Aussie Kids: Meet Eve in the Outback; Raewyn Caisley, illustrated by Karen Blair

I have never been to Western Australia so was thoroughly looking forward to being shown around the outback by Eve. She had me excited from the postcard before the story even got started - visiting a magical place called the Nullarbor where she lives in the Nowhere Roadhouse, meeting the two-hundred kangaroos that she shares the land with and enjoying watching the universe drift by at night.

Eve lives a long way from anybody so when a relative comes to visit it is an extra special occasion. Last year she enjoyed showing her nan around the Nullarbor and she is thrilled that cousin Will is visiting this year. But Eve is worried that Will won’t be excited to see her home. The Nullarbor and the Nowhere Roadhouse may be a long way from anywhere but there’s still plenty of fun to be had…

The Aussie Kids series of books is superb and this is another great addition. On this occasion readers find themselves heading to Western Australia to meet Eve who lives amongst the endless red desert dirt and the clear blue skies of the outback. Cousin Will, and myself, get to enjoy so many new experiences with Eve; visiting car graveyards, bouncing over dusty plains in the ute, making tea in a billy over the campfire, enjoying the golden hour and then staring up into the starry sky at night. I loved all of the native wildlife that features in the story too - kangaroos, blue-tongued lizards, mudlarks and camels all make an appearance.

The story is all about having fun together with family. Eve and Will might live a long, long way from each other but once they are together it is like they have never been apart as they enjoy spending time in the company of each other and all of Eve’s concerns that Will would find her hometown boring quickly disappear.

At the end of the read there are some fascinating facts about the outback that include a lot of camels, a lesson in gravity and one incredibly long and very straight road.

The story is easily accessible for emerging readers who are new to the world of chapter books. The story itself is forty-nine pages long, the font is large and nicely spaced out and there are plenty of illustrations in shades of red throughout.

Recommended for 6+.