Cirrus@Austlit

'This newly created range of Steve Parish KIDS books features some of Australia's cutest animals and is an enchanting way to introduce children to books and help prepare them for reading.

'A child's perception is very different to an adult's. Children don't automatically know how to progress through a book — a precursor to learning to read.

'Each book in the Say "Hello" series acquaints children with Australian animals and promotes a set of skills that prepares them for reading. Say "Hello" to an Aussie icon and start your child on the road to a lifetime of reading pleasure.'(Publication summary)

'She's cute, she's clever and she loves playing games. Min Min the Australian Hopping Mouse invites Mat the kangaroo to join her in a jumping competition. Can you guess who the winner will be?' (Publication summary)

'Gus the glider has a gap, right between his two front teeth where everyone can see it. None of the other gliders has a gap - and he wishes he could look just like them. He dreams of life without a gap between his teeth... but to his surprise, it isn't as good as he had at first thought. Maybe having a gap isn't so bad after all.'(Publication summary)

'Bilby had been quiet lately and his friends were worried about him. What is he keeping from them and how will it affect their world? Come on an engaging journey with Bilby and the other endangered animals as they seek new horizons - a horizon beyond extinction. Kids will love this page-turner and enjoy the adventure with Bilby, learning about some less well-known endangered animals like the Nailtail Wallaby, the Numbat and Kowari along the way.' (Publication summary)

'Raised by humans, Toby has watched his human "brother" and "sister" g o to school once they turn five. He wants to be a student just like them . But are wombats allowed to go to school? How will Toby follow his drea m? Every child imagines animals living as humans do in this story "' (Publication summary)

'Is Freddie seeing things? There are dangers everywhere he looks but are they real or imagined? Find out how Freddie finds a unique solution to avoid going batty!

Fruit bats, otherwise known as flying-foxes, hang upside down from their perches. Valves in their veins prevent blood from collecting in their brains. Even though they live upside down, they have exceptional eyesight and unlike microbats, their smaller cousins, fruit bats don't need to use echolocation to navigate.' (Publisher's blurb)

'In Whale Worries, a mother humpback whale is very worried about her calf after he dives down deep into the water and doesn't come up for a very long time. During that time the mother whale has something else to worry about – sharks!

'The humpback is one of the most commonly seen whales in coastal waters. It is best known for its spectacular surface displays. The humpback is a slow swimmer and can remain under water for up to 45 minutes.' (Publisher's blurb)

'In Frilled Friend, a frilled lizard thinks he is just ordinary and brown there is nothing special about him. Even the spinifex hopping-mice ignore him as they gather their food. All that is about to change, as one day a huge monitor threatens all the mice and the ordinary brown lizard finally gets the chance to show them his true colours.

'The frilled lizard is one of the world's most spectacular dragons. When threatened, it opens its mouth wide displaying a bright yellow interior, and hisses loudly. Looking fierce, it also opens an impressive neck frill.' (Publisher's blurb)

'In Galah Games, Ernie and Eddie are two galahs that act silly and annoy the rest of the flock. One day, Ernie plays a trick that goes too far and upsets everyone. Ernie and Eddie fly away wondering why nobody laughs with them. When they are gone, the others in the flock learn a valuable lesson, as do Ernie and Eddie.

Galahs are well known for their silly antics. They may hang from a branch upside down, by one foot, while flapping their wings and screeching loudly, only to be ignored by the rest of the flock.' (Publisher's blurb)

'In Freya's Foal, a horse worries that his mother's new foal is getting more attention, but he soon comes to love his new little brother.

'Newborn foals are very wobbly when they first stand up, about half an hour after their birth, to drink their mother's milk. They grow very quickly in the first month and soon learn to eat grass. When they are 4–6 months old they are almost fully independent. Foals have lots of energy and each day they explore and gain more confidence.' (Publisher's blurb)

'In Daring Duckling, a duckling learns that sometimes wishing for adventure and wanting to see the world leads you right back home — to safety.

Ducklings freely move about the nest within 24 hours of hatching. Once the mother has checked that there are no predators, she will call the ducklings out of the nest to search for food. They become independent after 56–70 days of care.' (Publisher's blurb)

'In Chasing Chickens, three hens learn that they need to get along with one another for the sake of their chicks. Chickens keep their eggs warm by sitting on them and only get up to eat and drink once a day. The chickens in this book are called bantams. The brown hen and white hen are frizzle bantams. Frizzle is a mutation in which the feathers grow so that they curve outward, instead of lying smoothly along the bird's body.' (Publisher's blurb)

'In Splash the Platypus, Splash and the other platypuses learn that it can be useful to be a little bit different. Platypuses are egg-laying mammals called monotremes. They live in burrows beside creeks and waterholes and have thick, waterproof fur that keeps them warm when they hunt for food under water.' (Publisher's blurb)

In Dingo's Dash, two young dingoes learn a valuable lesson about minding their own business. The dingo is a medium-sized wild dog brought to Australia from Asia 4000 years ago. Dingoes are found in all Australian States except Tasmania. They usually have ginger-coloured fur but may also be white or have black-and-tan colouring.' (Publisher's blurb)