A House for Donfinkle (Choechoe Brereton, illus by Wayne Harris, Walker Books)

Is this Grand Designs for the younger set? Donfinkle Vonkrinkle is building his dream house and all goes well until a Flooble starts to criticise, a Mooble makes a suggestion, and the builder makes changes to suit them. ‘It’s all turned out jumbly,’ squeaks poor Donfinkle. The turning point for the builder, and the story, is when he resolves to trust his own judgement. The others help restore the building, join the housewarming and even nurture their own building dreams. The book, which is the first from this writer, includes some Jabberwocky-like invented words. Its rollicking verse is reminiscent of Hairy Maclary and is in the tradition of the best nonsense books. Wayne Harris has used digital illustrations, but there is nothing harsh in them: a soft, friendly feel extends even to the knitted-looking striped trees. The cast of imaginary creatures is impressive and looks ready to reappear in a sequel. This is a gentle and humorous way to teach children to have ‘the courage of one’s convictions’. It is recommended for schools and for three- to nine-year-olds, especially budding builders, architects and designers.

Robin Morrow is president of IBBY Australia (International Board on Books for the Young)

Books+Publishing pre-publication reviews are supported by the Copyright Agency Cultural Fund.

Category: Reviews