Newsletters | Books+Publishing

Children's and YA book reviews and interviews

View full newsletter

Feature review

A Song Only I Can Hear
Barry Jonsberg, A&U, July 2018, reviewed by Phil Lesnie

Interview

World class: Jeremy Lachlan on ‘Jane Doe and the Cradle of All Worlds’

Kaleidoscopic views: Emily Gale on ‘I Am Out with Lanterns’

Picture books

Backyard
Ananda Braxton-Smith, illus by Lizzy Newcomb, Black Dog Books, August 2018, reviewed by Michael Earp

Backyard is a gentle reminder that to experience nature, you don’t need to venture much further than out the back door. Set in a city ‘that is like other cities’,... Read more

How Did I Get Here?
Philip Bunting, Scholastic, August 2018, reviewed by Thuy On

At some point the little kid in your life will venture to ask the question feared by most adults: ‘How did I get here?’ The history of life is a... Read more

Maya and Cat
Caroline Magerl, Walker Books, August 2018, reviewed by Margaret Hamilton

Caroline Magerl has a very distinctive style of illustration and this book does not disappoint. It’s full of cats. ‘On a roof, as wet as a seal, as grey as... Read more

Sonam and the Silence
Eddie Ayres, illus by Ronak Taher, A&U, August 2018, reviewed by Thuy On

A fable about a young girl in Kabul during the Taliban occupation hardly sounds like the stuff of picture books so Sonam and the Silence was warily approached. However, fear... Read more

Wisp: A Story of Hope
Zana Fraillon, illus by Grahame Baker, Lothian, August 2018, reviewed by Margaret Hamilton

There have been some beautiful, compassionate picture books that feature the plight of refugees and their search for a peaceful life away from war and poverty. Joining these is this... Read more

Younger readers

The Dog with Seven Names
Dianne Wolfer, Penguin, July 2018, reviewed by Angela Crocombe

This book for middle readers uses the experiences of a dog with many owners to tell stories of Australia during wartime. While her family watches the running of the 1939... Read more

Jane Doe and the Cradle of All Worlds
Jeremy Lachlan, Hardie Grant Egmont, August 2018, reviewed by Angela Crocombe

Immediately exciting and inventive, this is a thrilling story set in a universe made up of multiple worlds. Twelve years ago, Jane and her father arrived at the island of... Read more

Leaf Stone Beetle
Ursula Dubosarsky, illus by Gaye Chapman, Dirt Lane Press, August 2018, reviewed by Anica Boulanger-Mashberg

This gentle fable presents a delicate perspective on the cyclical patterns of life in the natural world, where seasons and the weather can both offer adventure and prompt quiet philosophical... Read more

Off the Track
Cristy Burne, illus by Amanda Burnett, Fremantle Press, August 2018, reviewed by Maria H Alessandrino

Cristy Burne’s latest work of adventure fiction takes us off the beaten track and deep into the Australian bush. Harry isn’t thrilled about spending a weekend hiking with his mum,... Read more

Zeroes and Ones
Cristy Burne, Xoum, August 2018, reviewed by Jarrah Moore

Zeroes and Ones is a history of the most exciting milestones in computing, with a focus on individual inventors and innovators. It spans from Charles Babbage’s Difference Engine and Ada... Read more

Young adult

After the Lights Go Out
Lili Wilkinson, A&U, August 2018, reviewed by Carody Culver

Emergency drills, bug-out bags, a secret underground bunker with a year’s supply of food—life’s a little different when your dad’s a doomsday prepper. Seventeen-year-old Pru Palmer and her two younger... Read more

I Am Out with Lanterns
Emily Gale, Random House, August 2018, reviewed by Jordi Kerr

I Am Out with Lanterns is nuanced, complex and thoroughly readable. Told from multiple perspectives, it follows a kaleidoscope of characters as it explores community, connections, and the desire to... Read more