Quark’s Academy (Catherine Pelosi, Lothian)
Wednesday, 4 October 2017
Once a year the prestigious and mysterious Quark’s Academy admits 15 exceptional young scientists for a week’s study that will culminate in the Best Invention Competition. This year’s batch of...
Zoom (Sha’an d’Anthes, Lothian)
Wednesday, 6 September 2017
Intrepid explorer Scout and Scout’s trusty red space shuttle Beattie rocket through space in this jubilant adventure. Each planet they pass on their journey is depicted as an adorable astrological...
Molly the Pirate (Lorraine Teece, illus by Paul Seden, Magabala)
Wednesday, 6 September 2017
Molly the Pirate tells the simple but compelling tale of a girl who imagines herself as a swashbuckling pirate. Author Lorraine Teece follows in the tradition of picture books such...
Accidental Heroes: The Rogues Book One (Lian Tanner, A&U)
Wednesday, 6 September 2017
The first in a new series by the bestselling author of ‘The Keepers’ series, this book has all the key ingredients of another spellbinding adventure. Duckling, the deceitful granddaughter of...
This Mortal Coil (Emily Suvada, Puffin)
Wednesday, 6 September 2017
Catarina has survived a genetic apocalypse, a disease that has ravaged humanity, turning some into the walking dead, doomed to explode in a toxic, highly contagious cloud. The daughter of...
Excuse Me! (Dave Hughes & Holly Ife, illus by Philip Bunting, Scholastic)
Wednesday, 6 September 2017
Husband-and-wife-team Dave Hughes—yes, the comedian—and Holly Ife’s first picture book is about something close to any toddler’s heart (or should I say bottom). It’s all about farting, that universal, evergreen...
Bird to Bird (Claire Saxby, illus by Wayne Harris, Black Dog Books)
Wednesday, 6 September 2017
A bird drops a seed. A seed becomes a tree. Eventually, the tree leaves the forest for the big city, and from there, to the other side of the world...
It’s OK to Feel the Way You Do (Josh Langley, Big Sky Publishing)
Wednesday, 6 September 2017
It’s OK to Feel the Way You Do is a gentle journey through the emotions that everyone feels at some point—happiness, anger, sadness, loneliness, pride, fear and anxiety. It guides...
Tilly’s Reef Adventure (Rhonda N Garward, NLA Publishing)
Wednesday, 6 September 2017
Tilly’s Reef Adventure tackles conservation in a gentle manner that will appeal to parents and educators alike. Adventurous baby green turtle Tilly must navigate many natural dangers as she makes...
Hello, Melbourne! (Megan McKean, Thames & Hudson)
Wednesday, 6 September 2017
Megan McKean, the designer and illustrator who produced Hello, Sydney!, is back with a book celebrating the wonders of Melbourne. In this delightful look-and-find story, six magpies take the reader...
If Baby Could Talk (Michael Wagner, illus by Jess Racklyeft, Windy Hollow Books)
Friday, 4 August 2017
It’s never too early to start reading books to children; even newborns will derive pleasure from listening to words read out loud by a loved one. If Baby Could Talk...
Whimsy and Woe (Rebecca McRitchie, Angus & Robertson)
Friday, 4 August 2017
Adventurous and outlandish, Whimsy and Woe will hook kids in from the first page. The story follows the eponymous Mordaunt siblings in unravelling the mystery of what has happened to...
When I Grow Up (Tim Minchin, illus by Steve Antony, Scholastic)
Thursday, 3 August 2017
From the award-winning Australian composer and comedian Tim Minchin comes a picture book inspired by Minchin’s lyrics to the song ‘When I Grow Up’ from Matilda the Musical. The song/story...
The Sorry Tale of Fox and Bear (Margrete Lamond & Heather Vallance, Dirt Lane Press)
Wednesday, 2 August 2017
Bear and Fox have a tumultuous friendship, marred by Fox’s pranks and mean tricks. However, when Fox disappears, Bear finds he misses his buddy. New companions Rooster and Hare seem to...
The Amulet of Athlone: The Chronicles of Jack McCool Book One (R E Devine, Bauer Media)
Wednesday, 2 August 2017
Things aren’t easy for Jack McCool. His teacher Miss Medusa hates him, the school bully picks on him and even his hair won’t sit straight. While he gets called ‘McNerd’...
Drawn Onward (Meg McKinlay, illus by Andrew Frazer, Fremantle Press)
Wednesday, 2 August 2017
Drawn Onward is a clever picture book for older children that explores the transformative power of perspective. Author Meg McKinlay has crafted a palindrome that will delight observant young readers with the...
The Lion in Our Living Room (Emma Middleton, illus by Briony Stewart, Affirm)
Wednesday, 2 August 2017
Emma Middleton and Briony Stewart’s The Lion in Our Living Room is a gentle picture book that celebrates the spirit of imagination in the same vein as Judith Kerr’s The...
Koalas Eat Gum Leaves (Laura and Philip Bunting, Scholastic)
Wednesday, 2 August 2017
Koalas Eat Gum Leaves is a funny take on the one fact that every budding naturalist knows about Australia’s beloved marsupial: they eat gum leaves. ‘Gum leaves for breakfast. Gum...
Dungzilla (James Foley, Fremantle Press)
Tuesday, 1 August 2017
Sally Tinker is an inventor—the world’s foremost inventor under the age of 11, to be precise—and her latest invention is a doozy. The Resizenator can shrink anything to microscopic size...
Untidy Towns (Kate O’Donnell, UQP)
Monday, 24 July 2017
Seventeen-year-old Adelaide Longley has had enough. After five years of striving for success at her expensive boarding school, she’s done with trying to be the person her teachers and family...
M is for Mutiny! History by Alphabet (John Dickson, illus by Bern Emmerichs, Berbay)
Monday, 17 July 2017
An alphabet book designed specifically for the middle-primary reader, M is for Mutiny! is a brilliant crash course in Australian history for those interested in learning more about significant events...
Papa Sky (Jane Jolly, illus by Sally Heinrich, MidnightSun)
Monday, 17 July 2017
Papa Sky is an educational picture book from the creative team behind CBCA Honour Book One Step at a Time. Papa Sky belongs where the earth meets the sky. When...
Tintinnabula (Margo Lanagan, illus by Rovina Cai, Little Hare)
Monday, 17 July 2017
Acclaimed for her short stories and novels, Margo Lanagan’s latest creation Tintinnabula is a picture book that explores light and shade. Through a poetic narrative, the story looks at the...
The Very Noisy Baby (Alison Lester, Affirm)
Monday, 17 July 2017
Alison Lester never disappoints. She is a much-loved, award-winning author and illustrator with many successful books to her name. This delightful book is no exception. It has all the trademarks...
The Extremely Inconvenient Adventures of Bronte Mettlestone (Jaclyn Moriarty, A&U)
Monday, 17 July 2017
As a baby, Bronte Mettlestone was left in the lobby of her Aunt Isabelle’s building by her parents, before they set off to have adventures. When she is 10, Bronte...
Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow Book One (Jessica Townsend, Lothian)
Monday, 17 July 2017
Ten-year-old Morrigan Crow was born on Eventide and, like other children born on this day, is cursed to die at midnight on her 11th birthday. Her family are distant and...
Tales from a Tall Forest (Shaun Micallef, illus by Jonathan Bentley, Hardie Grant Egmont)
Monday, 17 July 2017
Shaun Micallef’s first book for children takes a large dose of fairytale ingredients, flavours them with a dash of nursery rhyme and a pinch of Greek mythology, and bakes them...
Bring it On!: Play Like a Girl Book One (Jo Stanley, Five Mile)
Wednesday, 5 July 2017
Finally, a series about our national sport that stars girls! Jo Stanley has combined her love of footy and empowering women in the new ‘Play Like a Girl’ series, with...
Bertha and Bear (Christine Sharp, UQP)
Wednesday, 5 July 2017
One little bee’s brave expedition through a storm to find somewhere safe to build a new hive is the focus of Christine Sharp’s third picture book Bertha and Bear. The...
Beautiful Mess (Claire Christian, Text)
Wednesday, 5 July 2017
Claire Christian’s 2016 Text Prize-winning book is a beautifully written YA novel that confidently navigates the murky waters of grief and male-female friendship. Chapters are voiced in turn by Ava,...
