THE LIBRARIAN’S GUIDE TO BOOKS FOR KIDS & TEENS INSIDE 2018: The Big Picture Professional development Student writing competitions Literary anniversaries And more! SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT Books for struggling +readers Detailed reviews on the latest FEB 2018 ISSN 2204-5708 fiction to help you choose WELCOME ABOUT THE PUBLISHER The Book Curator is published by Apt School Resources, an Australian business jointly owned by two families EDITORIAL who share a passion for books and a determination to provide outstanding service to our members. Welcome to the first issue of The Book Curator for 2018! I hope you’ve had a wonderful break We help schools all over the country by and are excited for the year ahead. providing them with access to helpful information, detailed reviews and the A few months ago one of our members latest fiction titles for their libraries. commented that an overview of professional development opportunities would be helpful, Our goal is to provide the resources librarians need to choose the best so we decided to take that a step further and books for their school library across a make this February issue the ‘plan your 2018’ wide range of genres, age groups and edition. We hope you will use it to schedule in the events that are formats. We provide a wide range of most important to you. services to help support our members so they can get the best return for their As well as an overview of key PD conferences, you’ll find a two time and their budget. page spread of major upcoming literary and historic anniversaries, details of movie adaptations of YA and children’s books coming to This magazine (previously called Review) and our service have the big screen (with a special ofer), plus an article on Australian developed based on what our members writing competitions your students can get involved in. We’ve also want. We invite your ideas, got a feature on the Kids’ Lit Quiz - an incredible international suggestions, feedback and constructive competition for teams of book-loving kids - including information criticism to help us provide solutions to the challenges you face as you work to on how your school can join in. build an outstanding library for your school community. We want libraries to be accessible for every child, so in our special supplement this month you’ll find reviews of more than 50 skinny In addition to library titles, we source reads for struggling and reluctant readers, those with dyslexia or and supply a wide range of interesting those with English as an additional language. and efective resources to help teachers, counsellors and chaplains Our goal is to help make 2018 your best year yet. If there’s work with and support their students. something you’d like us to help with, we genuinely want to hear We also help equip teachers and school your ideas. leaders with professional development resources. Here’s to a fabulous year ahead! For more information about our services or to provide feedback please contact us. Apt School Resources ROWENA BERESFORD Unit 3, 5 Currumbin Court Capalaba QLD 4157 AUSTRALIA PS. If you have any comments on The Book Curator or suggestions on what we P 02 8985 9435 could improve or include in future issues, please call 02 8985 9435 or email your F 02 8007 0510 feedback to [email protected] W bookcurator.com.au E [email protected] The Book Curator ISSN 2204-5708 » For information on our trafc light ratings, please refer to page 14 Disclaimer: The reviews contained in this magazine are based on each individual reviewer’s opinion only. While we do our best to pick up every potential concern in fiction titles, we cannot guarantee that to be the case. Should you purchase a book based on our reviews and then discover an issue of serious concern to you that was not included in our review, please contact us. 2 | The Book Curator: February 2018 Contents » ARTICLES & FEATURES 19 SAM'S SURFBOARD 30! TWENTY-FIVE MEMORIES OF SHOWDOWN VIGGO MACDUFF 3 IN THE SPOTLIGHT Allayne L. Webster & Kate Gordon Books-to-Movies 2018 Amanda S. Clarke 31! ESME'S WISH PLAN YOUR YEAR ! 20 THE PICKY PUFFIN: Elizabeth Foster 6 Professional Development ZOE'S RESCUE ZOO 32! AUSTRALIA'S GREAT WAR: 1918 Highlights 2018 Amelia Cobb Libby Gleeson 7 Kids’ Lit Quiz 2018 20! PATTY AND THE SHADOWS: GAME DAY! # 2 32! LOVE, HATE & OTHER FILTERS 8 Kids Writing Competitions Patty Mills Samira Ahmed 10 NOTABLE DATES: 21! INTERGALACTIC GAS: 33! GRAEVALE: THE MEDORAN The Year Ahead BAD GUYS EPISODE 5 CHRONICLES # 4 12 NEWS & VIEWS Aaron Blabey Lynette Noni 21! BARNEY AND THE SECRET 34! RAIN FALL » BOOK REVIEWS OF THE FRENCH SPIES Ella West Jackie French 15 LIONEL AND THE LION'S 35! INDIGO BLUE SHARE 22! THE WILD ROBOT Jessica Watson Lou Peacock Peter Brown 35! WOLF CHILDREN 15! YAY! IT’S LIBRARY DAY 23! VOYAGE TO AVALON: THE MICE Paul Dowswell OF THE ROUND TABLE # 2 Aleesah Darlison 36! THE START OF ME AND YOU Julie Leung 15! MACCA THE ALPACA Emery Lord ! Matt Cosgrove 23 THE BRILLIANT FALL OF 37! GEMINI GIANNA Z. 16! ROOM ON OUR ROCK Sonya Mukherjee Kate Messner Kate & Jol Temple 37 UNEARTHED 24! LIBBY IN THE MIDDLE 16! KATE AND THE THING Amie Kaufman Gwyneth Rees and Meagan Spooner Heidi Cooper Smith 25 I SWAPPED MY BROTHER 16 ERIK THE LONE WOLF 38! SCYTHE ON THE INTERNET Neal Shusterman Sarah Finan Jo Simmons ! 39! THE CRUEL PRINCE: 17 STORYBOOK STARS 25! THE RISE OF WOLVES Jim Dewar THE FOLK OF THE AIR # 1 Kerr Thomson Holly Black ! 17 PARMESAN THE 26! THE EXTRAORDINARY COLOURS RELUCTANT RACEHORSE OF AUDEN DARE Jacqui Halpin » IN EVERY ISSUE Zillah Bethell ! 41 USEFUL INFORMATION 17 CLOVER’S BIG IDEAS 27! THE EXTREMELY Georgie Donaghey INCONVENIENT ADVENTURES Great websites and apps, festivals and literary events, 18! THE FIVE MISFITS OF BRONTE METTLESTONE conferences and seminars Beatrice Alemagna Jaclyn Moriarty 42 INDEX 18! HARK IT'S ME, RUBY LEE! 28! HAVE SWORD, WILL TRAVEL This issue’s titles in alphabetical Lisa Shanahan Garth Nix & Sean Williams order 18! LIFE OF THE PARTY!: 29! DO YOU SPEAK CHOCOLATE? 43 UPCOMING TITLES THE SUSIE K FILES # 1 Cas Lester What’s on the horizon Shamini Flint 29! PAX 19! GAME CHANGER!: Sara Pennypacker THE SUSIE K FILES # 2 30! DOG Shamini Flint Andy Mulligan bookcurator.com.au | 3 IN THE SPOTLIGHT BOOKS-TO- MOVIES 2018 Explore the many movie adaptations of children and YA novels coming to the big screen in 2018 with this comprehensive guide. Peter Rabbit find an Easter Egg which will 22nd March grant the winner his fortune. A comedic animated film about Breath the shenanigans that follow 3rd May Potter’s beloved characters when Based on the multi award- Peter Rabbit tries to sneak into a winning young adult novel by The ever-increasing volume of farmer’s vegetable garden. Shot Tim Winton, Breath is the book-to-movie adaptations in Sydney with homegrown talent directorial debut of our very own illustrates the film industries’ Margot Robbie, Sia and Rose Byrne. Simon Baker. Set in mid-70s incessant hunger for original A Wrinkle in Time coastal Australia, the film was source material to turn into great 29th March shot and cast locally. The story movies. follows two teenage boys whose Adapted from the novel of the unlikely friendship with a The trend of dystopian, futuristic same name by Madeleine mysterious old surfer pushes and science fiction novels being L'Engle, two siblings embark on them to make some precarious adapted into hit action-thrillers an adventure to find their decisions that will profoundly endures this year, and we will missing scientist father afer impact their lives. also see many of the YA market’s being sent into space by three most popular contemporary peculiar beings. Filmed next door The Darkest Minds fiction and romantic dramas in New Zealand and starring 13th September transitioning to the big screen. young Aussie talent Levi Miller. A disease has killed 98% of Worth a notable mention is Love, Simon America’s children and now the Breath, the local venture that 29th March surviving 2% have developed adapted Perth author Tim frightening superpowers they are A coming-of-age story that follows Winton’s contemporary fiction— unable to control. Adapted from a closeted gay protagonist who winner of the 2009 Miles Franklin the first book (of the same name) has fallen in love with an Literary Award—into an entirely in Alexandra Bracken’s young anonymous classmate online, Australian feature film crewed, adult trilogy, this film follows a based on Simon vs. the Homo produced, cast and filmed on group of kids as they escape Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertelli home soil. from an internment camp to and starring another Australian Movie adaptations drive demand pursue a life worth living. actress, Katherine Langford. for the books so it is a good time Robin Hood to cross-check your collection Ready Player One 20th September with the list on your February 29th March A Moorish commander and war- order form (with additional Directed by Steven Spielberg, hardened Crusader embark on a member savings on ofer when this adaption of Ernest Cline’s daring revolt against the corrupt you order by 28th Feb 2018). debut science fiction novel is set English crown in a gritty action- Please note that movie release in a virtual reality world called fuelled origin story of how the dates shown here are subject to OASIS. When the creator of this legend in The Merry Adventures change.