Some Girls (Nelly Thomas, illus by Sarah Dunk, Piccolo Nero)
Thursday, 1 February 2018
We have seen a recent surge of books highlighting the achievements of great women throughout history. These books aim to redress historical imbalances and inspire children of all genders to...
The Silver Sea (Alison Lester, Jane Godwin and the children at the Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne, Affirm Press)
Thursday, 1 February 2018
Since Alison Lester and Jane Godwin are practically Australian-children’s-literature royalty, it was hard to keep my expectations reasonable for The Silver Sea. Luckily, the book fulfils its potential. Visually sumptuous,...
Hickory Dickory Dash (Tony Wilson and Laura Wood, Scholastic)
Thursday, 1 February 2018
Following the success of The Cow Tripped over the Moon, Tony Wilson and Laura Wood return with another collaboration that fleshes out a well-known nursery rhyme. Did you ever wonder...
A Boat of Stars: New Poems to Inspire and Enchant (ed by Margaret Connolly & Natalie Jane Prior, ABC Books)
Thursday, 1 February 2018
Apart from rhyming texts in picture books, poetry for children seems to be largely neglected, even though it is an active part of the Australian primary curriculum. So it is...
Reading ahead: 2018 children’s and YA preview
Wednesday, 1 November 2017
2018 sees the release of a new YA series from Jay Kristoff and a middle-grade series from Amie Kaufman; the re-release of a 10-year-old series from Liane Moriarty; and the...
From the heart: Shivaun Plozza on ‘Tin Heart’
Wednesday, 1 November 2017
In her second YA novel Tin Heart (Penguin, March), Shivaun Plozza tells the story of a teenage girl who undergoes an organ transplant. The book ‘cements Plozza as a writer with...
If I Tell You (Alicia Tuckerman, Pantera)
Wednesday, 1 November 2017
Seventeen-year-old Alexandra has known for a while that she is a lesbian but she hasn’t told anyone. When a new family moves to her small country town and spiteful gossip starts to...
Room on Our Rock (Kate and Jol Temple, illus by Terri Rose Baynton, Scholastic)
Wednesday, 1 November 2017
It’s never too early to instil empathy and compassion in the formative minds of the young, and Room on Our Rock does an admirable job in cultivating such qualities in...
The Feather (Margaret Wild, illus by Freya Blackwood, Little Hare)
Monday, 23 October 2017
This exquisite and affecting allegory is another masterful Margaret Wild and Freya Blackwood collaboration that is greater than the sum of its parts. Similar to the pair’s previous book, The...
Go Go and the Silver Shoes (Jane Godwin, illus by Anna Walker, Viking)
Monday, 23 October 2017
Jane Godwin and Anna Walker are a winning pair: Walker’s tender, beautiful illustrations are a perfect complement to Godwin’s careful, gentle words. Their previous successes include the reassuring Starting School...
Grandma Z (Daniel Gray-Barnett, Scribble)
Monday, 23 October 2017
Albert leads a very ordinary, monochrome life. But on his birthday, when his parents are planning the same boring routine, there is a surprise knock on the door. Albert’s larger-than-life...
Tin Heart (Shivaun Plozza, Penguin)
Monday, 23 October 2017
Marlowe Jensen was The Dying Girl. Born with a congenital heart defect, no-one expected Marlowe to make it to her 18th birthday until she won the organ-donation lottery, and got...
The Hole Story (Kelly Canby, Fremantle Press)
Monday, 23 October 2017
One of the joys of early childhood are those moments when you discover the remarkable in the everyday. The Hole Story turns on such uncanny moments. When Charlie discovers a...
Ice Wolves: Elementals Book One (Amie Kaufman, HarperCollins)
Monday, 23 October 2017
There are two shapeshifting ‘elementals’ in the land of Vallen: the Ice Wolves, who protect the city of Holbard, and the Scorch Dragons, who attack it. They have been sworn...
Perfect World: Otherworlds Book One (George Ivanoff, Puffin)
Monday, 23 October 2017
While out shopping for pickles, a chance discovery lands Keagan in a parallel world: a pristine land of eerily similar clones, who quickly throw him out with the trash for being too different....
P is for Pearl (Eliza Henry-Jones, HarperCollins)
Monday, 23 October 2017
Seventeen-year-old Gwen runs every day from the thoughts of her future and the ghosts of her past. She is unable to imagine a life beyond the boundaries of her small...
Missing (Sue Whiting, Walker Books)
Monday, 23 October 2017
A mother is missing in the jungles of Panama and a father and daughter are attempting to discover the truth behind her disappearance. This is the premise of Sue Whiting’s...
Pugs Don’t Wear Pyjamas (Michelle Worthington, illus by Cecilia Johansson, New Frontier)
Monday, 23 October 2017
As far as dogs go, pugs are pretty adorable with their squishy faces, flat noses and curly tails, but Ellie is no ordinary dog. Her owner Roz treats her like...
A Tangled Tale of Tagliatelle (Yves Stening, illus by Nigel Buchanan, PublishCreative Books)
Wednesday, 4 October 2017
A Tangled Tale of Tagliatelle is the second instalment in Yves Stening and Nigel Buchanan’s self-published ‘Dinner Detectives’ series, which takes children on the hunt for the origins of specific...
Unearthed (Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner, A&U)
Wednesday, 4 October 2017
Unearthed is an explosive action-adventure with a touch of romance set on an alien planet. Earth is a devastated planet where resources are scarce and humans are desperate. When an...
Me Too (Erika Geraerts & Charls Laubscher, illus by Gatsby, Walker Books)
Wednesday, 4 October 2017
In this debut picture book, two children dream aloud about the best friend they hope to meet one day. As they describe the many admirable traits of this mysterious someone,...
Initiate: Palace of Fires Book One (Bill Bennett, Penguin)
Wednesday, 4 October 2017
Sixteen-year-old Lily lives a pretty normal life with her mum, Angela, on a farm in Northern California—until Angela vanishes. Lily discovers that her mum has been abducted by a secretive...
Between Us (Clare Atkins, Black Inc.)
Wednesday, 4 October 2017
Clare Atkins follows up her award-winning debut novel Nona & Me with this moving tale of two young people in Darwin who make a connection, though one of them lives...
Children of invention: Catherine Pelosi on ‘Quark’s Academy’
Wednesday, 4 October 2017
In Quark’s Academy (Hachette, February), debut author Catherine Pelosi brings together three junior science geniuses in an elite and mysterious science academy. Reviewer Lian Hingee spoke to the author. (Read...
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...
Out of the ordinary: Jaclyn Moriarty on ‘The Extremely Inconvenient Adventures of Bronte Mettlestone’
Thursday, 7 September 2017
Bound by her parents’ magical will, 10-year-old Bronte Mettlestone must journey to 10 different kingdoms to visit each of her 10 aunts. So goes the premise of Jaclyn Moriarty’s new...
Blast off: Sha’an d’Anthes on ‘Zoom’
Thursday, 7 September 2017
Sha’an d’Anthes is the first-time author and illustrator of Zoom (Lothian, November), a picture book about a young boy’s adventures in space. Reviewer Bronte Coates spoke to d’Anthes about visual...
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...
Swan Lake (Anne Spudvilas, A&U)
Wednesday, 6 September 2017
In her introduction to this book, which is a retelling of the iconic ballet by Tchaikovsky, illustrator Anne Spudvilas says she wanted to create a version of the ballet in...
