Allis the tractor on the road again

Sophie Siers will have the original Allis the Little Tractor, the real Allis Chalmers tractor that features in the Allis the little tractor book series, at the Hawke's Bay Farmers Market on Sunday October 30 with Save the Children New Zealand.

Hot on the heels of their win in the New Zealand Book Awards for Children 2016, Sophie Siers and Helen Kerridge have released their second book in the Allis the Little Tractor series.

Allis Helps on the Farm finds Allis up and running and wanting to help. It's perfect timing as it's a classic Hawke's Bay summer drought and the cows and calves need extra feed.

With the help of Toby and Uncle Jack Allis heads off up the farm, pulling a big load of hay.

This is a fun story illustrated by Helen Kerridge. The scenes of the Waimarama coastline and Bare Island are beautifully portrayed and will appeal to the local community who know this beach so well.

An important extra in this book is the opportunity to download The Farmyard Song. This children's song, composed to go with the book tells the story of Allis, complete with banjo and tin whistle.

Author Sophie Siers is a Hawke's Bay farmer and proud owner of Allis, an early 1940s Allis Chalmers Model B tractor.

Sophie is enjoying bringing rural life to children through her books.

"Many children don't understand how and where their food comes from, or what cows eat.

I'm hoping our Allis series might bridge a little of the rural/urban divide.

"Perhaps the next step is to get children out into the country to join Allis and watch a cow being milked, a sheep being shorn or haymaking."

Helen Kerridge comes from a farming family in the King Country and has loved working on the second book.

"The story and scenery really remind me of my childhood, watching my father working on the farm and feeding the animals. It's been fantastic to work on a series that presents real New Zealand life."

A fine arts graduate, Helen teaches art to more than 70 adult students.

Allis Helps on the Farm will be available in book stores from October 19.

- For more information see www.allisthetractor.com