BIBLIOGRAPHY
Fox, Mem. 1983. Possum Magic. Illustrated by Julie Vivas. Orlando, FL: Harcourt Brace. ISBN 0152005722
SUMMARY
Grandma Poss and Hush are possums that live in the Australian bush where Grandma does her bush magic. Her best magic is to turn Hush invisible from snakes and other animals. But when Hush decides she wants to see what she looks like, they must travel around Australia to find the human food that will turn her visible again. Go on an adventure with Hush and Grandma Poss as they explore Australia tasting minties, Vegemite, Anzac biscuits and other yummy Australian food.
CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Known as the most popular Australian children's book, Possum Magic offers an insight into Australia through its food and animals. The language is bouncy and fun and makes for an excellent read aloud: "...you look wonderful, you precious possum!" The book teaches students about popular food and common animals found in Australia. There's also some smart writing: through the text, students will be able to infer why Grandmas Poss made Hush invisible..."she was safe from snakes, which is why Grandma Poss made her invisible in the first place." There is a color map in the back to allow students to see where Grandma Poss and Hush traveled on their food adventure.
Even with the wonderful language, the star of the show are the illustrations. Using graphite pencil and watercolors, Vivas illustrations are delicate and show off the nuances of animal fur, sparkly magic and delicious food. She portrays the animals and food realistically, yet gently enough to be whimsical. Using graphic pencil, Viva's creates an invisible Hush by softly outlining Hush's fur. Although all the pictures are beautiful, my favorite is the 2-page spread of Hush trying to retrieve her tail from underneath a koala; the detail and expression on the koala are just gorgeous.
This review is based upon the 1983 copy, however in 2004 the book redesigned, the text reset and improved with subtle changes and the illustrations retouched and recolored so the images are closer to the original artwork. A must have for school and library collections.
REVIEW EXCERPTS
An international bestseller, Possum Magic casts two Australian bush possums in starring roles but also features wombats, dingoes, and emus, rendered endearing by Julie Vivas' soft-toned watercolors. In addition to introducing Australian animals, Fox takes her possums on an eating adventure in search of the Australian foods-Vegemite sandwiches, pavlovas, and lamingtons,,,The book provides a warm, wonderful first exploration of Australia! --Children's Literature
PreS-Gr 2 ...Although the characters, locales, and vocabulary are thoroughly Australian, Possum Magic has universal appeal. Fox chooses her words carefully ..Vivas uses a variety of techniques, including splatter painting and washes to create full- and double-page watercolor illustrations which complement the text and will entrance readers. A perfect choice for story-times but also useful for curriculum enrichment, thanks to a simplified map and glossary.--School Library Journal
"Another treat from Mem Fox that is sure to be treasure. The whimsical illustrations are a wonderful complement." --Children's Book Review Service
CONNECTIONS
-Anzac Day is April 25th. They celebrate this day to honor those who have served in the military; our version of Veteran's Day. Make some Anzac cookies at home and bring in for your students. Talk about the ingredients and how much you needed to use to have enough for the class. Did you have to double or triple the recipe? Lamingtons are also easy to make.
-Have an International Food Day in your class. Have students bring in one food item that is from another country. If a student is from another country or a particular culture, have the student bring in food representing that country.
-Before you read the story, show students the map in the back of the book. Show them the names and locations of the cities they're going to hear about in the story.
-Here are some class discussion questions.
- What do you think this book is about?
- Who are the two main characters?
- Can possums really do magic?
- What was some of the magic that Grandma Poss did?
- Why did Grandma Poss make Hush invisible?
- What sort of things could hush do because she was invisible?
- Why was Hush sad when Grandma Poss couldn't find the right magic?
- How did the possums travel around Australia?
- Why did the possums eat the people food on Hush’s birthday?
-Other books with animals as the main story.
*Steig, William. Sylvester and the Magic Pebble. ISBN 0671662694
*Henkes, Kevin. Chrysanthemum. ISBN 0688147321
*Penn, Audrey. The Kissing Hand. ISBN 1933718102
*Wardlaw, Lee. Won Ton: A Cat Tale Told in Haiku. ISBN 0805089950
-Children's books about food.
*Saxton, Freymann. How Are You Peeling? ISBN 0439598419
*Rosenthal, Amy Krouse. Little Pea. ISBN 081184658X
*Stone Soup. (multiple versions).
*Barrett, Judi. Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs. ISBN 0689306474
-This website contains a variety of excellent links to activities from a variety of sources, including Time and Scholastic. http://www.mybookezzz.com/possum-magic-sequencing-activity/
-In 2004, an updated version of the book was issued. The Australian Library and Information Association created a "library activity notes' for the reissue. Contains ideas on reading, recipes, songs, publicity and more. http://archive.alia.org.au/liw/alw/2004/possum.magic.html
An example of a useful link is the "Possum mask" for a crafts activity.
http://archive.alia.org.au/liw/alw/2004/possum.mask.pdf.
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