The Tram to Bondi Beach [Hardcover]

Elizabeth Hathorn (Author), Julie Vivas (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1989 | Age Level: 5 and up

Keiran longs to be a paper boy. One day he gets his wish only to suffer an embarrassing mishap. But he soon recovers from his accident, regains his job, and at book's end Keiran comes to dream of the day he will actually drive the tram to Bondi Beach.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Pluck wins the day in this tale from Australia. Kieran watches Saxon, the paper boy, clamber expertly along the sides of the tram, making change and offering papers to customers speedily, before the tram moves on to the next stop. When he turns nine, Kieran, too, sells papers, but Saxon warns him away from the tram work, firmly claiming his territory. But Kieran soon establishes his competence and his courage in one stunning episode. When it is over, Kieran has a new paper route, but finds himself already planning much grander schemes. Hathorn's story, set in a bygone era, is a simple tale of a child's longing for those things just beyond his reach, and of the ways that dreams enliven everyday events. Vivas imbues her vistas with whimsical watercolors; in rusty browns and coppery shades, she warmly conveys the bustle of a city by the sea, and the tram that is its lifeline. Her characters seem to defy the space constraints of a square page: they reach out to readers, or squabble and taunt one another, filling up backgrounds with activities and inviting a closer look. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-3-- An Australian picture book about a nine-year-old boy who loves being a paper boy on the trams. The book's strong points lie in the sweeping, translucent watercolors that glide from tram movements, past smiling faces to the uplifted waves at the beach. The characters seem to be swept up in a gentle, constant breeze; the pictures are in motion as the story unfolds. The story focuses on Keiran's new job and his determination to act responsibly. The narrative, while smooth in telling, is a bit too descriptive for a young audience. However the passages are vivid and crackle with sounds such as "rattled" and "flicked," so it would make a good read-aloud for an older group. A pleasant slice of Australian life by the seashore. --Marianne Pilla, Upper Dublin Public Library, Dresher, Pa.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Kane/Miller Book Publishers; 1st American ed edition (May 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0916291200
• ISBN-13: 978-0916291204
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 9.7 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,707,975 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nostalgic, May 2, 2000

By 

saliero (NSW Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Tram to Bondi Beach (Hardcover)

Highly commended - Children's book Council of Australia Picture Book of the Year (year?)

The illustrations are water-colour wash - very attractive to adults, but I'm not so sure of their appeal to children.

The text is quite sophisticated, so in the younger age range (5 -6 or so) it would need to be read aloud.

The Bondi Tram was a fairly legendary institution in Sydney, now 40 years or so gone. The story is set in about the 1940s (judging from the fairisle vests worn by the chief protagonist, Kieran. Kieran gets a job as a paper-boy selling papers on the tram.

This is a story about another era, populated by characters with Irish and Anglo sounding names. It is interesting from that point of view, and could be of use in introducing topics of history, and especially for Sydney-siders.

The story itself is reasonably interesting for children and would have a place in a library or home collection. It is a gentle evocation of another era and could inspire curiosity in the younger child.