I love the way that the creators of this series continue to reinvent the story, with new wombats, new settings and unexpected adventures. Enormous props must be given to Bruce Whatley for the subtle yet hilarious facial expressions on everyone from the dog to the baby kangaroo to the humans in this surprising adventure. That all changed with Grandma Wombat, with both shelf-dwellers and mini-fleshlings laughing heartily at the antics of one cheeky baby wombat. Now it is no surprise that the shelf loves this series dearly, but we had noticed that the mini-fleshlings in the dwelling weren't taking to some of the books in the series as well as we shelf-dwellers did. It's a wombat adventure featuring rude 'roos, unexpected vehicular transportation and more than a little bias on the part of one very proud (but sleepy-eyed) grandmother.

My thanks to the publishers for a review copy.I received a print copy of this title from the publisher for review.īaby wombat returns in a surprising adventure, while Grandma wombat laments the breakdown of behaviour management in modern parenting. The Fire Wombat is published by Angus & Robertson, an imprint of HarperCollins Children’s Books, on 29 October 2020. This lovely picture book is perfect in the way it encompasses its environmental theme and deals with a very dark and traumatic experience for so many Australian children, while also offering hope for the future. The author’s note at the end of the book urges people to donate to a wildlife charity if they wish to help after disasters, or get training in how to care for wild animals. The little wombat at the heart of the story survives.

That is, until human intervention delivers life saving food and water to the devastated fire grounds. When the fires have passed, they face starvation and thirst. In The Fire Wombat, the terrifying fires drive many animals from their homes, some to shelter in a wombat burrow deep in the earth. She is passionate and vocal about the wildlife that shares her land, and has published many books about these animals, including her well loved Wombat series. Jackie lives in the Araluen Valley near Braidwood in southeastern NSW, an area that experienced those appalling fires during that summer. The Fire Wombat takes the trauma and devastation of the 2019/2020 summer bushfires across eastern Australia and crafts a gentle fable about how even the smallest of beings can survive with the support of others. The wonderful Jackie French is back with another picture book, this one illustrated by Danny Snell.

Jackie french wombat