Author of 'The Wonky Donkey' Craig Smith Tours Australia

I'm so excited to be seeing Craig Smith, the author of the current number one best-selling picture book in Australia, The Wonky Donkey, perform tomorrow at 1:30 pm at the Helensvale Library on the Gold Coast.

  

Craig Smith is a singer/songwriter and was the co-winner of the APRA Children’s Song of the Year award in 2008 for this song The Wonky Donkey which was later published as a picture book by Scholastic.

The picture book, The Wonky Donkey has had phenomenal success. In Australia, The Wonky Donkey as sold more than 250,000 copies making it the biggest-selling picture book in Australia in 2010 and 2011.  The book’s popularity continues to drive its success by currently hitting number one again as the best-selling picture book in Australia.

Craig is touring Australia to help promote another picture book, All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth, in which he has recorded the accompany CD.

"It's vital to make reading fun whether it's through funny illustrations, cheeky rhymes and a rollicking rhythm. I firmly believe that the marriage of song, word and illustration help children learn to read by offering a visual, kinesthetic, and aural experience", say Smith.

Smith has also penned another picture book with CD titled Willbee the Bumblebee, also released by Scholastic. Willbee the Bumblebee is based on a childhood story told by his mother, who is the co-author. And like The Wonky Donkey, Craig turned it into a song.



All I Want for Christmas is my Two Front Teeth which is written by Don Gardner with CD performed by Craig Smith. This Christmas classic is portrayed in the book as a poor monkey with two front teeth missing! The Tooth detective is on the case, but maybe Santa can help. All Monkey wants for Christmas is his two front teeth! The sing-along CD is sensationally performed by Craig Smith with a bonus original track titled, Toothless! 

So, if you're a children's book lover or your children love listening to books and music, then don't miss this wonderful opportunity to see Craig Smith as he tours Australia.

Stay tuned for Craig's interview on Books for Little Hands this Saturday.

Here's Craig's tour dates, just in time for Christmas.

Brisbane           Tuesday 1 November - Friday 4 November

Melbourne        Saturday 5 November - Wednesday 9 November

Sydney                        Thursday 10 November - Saturday 12 November

Some (Not So Scary) Picture Books

Whether you celebrate Halloween or not-spooky, scary, fun, and hairy, picture books, are a delight to read all year round. Check out a few of my favourite (not so scary) picture books.


Guess What? written by Mem Fox and illustrated by Vivienne Goodman, is one of my all time favourite picture books. I love how the text flows through a series of questions and the detailed illustrations reveal a clever mix of Aussie icons and clues for its readers.


The Everyday Witch written by Liz Martinez and illustrated by Mark Beech, is a humorous rhyming tale about a boy named Jimmy, who thinks his mum may be a witch.






Sounds Spooky written by Christopher Cheng and Illustrated by Sarah Davis has already sold out of its first print run and has been shortlisted for the Aurealis Awards.  It's a spooky tale filled with onomatopoeia and spooky sounds and chants to keep young readers asking,  'What's that noise that I can hear? I'm not scared!'

Check out the Sounds Spooky Website. There's heaps to explore...Wah ha ha ha ha.
http://www.sounds-spooky.com/home/