Review: Koalas Like To…

Koalas like to sleep in trees.

Koalas like to eat gum leaves.

Koalas like to sing and dance.

Koalas wear striped underpants.

Wait, what? Koalas don’t sing and dance, and they don’t wear striped underpants. 

Do they?

In this fun, rhyming picture book, Dad tells the kids all about koalas. But…

…some of his facts seem odd. The kids challenge dad about his not-quite-right koala facts, and he promises to get it right. But somehow, each time he tries to tell them about koalas, the facts get more and more outrageous.

Driving cars, visiting planets, riding around in kangaroo pouches — the hilariousness grows and grows. Can Dad get the facts right about this beautiful Australian animal? At least the kids know the truth!

This is a brilliant picture book that combines non-fiction and fiction to great effect. Perfect for reading to a crowd, its repeating rhythm and structure allows kids to participate in the storytelling. Kids will laugh throughout the story, but they’ll also learn about koalas too. At the back of the book there are even more awesome koala facts for kids— some really cool ones I had never heard of.

The illustrations are paired perfectly with this story. They are fun and funky, with lots of white space to let the text shine. There are loads of koalas throughout the book, and they are brought to life through cheeky personalities and lots of detailed expressions. On each page you can explore the mischief the koalas get up to and choose a favourite.

For fun, funnies and lots of cool koala facts, I highly recommend grabbing a copy of Koalas Like To… Together, Shae Millward and Brent Wilson have created a rollicking good read that will have the kids in stitches while it teaches.

Kolas Like To… is published by the State Library of Queensland as part of their First 5 Forever early literacy program. There are 12 books in the series, all of them promoting strong early literacy foundations for kids aged 0 to 5, while linking story to the things that make Queensland special.

You can check out all the great picture books in the First 5 Forever series at the State Library of Queensland website. They even provide PDF downloads and audio files so every child can access copies of these great books.

Title: Koalas Like To…
Author: Shae Millward
Illustrator: Brent Wilson
Publisher: State Library of Queensland, $24.95
Publication Date: December 2020
Format: Hard cover
ISBN: 9781922467126
For ages:  4 – 6
Type: Picture Books

August 28, 2021 at 12:35AM Shaye Wardrop