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The Memory Thief (Leonie Agnew, Puffin)
Released July 2021
Following her last spellbinding tale The Impossible Boy, Leonie Agnew has created another spine-tingling adventure novel for middle-grade readers. The Memory Thief tells the magical story of an unlikely friendship... Read more
After Story (Larissa Behrendt, UQP)
Released July 2021
'Books have been my lifeline, my escape.' Jasmine’s family was forever changed by the loss of her sister when she was three. Now a lawyer, Jasmine is invited on a... Read more
Rainfish (Andrew Paterson, Text)
Released July 2021
Debut middle-grade novel Rainfish is set in the 1980s during the uncomplicated glory days of Transformers and Star Wars, when ‘being offline’ meant you left your phone off the hook.... Read more
The Cat Thief (Pat Simmons, illus by Liz Duthie, Little Pink Dog Books)
Released July 2021
Olive desperately wants a cat. So much so she is willing to steal them from off the street! The Cat Thief is a wickedly sly and humorous tale of theft,... Read more
Shockingly Good Stories (R A Spratt, Puffin)
Released July 2021
The foreword to R A Spratt’s latest middle-grade book declares that the collection of stories the reader holds in their hands was created specifically to spread joy in challenging times.... Read more
Gentle and Fierce (Vanessa Berry, Giramondo)
Released July 2021
If you grew up in the 80s you’ll probably remember that infamous scene in The NeverEnding Story where Artax the horse sinks forever into the Swamp of Sadness. Sydney writer... Read more
The 22 Murders of Madison May (Max Barry, Hachette)
Released July 2021
The idea of parallel universes might once have been exotic, but between public interest in physics, the increasing popularity of science fiction books and movies, and the rise of the... Read more
All Dogs Bark (Catherine Meatheringham & Deb Hudson, Windy Hollow Books)
Released July 2021
A picture book that is particularly appealing for canine lovers, All Dogs Bark is a joyous and raucous look at the dogs of the world. Its simple language makes it... Read more
The Mother Wound (Amani Haydar, Macmillan)
Released July 2021
Like her own mother before her, Amani Haydar lost her mother young. In 2006 Haydar’s grandmother was killed in the 2006 Israeli–Lebanese conflict. In 2015 Haydar’s mother was murdered by... Read more
Dear Ibis (Kate Liston-Mills, Spineless Wonders)
Released June 2021
From the author of The Waterfowl Are Drunk! comes an elegant and moving collection of short fiction set principally in New South Wales. With stories taking place against the backdrop... Read more
A Pair of Pears and an Orange (Anna McGregor, Scribble)
Released June 2021
A pair of pears are good friends who like to spend their days together, playing games that are just right for the two of them. When Orange appears, Little Pear... Read more
Frizzle and Me (Ellie Royce, illus by Andrew McLean, Ford St)
Released June 2021
Frizzle and Me jumps on board a current—and vital—trend for books celebrating diversity, and makes a respectable contribution to the cohort. The premise is that the definition of ‘family’ is... Read more
One Hundred Days (Alice Pung, Black Inc.)
Released June 2021
Is there a right way to love? Karuna feels suffocated by her mother—and her entrapment multiplies when her dad leaves and she’s forced to move away from private school and... Read more
Marlow Brown, Magician in the Making (Kesta Fleming, illus by Marjory Gardner, Celapene Press)
Released June 2021
Kesta Fleming has written stories and poems for junior readers for many years, making her publishing debut with the Marlow Brown chapter books in 2019. Magician in the Making, the second in... Read more
Echolalia (Briohny Doyle, Vintage)
Released June 2021
Echolalia, Briohny Doyle's skilful second novel, concerns a family on the verge of disintegration. Skipping elegantly between chapters set before and after a traumatic event that changes the family irrevocably,... Read more
A Paper Inheritance (Dymphna Stella Rees, UQP)
Released June 2021
Leslie Rees and Coralie Clarke Rees were a literary partnership, contemporaneous with two more famous Australian literary couples of the 20th century, Ruth Park and D’Arcy Niland, and Charmian Clift... Read more
100 Remarkable Feats of Xander Maze (Clayton Zane Comber, HarperCollins)
Released June 2021
Xander Maze’s best friend is his Nanna. When she is diagnosed with stage four cancer and asks him to write a list of 100 Remarkable Feats for him to achieve... Read more
Kunyi (Kunyi June Anne McInerney, Magabala)
Released June 2021
Kunyi, an illustrated memoir of Kunyi June Anne McInerney’s childhood, collects snapshot moments and stories of her life, told in her own words and accompanied by her paintings. The lively... Read more
Who Gets to be Smart (Bri Lee, A&U)
Released June 2021
Who Gets to be Smart opens with a walking tour of Oxford. Author Bri Lee is at the university to visit her friend, a freshly minted Rhodes Scholar. As the... Read more
We Were Not Men (Campbell Mattinson, Fourth Estate)
Released June 2021
Campbell Mattinson’s We Were Not Men charts the story of twin brothers Jon and Eden in an episodic exploration of male kinship. Told from Jon’s perspective, the book begins with the... Read more
