Unbeatable fun with Fox
Paula Xiberras
A great idea for the Christmas season (and pre-season), if you have a young aspiring footballer in the family, is the second adventure of young footballer Fox Swift and his friends’ Fox Swift takes on the Unbeatables’ by David Lawrence, with some cameos and footy tips from star Hawthorn footballer Cyril Rioli.
Author David Lawrence returns with all of Fox’s friends including Hugo, who is allergic to grass and Simon, battling but winning weighty issues. When Fox’s arch enemy Mace captain of ‘The Dragons’ decides to tempt Simon with daily chocolate parcels, Simon surprises us with his solution to the sweet and sticky problem!
Some new friends with fabulous footy skills join Fox in his team ‘The Diggers’ as they attempt to beat Mace’s team ‘The Dragons’, including the rubbery moves of Chung Lee and the flexibility of Paige Turner.
Other quirky characters include the principal’s secretary who smooths out walls with a toothbrush and cleans ceiling lights with cotton buds. The mad footy tipping, apple growing principal as well as non-human characters like ‘The Diggers’ team mascot the kangaroo ‘Joey’ and a little touch of Alice in Wonderland with the contested (pardon the pun) white rabbit named ‘Gary (Ablett)’.
The new book is not just for the younger audience, but older readers who will enjoy seeing the symbolism in the characters’ names, such as judge Trudi Binder, our old friend/enemy the lawyer Miles Winter (and his equally dangerously devious son, Mace). Miles has an advertisement for his practise on the other side of his son’s team ‘The Diggers’ banner. Instead of saying ‘Miles is a cool dude, drops the ‘e’ to read he is ‘a cool dud!’
As well as being a good read, the book has an important message of friendship and acceptance to newcomers in the community and demonstrates what skills they may bring to their new home, such as the footy talent Fox’s two, tall Sudanese, friends.
‘Fox Swift takes on the Unbeatables’ by David Lawrence with Cyril Rioli and illustrated by Jo Gill is out now published by Slattery Press.