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Very New Zealand story

17/9/2014

Comments

 
Picture
The Little Glow Worm Who Couldn’t Turn on His Light    
by June Allen

This is a picture book for children in the 3-7 age range. The title sums up the story – it is about a little glow worm, and the characters he meets in his cave, as he is trying to find a way to switch on his light. The characters are all New Zealand animals – a cave spider, long-tailed bat, weta, and harvestman, with graphic illustrations of each. The story also provides a little information about these creatures, what they eat and how they live.  

   Some things I didn’t like: The story finishes quite suddenly and in a rushed way, without much explanation; the way the glow worm solves the problem of his light doesn’t make much sense to an adult, but my children accepted it as a satisfactory solution. Also the printing is a little unusual, in that page 1 is on the left as you open the book. 
    What I really did like: It is nice to read a very “New Zealand” story for this age group, with references to New Zealand creatures, and plants and trees as well. There are some colourful descriptions of the characters, and the language is expressive but still simple enough for children. And I liked the illustrations of the creatures, realistic and full of character.  I think your children will enjoy this story.

Review by Annie Whiterod
The Little Glow Worm Who Couldn’t Turn on His Light    
by June Allen
Publisher: Kwizzel Publishing
Available: some Paper Plus stores, Waitomo Caves gift shop, some NZ souvenir shops, through Wheelers and TLS
ISBN 978-0-473-27860-1 (book)
ISBN 978-0-9941095-4-5 (eBook) available soon, as Two Children’s Stories

Comments

Author has a good imagination 

9/9/2014

Comments

 
Picture

Slightly Spooky
by Carolyn McKenzie    

   This is a very modest collection of 3 short stories, between 5 and 11 pages long, all set in north Italy, in the romantic area of the Italian Riviera.
  Re-routed, presents a railway mystery that promises a little more than it gives at the end; but there’s good observation of people and the locality.

   Centuries Apart plays with past and present as two visitors to the area, each fascinated by a figure from history, meet.
   In A Grave Mistake, a message comes from the past to prompt action in the present.
   The stories are competently written and show the Author has a good imagination and knows the area very well. In addition to the three stories she has, after each one, included explanations, pictures, and even one map to flesh them out and add useful information.
   Overall, this slim volume (42 pages) is a little too modest. In this case bigger would have been better, and more care with formatting and proofing would improve the result. However, people who know the area, or would like to know it better, will appreciate the collection and obvious enthusiasm of the Author for the locality.


Review by: Paua Blue
Slightly Spooky, by Carolyn McKenzie
Publisher: Carolyn McKenzie
Paperback ISBN 9781499363401
Available from CreateSpace and onlinebook stores
ebook for PC and Kindle from Amazon, ASIN B00AQS1JKQ
Comments
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