Wednesday, 3 August 2016
Molly & Mae is a sweet picture book that follows two girls, Molly and Mae, on a train journey. The journey symbolises the path of friendship, winding its way through...

Wednesday, 3 August 2016
This is a rollicking tale about a crew of pirates led by the peg-legged, hook-handed Captain Black. They sail the high seas looking for treasure, through typhoons and storms, past...

Wednesday, 3 August 2016
A small fire is born of a careless act. Spark is thrilled by his new found energy but, coaxed by his friend Wind, the fun gets out of hand and...

Wednesday, 3 August 2016
This book begins with a class visit to a zoo. The children are told by the guide that they have every kind of animal, but the children quickly realise that...

Wednesday, 3 August 2016
The Twins of Tintarfell is James O'Loghlin’s third novel for kids following The Adventures of Sir Roderick, The Not-Very Brave (2014) and Daisy Malone and the Blue Glowing Stone (2015)....

Wednesday, 3 August 2016
The locals call Kincasey ‘Short Town’—no matter what you expect from it, it always comes up short. In this stereotypical Australian country town, rife with gossip and misogyny, the local...

Wednesday, 3 August 2016
Fans of Garth Nix will be delighted to return once again to the world of the ‘Old Kingdom’ series, with Goldenhand plunging the reader straight back into where Abhorsen left...

Monday, 11 July 2016
Friendship can begin in so many different ways. It can be fleeting or it can develop into a long-lasting relationship. And it depends on both parties to make it work....

Monday, 11 July 2016
Gwendolyn! is a variation of a fish-out-of-water story; only this time it’s about a penguin frolicking in the depths of a jungle. Most kids know that jaguars, monkeys and parrots...

Monday, 11 July 2016
A creative mogul in the making, Sydney-based mural artist and poet Joel Moore has made his Mulga alias a brand name with a clothing label and illustration work for companies...

Monday, 11 July 2016
This deceptively simple story by author Maxine Beneba Clarke is beautifully written and incredibly powerful. It uses evocative language and onomatopoeia to flesh out a world so physically different from...

Monday, 11 July 2016
This action-packed story of small, skinny Artie and his best mate Bumshoe reads like an old-fashioned ‘boys’ own’ adventure. Artie is constantly being picked on by the school bully Nate...

Monday, 11 July 2016
In Into Tordon, 14-year-old gamer Bethlyn wins the annual championship of Tordon, her online gaming obsession. But when she agrees to meet up with some of her fellow gamers to...

Monday, 11 July 2016
Luca is the young heir of the Conte De Falconi, destined to take over responsibility for his father’s lands and also the ancient Book of Whispers, a mysterious tome that...

Monday, 11 July 2016
When Henry Page meets Grace Town it’s not exactly love at first sight, but he is immediately drawn to her. Grace is beautiful and damaged and mysterious—she walks with a...

Tuesday, 5 July 2016
Fifteen of Sydney’s favourite locations, for tourists and residents alike, supply the backdrop for this spot-and-find adventure by designer Megan McKean. All the icons are featured—the Sydney Opera House, the...

Tuesday, 5 July 2016
The big bad wolf (now retired) has a bit of nasty reputation but his grandson is quite mischievous too: ‘Trouble was his favourite thing to make.’ Set in a fairyland...

Tuesday, 5 July 2016
Mechanica: A Beginner’s Field Guide is a beautiful picture book for older children that combines steampunk style with a futuristic, cautionary tale. Author and illustrator Lance Balchin has created a...

Tuesday, 5 July 2016
In One Photo, author Ross Watkins and illustrator Liz Anelli gently sketch a family affected by Alzheimer’s, though the disease is never mentioned in the narrative; rather, the young protagonist...

Tuesday, 5 July 2016
The timeless story of The Pied Piper of Hamelin is given a whole new look in this lively new treatment. The story has been adapted for modern readers and flows...

Tuesday, 5 July 2016
Painfully quiet Elizabeth and her delightfully devious and not-quite-imaginary friend Zenobia move into Witheringe House, the old manor where Elizabeth’s father spent his childhood. It is also where Elizabeth’s aunt...

Tuesday, 5 July 2016
In the near future, seven teens from around the world have been selected as the winners of the DARE Awards by internet trillionaire Felix Scott. Their skills and achievements have...

Tuesday, 5 July 2016
Margrete Lamond’s enchanting retelling of The Two Troll Tales from Norway is sure to attract educators and booksellers around the country. The first of the pair of folk tales in...

Friday, 1 July 2016
The Book that Made Me is a collection of mini-essays by 32 authors, many of them children’s and YA authors and most Australian or New Zealanders. The authors were asked...

Thursday, 2 June 2016
Oh, Albert! is a captivating picture book about a mischievous pet dog called Albert, whose eyes are bigger than his stomach. The story follows a week in the life of...

Thursday, 2 June 2016
Poor Parsley Patterson. As if it’s not hard enough starting high school, her dad decides to secede from Australia, making 12-year-old Parsley and her younger sisters (Sage, Rosemary and Thyme—the...