LATEST NEWS

So pleased to meet you

31 March 2009

Our very first Leatherwood Books newsletter! Thank you for your continued support and for giving us the opportunity to introduce ourselves. A warm welcome to those who've joined the email list recently.  

Since our offer to purchase Leatherwood Books, we've been busy with admin and red tape. Dealing with Aly, Jo and Kevin has been a pleasure though. Thank you!  

We could not bear to see Leatherwood Books close down and our plan is to keep doing what Jo and Aly have been doing. We'll continue to provide good reading material to children, parents and educators. On the website we always give age recommendations and, where possible, write reviews to make your choices easier. 

Please send an email or phone if you have a question. Among four passionate readers armed with a few formal qualifications, we'll manage to find you an answer or, at the very least, point you in the right direction. 

As a homeschooling family, we have a special interest in providing homeschoolers with the best materials we can find. However, that is just a part of the plan and we'll continue to present the best of fiction and make it available to all families interested in reading good books. 

Instead of introducing all four of us now, we've decided to do so over time in the newsletters. That also takes care of the tricky subject of finding something (mildly?) interesting to say!  

New Books for April 

Our first additions to the catalogue have been rather eclectic. The first book in the Fair Dinkum History series (Jackie French, illustrated by Peter Sheehan) has been very popular and the next five titles are now in the catalogue. With titles such as "Rotters and Squatters", "Gold, Graves and Glory" and "Weevils, War and Wallabies", these tackle some big issues in Australian history. 

Historical fiction is a wonderful way to learn history and, we've added some more titles in this genre to complement the wonderful My Story series already available in our catalogue. Historical fiction and factual history are now grouped together according to historical period. It is unlikely that anyone will get confused!

Not to neglect younger readers, we have spent some time scouting around for special picture books and good read-alouds. Little Tim and the Brave Sea Captain by Edward Ardizzone is an old classic that Peter insists on including. We'll be adding other Tim titles in future. 

Those who enjoy sharing time with children in the kitchen won't be able to resist Cook it together (Annabel Karmel). The recipes are easy and tasty, but it is the photographs in this DK book that will draw you in.  Another beautiful DK book on the same topic is Grow it, eat it: Simple gardening projects and delicious recipes. This book has to be seen to be appreciated. It contains a colourful double-spread on how to grow the ingredient and this is followed by enticing recipes. Looking at the pictures makes one want to rush out and start planting! These are both UK publications, but useable in Australia with the obvious seasonal adjustments. 

The Well-Trained Mind and The Story of the World series 

We are pleased to report that Leatherwood Books' relationship with the Australian distributor of these titles will continue. We use Susan Wise Bauer's texts in our homeschooling and think very highly of these materials. 

A special request

We're interested in hearing about books you recommend as there is so much to read out there and so little time... Please send us an email if you would like to see any particular title, author or series on the Leatherwood Books list. 

Enjoy browsing our catalogue and take some time to check out the titles carefully selected for you. 

Happy reading!

Elsa, Peter, Seb & Lila