Tag Astra Young Readers

Little People, Big Dreams: Vanessa Nakate / The Flying Man

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Little People, Big Dreams: Vanessa Nakate
Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara, illustrated by Olivia Amos
Frances Lincoln Children’s Books

In this addition to the excellent series we meet a young and outstanding activist. As a child growing up, Vanessa lived with her parents in Uganda’s capital city, Kampala. Her parents always encouraged her to speak out for what she thought was right, but in the countryside where she attended school, climate change seemed a world away.

At university however she began noticing how, despite being the least responsible, Africans were suffering most by climate change. Thus she became an activist and persuaded her friends and relations to do likewise. She spoke out against the destruction of the Congolian rainforests and its consequences and one day she, one of few from the African continent, was invited to join other young climate activists in New York where they hoped to make world leaders take action against global warming.

When she returned home Vanessa continued her fight and after a setback at a protest in Switzerland, her work has been recognised
and now she is an inspiration to fellow young Africans and indeed the entire world. A vital topic and with its focus on Africa, this is an excellent book to inspire KS1 readers to use their own voices and indeed actions, to support the on-going fight to save the planet.

The Flying Man
Mike Downs and David Hohn
Astra Young Readers

In this picture book biography Mike Downs pays tribute to a relatively unknown German aviator, Otto Lilienthal, whose pioneering spirit led him to create the first flying machine.

Perseverance was key as despite considerable skepticism from others around, he and his younger brother, Gustav worked away observing, experimenting, testing and improving their designs until in 1891 Otto was successful in making a hang glider that travelled through the air . Eventually in 1896 in a more sophisticated (albeit still flimsy) glider he soared above admiring crowds with, so the illustrator shows, a euphoric expression on his face.

Following this a photograph dubbed him ‘The Flying Man’ but sadly a week later, Otto died from injuries that were the result of a crash. (This information the author places in an afterword) Nonetheless his work inspired many other fliers, including the Wright brothers who cited Otto as their greatest inspiration.

It’s evident from his writing that author of this book Mike Downs, found Otto Lithenthal inspirational too.

Dad, Don’t Miss It! / City Under the City

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Here are two recent additions to Astra Young Readers list – thanks to GMC Distribution for sending them for review.

Dad, Don’t Miss It!
Qiaoqiao Li

In her debut picture book Qiaoqiao Li starts with a situation that will be familiar to many young children: a parent – father in this instance – immersed in a computer screen. This he does even when he and his son are supposed to be sharing some quality time going on an adventure. They take a bus to their forest destination but both en route and when they arrive, Dad has his computer screen on. So distracted is he that he fails to see the red fairy and its friends, a white deer and a stone elf, the tree monsters and flower troll, all of which play with his child. Eager to introduce them to his dad the boy waits patiently in the first instance but gradually becomes more frustrated and eventually loses patience, yelling ‘Dad!’

Not only has Dad been missing the possibilities of play, he’s completely unaware of the transformation he’s been undergoing all the while until a response finally comes.This sends everyone other than Dad rolling down the hill and right into the lake.

Can this parent now forget his computer and save the day?

With otherworldly digital illustrations, this magical tale serves as a timely reminder that we should all turn off our screens, leave the virtual world behind for a while and enjoy some real life adventures.

City Under The City
Dan Yaccarino

Residing in a dystopian city under constant surveillance from the Eyes are Bix and her family. Said Eyes have absolute control over the daily lives of everyone.

Wanting autonomy, young Bix is not understood by her family, plays with nobody and frequently feels completely alone, She and her schoolmates only read on handheld screens and under the constant supervision of the Eyes, never choose their reading matter. However ‘The Eyes don’t just help. They also watch.’ But why and what, Bix wants to know. All this we learn from Dan Yaccarino’s comic panels and brief accompanying text.

One day Bix hears something new – a squeaking sound and liking what she sees, follows the little creature, a friendly rat deep down underground to the ruins of a city that at first sight seems similar to, but is in fact altogether different, from that in which she lives. For there in this place she is led to its abandoned library full of books, 

a museum, a restaurant and a music hall—what’s left of life before the Eyes took over. Here Bix and her new friend can be truly self-directing but what has happened to all the people?

Having spent many days down below and becoming aware of the possibilities of a different way of life, Bix feels the call of home and family. Back she goes up and up but although her family are overjoyed to see her; not so the Eyes, one of which snatches her sister. Little by little, Bix reveals what she’s discovered to her fellow citizens and eventually, bringing them all together, she leads an uprising, rescues Taff and reunites her entire family who are ‘really together for the first time.’

A scary look at a possible world ruled by AI and a surveillance culture for screen obsessed youngsters.

Mermaid Kenzie

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Mermaid Kenzie
Charlotte Watson Sherman and Geneva Bowers
Boyds Mills Press

Mermaid Kenzie as she prefers to be called, is a lover of everything sea-related. She creates sea scenes in her bedroom and goes onto the beach whenever she can. “Mermaids don’t clean up,” she insists when her Mama tells her to tidy her imaginary sea world away before venturing out. “Then this mermaid don’t go to the beach,” she retaliates. Mother and child visit the seashore by day and by night, digging for treasure, building sandcastles, venturing into echoing caves and rowing out on the ocean to look for marine wildlife.


Mermaid Kenzie loves to don her mermaid tail when they take their boat out and sometimes wearing her mask and snorkel, she dives beneath the waves playing with her seal pal named Cocoa. On one occasion, she’s horrified to discover the plastic bags causing pollution to the ocean’s ecosystem.

Mama tells her that during her own childhood, the ocean was alive with ‘squishy, squashy sea creatures’ – a veritable underwater zoo. Now is definitely time to revise her “Mermaids don’t clean up” rule. “This mermaid cleans up for my sea pals,” she announces.

Back on the shore she begins the task, urging friends to join her and so they do at the behest of “Mermaid Kenzie, Protector of the Deeps.”

Author Charlotte Watson Sherman’s narrative effectively mixes rich lyrical description – ‘Mist silver the water, / briny taste on our tongue. / Seaweed perfume the air. / Grey, the heron, drift past, / wing almost blocking the sun.’ – and dialogue. ending her story on an upbeat note that will surely inspire youngsters to take similar action for the ocean-protecting cause. Geneva Bowers digital illustrations rendered predominantly in blue, yellow and green hues present some vivid underwater scenes with a swimming Kenzie’s hair floating out behind her, adding to her ‘mermaid-ness’.