A Stick and a Stone

In the style of We’re Going on a Bear Hunt a small crew of families are on a tramp in a varied outdoor Aotearoa landscape. The pictures, similar to Helen Oxenbury’s, are a simple watercolour style. The story follows the families through their walk and the small mishaps and adventures. The text is very sparse, sometimes it borders on text speak with the lack of connecting words and the jamming together for the rhyme. The lose story entails a lost hat and cheeky birds. The book is more generally a celebration of outdoor life in Aotearoa and the tramping and camping lifestyle, it may be more suited to kids that are familiar with these experiences. The cute and energetic illustrations will engage small children and there is a lot to notice in each spread, the weather and the landscape change behind the characters. It is a concise package of a book and has been well designed in the hardback edition, I particularly like the end papers which are like a catalogue of items spotted in the story.

Title: A Stick and a Stone

Author: Sarina Dickson

Illustrator: Hilary Jean Tapper

Publisher: Hachette NZ

ISBN: 978-1-86971-469-7

RRP: $24.99

Format: hardback

Publication: September 2021

Ages: 2-6

Themes: Community, Adventure, Outdoors

Do you have any advisory warnings for this book? none

Would this book work as a read aloud? Yes

Is there a particular part of the country that it’s set in? No

Reviewer: Lucy Black, Librarian, Mt Cook School Wellington

How are you recommending this book? Recommended

Opening sentence: A stick, a stone, a feather, a bone.

You can buy this book here