Wombat's birthday surprise, ill. by Lachlan Creagh

Hachette, 2013. ISBN 9780734413932.
(Age: 3+) Picture book, Australian animals, Birthdays. Another in the series of verse stories from Hachette, which includes Wombat went a'walking and Wombat went a' dreaming, the three are illustrated by Lachlan Creagh but there is no author stated.
The verse carries the tale along of Wombat sleeping while all his animal friends bring together the ingredients for an array of party treats. Koala makes pavlova, goanna brings the sprinkles for fairy bread, echidna is making party pies and magpie the sausage rolls. Each page shows these animals and the work they are doing for the party.
For children this will be a treat, going through the delicious foods needed for a children's birthday party, with some words in a different colour helping them to learn new words.
The stress on the differing things made for the party will make it way to teach some of the specifically Australian foods, and the presentation of the animals of course, lends itself to stressing the differing animals and their spellings.
This could be a a useful learning tool in an ESL class or junior primary class where many children have had little exposure to rural Australia.
Fran Knight