Down Under Literature site

I downloaded a resource from CurrClick and bunny trailed over to Down Under Literature, an Australian Homeschooling source.  They have some neat offerings, but the one that drew me in today was their listing of World Geography books...

Using these picture books you can travel the world from your couch.

1. World Trip-How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World by Marjorie Priceman ©1996 Ages 5 - 8 years
An apple pie is easy to make...if the market is open. But if the market is closed, the world becomes your grocery store. This deliciously silly recipe for apple pie takes readers around the globe to gather ingredients. First hop a steamboat to Italy for the finest semolina wheat. Then hitch a ride to England and hijack a cow for the freshest possible milk. And, oh yes! Don't forget to go apple picking in Vermont! A simple recipe for apple pie is included.
2. Africa –Beatrice Goat by Page McBrier ©2001
More than anything, Beatrice longs to be a schoolgirl. But in her small African village, only children who can afford uniforms and books can go to school. Beatrice knows that with six children to care for, her family is much too poor. But then Beatrice receives a wonderful gift from some people far away -- a goat! Fat and sleek as a ripe mango, Mugisa (which means "luck") gives milk that Beatrice can sell. With Mugisa's help, it looks as if Beatrice's dream may come true after all.
3. Antartica - Tom Crean's Rabbit: A True Story from Scott's Last Voyage by Meredith Hooper ©2005 Age 3-8
It's very cold in Antarctica, and the "Terra Nova" is crowded with both men and animals. Tom the sailor is looking for a quiet and cozy place for his pet rabbit to have her babies. From high in the rigging to down in the hold, the crewman takes readers all through the ship while he searches for a spot where his rabbit can make her nest.
Based on the diaries of men who sailed to the South Pole on board the "Terra Nova" in 1910 with Captain Robert Falcon Scott, "Tom Crean's Rabbit" introduces the historic voyage to young readers. Kitchen's stunning illustrations capture the magnificence of the Antarctic landscape and notes in the back of the book provide more information about the expedition and detail the adventures of the book's hero.
Ice Trap! Shackleton's Incredible Expedition by Meredith Hooper ©2001 Ages 7-11
In August 1914, during the height of the heroic age of Antarctic exploration, Sir Ernest Shackleton set off from England with a team of explorers to walk across the Antarctic and study the icy depths of this new and forbidding continent. Sailing through some of the most perilous seas, Endurance, becomes trapped in the deadly pack ice of the Weddell sea. When Endurance is eventually crushed between the vast bulk of two floating icebergs, the men are forced to abandon ship and make the dangerous journey across the crushing sea in lifeboats. They reach relative safety on the uninhabited Elephant Island, but an even greater peril faces Shackleton and five other members of the crew. An amazing tale of heroism and ingenuity.
4. America-Amber on the Mountain by Tony Johnston ©1998 Ages 5-8
Amber’s mountain is beautiful, but it is a lonely place—until the day Anna arrives, bringing both her friendship and the will to teach Amber how to read. Suddenly, Amber’s world is filled with a new magic—and new challenges. But when Anna returns to the city, will Amber be able to keep reading on her own?
Who Owns the Sun by Stacy Chbosky ©1987 Ages 5-8 Movie Available.
This story is a powerful plea for freedom. Joshua, a six-year-old son of a slave in the America's south, learns about prejudice, freedom and self-respect.
Owl Moon by Jane Yolen ©1987 Ages 2-8
This touching story of a child and parent finding magic and adventure in a simple, snowy night-time search for the great horned owl .On a winter's night under a full moon, a father and daughter trek into the woods to see the Great Horned Owl. A girl and her father go owling on a moonlit winter night near the farm where they live. Bundled tight in wool clothes, they trudge through snow ``whiter than the milk in a cereal bowl''; here and there, hidden in ink-blue shadows, a fox, raccoon, fieldmouse and deer watch them pass. An air of expectancy builds as Pa imitates the Great Horned Owl's call once without answer, then again. From out of the darkness ``an echo/ came threading its way/ through the trees.''
The Rag Coat by Lauren Mills. ©1995 Ages 5-8
Before Minna can go to school, she needs a winter coat. The Quilting Mothers offer to make her a coat from scraps of quilting cloth, and Minna carefully chooses the pieces that have the best stories behind them. When the new coat is ready, Minna proudly wears it to school, only to be faced with her classmates' jeers of "Rag-Coat! Rag-Coat!" But it is Minna's coat with its stories and memories, and Minna's own thoughtful part in its creation, that allow her to bring friendship to Sharing Day, making her coat the warmest one of all.
Cranberry Thanksgiving ©1990 Written and illustrated by Wende and Harry Delvin Ages 5-8
Grandmother and Maggie each always invite a guest to Thanksgiving dinner. Grandmother isn't very happy when Maggie invites Mr. Whiskers, but she's even more upset when someone steals her secret recipe for cranberry bread. Is the unwelcome guest the culprit? The only thing better than the story is the simple, yet delicious recipe at the end of the book.
5. Australia-Use Australian Book Traveller List
6. Canada-Eskimo Very Last First Time by Jan Andrews ©1985 Ages 5-8 also called Eva's Ice Adventure
Eva lives in an Inuit village in northern Canada. In the winter, people search along the bottom of the seabed beneath a thick shelf of ice for mussels to eat. Eva usually helps her mother, but for the first time, she’s going to go by herself. She soon gathers a pan full of mussels. But then, her candle goes out, and the tide threatens to return! When she is finally safe with her mother, Eva proclaims, “That was my very last first time walking alone on the bottom of the sea.”
7. China-The Story About Ping by Marjorie Flack and Kurt Wiese ©1933 Ages 3-8
Ping, a little duck who lives on a boat in the Yangtze River finds himself in trouble when he hides from his master in order to avoid punishment for being late..
8. England-The Tale of Peter Rabbit written and illus. by Beatrix Potter ©1936 Ages 5-8
The story follows a mischievous and disobedient young rabbit named Peter as he ventures into the garden of Mr. McGregor.
9. European Royalty-The Duchess Bakes a Cake by Virgina Kahl ©1950 Ages 5-8
Told in verse this amusing story tells about a Duchess who doesn't follow a recipe.
10. Europe in wartime-A New Coat for Anna by Harriet Ziefert © 1988 Ages 4-8
"A fresh and moving story of a mother's dedication to acquire a coat for her daughter in post-World War II hard times. Anna's mother decides to trade the few valuables she has left for wool and for the services of a spinner, a weaver, and a tailor."
11. France-The Glorious Flight by Alice and Martin Provensen ©1984 Ages 5-8
This is a biography of Louis Bleriot who built and airplane and flew it across the English Channel in 37 minutes.
*12. India Finders Keepers? by Robert A. Arnett ©2003
Gopal, found a dropped wallet. It contained enough money for Gopal to be set for quite some time, but he not only returned the wallet, he refused a reward.
13. Italy -Venice Papa Piccolo by Carol Talley ©1992 Ages 5-8
Piccolo, the tomcat, leads a life of adventure and possibilities until two homeless kittens adopt him. Piccolo shows boys and girls about sharing their strength with those who are smaller, younger or weaker.
The Gondoliers Cat by William Corlett ©1993(OOP) Ages 5-8
Nini the cat lives with Gino the Gondolier in a house on the Grand Canal in Venice. He longs to win the paw of La Serenissima, the cat of the Doge's daughter. When the Princess is kidnapped, Nini has his chance to prove his courage.
14. Japan-A Pair of Red Clogs by Masako Matsuno ©1960 Ages 5-8
A child's delight in a new pair of shoes is the same all over the world. For Mako, a little Japanese girl, the new shoes were clogs painted with red lacquer that shone beautifully. This is the story of what happened after she cracked the new clogs playing the weather-telling game and so longed for a bright, shiny new pair to replace them that she almost did a dishonest thing.
*15. Korea- New Clothes for New Year's Day by Hyun-joo Bae ©2007
A little Korean girl dresses up to welcome the new year. Simple words and inventively composed pictures depict each step in donning the elaborate, traditional costume, from the wrapped and tied "rainbow-striped jacket" to the silk pouch that brings good luck. Delicate illustrations move smoothly between depictions of mishaps as the child wrestles with troublesome accessories and grand, wordless portraits, often incorporating traditional furnishings and ornamentation that demonstrate pride in cultural heritage.
16. Middle East and Israel -Cleopatra by Diane Stanley; Bible story of Joseph and Moses.
17. South America-Isabella’s Bed by Alison Lester ©1992 Ages 3-8
Our family must have borrowed this book 50 times. We love it! When Anna and Luis stay at Grandmother's house they love to look through her souvenirs from South America. One night they go their on Isabella's bed and they understand new things about their grandmother.
18. Spain-The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf ©1936 Age 3-8
A true classic with a timeless message, The Story of Ferdinand has enchanted readers since it was first published in 1936. All the other bulls would run and jump and butt their heads together. But Ferdinand would rather sit and smell the flowers. So what will happen when our pacifist hero is picked for the bullfights in Madrid?
19. New Zealand-Hairy Maclary - Lynley Dodd ©1983 Ages 2-5.
A little black dog and his canine pals get up to mischief.
*Kiwi Moon - Gavin Bishop ©2006
This is the story of a little white kiwi. When he is born his mother doesn't recognise him because he's not brown. Little Kiwi looks to the moon as his mother instead because it is white and bright and round. In the background of this story we see the changing times of a nearby pa. Through illustrations only we see intertribal warfare, the death of the chief, English soldiers arriving and then the burning of the pa. This fire spreads and the two stories become one as the white kiwi's habitat is razed to the ground.On the surface this is a very simple story but it also contains themes of intertribal warfare, European colonisation of New Zealand, Maori/Pakeha relations, and conservation.
*20. Russia Pictures at an Exhibition by Anna Harwell Celenza © 2003
Modest Mussorgsky and his friends, Victor Hartmann and Vladimir Stasov, dream of showing the glories of Russia in the 1880s to the world. When Victor suddenly dies, composer Modest Mussorgsky is deeply saddened. But, with the help of his friends, and through his own music, Modest finds a way to keep Victor's spirit alive. Children of all ages will enjoy reading the inspirational story behind the composition of Pictures at an Exhibition. Bright, colourful illustrations incorporate elements of Russian folk art and traditional symbols.
21. Switzerland –The Apple and the Arrow by Mary and Conrad Bluff ©1952 Ages 7-15
The year is 1291, and Walter is the twelve-year-old son of William Tell, the greatest bowman in the land of Uri. Walter lives happily in the remote heights of the Alpine Mountains, caring for his family"s goat herd and practicing his marksmanship in the hopes of making his father proud. But as the end of the year approaches, Walter"s peaceful life is shaken as his country enters a revolution, and Walter must carry a secret that could threaten the life of the father he loves so dearly. More than seven hundred years have passed since the day Walter stood in the marketplace balancing an apple on his head while the Austrian tyrant Gessler commanded Walter"s father, William Tell, to take aim at the apple with his great crossbow. The dramatic tale of William"s arrest and escape and the daring revolt of the Swiss against the Austrians has become a legend around the world.
22. Scandinavia-Hans Christian Anderson http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/1597
Viking Tales by Jennie Hall http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/24811