What sorts of adventures could a koala with a special
ability to bounce get up to when all seems peaceful in his small corner of the
world? After saving some children from a fire and finding a safe home for all
his koala friends, you’d think a quiet life of munching on eucalyptus leaves
would be the main thing on the agenda. But when a gang of moggies moves in to
the bush, life gets troublesome for Karri and his friends. So when parrot and
bilby plead with Karri to tell the cats to clear off, he does. But where can
the cats go? They’ve been dumped by their owners and have nowhere to live.
Jinksy and Scar don’t take kindly to their eviction orders and it looks like a
stand-off – until someone suggests a football match. If the cats win, they
stay; if they lose, they go. Are Karri and his bush friends able to pull it
off? Will Karri have enough bounce?
This book is a sequel to The Koala Who Bounced, Thomson and Lobbecke’s first joint venture, published
in 1993. A second edition of the original book has been published to coincide
with the release of The Koala Bounced
Back.
Lobbecke’s bold, colourful and expressive
illustrations work together well with the text, adding nuances to the story as
well as breathing animation and humour into it. There are traces of Lobbecke’s
cartooning in the cast of characters, who young children will be drawn to for
their vibrancy and warmth. Karri is immediately likeable and the moggies
delightfully mean, roguish, and endearing.
The story deals well with the issue of feral animals
and their threat to wildlife, introducing young readers to this aspect of
conservation. And Thomson comes up with an original solution to the problem of the
homeless cats.
The Koala Bounces back is a book children will enjoy
and return to often.
Random House 2011
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