Depending on your definition of a hero, every country has a least one. If we look at Australia they have heroes such Ned Kelly, Steve Irwin, Barry Humphries (aka Dame Edna Everage), Germaine Greer and lots more that you may, or may not, consider a hero. But there is also another Australian hero that shouldn’t be forgotten about, Cargo the Army Truck.
Cargo the Army Truck is exactly that – an old army truck that served in the Australian army for 20 years before retiring. But after retirement he was repurposed to deliver food and supplies to cut-off communities during the rainy seasons in Australia when the only unpaved road was useable in the heavy rains. A true hero that helped a lot of people.
But Cargo hasn’t been forgotten about and has been immortalised in print so everybody can hear more about his story. Paul Dekmetzian has written a series of children’s books featuring the exploits of this infamous army truck and now Cargo is back for a fourth outing in Cargo’s Furry Friends!
In The Adventures of Cargo the Army Truck: Cargo’s Furry Friends, Cargo is taking a well-earned rest from a long army career and then helping the cut-off rural communities in Australia delivering food and supplies during the rainy seasons. He is chilling out at home in his big green shed, a shed surrounded with his furry friends. Whilst Cargo isn’t travelling around, he is going to tell us more about where he lives, his wonderful furry friends and what they get up to.
Cargo’s furry friends are Coco (a golden Cocker Spaniel), Poppy (a Cavoodle – a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and Poodle cross), Carmen (a fluffy white cat), Percy (a shiny black cat) and Olivia (a sandy-coloured Groodle – a crossbreed between a Golden Retriever and a Poodle) and they are all cared for by the author of Cargo’s stories, Paul. And yes, Cavoodle and Groodle are indeed breeds of dogs – although I must admit that I did have to look them up to be sure.
Overall, The Adventures of Cargo the Army Truck: Cargo’s Furry Friends is a simple 26-page picture book that children will be easily able to read and take delight in the animals and their different personalities. Young readers will find out more about Cargo and where he lives, and his family of furry friends.
The story is simple, explaining a bit about each animal, their unique personality, what they get up to and how they are loved and cared for.
The book is wonderfully illustrated to show the interaction between the family of different animals.
There is no adventure in this story but does show the importance of caring for pets and how they are all part of our families.
A simple story that is easy to read, beautifully and vividly illustrated. A charming book for children that love animals.
And for those that want to learn more about the true story of Cargo, there is also a very informative and interesting news item from ABC’s Countrywide program about the exploits of Cargo the humanitarian army truck on YouTube here (it is definitely worth a watch).
Rating: 4/5
RRP: £8.99 (Paperback) / £2.67 (Kindle)
Available to buy from Amazon here.
