Dinosaur Jokes by Jacqueline Horsefall

A joke book exclusively about dinosaurs so if you are into dinosaurs this might be worth a look at. The illustrations are in cartoon form and very bright, colourful as well as comical. It contains riddles, and for some strange reason one lonely little knock-knock. Some of the riddles are a bit on the lame side, whilst others may elicit a laugh. Try a few of these ones about the Tyrannosaurus Rex:

Why does Tyrannosaurus eat raw meat?

It never learned how to cook.

How do you ask a Tyrannosaurus to lunch?

"Tea, Rex?"

What does Tyrannosaurus eat after it visits the dentist?

The dentist.

Which Dinosaur wears a ten-gallon hat?

Tyrannosaurus Tex.

Puppets Around the World by Gina Nuttall

This is a simple but informative book about puppets from around the world. It is a great introduction to puppets and the text is accompanied with large, colourful photographs of the different types of puppets. There is information on marionette puppets in China, the famous French puppet Guignol, shadow puppets from Indonesia, bunraku which is a type of puppet show in Japan, Punch and Judy the seaside puppet shows in Britain. In Vietnam some puppet shows are performed on water and the puppets need to be waterproof. Another section deals with Charlie, the famous dummy from the US and talks about ventriloquism. The final section is an instructional text on how to make your own felt finger puppet. There is a short glossary in the back of the book as well as a simple index.

My Place by Nadia Wheatley and Donna Rawlins.

There are two copies of this beautiful book in the Little Library of Rescued Books, one softback and one hard cover. This picture book is best poured over than read aloud. I have purchased the DVD series that is based on the book and will be using it when we do our Australian history units throughout the year. The book gives a unique and intimate history of Australia and family life and features descriptive text, maps and illustrations. The story starts in 1988 and works its way backwards through time until the time of invasion in 1788 telling the history of one particular place through the generations of children who lived there. Click on the link below to check out the My Place website:

http://www.abc.net.au/abc3/myplace/

Puppet Mania by John Kennedy

This book is full of the most amazing ideas about puppetry that I haven't seen before. Some of the puppets could be made with very little expense and with limited resources such as the Coaster Creature, whilst others like the Running Rabbi,t are quite elaborate. It's going to be a very handy book for me as I am planning an animation unit and a puppetry unit this year. The Bottle Bugs made from bottles and a glove are amazing and don't appear to be overly fussy. There's a really interesting chapter on how to convert an old bear into a puppet which I will definitely be looking into. Overall, this is a very creative book with designs requiring varying levels of skill.

The Wild Swans by Hans Christian Anderson (adapted by Delia Huddy)

Generally I am not a big fan of fairy tales but this one got me hooked. Once there lived a king (the usual story) who has eleven sons and a very attractive daughter called Elise. Their mother dies and their father marries again (the usual story). It turns out that she is a wicked queen, and she puts a spell onto the princes turning them into swans. Jealous of Elise's beauty as she matures into a young woman, the queen weaves a spell to make her her ugly and unrecognisable to her father, and Elise becomes an outcast who only has the forest for company. She sets out on a journey to find her brothers and then has to perform a very challenging tasks to free them form the spell. The text is accompanied by detailed ink drawings by Nigel Murray. It's a small book of 63 pages, so if you a looking for a lighter, quicker read, this may be the book for you. There is a short information panel about Hans Christian Anderson in the back of the book along with previews of other Walker books at the same level.

Click on the link below to watch the movie The Wild Swans which is a Russian film made in 1962, it has been dubbed into English:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r35dqhQnrL0

Blabbermouth by Morris Gleitzman

Rowena Batts has a disability; she can't speak. Roweena lives with her good-natured but somewhat eccentric dad on an apple farm. She was enrolled in a special school where she learnt sign language but now she attends a public school in a small county town. Rowena finds is exceedingly hard to fit in and is bullied by Darryn Peck. She is resilient though and along with a new found friend Amanda, Stickybeak and Gift of the Gab which continue on from this novel are both available for borrowing from in the Little Library of Rescued Books. To listen to the first chapter of this book, click on the link below the book cover.

http://www.morrisgleitzman.com/books/fst_blab_audio.html

Portrait of Dog by David Rish

This novel is written by one of Tasmania's own, David Rish, a writer and a dramatist who currently lives in Hobart. In fact the book, which has been signed by the author, is set in Hobart. Whilst in a second-hand shop, Rob, an aspiring artist, discovers a paintbox with a face etched in miniature on the lid. He is instinctively drawn to the box and is bitterly disappointed when he finds it has been sold. Much to his surprise his parents have purchased it for him for his thirteenth birthday. His irresistible desire to discover the history of the box leads him to the derelict Heart Field House and to its sole and exuberant occupant, Dog. Who is this mysterious waif who seem to understand Rob more than he does himself? She has some eerie connection to the former mistress of the house, the shadow-woman.