Primary (ages 6-9)

Material appropriate for primary age groups

Rosie’s Magic Horse

Once its icy sweetness is gone, a discarded ice-pop stick is lonely until young Rosie comes by and lays it in a cigar box with others like it. But this stick wants to be something! Meanwhile, just before bed, Rosie sees her parents worrying over their bills. That night, wishes intertwine when Rosie dreams of a horse named Stickerino galloping out of the cigar box. “Where to?” he asks. “Anywhere with treasure!” says Rosie. A girl and a horse galloping over cities, jungles, and an icepop mountain leads up to a clever heist of a gold-filled pirate chest — and a happy ending at home — in this wildly imaginative adventure.

Jemmy Button

Inspired by the true story of Jemmy Button–a native boy from Tierra del Fuego who was taken to England to be “civilized”–this book illustrates Jemmy’s extraordinary encounters as an outsider in an unfamiliar land and his emotional return home….

You Are Stardust

This picturebook begins by introducing the idea that every tiny atom in our bodies came from a star that exploded long before we were born. From its opening pages, the book suggests that we are intimately connected to the natural world; it compares the way we learn to speak to the way baby birds learn to sing, and the growth of human bodies to the growth of forests. Award-winning author Elin Kelsey believes children are losing touch with nature. This innovative picture book aims to reintroduce children to their innate relationship with the world around them by sharing many of the surprising ways that we are all connected to the natural world.

Grounded in current science, this extraordinary picture book provides opportunities for children to use their imaginations and wonder about some big ideas. Soyeon Kim’s incredible diorama art enhances the poetic text, and her creative process is explored in full on the reverse side of the book’s jacket, which features comments from the artist. Young readers will want to pore over each page of this book, exploring the detailed artwork and pondering the message of the text, excited to find out just how connected to the Earth they really are.

Farmer John’s Tractor

Farmer John’s tractor lies locked in the shed,rusty yet trusty and orangey red.
When the rain comes that season, it doesn’t let up, filling the river until it overflows, swirling and rushing and gushing. Down by the river, a car gets stuck, and the family inside shouts for help. As they climb to the roof, a series of vehicles — a speedy jeep, a strong tow truck, even a noisy fire engine — rush one by one to the scene. But each gets more stuck than the last. Is it possible that Farmer John’s ancient tractor, rusty as it is, could still be up for the job?

Stephen and the Beetle

When Stephen spots a beetle he takes off his shoe and raises his arm, ready to strike… but then he has second thoughts. He lays his head down on the ground and the beetle walks right up to him. At the last moment the beetle turns aside and each can go on with the day, having avoided the worst.In this very simple story Jorge Luján presents the kind of deep moral questions that can occur even in the smallest child’s day. Chiara Carrer’s very original etched and painted illustrations perfectly complement the story, and are in and of themselves beautiful works of art.

Gorilla

Far away, in the misty mountains of Africa, a baby gorilla is born. Follow the life of a mountain gorilla from birth to adulthood, in this unique wildlife information book for young children, photographed close-up in the wild by an award-winning wildlife photographer. Find out all about gorilla family life, including food, play, grooming, and communication, and watch one baby gorilla as she grows up until, on her sixth birthday, she is ready to have babies of her own! Also in the EYE ON THE WILD series: Cheetah, Brown Bear, Lion

Little Lion

One day, Dad comes home with a lion. “Brought you a dog,” says Dad. Mum and the children don’t believe him, but they call it Dog, let it sleep in the dog basket, and keep quiet about their strange, noisy pet. But Big Jonno, the school bully, is curious, and tries to make life tough, until one day, the worst thing happens — the Lion escapes and finds Big Jonno.This delightfully surreal story by a multi-award-winning author and talented illustrator — in which a bully gets his just deserts — will keep young readers guessing all the way through! The inspiration for this story came from the Bleek-Lloyd collection of stories written down by the linguists Wilhelm Bleek, his daughter Jemima and his sister-in-law Lucy Lloyd when they were recording the language and stories of the |Xam* people of the Northern Cape in South Africa.The original story doesn’t have a middle or an end, but it has a very funny beginning when a man brings a lion home and tells his wife it’s a dog.