The Urban Activity Book                
Rachel Haydon
Ill. Pippa Keel Situ
Te Papa Press (2026)
Information book
160 pages, Paperback
ISBN 978 1 9910721 0 8

 Unexpected isn’t a word I often use in a book review but The Urban Activity Book is full of surprises. Of course, I shouldn’t have been surprised. Rachel Haydon and Pippa Keel Situ are creators of The Nature Activity Book (2020) and The Beach Activity Book (2024) two of the best nature guides for young kiwis. The Urban Activity Book is the logical volume to complete this trilogy.

 About 84% of our children live in our major cities and smaller towns, so only some 16% live in rural areas. Thus, the need for this book is clear. The question is what sort of nature studies can be undertaken in an urban area?  Rachel Haydon literally has 99 answers. With degrees in zoology and marine science, as well as twenty years’ experience of ‘teaching science to children of all ages in schools, museums, zoos and aquariums around the world’ she knows how to get young people interested in nature. And, boy, does she deliver the goods.

 The book is divided into five main sections. I was only one page into ‘1. Urban Jungle’ when I had my first surprise: ‘With a grown-up, explore your neighbourhood once it gets dark.’ And there was a flashlight photo of a young girl, perched on a boulder by an urban stream, looking pensively at a very long eel cruising past just below the surface. It brought me memories of an eel circumnavigating my boots a couple of times while I was flyfishing at dusk on the Oreti River. At such moments, you suddenly realise that eels are graceful in their movements. I’ve had a soft spot for eels ever since.

 It’s that sort of unexpected insight that pops up in page after inventive page in this book. .

The discussion of mauri as the spark of life raises the topic of the caring for urban streams, parks and wetlands. I remember the general delight when a boxed drain in our Christchurch suburb was converted back into a flowing stream, with its attendant springs bubbling away. It is now the focus of a pleasant walk through native trees, with sightings of fish, eels, ducks and the occasional heron. In this book, young readers can find how to take part in such projects. Or even initiate them.

 Further on, in ‘1. Urban Jungle,’ young naturalists are also urged to spot representations of our wildlife in street art and building decorations, as well as to play ‘Alphabet Adventure’ or make recordings of some of nature’s sounds. Readers are not only offered the chance to use their eyes in a competition of ‘Urban Bingo’ but also to use all their senses to complete the ‘Sense in the City’ test. Rachel Haydon has even managed to work in the Springfield Doughnut as a landmark from nature, with an apologetic note: ‘Not from nature but too iconic to leave out!’  Yes, this book is also unexpectedly amusing to read.

 The next section, ‘2. Unexpected Nature,’ is about spotting nature turning up in -ahem- unexpected places. ‘Surprising Spots’ searches for plants growing in odd locations. ‘Creative Faces - Pareidolia’ involves seeking face-like patterns on wooden fences and other urban features. ‘Who can find the funniest fence face? Can each of you pull the same expression?’ Similar quests involve looking in supermarkets for products which come from plants, oceans, rivers, or from beneath the ground. Young eyes are invited to seek out sources of town water, signs which use nature symbols, and even examples of vines and lichens in urban areas. Textures, shadows and camouflage are all hiding in plain sight.

 ‘3. Pathways’ offers some great ideas, including creating local nature paths, observing seasonal changes, singing walking songs, taking a photo walk (or, intriguingly, a ‘Heads-or-tails Hike) and finding out about the past of your own district. An up-to-date touch is the reminder that a mobile phone can be used for macro photography which ‘lets you take super-close pictures of tiny things – such as an ant, a flower petal or a raindrop – so they look HUGE and show the details that you can’t see with just your eyes.’

I particularly enjoyed the way that amusing games have been created, so everyone in the family can play them during outings.

 ‘4. Create and Play with Nature’ unleashes the creativity of young minds by setting challenges to decorate trees, paint secret stones and transform leaves into animals or bracelets. ‘Create a world from an orange peel,’ urges the author. ‘Create a Nature Superhero.’ There are also ideas for stick engineering, potion making, hanging of mobiles, ink doodling with natural objects and turning egg cartons into personal treasure chests.

 ‘5. Re-Wilding’ invites readers to try making urban areas more encouraging for some plants and wildlife. Skink sanctuaries and bird buffets are among the varied offerings, with plenty of step-by-step photos and drawings. There are also ideas for reducing pests and being creative in how we use our urban spaces.

 Rachel Haydon’s enthusiasm bubbles through every page of her writing and is sure to prove infectious to her young readers. Her colour photographs of examples of the activities or objects being described are generously situated throughout the book.

It is also important to note the brilliant illustrations by Pippa Keel Situ, which really bring the pages alive. Her lizards and fungi are particularly appealing. She has also provided attractive frameworks for young artists and would-be town planners to get to work in.  The design is by Kate Barraclough.

Trevor Agnew
29 Sep 2026  [Review 3863.]

There are two glossaries, as well as plenty of safety tips, and a couple of handy pages suggesting materials that might be useful, many of them recycled or borrowed from the kitchen.

 The Urban Activity Book is a good present for young people who are interested in nature and a superb present for young people who are not interested in nature.

 

Trevor Agnew
29 Sep 2026  [Review 3863.]