The Australian Twelve Days of Christmas by Heath McKenzie

Rating 3.5 out of 5
Reading Age: 0 up
Publisher: BLACK DOG BOOKS
Release Date: September 1, 2008
ISBN:9781742031118

This is the song Twelve Days of Christmas that we know and love except with an Australian twist. However what starts of as a simple count down of gifts given turns into a wild hullabaloo with emus kicking, crocodiles weeping, and Tassie Devils fighting. There really isn't much more to say about this book other then the illustrations are cute, quirky and brightly coloured.

My kids really enjoy this book, particularly the end where all the animals are on the one page running riot.

This book really is a no brainer, it is fun and easy to read aloud or sing if you wish. A good book to read around this time of year for something a bit different.

Reindeer's Christmas Surprise by Ursula Dubosarsky

Rating 3.5 out of 5 stars

This is a cute little book that is a limited edition book brought out by the shopping store David Jones for the 2014 Christmas season.

On a recent trip to Sydney we stumbled across the David Jones Christmas Window Display. It was so lovely and my kids were entranced, I dare say they would have stood there all day watching the windows. I have to admit I fell in love with the art work used in the book and knew straight away I wanted it.

For decades now the two major shopping department stores in Australia; David Jones and Myers dress up their street front window displays in a Christmas theme (not always a book). Families go to the stores and walk along the windows following the story being played out in the windows. Neither shop exists in my home town so this was not a traditions my family ever had. However as an adult  I have seen a few of the Myer Christmas windows while travelling and they are always amazing. This year I finally got to see the David Jones Christmas window.

The author like many Australian's grew up visiting the windows every year and continued the tradition with her own. So she was naturally thrilled and honoured to be asked to write this year's story.

Unfortunately I did not know at the time time it was limited edition and sold only in David Jones. So when I later jumped online to order it and get it sent home I was disappointed to find I couldn't. Thankfully family who live nearby were happy to go in and pick up a copy of the book for us and send it up.

Summary:

'It’s Christmas time in Australia, and Reindeer has great fun delivering presents to his friend’s Cat, Dog and Guinea Pig. But even when it's warm and sunny outside, it's hard to be far from home and family on Christmas Eve.'

This is a simple tale about a reindeer missing his family and going around giving out presents to his friends. Only to get his own surprise at the end.

The text is simple and clear with rhyming and repetitive verse. My son certainly likes to say the verse "what's inside - what can it be? Open it and you will see!" when we get to that part of the story. On each page Reindeer gives his friend a present and the reader gets to see the joy that is brought from giving a thoughtful gift.

I do have one quibble that the reindeer does not hang around when his friends have opened their present, and not because he has more presents to deliver. He seems to have an excuse every time not to stay and play. Seems weird considering he is lonely and wants to spread Christmas spirit. Maybe I am reading to much into that. Certainly my son hasn't noticed or cared. This is a minor quibble as the story really is quite lovely otherwise.

While the story is lovely I have to say the illustrations sold this book to me. They are beautiful and suit the story perfectly. Sue deGennaro has done a fantastic job. Her art work is whimsical and simple with a good dash of colour.

You will not be disappointed to add this book to your Christmas book collection. However I am not sure if it will be available past Christmas 2014 so if you want it I recommend getting it quick.

An Aussie Christmas - A Guest Post for Lost In Books

I recently had the opportunity to write a guest blog post on Lost In Books Blog. For the month of December she has guest posters writing posts about Christmas. For my post I decided to do an Australian Christmas themed post. I have posted what I wrote here but please go to Rebecca's blog for more fun posts about Christmas. So far there has been Christmas Poetry, Non-Traditional Children's  Holiday Books and Weird Christmas Traditions as well as my own post. I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it for Becca. Thanks Becca for the opportunity it was so much fun (did I say that already? oh well it needed saying twice anyway).

Note - I did fix up a few minor grammatical and spelling errors that was in the original post.

An Australian Christmas is very different to the Northern Hemisphere Christmas. For starters it is smack dab in the middle of Summer and if you live in the far north of Australia it is the middle of wet season. It has always been difficult for me to reconcile the images of a Northern Hemisphere Christmas with the Christmas I have experienced my whole life. My idea of a great Christmas is when the monsoon has come down early and it rains all day on Christmas day. Nothing beats the sound of rain on the corrugated sheeting roof on a Christmas Day morning – Bliss!

Due to Australia being multi-cultural it is hard to pin point one tradition, one clear thing, that defines an Aussie Christmas other then Summer. Summer is our uniting tradition and most activities, no matter what your belief is, are all about escaping the heat.

Christmas for most Aussies involves cricket on TV, swimming, camping (for some), playing some sort of sport (or watching it), Carols by Candle light, holidays and visiting family. Food wise pretty much everything goes from the traditional roast to bbq’s, seafood to cold meats, pudding to Pavlova and everything in between. Prawns in particular become a rare commodity shortly before Christmas with people buying kilos of the stuff.

My family did not have a lot of traditions but every year we always had to wait till December 1st before we could even voice an opinion about putting up Christmas decorations. December 1st was THE RULE. The one rule you don't test, you don't argue with, you just do it. Shops putting up decorations in October? so what (we do not celebrate Thanksgiving or really Halloween so our shops get in real early). Schools practicing Christmas plays and songs? pfft lame excuse. December 1st, not a moment before, game over.

For us Christmas eve usually meant watching Carols In The Domaine on tv (which still airs every year), then us kids would be allowed to sleep in mum and dads AIR-CONDITIONED bed room (oh joy! this was back in the days when only one room in the house had a/c). Then Christmas day was spent present unwrapping, playing outside and eating. Food was usually cold meats, salads and seafood with fights erupting over the prawns (not from me I couldn't have cared less about prawns; this is probably un-Australian to say but I don’t like prawns). We then would relax around the place nibbling on left over’s and lollies (candy). Unless it was a year we were visiting the family interstate.  Then we spent the days bouncing around from one family members place to another stuffing ourselves with roasts and puddings. And if we were at my cousins place us kids would run feral in the nearby bush.

Bringing this post back to books; Sadly, when it came to Christmas stories, Australia does not really have any real home grown ones. Which I think is a real shame. As a child I can't say this really worried me greatly but now as an adult with a toddler, who is discovering Christmas, I find it frustrating. However we seem to be making up for lost time lately with a push for Australian Christmas stories. 

So I have listed for your please some of my top Aussie Christmas stories for kids.

The Australian Twelve Days of Christmas 

By Heath McKenzie

ISBN: 9781921167317

A hilarious version of the beloved song this involves Australian animals doing funny things. With bright colourful images this is a winner with kiddies.

Applesauce and the Christmas Miracle

Author/Illustrator: Glenda Millard and Stephen Michael King

ISBN: 9780733322495

Unfortunately summer time in Australia usually equals disaster be it bushfire, flooding or cyclone. This book is set in the Australian bushland during drought and bushfire's. It is the story of Applesauce a little pig who thinks Christmas has been cancelled this year due to disaster. While this sounds a little depressing the story is uplifting and shows dark days eventually end, and the true meaning of Christmas. 

Here is a passage:

"One orange evening, tiger-striped with blackened trees, a pig sat reminiscing. With eyes shut tight, she saw her valley as it had been: a breeze blew and the swing swayed, gently, from a willow bough. But then the raging bushfire had come and licked the earth bare. Applesauce sighed, dawdled up the hill and settled in the dust by the shed, where Joe and Marigold had lived since the fire"

The prose is beautiful and the illustrations lovely.I can see this book becoming a classic and hope it does.

Six White Boomers

By Rolf Harris,illustrated by Bruce Whatley

ISBN: 1865046175

This book is an illustrated version of our beloved Christmas Carol. The song originally written in the 60’s by iconic Rolf Harris is probably our best home grown Christmas Carol. It is a wonderful story of Santa helping a little Joey to find his mum and needing the help of six white kangaroos (boomers) to complete his Australian leg of his journey.

Here is the Christmas Carol sung by Rolf Harris himself (note Rolf is a huge legend in Oz we love him, him and his wobble board).

An Aussie Night Before Christmas

By Yvonne Morrison, illustrated by Kilmeny Niland 

ISBN:1741691125

I do enjoy this book bar one line which I do not think is appropriate for the target audience of kids."We'd left on the table some tucker and beer." Maybe I am being sensitive? because ironically I know lots of people who do put out beer for Santa on Christmas Eve. Either way I improvise and change beer to drink or cheer (which I know doesn't rhyme or really make sense when using cheer but my toddler doesn't know or care otherwise).  But this is a cute and funny story. If you would like to read the story in full then check out Gumnut Cottage has An Aussie Night Before Christmas.

Aussie Jingle Bells

By Colin Buchanan, illustrated by Nick Bland

ISBN:1742835716

Originally written as a Christmas carol back in 1999 this carol has become a firm favourite amongst aussie kids and adults. Most of us can relate to this song and he could be singing about roughly half of our population of Christmas day. It's funny, quirky and what we would call bogan. But you can't help but giggle.  With the help of illustrator/author Nick Bland the beloved carol is now a gorgeous picture book. 

Cyclone Tracy (My Australian Story)

By Alan Tucker

ISBN 1741697298

This is not a picture book and is the story of a boy in Darwin at Christmas time. Right before one of Australia's biggest disasters, Cyclone Tracey, strikes on Christmas Eve. Told through his diary we learn about the before, during and after of Cylcone Tracy. While this isnt a traditional Christmas story this one is about a significant event in Australia's history the devastated a city that took years to rebuild.