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Children's and YA book reviews and interviews

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Feature review

The Things We Promise
J C Burke, A&U, March 2017, reviewed by Meg Whelan

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Interview

Unlocking the memories: J C Burke on ‘The Things We Promise’

Picture books

The Fantastic Recipe Machine
Chihiro Takeuchi, Berbay Publishing, March 2017, reviewed by Thuy On

Chihiro Takeuchi is a paper-cut artist and the intricate pictures in this picture book are a startling sample of her craft. The Fantastic Recipe Machine is a testament to the... Read more

Florette
Anna Walker, Viking, March 2017, reviewed by Margaret Hamilton

Anna Walker’s picture book Mr Huff was awarded the 2016 CBCA Book of the Year in the Early Childhood category, so more picture books from her are eagerly awaited. Florette... Read more

Mopoke
Philip Bunting, Scholastic, February 2017, reviewed by Michael Earp

‘This is a mopoke’ is the opening line of a new picture book that stars the Bookbook Owl. Extremely common around Australia, this quiet bird keeps to itself. Or at... Read more

One Little Goat
Ursula Dubosarsky, illus by Andrew Joyner, Little Hare, March 2017, reviewed by Mike Shuttleworth

Goats are the new ducks, it would seem, as the successful team of Ursula Dubosarsky and Andrew Joyner (The Terrible Plop, Too Many Elephants) reunite for another round of inventive... Read more

Shearing Time
Allison Paterson, illus by Shane McGrath, Big Sky Publishing, March 2017, reviewed by Thuy On

Though shearing is engrained in Australian mythology, chances are that most children aren’t familiar with the practice of removing a woolly coat from its owner. Allison Paterson’s book tries, with... Read more

Younger readers

Harry Kruize, Born to Lose
Paul Collins, Ford Street, March 2017, reviewed by Holly Harper

Harry feels like a born loser: his dad walked out of his life and never looked back, the school bully has Harry squarely in his sights, and his sessions with... Read more

Young adult

The Eleventh Hour: Agent Nomad Book One
Skye Melki-Wegner, Random House, March 2017, reviewed by Angelique Gouvas

The Eleventh Hour kicks off the ‘Agent Nomad’ series by Skye Melki-Wegner, author of ‘Chasing the Valley’. It follows 15-year-old protagonist Natalie Palladino as she discovers a world she thought... Read more

Frogkisser!
Garth Nix, A&U, March 2017, reviewed by Dani Solomon

Princess Anya, second in line to the throne, lives with her childish, spoilt older sister Princess Morven, her stepmother and her step-stepfather, Evil Socrerer Duke Rikard (it’s far less complicated... Read more

On tour

On tour: Peadar Ó Guilin