Websites bookmarked for children's resources

Reviews of literature and information resources for children and young people

New Zealand

New Zealand Book Council. (n.d.). The School Library. Retrieved  February 08, 2014, from http://www.bookcouncil.org.nz/Education/Whats%20New/School%20Library

An online quarterly that contains reviews of New Zealand children’s books. At its helm is Chrissi Blair, a leading children’s book reviewer. Picture books to teen fiction, non-fiction and poetry are covered here as well as interviews with Kiwi authors, news and interesting commentaries. Back issues can be easily searched and reviews can also be searched by title, author, category or age group.

International

School Library Journal. (n.d.). Retrieved February 06, 2014, from http://www.slj.com/

“The world’s largest reviewer of books, multimedia and technology for children and teens”, a subscription to this U.S. publication can be most useful to school and CYA librarians internationally. Each issue is packed with informative articles, learning and research and literature reviews. The website features reading blogs, book reviews, webcasts and articles on contemporary library issues.

Awards

Book sellers New Zealand. (n.d.). New Zealand Post Children’s Book Awards. Retrieved February 06, 2014, from http://www.booksellers.co.nz/awards/new-zealand-post-childrens-book-awards

The New Zealand Post Awards function to recognise excellence in children’s literature and are awarded annually to children’s and young adult books written by New Zealanders and published in New Zealand. Prizes are awarded in four categories. The supreme Margaret Mahy book of the year is given to the one book that is of outstanding quality in all criteria.

The CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenway Children’s Book  Awards (n.d.). Retrieved February 06, 2014, from http://www.carnegiegreenaway.org.uk/home/index.php

Described as the most prestigious of literature awards for children and young people, the Carnegie medal for outstanding writing and Kate Greenway medal for distinguished  illustration are awarded annually by the UK based Chartered Institute of librarians and information professionals. A unique feature is its Shadowing Site where people get involved and engaged in reading books shortlisted for the current year.

Organisations that promote reading and literature

New Zealand Book Council. (n.d.). Education. Retrieved February 06, 2014, from http://www.bookcouncil.org.nz/Education/Introduction/Information.htm

This not for profit organisation is all about bringing books and people together – readers, writers, schools and kids. Children’s services include, books, creative writing by kids, competitions, word and reading games and one of the programmes it runs is Writers in schools which takes New Zealand writers and illustrators into schools all over the country.

Storylines Children’s Literature Charitable Trust of New Zealand. (n.d.). Retrieved February 06, 2014, from http://www.storylines.org.nz/

 Storylines supports and promotes children’s literature in New Zealand. A voluntary organisation run by professionals through the Storylines Trust and Foundation, its vast range of activities include awards, literature festivals, author /illustrator profiles, literature reviews, book lists, links to resources and a free monthly newsletter with the latest in children’s literature in New Zealand and abroad.

Publishers/booksellers

Booksellers New Zealand. (2011). Retrieved February 07, 2014, from  http://www.booksellers.co.nz/

The website of independent book sellers and stores in New Zealand, its partners are New Zealand Book Council, New Zealand Society of Authors, Creative NZ, Publishers Association of New Zealand and NZ Book Month. It offers the latest book news, bestseller lists and a directory of all independent book shops in the country.  It also manages the NZ Post Book Awards.

Dorling Kindersly Ltd. (2014). DK books. Retrieved February 07, 2014, from http://www.dk.co.uk/static/html/childrens/

UK turned multinational publisher, well-known for children’s visual reference guides, encyclopaedias and pre-school books published in over 50 languages. The website hosts a clipart library in which thousands of images from its various publications are available to download. A very interesting, useful tool for school work or creative projects.

Fiction reading and reviews for primary school children

Auckland Council. (2014). Libraries. Retrieved February 07, 2014, from http://www.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/EN/kids/Pages/default.aspx

The kids’ pages on the Auckland Libraries are a treasure trove of interesting, fun information and activities. In addition to searching the library’s catalogue, new and recommended titles from the collection are high-lighted here, there are picture book and fiction book lists by genre, monthly newsletters, book reviews by librarians and recommendations from a mix of the kids and teens collection for tweens in the 9 to 12 age group.

Kids’ Book Review.(n.d.). Retrieved February 07, 2014, from http://www.kids-bookreview.com/

Website devoted to children’s literature and book reviews, which supports Australian and international authors, illustrators, etc. and is run by volunteer professionals. Reviews, interviews, events, blog posts and useful links on books and literature related topics abound on this attractive and interactive site.

Fiction reading and reviews for teenagers

Books for teens. (n.d.). Retrieved February 07, 2014, from http://www.books4teens.co.uk/

Lots of appealing visuals and colour on this site, which was created by blogger Jesse Owen. A noteworthy feature is a reading challenge to promote British authors - this involves reading (and reviewing) one book written by a Brit, in a month, for the duration of the challenge. Another interesting item is the collection of videos or “vlogs” posted by readers inspired by anything bookish.

State library of Victoria. (2014). Inside a dog. Retrieved February 07, 2014, from http://www.insideadog.com.au/

A highly interactive website for teens. Easy to find a good read as it is chock full of young adult book reviews, presented in a dynamic way. You can post and share your own reviews, discuss books and much else besides, on the various forums, read authors’ thoughts on reading and writing and start or join a book club.

Information resources for primary school children

Many Answers. (n.d.). Any questions? Many answers. Retrieved February 07, 2014, from http://manyanswers.co.nz/

Many Answers complements the online, real-time homework help service, AnyQuestions, which is provided to New Zealand school children by the National Library of New Zealand and partnering public libraries. Popular homework questions that are asked on AnyQuestions are compiled, arranged by subject and level, and posted on the site, along with the online resources which students can research, for answers. The site is continually updated.

Britannica Online Encyclopaedia. (n.d.). Britannica Library Edition - Junior . Retrieved February 07, 2014, from http://0-library.ebonline.co.nz.www.elgar.govt.nz/elementary

The encyclopaedia Britannica needs no introduction and the online library edition of this great resource can be accessed subscription free through school and public libraries’ websites. The junior section is appropriate for primary school children in terms of content, depth and language and its reliability is guaranteed. The guided tour offered makes searching the site easy and effective.

Information resources for teenagers

Manatu Taonga Ministry of culture and heritage. (n.d.). Te ara – the encyclopaedia of New Zealand. Retrieved February 08, 2014, from http://www.teara.govt.nz/en

A subscription free government website, Te Ara is an indispensible resource for students studying the New Zealand curriculum. Comprehensive in its content, it provides reliable information. Its contemporary design uses multi-media effectively and is a very user-friendly site to navigate. It is continually updated to stay current. A unique collaborative section titled  “your Story” invites personal stories from the public pertaining to any Te Ara subject.

British Broadcasting Corporation. (2014). BBC Schools. Retrieved February 08, 2014, from http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/0/

The BBC remains unchallenged as one of the most authoritative providers of current affairs and world news and the section of their website especially targeted at schools provides education-related information from online resources that support the secondary curriculum (although U.K. related, there are several resources of value), to study plans, classroom videos on a variety of topics, a topical news magazine – great to browse or search.

Other interesting/useful websites

International Children’s Digital Library. (n.d.). Retrieved February 08, 2014, from http://en.childrenslibrary.org/

This is a remarkable mission to digitise children’s books from around the world and make them freely available on the internet. The purpose of this non-profit organisation is to celebrate diversity and promote tolerance through literature. Currently, you can browse 4,642 titles in 61 languages.

Love reading for kids. (n.d.).  Retrieved February 17, 2014, from http://www.lovereading4kids.co.uk/

A comprehensive book site. It features books of the year, top10s, like-for-like authors, categories by age and genre, special features like books for boys, debuts of the month and more. it also offers opening extracts of featured books and online reviews. A most useful resource for parents with toddlers through to teens.

Picture story book - early childhood, 3 years+

Wells, Rosemary, 1998. Noisy Nora. London: Transworld Publishers.

"I'm leaving!” shouted Nora,

“And I'm never coming back!”

Nora is a middle-born mouse, trying to get some attention from her busy parents. Despite the noise she makes and the antics she performs Dad and mum are too preoccupied with her older sister and baby brother to bother with her. So Nora decides to try another way of getting noticed. She announces that she is going to run away. When things become too quiet round the house, the parents’ antennae go up and they go in search of Nora, but to no avail. Finally, Nora makes a noisy come-back, as she returns to the security of her family. This picture book has terrific appeal in its pictures and words. The personification of the mouse family is endearing and more surprising than depicting humans. Illustrations are big and bright and children will love to point out familiar domestic objects in the pictures. 8 to 10 simple words at the bottom of each page help tell the story. The upbeat rhyming sentences make it a pleasure to read and hear. Its universal theme – the need for attention, is easy to identify with, and makes this heart-warming tale a treasure for pre-schoolers as well as older children.

 

Realistic fiction - Humour - ages 9 and over

Meek, Stephen, 2012. A boy arrives. Lincoln: Hawkwood.


This touching, funny tale opens with the arrival of Jimbo, at the front door of his great uncle, Grimwood Streep’s creaky old mansion, and from then life is turned topsy-turvy. A series of farcical misadventures ensue with the help of an assortment of eccentric characters, but happily everything comes right in the end. In fact the world is a better place than it previously was. Though the plot is a simple one, there are some  surprising twists in the story to keep the reader engaged all the way through. The boy protagonist is mischievous, kind and likeable whose antics are sure to delight most 9 to 12 year olds. The adults’ exaggerated personalities are mostly entertaining and include an accident-prone “baddie”.  A special feature is the clever play on language that the author has deliberately used which will amuse as well as stretch the vocabulary of the reader. For example, in reply to the question “who are you?” a male character answers

 “I am…well, my name is immaterial. I phoned you. You knew I was coming.”

“Did you say your name was …Emma? Emma Terial? You don’t look like an ‘Ema’’.”

While the story will appeal to most upper primary children, those who relish word play, jokes and puns will have double the fun. A book that has the cast, characters and plot just waiting to be made into a comedic, family film.

Realistic fiction - historical - ages 12-18 years

Hill, David. 2012. My brother's war. Auckland, N.Z.: Puffin.

It is 1914. World War 1 has broken out in Europe. In New Zealand, two brothers with opposing views on war, follow different paths into the trenches. One proudly volunteers to protect his country from the dangerous Huns and the other, a “conchie” (a dismissive term used for conscientious objector against war) is shipped across as a prisoner. Both brothers find themselves  in England and  France, and  we follow them through a narrative of the indignities suffered,  the horror and fighting and the oftentimes stupidity of military power. We also feel the warm comradeship that develops between men. The story culminates after a bloody battle when the brothers are reunited. But they meet as changed men, because their experiences force them to reconsider their initial beliefs and opinions on war. The strength of this story lies in its complex theme which has been treated in a thought-provoking and non-judgmental manner. Using a straight-from-the heart style, touched at times with a dark humour quite appropriate to the setting, David Hill has given young adults a chance to personalise an important idea and think beyond their world.  The thought-provoking subject of this awarding winning novel would make it a perfect choice for a teen book club.