up in Canada with her wealthy husband.

 

Leela Bhat born to a German father and a Hindu mother emigrates to Canada with her husband and is Biji-ji’s first tenant and her closest friend.

 

While Biji-ji has a life of luxury in Canada her sister Kanwar who is subject to the brutal violence of events during 1947 is not so fortunate. Meanwhile little six year old Nimmo makes her way to Delhi where she is adopted, marries  and builds her life with Satpal. Although poor, her life is filled with love and laughter.

 

After a quarter of a century Bibi-ji finds her niece Nimmo through Leela Bhat  who carries a message through Satpal (a taxi driver) when she visits India. Bibi-ji pressures Nimmo into giving up Jasbeer her eldest son into her care. Jasbeer does not settle very well into Vancouver. Bibi-ji is troubled by his involvement in the politics of another country but cannot bring herself to stop him.

 

Bibi-ji and Pa-ji (her husband) visit the Golden temple in Amritsar for their annual pilgrimage in 1984. While they were there the temple is stormed and the results are devastating.  With the assassination of Indira Gandhi in the same year by two Sikh bodyguards it brings another wave of violence against innocent Sikhs. This time Nimmo’s life is destroyed with the loss of her husband and children.

 

The anger spills across borders and into distant Canada and into the lives of Bibi-ji and Leela who were best of friends

This book is suitable for students from year 10 onwards.  An enjoyable read and I will keep on reading more of Badami’s novels. I give it a (*****) rating. A.M.

 

Remember me by Derek Hansen

This is a story about boy (based on Derek Hansen himself) who is growing up in Post War, New Zealand. His world revolves around his mates, Richmond Road School, the Church Army, the shop his mum owns and his family. He likes to ride his bike, go fishing, go to Games night at the Church Army or just be a twelve year old boy.
One day he goes to see his friend, Mack, who is grieving for his wife who died and who has taken up drinking too much. Mack tells him a story about an experience he has during the war where he goes out fishing and comes into contact with a German Submarine. The Captain takes his catch in exchange for some fuel for Mack’s boat. Before leaving Mack and his boat, the Captain asks him not to tell anyone, which he hadn’t to that point.
Mack ends up in hospital but still his young friend comes to visit him. To cheer him up, the young fellow writes an essay about his experience with the Submarine and its Captain. This cheers Mack up and starts him thinking about this Captain.
Christian Berger, the Captain of the Sub is found and comes to New Zealand - the place he has been dreaming about since the encounter with a fisherman all those years ago. But even before he arrives, people don’t want him there because he is a German. He meets Mack and they become instant friends. Christian then wins over the community when he saves two boys from a drain.
A really good read.

A.R Rated: *****

 

Chaos walking : The knife of never letting go. Book 1. by Patrick Ness

This novel is set in a future world - a world where there is no silence, a world where there are no women. When the settlers came to the New World they were exposed to a disease called ‘the noise germ” which killed all the women and whilst, not killing the men, made their thoughts audible. It is a world where silence does not exist.
The main character is Todd Hewitt, a thirteen year old boy, who is on the verge of becoming a man - an event in his life he looks forward to with anticipation. He is also a boy who is angry about his mother’s and his father’s disappearance. He resents the control forced on him by his carers and he is the last adolescent, the only one in the community yet to reach manhood. The disease affects all living creatures in new world, man and animal. Todd hears not only the thoughts of the men but also animals. On a walk near the swamps which ring the town, Todd hears something he has never heard before - “silence”. There should be no silence but there is and Todd begins to hear long-held secrets. Secrets come to the surface - ugly, violent and dangerous secrets. Todd realizes that in order to survive he must escape.
Chaos walking is a great read. The story line has twists and turns which keep the reader guessing what will happen next. It is a story of non-stop action which will appeal to a wide range of readers both adolescents and adults. The novel has won wide acclaim in Australia and overseas. This is Patrick Ness’ first adolescent novel but he is well known as a writer of adult fiction and journal articles.
Reading Level: 9 - 12

T-Dog ****

 

Fade by Robert Cormier

 

Fade is the story of 13 year old, Paul Moreaux, growing up during the Depression years in America. The family moved from Quebec years earlier and had settled in the run down tenements in Monument, a small town in Massachusetts. Life is difficult, his father works at a local factory, the Monument Comb Shop.  The work is low-paid, dangerous and laborious; but it’s a job and these are hard to come by during the Depression years. Paul’s older brother hopes to leave school and like his father work at the local factory. Paul on the other hand has bigger aspirations and would like to become a writer.

 

Paul’s teenage experiences are typical of any young boy growing up during the Depression, apart from one exception; he has the ability to fade or become invisible.  This ability is inherited, as Paul discovers when his mysteries Uncle Adelard visits.  At first, Paul is thrilled with his newly discovered powers, and under the guise of invisibility is able to reek vengeance on the small town bully. Under this cloak of invisibility, Paul can do as he pleases, without the censure of those around him. However, the darker side of his powers soon becomes evident with tragic consequences that leave Paul scarred and living in self-imposed exile.

 

Fade can be enjoyed as an intriguing sci-fi novel and for its thought provoking and complex themes; the choice between good and evil, the dangers and enticement inherent in unbounded power. This is an excellent read and I found myself unable to put it down.

Highly recommended for Years. 10-12

Rating ****

MS.