Christmas
and summer holidays give most us the chance to wind down an relax,
and what better way to do that than with a good book. 
Below
is a selection of recently published titles that should suit anyone
in the family.
Hocus
Pocus - upper primary age boys
Paul Kieve, $24.95
This is a whimsical blend of fiction and fact
as author Paul Kieve takes us on a journey through the tricks
of great magicians of the past. Told in the first person, Kieve
narrates how he encounters these doyens of illusion via a kind
of portal through time and space. In his poster room, the characters
in old posters come to life and demostrate their greatest tricks
to him.
For kids 10-14, this is a fantastic trip into
the history of illusion. Of course, how the 'big' tricks are
done isn't revealed, but some that you can try at home are.
Highly recommended.
Starcross
- tweenagers, sci-fi lovers
Philip Reeve, $24.95
Phillip
Reeve and David Wyatt have continued the story of Art and Myrtle
Mumby with this exciting sequel of Larklight. With Capt. Jack
Havock tagging along for the ride, the Mumby's head to Starcross,
a hotel on Mars created by Mr. Titfer, a stuck-up, middle aged
hat maker, with a strange array of characters as guests, such
as Prof. Ferny (a smart, plant like creature), Miss Delphine
Beauregard (a quiet, mysterious French girl) and her chaperone,
Ms. Grindle and Sir Quimby, this will be quite an adventure
for our child heroes. And the one thing that makes it even more
mysterious, whatever is a Moob?
A
thrilling, scary, funny and slightly romantic story for a day
after running around in the hot sun. Why not sit down with Starcross
and enjoy an ice-cream?
The
Naming of Names - Mum / Grandma
/ Sister
Anna Pavord, $45
Delightfully
illustrated, Anna Pavord takes us on a thrilling adventure into
botanical history, travelling from Athens in the third century
BC, through Constantinople, Venice, the medical school at Salerno
to the universities of Pisa and Padua. The journey, traced here
for the first time, involves the culture of Islam, the first
expeditions to the Indies and the first settlers in the New
World. In Athens, Aristotle's pupil, Theophrastus, is the first
man ever to write a book about plants. What should these things
properly be called? He asks. How can we sort and order them?
The debate continues still, two thousand years later.
Perfect
for lovers of historical fiction and non-fiction, botany enthusiasts
or just green thumbs.
Ten Bad Dates
with De Niro - the film buff
Richard
Kelly, $29.95
Richard
T Kelly (not to be confused with Richard Kelly, the film director)
has compiled a volume of eclectica to please, challenge and
confound even the most avid film buff. It's essentially a book
of lists; but as is the nature of cinema, there's a lot of (often
very personal) opinion and not a lot of hard facts in this book.
If you're looking for a list of the top-grossing films of 1992,
you won't find it here. What you will find is a miscellany of
compelling film writing, often erudite, always passionate and
endlessly interesting. Contributors include filmmakers like
Steven Soderbergh and Mike Figgis, authors including DBC Pierre
and a slew of film critics and personalities.
Some
personal favourites among the lists:
* Sleeping With The Fishes - The Top Ten Most Violent Gangster
Deaths
* ‘My Man John Keats Said That!’ Ten Great Uses
Of Poetry At The Movies
* No-One Under 21 Admitted – Top Ten Movie Nightclubs
I Wish Were Real
* Back Of The Net! The Ten Best Goals Scored In Movies... and
of course,
* Capital Offences – Ten Places You Wouldn't Expect To
Find A Severed Head (!)
Observations
of a Very Short Man
- Dad / Grandad
Nigel Marsh, $27.95
Marsh takes us with him on the journey from being
Fat, Forty & Fired, as he embarks on a new phase
of life - stay at home dad and professional speaker. Along the
way we find out what's it's like to play second fiddle to Steve
Waugh, wear a classroom name badge to a professional speaking
engagement, get a new pet and a host of other amusing realities
of life. A great read for anyone contemplating a change of career,
or who has perhaps just retired - Observations of a Very
Short Man is an easy, anecdotal read that will remind everyone
why no-one actually wants a real job, and the advantages escaping
to the office can provide.
Bertha
Venation - the non-fiction trivia
buff, or anyone expecting a baby.
Larry
Ashmead, $24.95
Ashmead
has assembled a 200-odd page line-up of weird, wonderful and
downright bizarre names - from humans to companies - and the
marvellous anecdotes that come with them. Essential reading
for expectant parents, human resources experts and of course,
those with an insatiable appetite for random pieces of trivia.
Grouped loosely in thematic chapters,
Bertha Venation is an easy, amusing and elightening read - perfect
for a summer afternoon with a sparkly beverage.
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Going
Dutch in Beijing - world travelers
/ brothers and sisters
Marc McCrum, $29.95
From
greetings to table manners, footwear to finger signs, Going
Dutch in Beijing is the ultimate how-to-guide for getting
around the world without offending your host country. Perfect
for the sibling or child who is about to embark on their backpacking
right of passage, or even those who have just finished one.
Going Dutch in Beijing will amuse, enlighten and start
many a hilarous conversation on the faux pas we have all unknowingly
committed while on foreign soil.
