 R.W.R. McDonald's brilliant debut mixes murder and mayhem with its own special brand of fabulousness.
Eleven-year-old Tippy Chan's mother has won a holiday, a two week cruise. Enter babysitters Uncle Pike and his new boyfriend, Devon. Fabulous, fun and creative, they have descended on the New Zealand town of Riverstone. Uncle Pike fled Riverstone as a teenager and found refuge in gay Sydney. Now he's back with a vengeance. Tippy and Uncle Pike share a love of Nancy Drew novels. When a grisly murder happens in the small town – Tippy's teacher is found dead, headless – Tippy and Uncle Pike form The Nancys, a crime solving club inspired by Nancy Drew. Their sleuthing opens up a new side of Riverstone: it turns out many of the locals are not what they seem and some of Tippy's closest relationships are forever changed once the real murderer is discovered. R.W.R McDonald's The Nancys mixes brilliant comic writing with a carefully plotted whodunnit that keeps you guessing until the very last page. The cast of small town characters is vividly drawn and true to life – there's many an eccentric or annoying type you'll recognise in these pages. Most of all, it's Tippy's wry, self-deprecatory narration that wins the show. A truly original debut that charms from the first page to the last. The Nancys, by R.W.R. McDonald. Published by Allen & Unwin. RRP: $29.99 Review by Chris Saliba  A young bear learns to be careful of what you wish for...
Last birthday Henry Bear made a wish, one he regrets. He wished his parents were more fun. As a result Mama Bear and Papa Bear now encourage him to eat cake for dinner and stay up late watching TV. Mama Bear scoffs that school is boring. Why not take your toys along? Henry Bear is almost at his wits end. He's always late with school homework and is falling behind. When Henry Bear meets new girl Marjani at school, he tells her his troubles. She has an idea to solve his problems. With another birthday coming up, why not make a new wish? Henry Bear does so and his old life returns. His parents start acting like adults again, making sure he is in bed early and well rested for the next day at school. Writer and illustrator Liam Francis Walsh's Make a Wish, Henry Bear is a delightfully told cautionary tale about the perils of getting what you want. His charming illustrations, with their soft colour palette, capture the cozy atmosphere of a close family. The introduction of an hijab wearing bear, Marjani, adds a nice touch of diversity. An ironic, often droll bear story that is sure to keep its young audience enthralled. 3 + years Make a Wish, Henry Bear, by Liam Francis Walsh. Published by Roaring Brook Press. RRP: $26.99 Review by Chris Saliba  Journalist Michael Roddan gives a thorough report on the Banking Royal Commission.
The banking royal commission, long resisted by government and the industry itself, lifted the lid on a snake's pit of scandalous behaviour. There seemed to be no bottom to the wrongdoing. The banks basically had a licence to pick-pocket their customers. A steroid fuelled sales culture took no prisoners when it came to signing up people to useless financial products. Overlooking this feeding frenzy was a rogues' gallery of corporate executives and managers. It's astonishing that such highly paid individuals could be so incompetent, causing so much damage to their respective institutions. Witness the demise of former treasury head and NAB Chairman Ken Henry, singled out in Justice Kenneth Hayne's final report. Michael Roddan, a finance journalist with The Australian, has written a rollicking page-turner that doesn't shy away from skewering some of the banks' worst offenders. The book employs a sharp, acerbic wit making The People Vs. the Banks an entertainment, almost a lark and a frolic. That doesn't distract from the serious issues at stake. Roddan devotes chapters to some of the cases the royal commission covered, but the media forgot, such as the treatment of indigenous Australians by the finance sector. A worthy document of a sorry history in Australia's corporate culture. The People Vs. the Banks, by Michael Roddan. Published by Melbourne University Press. RRP: $34.99 Review by Chris Saliba  Can a dog that smells like sardines and looks like a doormat ever find an owner to look after and love him? Find out in this comic canine caper.
Dumpster Dog – a homeless canine without a family or owner – lives rough on the streets. He’s smelly and messy and completely unkempt, although we shouldn’t hold that against him as he’s a dog down on his luck. Dumpster Dog has a friend, Flat Cat, a luckless feline that was run over and flattened. He tells Flat Cat he’s going to try and find himself an owner. His friend doesn’t like his chances. Things don’t go according to plan. Dumpster Dog meets a potential owner, a well dressed man with a car, but the man turns out to be a rascal. Soon Dumpster Dog is on his own again, and in more trouble. He’s abducted by a group of bandits and put into a cage with a lot of other hapless animals. Their fate looks grim. Can Dumpster Dog be a hero to the other animals and escape? Can he ever find the company he craves, despite smelling like sardines and looking like an old doormat? The first in a series of short chapter books by French writer Colas Gutman and illustrator Marc Boutavant, Dumpster Dog is an hilarious romp through the city streets of France. The story has a wonderfully comic cast of human villains and ill-fated animals. Who doesn’t like an adventure story with the requisite group of archetypal baddies, not to mention the young girl who works for them, administering tranquilizer drugs? Colas Gutman hits all the right notes with this goofy caper, balancing the cruelty of Dumpster Dog’s predicament against his sweet, innocent nature. This is a vibrantly told story full of invention and pleasant surprises. A real entertainment. Marc Boutavant’s illustrations are utterly gorgeous, little works of art in themselves, making this a very special book indeed. Dumpster Dog is sure to win you over. Ages 7+ Dumpster Dog, by Colas Gutman. Illustrated by Marc Boutavant. Published by Enchanted Lion Books. RRP: $16.99 Review by Chris Saliba  A young Mexican man takes a dangerous journey on top of a train to the US border.
Manuel lives a traditional life farming corn with his family in Mexico. His older brother, Tono, has left Mexico for America. He lives in Los Angeles and does menial work to scratch out a living. Being witness to a tragic event prompts young Manuel (he is twelve-years-old) to ride on top of a freight train to the US border. These freight trains are colloquially known as The Beast. It's an extremely dangerous way to get to the border as murderous gangs patrol the train tops. The travel is also dirty and uncomfortable, with access to water and food limited. It takes Manuel several years to re-unite with his brother Tono in Los Angeles. By the time he arrives he is fifteen-years-old and his hair has gone white from the stress of travel. He finds life in America isolating and exploitative. In one memorable passage, Manuel finds a laboring job, but is treated abominably. This is the lot of undocumented Mexican migrants, as they have no legal protections. As life in Los Angeles becomes lonelier, and his prospects wither, Manuel makes a surprising decision. Tony Johnston and María Elena Fontanot de Rhoads have created a gritty yet heartfelt story of a young man out on his own, making a terrifying trip. The story has a nicely rhythmic prose, liberally peppered with Spanish words, giving it a unique feel. In theme, if not in style, the book is reminiscent of John Steinbeck classics such as The Grapes of Wrath and Of Mice and Men, as it deals with indigent workers trying to survive in a harsh American labour market that is stacked against them. Realistic touches, such as the depiction of the notorious gangs, the kindness of strangers and the grim camaraderie of the beast riders, make for a refreshing authenticity. Young readers here get a window onto a very different world, exposing them to a current political and moral dilemma of how to respond to the US border problem. An adventure story tempered with much sadness. Ages 12+ Beast Rider, by Tony Johnston and Maria Elena Fontanot de Rhoads. Published by Abrams. RRP: $24.99 Review by Chris Saliba |
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