Review search
Countdown to Yesterday (Shirley Marr, Puffin)
Released February 2024
Shirley Marr’s latest novel, Countdown to Yesterday, takes young readers on a heartwarming journey through time, memories, and the complexities of family and friendship. This enchanting tale is a delightful... Read more
How to Avoid Being Eaten By Sharks… and other advice (John Larkin, illus Chrissie Krebs, Walker)
Released February 2024
How do you avoid being eaten by sharks? Is the Earth flat or round? How do you translate parent-speak, pass a creative writing test, and elude alien abduction? Tongue-in-cheek, chapter-length... Read more
Andromache Between Worlds (Gabriel Bergmoser, HarperCollins)
Released February 2024
Andromache Between Worlds is the middle-grade fiction debut from prolific adult and young adult writer Gabriel Bergmoser. Andromache is the 14-year-old daughter of two celebrity adventurer journalists whose escapades have... Read more
Lani and the Universe (Victoria Carless, HarperCollins)
Released January 2024
For young readers who enjoyed Gus and the Starlight (2022) comes another heart-warming and captivating story by Victoria Carless. Lani and the Universe tells the story of Lani Scrub, who... Read more
Secret Sparrow (Jackie French, HarperCollins)
Released December 2023
Jackie French’s latest middle-grade novel, Secret Sparrow, focuses on the unheralded work of women in World War I. This exciting adventure story is told with dual timelines and begins in... Read more
Silver Linings (Katrina Nannestad, ABC Books)
Released November 2023
Following the multi-award-winning success of Katrina Nannestad’s World War II novels for younger readers, Silver Linings sees her move from the battlefields of Europe to post-war Australia, and a story... Read more
Fluff: Bullies Beware (Matt Stanton, ABC Books)
Released November 2023
Gilbert Morris lives with his mum and sister in a caravan park. After his dad goes missing in outer space, Gilbert’s mum gives him Fluff, a comfort toy, to squeeze... Read more
Kimmi: Queen of the dingoes (Favel Parrett, illus Astred Hicks, Lothian)
Released November 2023
For young readers who enjoyed Favel Parrett’s alpine dingo tale in Wandi (2021), Kimmi follows a real-life tropical dingo who, like Wandi, now lives at the Dingo Discovery Sanctuary and... Read more
Spies in the Sky (Beverley McWilliams, illus Martina Heiduczek, Pantera)
Released November 2023
Inspired by the little-known story of the British National Pigeon Service, a volunteer organisation of pigeon breeders who provided their animals for military service during WWII, Spies in the Sky by... Read more
Blair Moon: How to be cooler than the moon (AshIeigh Mounser, Ford St)
Released October 2023
Blair Moon: How to be cooler than the moon by Ashleigh Mounser is a fast-paced novel that doesn’t let up, much like its protagonist, Blair Moon. Eleven-year-old Blair is precocious,... Read more
Kip of the Mountain (Emma Gourlay, HarperCollins)
Released October 2023
Emma Gourlay’s debut novel for readers aged 8–12 is the madcap adventure of Kip Boowitt, who lives on South Africa’s Table Mountain. Beleaguered by a distant dad and cruel schoolmates,... Read more
Millie Mak the Maker (Alice Pung, illus Sher Rill Ng, HarperCollins)
Released September 2023
Perhaps it’s no coincidence that Alice Pung’s new middle-grade heroine nearly shares a name with Joyce Lankester Brisley’s much-loved creation: if you tried to write a version of Milly-Molly-Mandy in... Read more
Aggie Flea is Not a Liar! (Tania Ingram, illus A Yi, Scholastic)
Released September 2023
Aggie Flea is greatly misunderstood. Her teacher, Mrs Fossy, definitely doesn’t like her and regularly sends her to the principal’s office. Aggie loves the fictitious Princess Zombie books about a... Read more
This Camp is Doomed (Anna Zobel, Puffin)
Released September 2023
In her first upper-primary novel, Anna Zobel turns her knack for writing emotionally intelligent, likeable, mildly eccentric, diverse characters to the task of creating an engrossing adventure-mystery story for imaginative... Read more
Jawsome (R J Timmis, Albert St Books)
Released August 2023
The best graphic novels need to be action-packed with an engaging interplay of text and illustrations. Ideally, they should also be funny. Rebecca Timmis’s Jawsome ticks all these boxes and... Read more
Hello Twigs, How Are You Feeling? (Andrew McDonald, illus Ben Wood, HGCP)
Released August 2023
Author Andrew McDonald and illustrator Ben Wood, who together have earned fame with the Real Pigeons series, have branched out with a new early reader graphic novel series. In Hello... Read more
Honey and the Valley of Horses (Wendy Orr, A&U Children’s)
Released August 2023
Wendy Orr, the bestselling author of Nim’s Island, has written a new magical story that reads like a classic in all the best ways. In Honey and the Valley of... Read more
Timefire (Nean McKenzie, MidnightSun)
Released July 2023
Nean McKenzie is the author of two previous middle-grade novels. Her latest, Timefire, interweaves a story about bushfires in Australia with supernatural and time-travel elements. Gilbert Black is drawn to... Read more
Get Your Act Together, Doris Kozlowski (Jo Dabrowski, Affirm)
Released July 2023
Life doesn’t feel easy for Doris Kozlowski. Her family is Polish, and they’re not like almost all the other families nearby. Her babcia makes all kinds of foods that smell... Read more
Picasso and the Greatest Show on Earth (Anna Fienberg, A&U Children’s)
Released July 2023
Anna Fienberg has had a long and illustrious career in children’s writing, with over 40 books and a swag of awards under her belt. Her latest, Picasso and the Greatest... Read more
