Kate Constable's Blog

Library Book Sale Time Again

This time I took Alice with me, and she ended up with a lot more stuff than I did!
For Alice
Guinness Book of World Records 2010
"The best book ever in the whole world!"
Asterix In Britain, R. Goscinny & A. Uderzo
Okay, I confess, I picked up this one. In Grade 6 I used to read an Asterix or a Tintin every rainy lunchtime. Happy days.
Animal Evolution, Federica Colombo
Rhinos and giraffes on the front cover. Sold! At the moment Alice is tossing up whether to work in a zoo or to be an historian.
Cocker Spaniel, Dr Bruce Fogle
Royal Toy Spaniels, Alicia Pennington
Doesn't Alicia Pennington sound like just the perfect person to be an expert on Royal Toy Spaniels? If I'm not going to let my children buy a puppy, I may as well let them buy puppy books.
The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde
Alice pounces on the creepy cover. 'What's this about, Mummy?' 'Um, it's about a man who gets his picture painted, and the picture grows old and he doesn't.' 'Ooh, yes please!' Should I be letting her read Oscar Wilde at 9? Sometimes it's slightly convenient that she can't read that well...
The Zoo Story, Catherine de Courcy
Now that I look at this more closely, I see that it's actually a book about the history and philosophy of zoo-keeping. Fascinating! We picked this up because of the cute lion cub on the cover but I think I might read it myself.

For me
Picture Writing: A new approach to writing for kids and teens, Anastasia Suen
Not about writing picture books, but making your writing more 'visually arresting'. Can't hurt, and I might learn something...
The Barrumbi Kids, Leonie Norrington
I've been meaning to read this for ages. The blurb says, 'an exciting, funny first novel about children moving between Aboriginal and white cultures.' Hooray for that.
Chenxi and the Foreigner, Sally Rippin
Very pleased about this pick up, especially since I met Sally at the PM's Award lunch (oh shut up) and she was absolutely lovely. I also can't wait to read her new book, Angel Creek, which is set around Merri Creek where we live too.

For Evie
Pups 4 Sale, Margaret Clark
Thank God there are so many books about puppies in the world. If Evie is careful, she might get through her entire life reading nothing else. She's certainly heading that way...

For Michael
The Psychology of Cricket, Graham Winter
I got this for Michael as a joke but I think he was actually a bit offended. Since he's in career best form and won Man of the Match in the cricket club Grand Final, he doesn't need the help of any psychology book, oh nooo, thank you very much.