If you want to know answers to more WHAT, WHERE, WHY, then this selection of new non fiction books will keep you happy for hours
Who has what? : all about girls’ bodies and boys’ bodies / Robie H. Harris ; illustrated by Nadine Bernard Westcott.
What? Where? Why?
The Kingfisher animal encyclopedia / written by David Burnie.
Big wig : a little history of hair / by Kathleen Krull ; illustrated by Peter Malone.
If you love cooking or you enjoy watching the cooking programmes on TV especially Junior Master Chef then this book will be just right for you.
The AWW Cooking School for kids is a great book to get you started on learning how to cook. There are great instructions for each recipe with step-by-step pictures for you to follow plus a picture of the finished dish so you will know what it will look like.
But the best thing about this book is it has all the food that kids like to eat. Things like pizza, pasta, eggs, pies, desserts, cakes and snacks. YUM
So what are you waiting for – Get cooking!
Special brothers and sisters : stories and tips for siblings of children with a disability or serious illness / edited by Annette Hames and Monica McCaffrey ; illustrated by Brendan McCaffrey.
Is your brother or sister a bit special? You may be able to relate well to the young people in this book who explain in their own words what it’s like to live with their special siblings. Learn how they feel and cope with love, frustration and sadness. Plenty of tips and good questions for you to talk over with your parents, grandparents or teachers.
No return : Captain Scott’s race to the Pole / Peter Gouldthorpe.
Plenty to learn in this great book retelling the dramas of this most special explorer and his race to the South Pole. Did you know for example, that Scott’s photographer, Herbert Ponting was attacked by killer whales and almost eaten! Find out when and why Oates said those most famous words, “I am going outside. I may be some time.”
Elephants closeup.
Elephants are just so special! I love them. They are some of the smartest land animals on earth. Lovely photographs help make this a great read for younger readers.
How to write and give a speech / by Cecilia Minden and Kate Roth.
It’s that special time of year again, when you have to prepare and deliver a speech to your class. Instead of groaning just check out this book and deliver the best speech ever.
Special occasion coming up? Or maybe just a rainy day. This yummy book is ideal for both. So many different types of mouthwatering cakes it is hard to choose just one to bake. My favourite are the butterfly and bug cakes, closely followed by the miniature cheesecakes.
Buried treasures : uncovering secrets of the past / Stéphane Compoint.
What can be more special than buried treasure! In this beautiful book, chock full of amazing photographs are mysterious colossal statues, a mythic bear covered in blue fur, a whole city wiped out by a volcano. From sweltering deserts to the frigid North Pole to an ancient, underwater city, follow scientists as they uncover the secrets of our past.
Super silly riddles / Charles Keller ; illustrated by Dave Winter.
Feast on more than 500 riddles and drive your friends and parents crazy.
Dr. Knucklehead’s knock-knocks / by Chris Tait ; illustrated by Lance Lekander.
Who doesn’t love knock-knock jokes! Heaps of jokes in here to crack you up. Start knocking!
Critter jokes & riddles / Janet Nuzum Myers ; illustrated by Dave Clegg.
Why do fish avoid computers? They get caught in the Internet. “What happened to the leopard that fell into a washing machine? “He came out spotless.” Every animal and critter seems to feature in this great wee joke book. Checkit out for a really good laugh.
Dressing up as a pirate / Rebekah Joy Shirley ; photography by Chris Fairclough.
Learn how to make a pirate’s hook and an eye-patch, a skull and crossbones hat and a trusty parrot friend! Great book of easy step-by-step photos on how tp become a real pirate. Other books in this series also new to the library are :Dressing up as a fairy / Rebekah Joy Shirley ; photography by Chris Fairclough.
Dressing up as a knight / Rebekah Joy Shirley ; photography by Chris Fairclough.
Dressing up as a Princess / Rebekah Joy Shirley ; photography by Chris Fairclough.
Dressing up as an astronaut / Rebekah Shirley.
Dressing up as a robot / Rebekah Joy Shirley ; photography by Chris Fairclough.
Street dance : the people, the music, the moves / Liz Gogerly. Learn how to really bust some moves in this great book about street dance. Soon you’ll be able to do the body lock and house step along with the best of them. It’s time to party!
Having a special kind of party? Maybe it’s a religious celebration in your culture. Find out all about food traditions and their special rituals in this book about food and faith. Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism and Sikhism are all included in this interesting book. Great photos make you hungry just reading it.
Lego Harry Potter : building the magical world / written by Elizabeth Dowsett.
Want some LEGO for your birthday? This month we add to our great colection of books about LEGO with this fantastic book about Harry Potter LEGO. Hogwart’s castle, the Chamber of Secrets and the Shrieking Shack all feature in this comprehensive book that contains everything magical about Harry 
501 great kiwi jokes / [illustrations by Donovan Bixley].
You know that laughing helps you to heal fast, right! Well this book supports CURE Kids. Check out the website in the back of the book after you have laughed yourself silly at the wonderful jokes inside. What do you get when your dog has its sixth birthday? Why did Kiri break into song? What’s grumpy and goes really well with ice-cream? You’ll have to read the book to find the answers.
Not in the mood to party? Then learn how to knit and play chess over the holidays with these great new books;
How to play chess / Daniel King.
How to knit / Fiona Watt ; illustrated by Stella Baggott ; photographs by Howard Allman. This is a great book for learners as well as those of you who have knitted the ODD scarf before.
More stuff to do with your hands! Get them into the dirt, (AFTER you’ve read the book of course)
Yates young gardener : get your hands dirty / Janice Marriott ; [illustrations, Deborah Hinde]. then learn how to draw whacky robots with Fun to draw cool robots / Robert Ainsworth.
Check out our scary new selection of non-fiction. After that you can relax reading about Lego or Music or just the wonder of our world in general. Have fun!
The werewolf hunter’s guide / Ursula Lestrade.
Over thousands of years and across hundreds of countries, tales and legends of dreadful creatures lurking in the night have terrified people. This guide has been slowly pieced together by expert werewolf hunter Ursula Lestrade and uncovers many secrets of these shape-shifting monsters. Arm yourself against the creatures of the night with this Werewolf Hunter’s Guide. (Book cover) There are three other scary books in this Monster Tracker Series; The Alien Hunter’s Guide, The Vampire Hunter’s Guide and The Ghost Hunter’s Guide. If you like freaky stuff then check them out.
Children’s book of music / Deborah Lock
This is a must read for anyone interested in music. Great photos and interesting text help you learn heaps about music from its very beginnings right up to contemporary artists like Lady Gaga.
Standing small : a celebration of 30 years of the Lego minifigure / Nevin Martell.
Find out all about your favourite LEGO characters. Do you have a Lego Ghost ? Maybe Lego Exo-Force is your favourite . Were you one of the first to get Lego Batman in 2006? Whatever your collection, you will have heaps of fun looking through this book.
Also new this month is The Lego Book. This is a larger more detailed book. Find out how the bricks are made as well as learning some secrets of the LEGO Master Builders. Lots of fun in these pages including current LEGO art creations. A must for every LEGO fan.
Starting school / Caryn Jenner & Arthur Robins.
This is a really good book for reading to your younger brother or sister who may be starting school. It is a fun book with great cartoony illustrations. It will remove any fears they may have about their new life and deals with everything from getting ready in the morning to those school toilets ,( even what to do if you don’t make it in time.)
Planet Earth / Daniel Gilpin.
There are ten wonderful books in this series. All have beautiful photographs and easy clear text so you can learn heaps fast. This book covers the whole planet in 32 pages! Check it out, especially if you are a younger reader.
This month we have a wide variety of new titles. Something for everyone. Whether your interest is experiments, learning the guitar or just rubbish, we have the book for you!
This book is totally rubbish / illustrated by Nik Afia.
“Meet Meggie, Rose, Oscar and Bentley. They are having a ‘totally rubbish day’ where they will reuse oodles of things and invent new stuff to play with. They’re doing this to help the environment and to become eco superheroes.” (Book Cover) One of the best books on recycling activities that I’ve seen. Great for Years 2 to 5.
First guitar tutor / Terry Burrows ; text adapted by Stephen Cole.
This book gives you tips on how to choose your first guitar and how to play it, even if you’re left handed! Great for years 5 and up.
Electric motor experiments / Ed Sobey.
“How do motors work? Using the experiments in this book, learn how to build and use your own motor! See how motors work in cars and boats. Find out what other cool things motors can do.” (Book cover) My favourite is the motor boat made out of the milk carton. Try it out! Great ideas for science fair projects here too. Perfect for all budding engineers years 2/3 and up.
I can remember World War II / Sally Hewitt.
In this book six people remember and tell you about their experinces of living through World War ll. Hear from a land girl, a child, a prisoner of war and a navy commando what is was really like. I love this book because the great layout and cool photos, cartoons and posters helped me easily learn heaps about the war. Perfect if you are interested in the Second World War and are Year 4 or up.
Terezín : voices from the Holocaust / Ruth Thomson.
This book explores the lives of Jewish people in one of the most infamous of the Nazi transit camps. Through inmates’ secret diary entries and artwork along with interviews done after the war, we get a clear picture of exactly what life was like for them in this camp. An informative read for anyone studying or interested in the Holocaust.
What’s for dinner? : quirky, squirmy poems from the animal world / Katherine B. Hauth ; illustrated by David Clark.
Eating is a matter of life and death for us all, but it can also be weird, surprising, or just plain gross. Enjoy these twenty-nine poems which are all about the unusual and sometimes gruesome ways animals eat. Warning – do not try these eating habits at your own dinner table!
Everything you need to know about animals / Nicola Davies.
Did you know that the Peregrine falcon is the fastest animal/bird on earth, recorded at speeds of 270km/hour! This book is crammed with fantastic facts, illustrations and creative activities you can do at home.
Well as amazing as it seems someone has actually written a book about poop. Yes that subject that most of us avoid is all out in the open now because Poop Happened.
This book has the history of the world from the bottom up with everything from the chamber pot to the astronaut’s toilet. It will have you rolling on your own toilet with laughter as well as pulling faces in real disgust.
For instance did you know that the Ancient Romans did not use toilet paper? In their public bathrooms they had a sponge on a stick that was placed in a bucket of salt water. After they….. you know… they would wipe themselves with the sponge and then put it back in the bucket for the next person. THAT IS DISGUSTING.
Or did you know that the first patents for flushing toilets were filed about two hundred years ago. But as recently as a hundred and fifty years ago, most homes still had no toilet. The new toilets were so pricey, only wealthy people could afford to have one. Although at first they were considered status symbols, the early toilets didn’t work very well. They smelled, they leaked, and the noise they made when they flushed was deafening. And because they were not hooked up to sever lines (which didn’t exist), they often flooded people’s basements or yards. Yuk!
Fact for the day: Did you know that there are special scientist’s that spend a lot of time studying ancient poop. They are called Paleoscatologists. Believe it or not, they can learn a lot from fossilized human excrement. Rather them that me I say.
But anyway if you are interested in Poop then this book is for you but you may want to wash your hands after reading it!
This month we’ve got some interesting new books in the non-fiction collection. Want to know more about Guy Fawkes and his plot to blow up the British parliament? Have a look at Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder Plot. If you’re interested in Ancient Egypt then you must check out The Ancient Egyptians: dress, eat, write and play just like the Egyptians – there’s lots of facts plus some projects and things to make. Also new: Stuff that Scares Your Pants Off!, great if you like scary facts, and a biography of Barack Obama, for your school projects.
For more new non-fiction visit the My Library Children’s Non-Fiction page each month!
