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Fiction extracts booklet
Fiction extracts booklet:
The extracts appearing in this booklet support the Stage
3 and 4 English book rap and teaching unit, Fiction with
a twist. This contains Writing exercises and a larger
selection of extracts than the Rap extracts booklet.
Copyright:
Statutory Licence in Part VB of the Copyright Act,
1968.
Images:
Reproduced with kind permission of the publishers.
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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The remarkable secret of Aurelie Bonhoffen by Deborah
Abela, p. 19. [3rd person omniscient POV – slightly formal
voice, writing not speaking]
Here we meet Aurelie’s parents for the first time, at Aurelie’s
surprise party...
Even though he’d worn his best suit, Argus always had an edge
of scruffiness about him he couldn’t shake – a gangliness with
permanently wind-rumpled hair. He leant down and kissed her
on both cheeks. ‘But your party has only just begun.’
Amarella had wisps of long, flowing hair that she would try to
sweep into a bun behind her, but small restless curls would
always sneak out around her face. She had a soft smile and
eyes so alive that Argus would swear he’d be kept awake at
night by the light tucked inside them...
p. 49 Here we meet Mr Lucien B. Crook for the first time...
Lucien B. Crook sniffed as he lifted his gold eyeglass and
surveyed the view before him. It was a covetous, greedy sniff,
punctuated by the smallest of grins on his red, fleshy lips. His
black hair was waxed into a neatly coiffed wave and sat
obediently beneath a stiff hat. He stood tall. Some might have
described him as good-looking. His trim face was cleanly
shaven except for a pencil-thin moustache drawing a neat line
beneath his tapered nose.
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Extract from Trapped by Dean Moutopoulos, Year 6, p.77 from
Asphalt and feathers: Winning entries from the Sydney Youth
Writing Competition 2008 [1ST person POV – written not spoken –
emotional, connecting with reader]
Example of a frightened VOICE
I was trapped. There was no escape, and no hope. I took a long deep
breath and tried to stop the uncontrollable shivering. With dilated pupils,
my eyes desperately searched for light. Darkness was choking me. I gasped.
How could this have happened?
I remembered being late and hurrying to get to class. Within seconds, a
force against my back was bulldozing my body into my locker. How long
have I been here?
Can’t move, can’t breathe... I feel like a package, tightly wrapped. I count
my breaths... afraid of losing oxygen.
Pushing my face towards the cold metal, I listen intently for some sound. A
passing child, a teacher, a cleaner... I yearn desperately to hear the sound
of a footstep on the asphalt.
Nothing. Emptiness.
The stifling silence suffocates me further. My breathing becomes harsh and
uneven.
I breathe like a hoarse old dog about to reluctantly let go of life. Am I dying?
Suddenly, realization shakes me violently. I let out a thunderous roar. I am a
trapped animal, hunted by jealousy.
Ferociously, I kick and stomp and bash the metal locker with both hands
and feet, faster and faster... Yelling louder and louder.
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Rhyming boy by Steven Herrick, p. 2.
[1st person POV – colloquial]
Here we meet Jayden Hayden’s mum...
“She appears, wearing a blue and white butcher’s apron and the lilac ugg
boots I gave her for her thirty-fifth birthday. Hanging loosely around her
shoulders is a striped football scarf. She’s holding a spoon full of a
mysterious dark-red liquid. She runs her finger along the spoon and tastes
it, smacking her lips loudly.”
.................................................................................................................
The graveyard book by Neil Gaiman, p. 13 [3rd person omniscient POV –
formal – literary] We meet Bod’s guardian Silas, saving him from the
killer, Jack...
“The man Jack was tall. This man was taller. The man Jack wore dark
clothes. This man’s clothes were darker. People who noticed the man Jack
when he went about his business – and he did not like to be noticed – were
troubled, or made uncomfortable, or found themselves unaccountably
scared. The man Jack looked up at the stranger, and it was the man Jack
who was troubled.”
p. 202 Here we meet Scarlett again at fifteen – forced back here by her
parents’ divorce...
‘Scarlett Amber Perkins was fifteen, and at that moment sitting on the
upper deck of the elderly bus, she was a mass of angry hate. She hated her
parents for splitting up. She hated her mother for moving away from
Scotland, hated her father because he didn’t seem to care that she had
gone. She hated this town for being so different – nothing like Glasgow,
where she had grown up – and she hated it because every now and again
she would turn a corner and see something and the world would all
become achingly, horribly familiar.”
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Writing exercises* - Characterisation – Building a character
*These writing exercises are extracts from The writing book: A workbook for
fiction writers by Kate Grenville, reproduced here by kind permission of the
author.
3.1 Describe a person in terms of their appearance: their physical characteristics, the
way they dress, the way they move, objects they may have around themselves... some
of the things you’ve mentioned will represent something about the inner life, the
personality of the person you’ve described..... Go through your description and mark
the items that might be a clue to personality....
3.2 Go through and re-write the description with this in mind. At the same time, see if
there’s anything else you can make up that might be a further clue to personality. Your
real person may not have any particular mannerisms that express personality, so try
inventing some. One way to do this is to borrow from another real person. Think about
the people you know and see if you can put together a patchwork of characteristics in
order to create this new portrait. See if you can end up with a description in which
everything mentioned is some sort of indicator of the person’s inner life. This may be a
rather over-laden description but this is only an exercise, not a finished character.
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Writing exercises* - Characterisation – Building a character
CONTINUED
*These writing exercises are extracts from The writing book: A workbook for
fiction writers by Kate Grenville, reproduced here by kind permission of the
author.
This could read a bit like a grocery list, so if it does:
3.3 Take one detail from the description you have and use it as the basis for an
improvisation [character sketch]. Write the detail at the top of a page and then ask the
question ‘why’ about it until you’ve written a paragraph or two.... 3.4 .... E.g. Why does
their hair look the way it does? Why are they wearing those clothes? Why do they have
that expression on their face? ....Once you’ve guessed the obvious, try guessing at the
surprising: see what other answers you could come up with for the same questions.
Building a background – You may use this process just for brainstorming so the
character comes to life for you...
With that first exercise you began the movement away from a literal portrait of a
person..... What you have now is no longer a person with an existence in real life: this is
now a character. What you have now is a piece of fiction. As the creator of this
character, you know some things about him or her but other things remain blanks. Now
you can discover, and invent, what might be in those blank areas.....
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Writing exercises* - Characterisation – Building a character
CONTINUED
*These writing exercises are extracts from The writing book: A workbook for fiction
writers by Kate Grenville, reproduced here by kind permission of the author.
Building a background – You may use this process just for brainstorming so the
character comes to life for you...
3.6 Sketch out a biography of this character. This might include: childhood, home life,
work, close relationships, family, pets, relations with neighbours. Now describe their
environment: where they live or where they work, or both. What personal things have
they got there? Describe a typical day in their life, from waking up to going to sleep. It
may become evident that this character has no typical days, in which case you could
describe what they did yesterday....
3.7 Start with one of the facts you now know about the character and write a
paragraph or two about how the character feels about that fact..... Feeling is a good
motor to get writing going... you may be able to borrow one of your own emotions
that might be made to fit. E.g. Embarrassment or anger.....
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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The remarkable secret of Aurelie Bonhoffen by Deborah Abela
Aurelie speaks: What do these character sketch details reveal about her?
‘I like waffles with ice-cream and hot fudge sauce. I love reading all kinds of books, but
my favourite at the moment is about the explorer Marco Polo, and I want to run a pier
when I’m older, which is lucky because I live on one now and we’re about to fix it up
so I can make sure that happens.’ p.126
The remarkable secret of Aurelie Bonhoffen by Deborah Abela
What kind of character is the mayor? What do his actions reveal?
The mayor and the rest of his mumbled sentence moved quickly away. He tapped
sharply on the driver’s window before wrenching open the back door and climbing
inside. He waved the driver on with annoyed flicks of his hand, and the car kicked up
pebbles as it swerved down the drive. p.122
The graveyard book by Neil Gaiman
At this stage of the book, Bod is a little boy about to go out into the world for the
first time. What do we learn about him through his actions and the details of this
description?
As long as he had been going to the hut there had been a brown working-man’s jacket
hanging on the back of the door, forgotten or abandoned years before, along with a
green-stained pair of gardening jeans. The jeans were much too big for him, but he
rolled up the bottom until his feet showed, then he made a belt out of brown gardentwine, and tied it round his waist. There were boots in one corner, and he tried putting
them on, but they were so big and encrusted with mud and concrete that he could
barely shuffle in them, and if he took a step the boots remained on the floor of the
shed... p. 109
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Rhyming boy by Steven Herrick
‘I’m not sick!’ He almost shouts the words. He looks around the cafe and
hangs his head, shaking it from side to side. ‘I’m sorry, Jayden. I came
here because your Mum pleaded with me. I haven’t heard from her in
years. It’s too hard to explain.’
His voice trails off. The long table of diners are all standing and singing
‘Happy Birthday’ to the bald man sitting in front of a huge chocolate cake
with lots of candles. The couple in the corner are sharing a bottle of wine,
the man is stroking the woman’s hair. She smiles. Maybe they’re going to
get married. And have children. Children they’ll be with forever.
‘Why did you leave me?’
There. I’ve said it. The only question I want to ask. The only answer I
want to hear.
I look at Dad.
He shakes his head and slowly sighs. ‘I was never with you to leave you.’
All the air rushes from my lungs. I start to shake. My
vision blurs and my bottom lip quivers uncontrollably.
I’m giddy and light-headed. I can feel myself falling. I
reach out to grab the table but knock the glass onto
the floor splashing water everywhere. I slip from the
chair and put my hands out to break the fall. I hear a
voice far away, calling. p.133
Dialogue + 5 senses / actions + Theme [togetherness is good]
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Artemis Fowl and the time paradox by Eoin Colfer
[Bombs are exploding in the dye vats.]
How do the leather workers react? What do their actions show?
Below in the souq, pandemonium was instantaneous. The leather workers
roared and shouted, oohing like spectators at a fireworks show as each
new coloured fountain erupted. Some realised that their precious leathers
were being coated with the wrong hues and began to feverishly gather
their wares and tools. Within seconds it was raining gouts of dye, and the
spaces between the vats were thronged with frantic workers and spooked
tourists. p. 200
[The doctor has lost the lemur.]
How does the doctor react? What do his actions show?
The doctor was snapped out of it by Artemis’s tones. He composed
himself, standing on two feet and breathing deeply as the red spots
retreated from his cheeks. It was not until he tried to wipe the gunk from
his hand that he realised the lemur was no longer in his grasp. As he
stared in disbelief at his fingers, Kronski felt the stuff coating his fingers
harden into a glowing gauntlet. P201
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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A small free kiss in the dark by Glenda Millard
[War breaks out]
When I woke up in the night after I’d drawn the lily pond there
was no colour and no light. There was only sound. More sound
than I’d ever heard in my life. Enough to make my eardrums
bleed. My eyes, nose and mouth were full of dust. No room for
air, no breath to scream for help and no way anyone could
have heard. My body hurtled out of control. I was a star falling
into a black hole. I was Bradley Clark, possessed by the devil,
inside a concrete mixer or an earthquake, going mad. I was a
damaged person. And then something clicked in my brain and I
knew I was in the skip. I had to get out, dodge bricks, broken
concrete, cover my head, find the lid and breathe. My lungs
were about to explode when the skip slammed hard into
something and stopped. The skin peeled back as easy as a note
off a sticky pad. The skip was on its side. Rubbish spewed out
on the street. I dragged a mixture of dust and air down my
windpipe, pulled my legs free and crawled out into the red and
the black.
The world was full of screaming: people, sirens, alarms and
machines. Fires burnt everywhere. The skyline was a bleeding
mouth of broken teeth. p.38
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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The remarkable secret of Aurelie Bonhoffen by
Deborah Abela
The group hurried outside, down the drive and into the narrow
lane leading away from Bog’s house. When they got to the rise
that overlooked the sea, Aurelie saw a small orange glow on
the pier. ‘Fire,’ she whispered.
Cold air burned into their lungs as they ran. Aurelie tore off her
wig and hoisted her dress up to her knees. She printed after
her uncles, her eyes fixed on the wisps of fire that rose from
the centre of the pier. Bog followed, wheezing and stumbling.
Rolo and Rindolph charged into the streets ahead, running
through lampposts and parked cars, darting across the main
street that fronted the pier, until they melted through the
metal gates and tore inside. Aurelie arrived only minutes later.
She took a key from around her neck and opened the lock. She
flung the gates open. The cold wind from the sea shivered past
as her feet raced across the wooden boardwalk... p.247
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Hunting elephants by James Roy
He reminded himself not to panic, no matter what. Easy to say, hard to
do. He attempted another wiggle, but the rock against his shoulders was
holding him tightly. And when he tried to lift his head, the back of his
helmet collided with the roof of the tunnel, all plastic and hollowsounding. He dug the toes of his boots into the mud to push himself
forward, but when they slipped and he sensed his last gasp coming, he
finally gave in and panicked. He wanted to scream and arch his back.
Maybe he’d have enough strength in that last, desperate moment to do
something superhuman, like lifting the mountain of rock the two or three
centimetres required to let him slip through the gap to that beautiful,
fresh air further into the cave.
Then hands were fumbling at his shoulders, feeling for him, gripping the
heavy fabric of his overalls, before slipping off and returning for another
grab. Hurry! He thought. Just hurry! Get on with it! Grab me and pull!
And finally the hands did grip and hold, and Harry felt himself being
dragged forward, sliding through the water, pulled up the slight slope
into the cavern by Mr Greene and a couple of the other boys. He
collapsed face-down on the damp floor and sucked in a huge breath, felt
the wonderful air burst into his lungs. p. 2-3
Track the word trail through this extract – to see the way in
which James Roy has used action words and the 5 senses to
hook the reader.
Highlight these words and discuss how he has created
suspense.
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Rhyming boy by Steven Herrick, p.166-7
I think of Mum’s crazy unexpected impossible weird
similes, her obsession with football, her dancing
through the lounge room whenever she’s happy, baking
scones when she’s upset.
And Saskia’s dad sitting in his study lost in the jungle,
scrawling a thousand words on a piece of cardboard,
imitating female voices.
And Mr Thompson building a full-size goal in the
backyard and rigging up lights so his boys can play all
night.
And my dad, alone in his house on Spencer Street all
those years and his cryptic page one hundred and sixtytwo.
I’ll never understand adults. It’s impossible. They’re as
strange and unpredictable and confusing and eccentric
and fickle and erratic as...
I smile.
As I am.
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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The graveyard book by Neil Gaiman
Bod walked back into the graveyard and up the hill, until he reached the Frobisher
mausoleum. He did not enter it. He climbed up the side of the building, using the
thick ivy root as a foothold, and he pulled himself up onto the stone roof, where he
sat and thought looking out at the world of moving things beyond the graveyard, and
he remembered the way that Scarlett had held him and how safe he had felt, if only
for a moment, and how fine it would be to walk safely in the lands beyond the
graveyard, and how good it was to be the master of his own small world. p.221
.................................................................................
What is the theme of this song?
Sleep my little babby-oh
Sleep until you waken
When you wake you’ll see the world
If I’m not mistaken
Kiss a lover
Dance a measure
Find your name
And buried treasure
Face your life
Its pain, its pleasure,
Leave no path untaken.
p.287-288
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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A small free kiss in the dark by Glenda Millard
[The Carousel of War and Peace]
There were plenty of feathers at Dreamland. They were carved on a golden eagle on
the carousel. The eagle was on the front of a chariot, with its giant wings spread out.
It was bigger than Max. ‘It’s a Roman war chariot,’ said Billy, ‘and there’s one on the
other side that’s called the peace chariot.’
Max and me ran around to see. Instead of an eagle on the front. It had a lady with a
peaceful look carved on her wooden face. As well as the two chariots, the carousel
had sixty-eight horses.
‘The theme of the carousel is war and peace,’ Bily said...
‘Wars come and wars go,’ he said. ‘Things change, but the carousel is always here. It
reminds people of the good times.’ p. 86-87
.....................................................................................................................................
The graveyard book by Neil Gaiman
Bod said, ‘Tell me about the Honour Guard, Silas. You’re in it. Miss Lupescu was. Who
else? Are there a lot of you? What do you do?
‘We don’t do enough,’ said Silas. ‘And mostly, we guard the borderlands. We protect
the borders of things.’
‘What kind of borders?’
Silas said nothing.
‘You mean like stopping Jack and his people?’
Silas said, ‘We do what we have to.’ He sounded weary.
Silas took a step closer to Bod, which made the youth tilt back his head to look up at
the tall man’s pale face. Silas said, ‘I have not always done the right thing. When I was
younger... I did worse things than Jack. Worse than any of them. I was the monster,
then, Bod, and worse than any monster.’
It did not even cross Bod’s mind to wonder if his guardian was lying or joking. He
knew he was being told the truth. He said, ‘But you aren’t that any longer, are you?’
Silas said, ‘People can change,’ and then fell silent. p.284-285
Underline the 5 word theme in the top extract and the 3 word theme in the 2nd one.
NB Themes are generalisations – they do not mention specifics.
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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The remarkable secret of Aurelie Bonhoffen by Deborah Abela
[The remarkable family secret - coming back from the dead]
‘The very special thing about this gift is that people never come back for
small reasons, like a party they don’t want to miss or a roast chicken they
were about to eat. It’s always for bigger reasons. Like love and friendship
and knowing there would be someone too broken to go on without
them.’ Lilliana smiled. ‘But mostly, it’s for love.’ p.35
......................................................................................................................
Aurelie was only three at her grandfather’s funeral. She remembered
bits. A black carriage with large, polished glass windows and white silken
scarves sailing behind it like a regal ship. Horses, tall and black, breathing
great smoky white puffs into the chilly air.
‘He looks out for you too, you know.’ Lilliana smiled.
‘He does?’
‘Oh yes. Everyone has someone looking out for them – even the mean
ones.’ p.36
Underline the 11 word theme in the 2nd extract.
NB Themes are generalisations – they do not mention specifics.
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Symbolic language
A small free kiss in the dark by Glenda Millard
[War has broken out]
After that, Billy and me climbed to the top of the bricks. The city was a
sea below us. Pockets of light pooled in the dark like oil slicks. We were
lost sailors with no stars above to guide us. I thought about Chief Seattle
who said: ‘The Indian’s night is dark. Not a single star of hope hovers
above his horizon.’ And I wondered if Billy and me would ever see the
stars again. p.46
How is Skip feeling?
............................................................................................................
[About Tia the 15 year old dancer, with her baby Sixpence, who Skip
meets during the war]
She reminded me of the sea; the way she came dancing towards you,
wild and beautiful, and just when she was almost close enough to touch
she’d rush away again. p. 139
What is Tia’s character? Why do you think she may pull away from
people?
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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A small free kiss in the dark by Glenda Millard
This is what I know so far:
The word coat makes people think about feelings like comfort,
warmth, friendship, safety and happiness.
Using an object in this way when you write is called symbolism.
In real life, coats can be used to cover up things no one wants
to know about: ugly stuff like bruises and half-smoked
cigarettes you’ve picked up off the footpath to swap for
something to eat. And stolen chalk.
Some people think you can use a coat, like a fake smile, to
cover up invisible things like a broken heart or hate or being
afraid. (If you have some or all of these things they say you are
damaged.)
People who have invisible damage to hide sometimes wear
khaki coats with metal buttons and medals on them.
My dad had a coat like that and so did Billy. (The young soldier
at the Carousel of War and Peace had one too, but I didn’t
know about him then.)
Sometimes the best disguise is not wearing a coat, so people
think you have nothing to hide. p.32
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Symbolic language
A small free kiss in the dark by Glenda Millard
Red is brave, happy, loud and fast, and sometimes dangerous or angry.
Black is soft, slow, silent and sad, but it can be angry too. I know this
because of the words chalked on the footpath next to Chief Seattle:
‘When our young men grow angry at some real or imaginary wrong, and
disfigure their faces with black paint, it denotes that their hearts are
black.’
War is mostly black and red.
Bradley Clark thought everyone else was the devil when he had his fits.
He tried to stab people with his potato peeler, and hurled furniture at
the walls of the refuge. He was like a shattered stained-glass window:
something beautiful that’s broken; a million colours fallen on the ground
where no light can get through. p.37
...................................................................................................................................
[Skip is riding on the carousel horse to distract himself from the war]
‘Come away, Captain Moonlight, come away!’ I whispered into my
horse’s wooden ear and my words went inside him and warmed his heart
because that’s what words do when people mean them; they get inside
you and they change everything. I felt my horse’s muscles moving and I
felt breath go into him and out of him and I felt him swelling like the sea.
p.106
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Symbolic object
Hunting elephants by James Roy
It was just a caravan, but Harry found himself swallowing hard as he walked in its
general direction. He also found himself walking closer to the van than he needed to,
and trying to catch a glimpse of something - anything – through the windows. But
Trent had been right; there were curtains and blinds, and it was impossible to see in,
certainly from a few metres away. ...
Harry turned in a slow circle. So that was all the mysterious van was – a study, out in
the bush, away from the house. Or perhaps a retreat, a refuge, a private place to go
and to read. But again, why? Was Frank ashamed of what he did out here: What
could that be? He could see nothing that looked even slightly illegal.... Nothing but a
crumpled bed, a few books, and some photos.....
Then came the very voice he most dreaded. ‘Who’s there? Is someone in there?’
Harry swallowed hard, aware of his heart pounding, and the tingling wave of
adrenaline flowing up his neck into the base of his skull. Even if he could find
somewhere to hide in that tiny van, how could he do it in time? Especially now that
the chain was rattling, and the door was opening drenching him in sudden light,
frozen as he was in the doorway of the caravan. p. 226-231
.........................................................................................................................................
Propping himself up on his elbow, he looked up the hill towards the caravan. It no
longer seemed to be frowning at him, as it had the day before. Now that he’d been
inside and seen a glimpse of what secrets it hid, it wasn’t frowning – it was simply
sad. It was as if its windows were dark, downcast eyes, not ashamed, but full of grief.
Or was it, in fact, shame? He shook his head. This was stupid. A caravan couldn’t be
sad, or ashamed, or scowling angry....
...Harry remembered the expression on Frank’s face when he’d stepped up to join
him in the van. Not the cold anger – that had dissipated pretty quickly – but the
resigned sigh and the relief which followed....
p.244-245
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Symbolic objects
A small free kiss in the dark by Glenda Millard
There was a picture of an American Indian wearing a feathered headdress. It was
drawn to fit inside an oval shape, and the colours were orangey-brown and white,
like a really old photo....
The old man, who was Billy, said, ‘It’s s’posed to be Chief Seattle. He’s famous for
some speech he made over a hundred and fifty years back. Said some pretty
important things that people remembered ever since. That’s a bit of his speech.’ He
nodded towards the words inside the oval. p. 10
Research Chief Seattle’s famous speech – what are the main ideas in it?
.................................................................................................................................
[Skip looks at the photo of his mum holding him – He hasn’t seen her in years]
The person who took the photograph didn’t know that shadows are as important as
light. We need both of them to help us see things the way they really are. In the
photo of my mother there aren’t any shadows, and I can’t see her face for the light.
p.11
This photo is symbolic and points to a theme. What does it mean when we say that
we need both shadow and light to see things the way they are?
.................................................................................................................................
[Old Thomas gives his war medal to Max]
‘I only went because I was sent,’ Old Thomas said gently to his son. Then he looked at
Max. ‘May you always be brave and strong,’ he said. The words were bits of the
blessing song that were still floating around in our heads after everything else had got
blown away. Old Thomas shook Max’s hand as if Max was grown-up. Next he put a
long striped ribbon around Max’s neck. It hung all the way down to the top of Max’s
old-man trousers, and on the end of it was golden medal. ‘Take these,’ Billy said and
his voice sounded like he’d swallowed sandpaper. ‘It’s not much.’ He gave Old
Thomas the rest of our oranges. They looked nearly as beautiful as the golden medal,
and Old Thomas said they were even better because you could eat them. p. 186
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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The graveyard book by Neil Gaiman
Bod feels as if HE has been struck by lightning
because his guardian Silas has gone away, with
no explanation or return date.
The boy walked back down the south-west side of the
hill, avoiding the old chapel: he did not want to see the
place that Silas wasn’t. Bod stopped beside a grave that
looked the way he felt: it was beneath an oak that had
once been struck by lightning, and was now just a black
trunk, like sharp talon coming out of the hill; the grave
itself was water-stained and cracked, and above it was
a memorial stone on which a headless angel hung, its
robes looking like a huge and ugly tree-fungus. p.66
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Sprite Downberry by Nette Hilton
Figurative language builds symbolic meaning.
Anger is personified
Sprite was angry. It had rippled around under her outside layer
of skin threatening to burst out all day. She’d held it in. If she
let it go, she’d splatter everywhere like the eggs she’d tried to
cook in the microwave. p.8
Storm cloud – metaphor for anger
It made no difference. The storm cloud that had passed over
Sunny’ lovely face when Sprite mentioned the note, had
stormed itself to a stop. Now all that was left was rain and grey
and deep, dark sadness. p.111
Fear – butterflies simile
Sprite could feel fear beating like butterflies under lungs. She
had to get to her father. Had to. p.198
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25
Symbolic language
Sprite Downberry by Nette Hilton
Sprite didn’t think it was possible to be so afraid. She didn’t think it was
possible for so many noises to fill a house that wasn’t moving. It could
have had legs and hands and old creaking bones for all the groans and
sighs she could hear as she huddled tighter and tighter into the corner.
Fear itched across her top lip and drew tight circles onto her scalp. Her
head ached and her neck was frozen into one long pain that stretched
right down her back. Even her shoulders ached. She edged closer to Mozz,
expecting at any minute to feel the house reach and touch its ancient
bones against her arms. p.200
................................................................................................................
The apple tasted of old sweetness, like stale perfume trapped on the
collars of last winter’s coats. ... Sprite thought about old sweetness. Times
in the yard, hooting and screaming around and chasing and trying to catch
Dad and Sunny trying to catch everyone. And Sunny with her skirts and
hair flying, and her lovely songs that didn’t make sense, and her poems
that made everyone stop and then laugh and laugh and laugh. And wet
eyes that were happy tears. And Mozz in too-long shorts and Sunnypainted T-shirts. And nights on the couch cuddled up, and then waking,
snuggled together on the mattress, the television still going and Dad and
Sunny wrapped up in each other. Dad and Sunny. Like high school kids on
the bus, like they’d never really grown up. Maybe they were like this poor
old apple. They’d held their sweetness for so long it had got too warm and
lost its zing.
It still left a nice flavour though.
p.255
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
26
Darius Bell and the glitter pool by Odo Hirsch
Examples of symbolic settings
[The clock tower]
From the top of the clock tower, Darius could see past the fence of the estate and into
the streets beyond. That was one of the things that made it such a good place to think.
When you got stuck, or whatever it was that you were thinking about seemed too
hard, you could just watch the streets for a while, and you were sure to see something
that caught your attention, kids playing football, or a father teaching his child to ride a
bike, or people having an argument..... you’d find yourself forgetting about whatever
you had got stuck thinking about, and then suddenly you’d remember again, but the
funny thing was, you always seemed to have thought of something new while you’d
been watching, something that unstuck your thought process, even though you hadn’t
been conscious of it at the time. p.147-8
.................................................................................................................................................
[About the glitter pool that Darius has discovered after an earthquake – it is a pool
inside a cavern with a glittering roof which makes the pool sparkle]
If people got so much pleasure from going down into the darkness of the cavern and
seeing the roof come alive with light and the water of the pool below it ripple and
glitter – if that moment, when the light came on, made them smile with wonder, and
if they gazed with delight at the twinkling red crystals and web of gleaming gold – then
surely this sight itself was a gift worth giving. p. 156-7
Symbolic settings point towards themes. What are two general themes which you
may draw from the specifics in the two extracts above?
A. Everyone needs...
B. The best things in life...
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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The remarkable secret of Aurelie Bonhoffen by Deborah Abela
Examples of symbolic settings
It was a forgotten part of town. Mangy and ill tempered cats scrounged
through bins in search of food scraps. Abandoned dogs limped nearby,
hoping for leftovers. There was talk of murders and drunken brawls.
Those who had lost their way in life were drawn here, left to breathe their
last forlorn breaths in the dock’s littered streets. p.220
At The Lucky Sailor
It took a few moments for his eyes to adjust in the dim, smoke-filled
room. Only the bartender, with his hunched back and balding head, could
be seen in a pool of light from above the bar. The rest of the patrons were
faceless shadows. Darkened booths lined the walls. Bog stared at figures
huddled in muffled conversations. Others were slumped over fast asleep
on their crossed arms. p. 221-222
Aurelie’s bedroom
‘The best room in the house,’ Argus said. ‘With a view of the ocean that
would fill even the meanest person with wonder.’
Ernestine sucked in a sharp breath, her lips pursed. ‘I’m going to have to
disagree with you, Mr Bonhoffen. It is draughty, small and has none of the
things a young girl her age should have – dolls, a set of hairbrushes. The
curtains are patch-worked rags, and she sleeps above the devilish art and
general horror of a ghost train.’
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
28
Symbolic language
Sprite Downberry by Nette Hilton
She sat on the floor, on one of Sunny’s op-shop cushions. It had a squirrel
on it. Sprite remembered Sunny going on about how it’d feel to be a
squirrel in a land full of possums.
‘Bit like being an eagle,’ she’d said, ‘stuck down in a pen full of turkeys.’
Sprite had laughed at the thought of an eagle walking around with funnylooking turkeys, but Sunny hadn’t. Maybe Sunny was an eagle...
She let the thought wander around in her heads.
If Sunny was an eagle then who were the turkeys? Not her and Mozz.
They’d be eagles too. Or eaglets.
And not Dad. She’d never call him a turkey.
Maybe it’s girls at school like Madeleine and Katie and Diva. Maybe they
were the ones who wanted to fly, but because they couldn’t fly
themselves they stopped anyone else from taking off. That’d be right.
Sprite thought about being an eagle...
p.270
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Symbolic objects
The name of this book is secret by Pseudonymous Bosch
Cass is being held prisoner. What is the atmosphere created by this
description, including “the look of ancient surgical instruments”? What
do you think might happen to her?
Even Cass, who was feeling slightly less sick, but all the more upset about
the situation in which she found herself, had to admit the dinner table
looked magnificent. It was covered with a cloth sewn entirely of crimson
flower petals, each petal lush and perfect and not a bit bruised or ripped.
On this luxurious crimson bed sat a dozen crystal candlesticks of varying
heights as well as numerous glittering urns and platters of exotic, Oriental
design. Each place-setting came with a pair of gleaming golden chopsticks
and ornate sets of silverware – tiny forks, oddly curved spoons, needlelike knives – that had the look of ancient surgical instruments. On the
whole, the table looked less like a dinner table than a shrine to some
jealous and demanding god. This effect was only heightened when the
kitchen staff began to bring in the food – so solemnly and silently they
might have been making offerings in a temple rather than serving
dinner... p.174
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Symbolic story
Rhyming boy by Steven Herrick
Why does Jayden tell this story? What does he want in his life? Symbols
point us toward themes...
I imagine a leper sitting by the wide fast-flowing Amazon River looking up at the moon
and wishing that he wasn’t sick. The leper can feel the sweat on every pore of his skin
as his feet dangle in the mighty river. He’s been isolated for years on a tiny island in
the middle of the forest.
He sits by the river waving to his parents on the far side. They visit him every week
and call across the water. Although they can’t get any closer, they spend all day
together, talking. Every night before bed they each pray for a cure. They speak each
other’s names. p.136-7
Artemis Fowl and the time paradox by Eoin Colfer
Artemis turned over on his back and watched the stars. He did this often, and the sight
usually caused him to wonder how he could reach the planets orbiting those pinpricks
of light, and what he would find there. On this evening, the stars just made him feel
tiny and insignificant. Nature was vast and mighty and would eventually swallow him,
even the memory of him. p.352
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Rhyming boy by Steven Herrick
Why does Jayden give his father this book as a symbolic object?
What does he want in his life?
I looked at the book on my bed open at page one hundred and sixty-two. A man standing on
one leg. Alone...
Then I knew just what to do.
It took hours of searching through all my books to find just the right entry. Page four hundred
and twenty-eight in an old book Mum bought for me in a charity sale.
Winston James was father to thirty-two children. In the picture, he sits in an old rocking chair
surrounded by his sons and daughters. He has a long beard and walking stick rests on his lap.
He has outlived his three wives. His children are named after biblical characters. He’s sixtythree years of age.
He looks much older.
I reached for a pen and paper.
Dear Dad,
Page four hundred and twenty-eight.
If there’s anything sillier than standing on one leg for seventy-six hours, it’s having thirty-two
children!
How could a father cope? Much better to have just one child. Someone to share things with. A
son.
I hope to see you soon.
Love,
Jayden
Last night, Mum and I drove to Dad’s place. It was a small timber house painted pale lemon.
The front hedge was neatly trimmed and the cobblestone path leading to the verandah was
swept clear of leaves. I could smell the rich scent of freshly-mown grass as I stood on the
footpath. There was a dull light from behind the curtains and the flicker of a television. I
opened the letterbox. There was no way the old book and my letter would fit inside!
I took a deep breath and stepped lightly over the gate. I walked on the grass, not the path,
silently. On the verandah was a table and two chairs. I placed the package on the table,
sure Dad would see it when he opened the front door in the morning. p.172-3
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Rhyming boy by Steven Herrick
Symbolic object
Why has Mr Hardy given this book to Jayden at the Books and Boys Breakfast?
He holds the hard cover in his hands, smoothing down a frayed edge with his fingers.
‘This was my father’s favourite book.’ Mr Hardy coughs quietly, clearing his throat.
‘When I was thirteen years old, my dad got very sick. I used to rush home from school
to be with him.’ He sighs, remembering every detail. ‘He’d sit up in bed and I’d read
this adventure to him. I’d get so involved in the tale I wouldn’t notice him slowly
drifting off to sleep.’ Mr Hardy chuckles. ‘Until he snored. Then I’d close the book and
place it beside his bed. I’d watch him sleep. I’d look at his shiny grey hair.’
He runs his hand through his own hair.
‘Sometimes, I’d lean in really close to feel his breath on my cheek. I was a little
nervous I’d scare him awake! I’d count the lines on his face, watch how they grew
fainter as he slept. I believed with all my heart that his dreams were making him
younger. Sometimes his hands would shake and I’d reach out and hold them. He had
the softest hands for an old bloke who’d worked all his life. And, do you know what,
laddie?’
I look at my friend and notice the sparkle in his eyes.
‘I’d give anything, anything at all, to sit beside that bed again. To look at his face. To
read him a book.’
He offers me the book. ‘I want you to have it, laddie. It’s a fine story. A cracking
adventure.’ p. 153-4
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Sprite Downberry by Nette Hilton
Then Katie giggled. A nasty little sound that tinkled like chips of glass onto stone.
‘What you got in the bag, Spritey?’ she sang.
‘Got another snake?’ Diva’s silky voice joined in.
They smiled at each other as if they were very, very funny.
Sprite kept walking. She could feel prickles of fear across her chest and knew that if
she didn’t move fast her face was going to go red.
‘Look at her,’ Madeline said in a voice just loud enough to reach across the path.
‘She’s going all red. What’s the matter, Spritey?’
Sprite pretended she couldn’t hear them. Or feel them fall into step behind her.
‘Ooh. Look at that.’
Sprite wasn’t sure what they were looking at but she felt as if every hair on the back
of her legs and every mark on her skin were being magnified.
‘That’s a nit.’ Katie’s voice.
‘Nah. That’s not a nit. That’s just dirt.’ Madeleine.
‘It is not!’ Sprite exploded. ‘Leave me alone!’
‘Leave me alone,’ Madeleine mimicked. ‘What’ll you do if we don’t? Go and tell
Mummsy?’
Sprite grabbed the railing and hoisted herself up the steps to escape into the library.
‘Erk!’ Katie said behind her. ‘Don’t put your hand there!’
A girl about to start up the steps drew her hand back quickly.
‘Snake germs all over it,‘ Katie explained. p. 88-89
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
34
Hunting elephants by James Roy
[When Greg approaches his son Trent, Trent’s body language changes
because he is so angry and hurt that his dad and mum split up and that his
dad left.]
Greg was approaching, orange juice in hand, and Harry noticed that as soon
as Trent spotted his father, his shape changed. Had he become more
hunched, or had he tightened up in some way? It was hard to know what it
was about his body that had shifted, exactly. But certainly his voice was now
different. He coughed, and mumbled something that Harry couldn’t quite
make out.
‘Lads,’ Greg said, nodding at them. ‘What’s the topic of conversation over
here, then?’
‘Parents,’ Trent said. The word was said short and sharp like a bark.
Greg laughed self-consciously. ‘ls that right? All good stuff, then.’
‘Oh yes, of course,’ Harry said quickly.
Greg pointed at Harry. ‘I remember your parents’ wedding, you know. How,
long ago was that?’
Harry was about to answer, but Trent beat him to it. ‘Twenty years. Twenty
years and still together. They’re still happy, too. Harry can tell.’
‘Well, that’s great,’ Greg said, smiling and raising his glass. ‘I’ll see you guys
later on, then.’ And he strolled away.
Either he hasn’t noticed his son’s tone, or he’s a brilliant actor, Harry thought.
‘What a jerk,’ Trent muttered. p.265
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
35
Hunting elephants by James Roy
[End of the book: Harry is given his dead brother Joel’s jacket – mum will soon move
her business office into his old bedroom because the house is so crowded]
Mum lifted the hanger. ‘Now I know that this isn’t your colour, but I couldn’t find a
blue and white one. So will red and black do?’
Harry propped himself up on his elbows. ‘Is that Joel’s Holden jacket?’
Mum nodded. ‘You don’t have to wear it in public or anything like that – I know how
much that would hurt a diehard Ford fan like yourself – but would you like to have it,
just to hang in your wardrobe? She lay the jacket on the bed, across Harry’s legs. He
fingered the fabric, then picked the jacket up and held it to his face, breathing deeply.
Yes, it smelt like his brother.
‘Are you sure, Mum?’
‘Yes, I’m sure.’
‘Then yeah, I’d love it,’ he said. ‘Can you hang it on my door handle?’
‘You don’t want it in the wardrobe?’
He shook his head. ‘No, on the door.’
Mum hung the jacket on the doorknob, before sitting on the edge of Harry’s bed.....
‘Do you have anything planned tomorrow evening?’
‘I don’t know. Homework?’
‘Nothing important, then?’
Harry smiled and shook his head. ‘I don’t think so. Why?’
‘I need you to give me a hand with something. It might require a bit of lifting and
moving of furniture.’
He was reading her thoughts now. ‘What kind of furniture do you mean – wardrobes
and dressing tables and beds, maybe?’
‘Yes, and desks and filing cabinets and computers. It’s time, Harry.’ p329-31
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
36
The remarkable secret of Aurelie Bonhoffen by Deborah Abela
‘Argus disappeared from his bedroom window and reappeared at the door, pulling
his shirt over his head. ‘Bit of a late night last night. We’re planning a big perfomance,
and we got a little carried away.’ ‘Carried away?’ Mrs Farnhumple stared at the
dishevelled man in front of her.
‘You know how it is with musicians. Once you hand them a mandolin and a
squeezebox, there’s no stopping them.’
Mrs Farnhumple and Ernestine Bloomfield had no idea how it was with musicians.
Argus felt their silence like a piano string pressing against his neck. He stepped back.
‘What can I do for you?’
‘By order of the Office of the Welfare of Young People and Children et cetera, et
cetera, it has been decided in accordance with Article 327 of the Child Betterment
and Protection Act, that Aurelie Bonhoffen be taken from her place of residence at
Bonhoffen’s Seaside Pier to be placed in another location far more suited to her
needs, until the living arrangements of the girl can be altered sufficiently to convince
the Office of the fitness of that abode or, in the failure to do so, until the
aforementioned child’s eighteenth birthday, from whence it will be the child’s
decision where she may reside.’
Argus and Amarella stood rigid. A cold wind swept off the sea.
‘Visiting rights allow you to make contact with the child at the discretion of the courtappointed guardian. Refusal to obey the guardian’s directions may result in court
proceedings against said refuser and a possible jail sentence.’
‘Jail sentence? Visiting rights?’ Amarella slowly repeated the words.
‘Yes.’ Ernestine Bloomfield’s nostrils flared slightly. ‘And as this case is in particular
need of urgent attention, a lot of work must be done. So I have decided that there
will be no visiting rights until further notice.’ p. 174-6
‘But we haven’t even begun to have our say.’ Rolo flicked his rain-soaked hair from
his eyes and paced back and forth. ‘Courts and governments and societies for good
manners have been having all the say...’ p.189
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Runemarks by Joanne Harris
Maddy liked the Hill, of course. But then, Maddy knew it better than most. All her life
she had stayed alert to rumours culled from travellers; pieces of lore; to sayings,
kennings, stories, tales. From these tales she had formed a picture – still maddeningly
unclear – of a time before the End of the World, when Red Horse Hill as an enchanted
place, and when the old gods – the Seer-folk – walked the land in human guise,
sowing stories wherever they went.
No-one in Malbry spoke of them. Even Crazy Nan would not have dared; the Good
Book forbade all tales of the Seer-folk not written in the Book of Tribulation. And the
people of Malbry prided themselves on their devotion to the Good Book. They no
longer decked wells in the name of the Mother Frigg, or danced on the May, or left
crumbs by their doorsteps for Jack-in-the-Green. The shrines and temples of the Seerfolk had all been torn down years ago. Even their names had been largely forgotten,
and no one mentioned them any more.
Almost no one, anyway. The exception was Maddy’s closest friend – known to Mrs
Scattergood as that one-eyed scaly good-for-nowt, and to others as the Outlander, or
just plain One-Eye. p. 21-22
......................................................................................................................
‘Oh, there’s truth in the book,’ said One-Eye, and shrugged. ‘But it’s buried deep
under legends and lies. That war for instance...’
‘Tribulation,’ said Maddy helpfully.
‘Aye, if you like, or Ragnarok. Remember, it’s the winners write the history books,
and the losers get the leavings. If the AEsir had won-‘
‘The AEsir?’
‘Seer-folk, I dare say you’d call ‘em here. Well, if they’d won that war – and it was
close, mind you – then the Elder Age would not have ended, and your Good Book
would have turned out very different, or maybe never have been written at all.’ p.28
Underline the 13 word theme. Because the AEsir lost the war, their names are not
allowed to be mentioned any more. Underline 3 customs which no longer happen
because they have been forbidden.
Who holds all the power in this fantasy world? The people of the _______ ________
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
38
Runemarks by Joanne Harris
And so the Order was begun. Not quite priests, not quite scholars, though they
shared elements of both, over the years they had become increasingly powerful, and
by the end of the first century following Tribulation they had extended their authority
far beyond the University and into the world beyond. They controlled education, and
ensured that literacy was restricted to the priesthood, its prentices and those of the
Order. The word ‘University’ was expanded to make ‘Universal City’, so that as years
passed, folk forgot that once there had been free access to books and to learning,
and came to believe that things had always been as they were....
Everyone had heard tales; of how some prentice had denounced his father to the
Order for failing to attend Prayers, or how some old woman had been Cleansed for
decking a wishing well or keeping a cat. p.159-160
..........................................................................................................................................
Over the next fortnight Maddy listened to One-Eye’s teachings with a singlemindedness she had never shown before. Nat Parson had always made it clear that to
be a bad blood was a shameful thing, like being a cripple or a bastard. But here was
this man telling her the exact opposite. She had skills, the Outlander told her, skills
that were unique and valuable.....
...now Maddy learned of a world beyond the map’s edge; a world of many parts and
contradictions; a world in which Nat Parson or Adam Scattergood – for instance –
might be driven to madness by as small a thing as a glimpse of an ocean, or an
unfamiliar star.
In such a world, Maddy understood, one man’s religion might be another’s heresy,
magic and science might overlap, houses might be built on rivers or underground or
high in the air; even the Laws of the Order at World’s End, which she had always
assumed were universal, might warp and bend to suit the customs of this new,
expanded world.... p.32-33
1. Looking at both extracts about this fantasy world, what can we say happens
when people are denied access to books, learning and a belief in their own
thoughts?
2. What happens “inside” for people when they can gain access to new ideas?
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
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Rhyming boy by Steven Herrick
‘And what is the name of your favourite book, Jayden?’ The lady has eye
shadow that matches the colour of her dress.
I lean in close to the microphone. ‘I love all books.’
I feel Mr Hardy smiling beside me. ‘My best friend says with a book
you’re never lonely.’
My voice grows louder. ‘With a book, it doesn’t matter how many friends
you’ve got. Or how many uncles, aunts, dads and mums. It only matters
that you’ve got an...’ I try to think of the right word. ‘...an imagination.’
From behind the cameraman, Mr Bartog gives me the thumbs up.
The blonde lady smiles and says, ‘Thank you.’
She turns to the cameraman. ‘We’ll use that last bit, Doug. For the
evening news.’
Mr Thompson walks across and shakes my hand.
‘Well said, young fella. If ya ever want to come over and have a kick with
me and the boys just give us a yell, hey.’ p.157-8
Circle which functions of dialogue this extract is expressing. It may be
more than one...
Action / Background information / Character / Relationship / Theme
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
40
Rhyming boy by Steven Herrick
Why don’t ya just bring a photo then? If ya can’t find anyone real.’
Hamilton skips backwards.
There’s a lamp post in the middle of the footpath. Hamilton is looking at
me and smirking. In exactly twenty seconds he’s going to walk backwards
into the pole. He’ll fall over in front of everyone. He’ll land on his school
bag and squash the sandwiches inside. Squelched peanut paste will be
smeared across his homework; the water bottle will crack and leak. The
water will mix with the peanut paste and soak his Jetman comic in a
suspicious brown goo. When he gets home his mum will make him clean
the bag instead of watching cartoons on Channel Eight. The paste will be
hard and flaky after baking all day in the sun on the school verandah.
Hamilton will need a wire brush and lots of damp rags. No matter how
much he scrubs, the bag will smell of stale peanuts and wet paper.
Hamilton is getting closer and closer to the pole.
‘There must be someone who’ll go with you, Rhyming Boy.’
‘Hamilton.’
‘Yeah.’
‘You’re about to walk into a lamp post.’p.109
1. Circle which functions of dialogue this extract is expressing. It
may be more than one...
Action / Background information / Character / Relationship / Theme
2. Underline the words which paint the picture of a squelched
peanut disaster.
What do they tell you about Jayden?
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
41
Symbolic objects point towards themes
Darius Bell and the glitter pool by Odo Hirsch
[Darius asks the housekeeper Mrs Simpson about the cakes that she bakes]
‘Mrs Simpson,’ said Darius, ‘doesn’t it ever worry you? You do all this work to make these
cakes, and then people eat them and they all disappear.’......
‘I don’t think it’s quite right to say that nothing’s left,’ she said to Darius. ‘People have the
memory’.........
‘It’s still not the same as a thing someone can keep,’ said Darius.
‘No, that’s true,’ said Mrs Simpson. ‘I suppose it’s more of an experience. That’s what you
keep. The sight of the cake, the taste, the pleasure of eating it. The friends you ate it with. I
don’t see why that isn’t as valuable as anything else. The perfect cake makes the perfect
occasion.’ p.49-51
Circle which functions of dialogue this extract is expressing. It may be more than one...
Action / Background information / Character / Relationship / Theme
......................................................................................................................................
A small free kiss in the dark by Glenda Millard
[Old Thomas gives his war medal to Max]
‘I only went because I was sent,’ Old Thomas said gently to his son. Then he looked at
Max. ‘May you always be brave and strong,’ he said. The words were bits of the
blessing song that were still floating around in our heads after everything else had got
blown away. Old Thomas shook Max’s hand as if Max was grown-up. Next he put a
long striped ribbon around Max’s neck. It hung all the way down to the top of Max’s
old-man trousers, and on the end of it was golden medal. ‘Take these,’ Billy said and
his voice sounded like he’d swallowed sandpaper. ‘It’s not much.’ He gave Old
Thomas the rest of our oranges. They looked nearly as beautiful as the golden medal,
and Old Thomas said they were even better because you could eat them. p 186
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
42
Top gear by Colin Thompson
(The Floods series: Book 7)
[Dr Reversion is providing acupuncture to the evil Hearse Whisperer and
she enters into a meditative state]
The sky turned a beautiful green colour like the skies of her childhood
when all that lovely acid rain had drifted over Transylvania Waters,
making everyone wonderfully white as it bleached their skin. The Hearse
Whisperer was a little girl again, playing in the back garden of the
childhood home she only had inside her head. There were the kittens she
had nailed to the fence. There were the blindfolded chickens walking into
the bonfire. And there was her beloved grandmother, collecting the
pretty berries from the belladonna plants to make her delicious purple
custard.......
‘That’s true, but there’s something else, isn’t there?’ said the doctor.
‘No.’
‘Come on. It was in the papers. You were voted Creation’s Most Evil
Being because of it.’
‘Oh, that,’ said the Hearse Whisperer, torn between pride and denial.
‘Yes, that,’ said the doctor. ‘You appeared to have had a total change of
heart and got your parents set free and everyone thought you had gone
soft, but then it turned out you’d had them released so you could eat
them. Remember?’ p. 152-155
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
43
Artemis Fowl and the time paradox by Eoin Colfer
[Italics happen in this extract when Dr Kronski is THINKING]
Malachy Pasteur. Young French-Irish heir to an abattoir empire. Made a sizable
donation to the Extinctionists’ coffers. His first conference. Like all the attendees,
Pasteur was thoroughly vetted before his invitation was issued. A valuable addition to
the ranks....
Pasteur drummed his fingers on the podium. ‘I have always liked your style, Doctor
Kronski. Your commitment to the ideals of Extinctionism. For years I have followed
your career, since I was a boy in Dublin, in fact. Lately, however, I feel that the
organisation has lost its way, and I am not the only one with this notion.’
Kronski ground his teeth. So that was it. A naked challenge to his leadership....
‘Allow me to explain the rules,’ continued Kronski, thinking, Explaining the rules puts
me in charge, giving me the upper hand, psychologically speaking.
‘No need,’ said Pasteur brusquely. ‘I have read several transcripts. The prosecutor put
his case, the defender puts his case. A few minutes of lively debate, then each table
votes. Simple. Can we please proceed, Doctor? No one here appreciates their time
being wasted.’
Clever, young man. Putting yourself on the same side as the jury. No matter. I know
these people and they will never acquit a beast, no matter how pretty she is....
’People say that we Extinctionists hate animals,’ began Kronski. ‘But this is not the
case. We do not hate poor dumb animals, rather we love humans. We love humans
and will do whatever it takes to ensure that we, as a race, survive for as long as
possible. This planet has limited resources and I, for one, say we should hoard them
for ourselves. Why should humans starve when dumb animals grow fat? Why should
humans freeze when beasts lie toasty warm in their coats of fur?’ p. 232
Persuasion: Highlight the persuasive words and phrases in yellow that Artemis is
using [disguised as Malachy] to put Dr Kronski down and convince the audience that
Dr Kronski may be losing his leadership skills. Artemis is trying to argue so that his
friend Holly will not be killed.
Highlight Kronski’s persuasive words in green.
This is a power struggle – who do you think will win?
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.
44
Resources
Fiction reading list
Feathers and asphalt: winning entries from the Sydney Youth Writing
Competition 2008. (2008) Sydney Youth Writing Competition, Sydney.
SCIS 1394061
Abela, D. (2009) The remarkable secret of Aurelie Bonhoffen, Random
House Australia, North Sydney. SCIS 1399240
Bosch, P. (2008) The name of this book is secret, Allen and Unwin, Crows
Nest, N.S.W. SCIS 1359472
Buckley, M. (2008) The sisters Grimm, Scholastic Australia, Lindfield,
N.S.W. SCIS 1365226
Colfer, E. (2009) Artemis Fowl and the time paradox, Puffin, London.
SCIS 1416681
Gaiman, N. (2008) The graveyard book, Bloomsbury, London. SCIS
1387743
Harris, J. (2008) Runemarks, Corgi, London. SCIS 1392205
Herrick, S. (2008) Rhyming boy, University of Queensland Press, St Lucia,
Qld. SCIS 1368242
Hilton, N. (2008) Sprite Downberry, Angus & Robertson, Sydney. SCIS
1379687
Hirsch, O. (2009) Darius Bell and the glitter pool, Allen and Unwin, Crows
Nest, N.S.W. SCIS 1400214
Larkin, J. (1993) Spaghetti legs, Random House Australia, North Sydney.
SCIS 737762
Millard, G. (2009) A small free kiss in the dark, Allen and Unwin, Crows
Nest, N.S.W. SCIS 1398162
Roy, J. (2008) Hunting elephants, Woolshed Press, North Sydney. SCIS
1385088
Thompson, C. (2008) Top gear, Random House Australia, North Sydney.
SCIS 1381604
©School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit, Curriculum K─12 Directorate. NSW Department of Education and Training.