Toppling

Sally Murphy (author)

Rhian Nest James (illus)

Walker Books, Australia: 2010; 127pp

ISBN: 9781921529429

Genres: poetry, realistic fiction, verse novel

Issues: change, friendship, illness

John loves dominoes. In particular he loves creating complicated arrangements of dominoes that can be triggered to topple with the simple push of one finger.

John's friend, Dominic, likes sport but he also likes to watch John's dominoes topple. When Dominic becomes ill, John's world shifts and things may never be the same again. How can John help his friend fight a disease the doctors are having trouble defeating?

Sally Murphy is a talented writer who has a gift for writing concise, powerful verse that captures complex emotions and the subtleties of familiar relationships in a way that touches the heart. Toppling expresses the terrible uncertainty that besets children - and adults - when their familiar, predictable world is shaken by sudden change.

Rhian Nest James is an experienced illustrator whose ability to capture personality and emotions in a few eloquent brush strokes fits beautifully with this verse novel. In small ‘snapshots' she portrays the changes to John and his friends and their world as it begins to topple under the impact of Dominic's illness.

Highly recommended.