Australian Children's Literature (LIT324)
Semester 1 / 2015

Texts

y separately published work icon The Silver Brumby Elyne Mitchell , London : Hutchinson , 1958 Z175381 1958 single work novel young adult (taught in 1 units) Thowra, the magnificent silver stallion, is king of the brumbies. He must defend his herd from the mighty horse, the Brolga, in the most savage of struggles. He must also save his herd from capture by man.
y separately published work icon Girl Defective Simmone Howell , Sydney : Pan Macmillan Australia , 2013 Z1926105 2013 single work novel young adult detective mystery (taught in 2 units) 'It's summer in St Kilda. Fifteen-year-old Sky is looking forward to great records and nefarious activities with Nancy, her older, wilder friend. Her brother - Super Agent Gully - is on a mission to unmask the degenerate who bricked the shop window. Bill the Patriarch seems content to drink while the shop slides into bankruptcy. A poster of a mysterious girl and her connection to Luke, the new employee sends Sky on an exploration into the dark heart of the suburb. What begins as a toe-dip into wilder waters will end up changing the frames of Sky's existence. Love is strange. Family Rules. In between there are teenage messes, rock star spawn, violent fangirls and accidents waiting to happen. Sky Martin is Girl Defective: funny, real and dark at the edges.' (Publisher's blurb)
y separately published work icon Njunjul the Sun Meme McDonald , Boori Pryor , Crows Nest : Allen and Unwin , 2002 Z947015 2002 single work novel young adult (taught in 2 units) 'A 16-year-old Aboriginal boy leaves his family and home for the big city, and as he struggles to make sense of his experience he realises that he must have the knowledge of his own people and culture in order to know who he is, and to find his direction.' Source: Libraries Australia.
y separately published work icon Our World : Bardi Jaawi Life at Ardiyooloon One Arm Point Remote Community School (editor), Broome : Magabala Books , 2010 Z1727607 2010 anthology autobiography children's (taught in 3 units) 'Ardiyooloon is home to the Bardi Jaawi people and sits at the end of a red dirt road at the top of the Dampier Peninsula, 200km north of Broome in the north-west of Western Australia. Also known as One Arm Point, the community is surrounded on three sides by the saltwater that plays such an integral part in the people's lives. Our World: Bardi Jaawi Life at Ardiyooloon takes readers inside the lives of the children of a remote Indigenous community. Source: www.magabala.com (Sighted 24/11/2010).
y separately published work icon Laurinda Alice Pung , Melbourne : Black Inc. , 2014 7951220 2014 single work novel young adult (taught in 1 units)

'When my dad dropped us off at the front gate, the first things I saw were the rose garden spreading out on either side of the main driveway and the enormous sign in iron cursive letters spelling out LAURINDA. No 'Ladies College' after it, of course; the name was meant to speak for itself.

'Laurinda is an exclusive school for girls. At its secret core is the Cabinet, a trio of girls who wield power over their classmates - and some of their teachers.

'Entering this world of wealth and secrets is Lucy Lam, a scholarship girl with sharp eyes and a shaky sense of self. As she watches the Cabinet at work, and is courted by them, Lucy finds herself in a battle for her identity and integrity.

'Funny, feisty and moving, Laurinda explores Lucy's struggle to stay true to herself as she finds her way in a new world of privilege and opportunity.' (Publication summary)

y separately published work icon The Nargun and the Stars Patricia Wrightson , Richmond London : Hutchinson , 1973 Z862349 1973 single work children's fiction children's (taught in 3 units)

Simon Brent is orphaned. Still shocked, he is taken to live with his only relatives, brother and sister Charlie and Edie Waters, who live on a farm. There, Simon meets the Aboriginal spirits who also live on the land. Together Simon, Charlie, Edie, and the spirits save the land from the ancient Nargun. The story is memorable in the portrayal of the Nargun and the spirits, as well as the characters of Charlie and Edie, and the depiction of Simon's change from a shocked and emotionally frozen individual to a normal boy.

y separately published work icon Seven Little Australians Ethel Turner , London Melbourne : Ward, Lock and Bowden , 1894 Z863667 1894 single work children's fiction children's (taught in 25 units)

'Without doubt Judy was the worst of the seven, probably because she was the cleverest.'

'Her father, Captain Woolcot, found his vivacious, cheeky daughter impossible – but seven children were really too much for him and most of the time they ran wild at their rambling riverside home, Misrule.

'Step inside and meet them all – dreamy Meg, and Pip, daring Judy, naughty Bunty, Nell, Baby and the youngest, 'the General'. Come and share in their lives, their laughter and their tears.' (From the publisher's website.)

y separately published work icon The Lost Thing Shaun Tan , Shaun Tan (illustrator), Port Melbourne : Lothian , 2000 Z668356 2000 single work picture book children's (taught in 11 units) 'A boy discovers a bizarre looking creature while out collecting bottle tops at the beach. Realising it is lost, he tries to find out who owns it or where it belongs, but is met with indifference from everyone else, who barely notice its presence, each unwilling to entertain this uninvited interruption to their day to day lives. For reasons he does not explain, the boy empathises with the creature, and sets out to find a 'place' for it.'
(Source: The Lost Thing website)
y separately published work icon Bear and Chook Lisa Shanahan , Emma Quay (illustrator), Sydney : Hodder Headline , 2002 Z956176 2002 single work picture book children's (taught in 3 units) Adventurous Bear and practical Chook make unlikely friends, who together spend a day dreaming and acting out what jobs they think they'd like to have when they grow up. (Libraries Australia record).
y separately published work icon Leaf Stephen Michael King , Stephen Michael King (illustrator), Gosford : Scholastic Australia , 2008 Z1491176 2008 single work picture book children's (taught in 3 units)

"A boy who hates having his hair combed discovers an extraordinary side-effect of messy, matted hair when a seed falls on his head and begins to grow." (Source: Trove)

y separately published work icon Just Crazy! Andy Griffiths , Sydney : Pan , 2000 Z793607 2000 selected work children's fiction humour children's (taught in 3 units)

'"Just Crazy!" Is this the right book for you? Take the crazy test and find out the answer. Answer yes or no: Do you bounce so high on your bed that you hit your head on the ceiling? Do you ever look in the mirror and see a maniac staring back at you? Do you like to read stories about kittens, puppies and ponies getting mashed and pulverised? Do you sometimes get the urge to take your clothes off and cover yourself in mud? Do you often waste your time taking crazy tests like this one? Score by giving one point for each 'yes' answer. If you score 3-5, you are completely crazy. You will love this book. If you score 1-2, you are not completely crazy, but you're not far from it. You will love this book. If you score 0, you are so crazy you don't even realise you're crazy. You will love this book.' (Publication summary)

The Complete Adventures of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie Snugglepot and Cuddlepie May Gibbs , Sydney : Angus and Robertson , 1940 Z916552 1940 selected work children's fiction children's (taught in 3 units)
— Appears in: Kumurins un Kamolins; Es protu lekt pari pelkem; Vetras zens 1999;

'This quintessential collection of May Gibbs’ classic stories was first published in 1940 and has never been out of print since! Featuring the tales of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie (first published in 1918) and its two sequels, Little Ragged Blossom (1920) and Little Obelia (1921). In this new edition, all of May’s original artwork has been sourced and re-scanned and the illustrations look as exquisite as the day May put down her paintbrush all those years ago.' (Source: author's website)

y separately published work icon Window Jeannie Baker , Jeannie Baker (illustrator), London : Julia MacRae Books , 1991 Z834244 1991 single work picture book children's (taught in 5 units) Through a house window the view gradually changes over the passage of time to show how the environment changes, not necessarily for the better.

Description

LIT324 addresses issues that pertain to literature for children and teens in the Australian context - for example, the slow development of Australian fantasy, the contesting of Anglocentrism and gender bias, the growth of Indigenous literature and concerns about boys' literacy. As well as including the exploration of broader issues such as these, it takes advantage of CSU's unique perspective and offers an emphasis on regional issues in children's literature.

X