The Diary of a Leafcutter Ant, Aged 13¾ (weeks)

The leafcutter ant (no hyphen), of the tribe ‘Attini’ (a phrase stolen by the Ewoks in Star Wars Episode VI), is a type of ant (not surprisingly) found in the Americas, but not Canada (unless that soon becomes part of the USA!). It cuts leaves, carries them back to the nest, and cultivates mould, a bit like in The Last of Us.

Yellow Nigel – How to stay safe during a volcano

In 1982, Channel Nine Brisbane commissioned a new show to compete against the British Children’s TV show, Blue Peter.
Blue Peter had showcased education, arts, human interest stories and travel since 1958.
The new idea, Yellow Nigel, came from the mind of producer, Barney Duffy, who felt children were becoming way too soft and needed toughening up.
The following is from the pilot that never made it to air. The presenters were: Baishe Bower, Leslie Odell and Jackie Crawford.

Moby-Dick; or, The Whale by Hermann Melville

You know, if there is one issue with Moby Dick; it’s the use of the word ‘spermaceti’. I just don’t like it. The dictionary describes the word as, “A waxy solid obtained from the oil of cetaceans and especially from a closed cavity in the heads of sperm whales and used especially formerly in ointments, cosmetics, and candles”. That may well be, but I can’t help thinking of… well, you know what I’m thinking of.

Pablo Picasso: Car Thief

These days, the Spanish town of Malaga is more synonymous with bawdy British tourists expunging the benefits of twelve pints of lager, complaining that the breakfast isn’t as good as their Mum makes, and attempting in vain to reach Gloria Gaynor’s high notes on the [non]-traditional English pub karaoke night.

Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens

In an asinine world of literary flatulence, there’s a new kid on the block; and his name is Dickens, Charles Dickens.
In what can only be described as a first; we have a debut novel that cavorts down the oiled slip and slide with all the artistic elegance of a three-legged hippopotamus with gout.