October sees the publishing world deep into the Christmas period, meanwhile many of you will be in the midst of school holidays, while others are making their way into the final term of the year – and hopefully all of us are experiencing warmer weather and enjoying the longer days. Given the superfluity of books coming out this month, the blog will take a look at some books that might not make their way into lots of ads or social media posts, but would make great texts in your classroom or library.
Most of you will be familiar with Rob Biddulph’s wonderful books, which frequently feature animals. In I Follow the Fox we find ourselves in a snowy landscape, where a boy loses his most precious toy, Little Fox, at the park. That night, a fox comes to his window and leads him on a magical journey that may or may not be real. The text is a joy to read aloud, using rhyming couplets and a lilting cadence, while a limited colour palette and hidden details in the illustrations create a sense of wonder as the boy follows the fox ‘Across meadows tucked up beneath duvets of white.’ The enchantment of a child following a wild animal though a nighttime landscape has echoes of Anthony Browne’s Gorilla, and similarly, I Follow the Fox lends itself to discussion of what is real, what is a dream and if it really matters anyway.
Rene’s dream of opening a café and creating ‘fine cuisine’ has come true, but can she find a way to appeal to the unusual tastes of her customers? With the help of Glumfoot the waiter, Rene learns that collaboration can create something much more than the sum of its parts and that even ogres can appreciate gastronomic delights if they are served the right way. The creator’s background in animation is apparent in The Café at the Edge of the Woods, with the framing, layout and shifting angles lending the story a cinematic feel, while the woodcut illustrations lend sophistication to a story that might initially seem to be for small children. Like I Follow the Fox, The Café at the Edge of the Woods is written using rhyming couplets, however the rhythm tends more to the dramatic and comedic, making it suitable for an older audience despite (or even because of) its cast of wood-dwelling creatures and revoltingly fabulous food.
Sisters Gertrude, Eugenia and Dee-Dee Porch may not share DNA, but they do share an enormous intellect, terrifying curiosity and a deep disdain for Mrs Wintermacher’s School of Etiquette for Girls’ insistence on conformity and appearance above all else. But that doesn’t mean the three sisters don’t desperately want somewhere, and someone, to belong to. Thankfully, on the very day that an unfortunate – if instructive – incident with a bat, a catapult and a velvet fainting couch sees the sisters expelled from Mrs Wintermacher’s horrid establishment, the girls find invitations to attend another school. However, all is not as it seems and rather than being greeted by a Marjory Questions at the school that no one has ever heard of, the Porch sisters are greeted by the infamous Millicent Quibb, the mad scientist so despised by the town that her name has become a taunt for the weird and uncool. At The Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science, Gertrude, Eugenia and Dee-Dee find their intellect and curiosity fed rather than stifled, as well as a place – and person – to belong to. Soon though, the town that despised the sisters calls on them for help when the town finds itself under threat from the maddest of mad scientists. Will the Porch sisters choose the side of science or save the town that previously shunned them? Littered with rambling footnotes, sketches, diagrams and poetry, The Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science is a madcap adventure sure to keep middle-grade readers captivated to the last page.
