Karen Comer, Sunshine on Vinegar Street, Allen & Unwin, May 2023, 280 pp., RRP $17.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781761180132 In our apartment block There’s a sign next to the lift. Out of order. Please use stairs. Mum groans and her shoulders slump. Even the lift doesn’t want us here. Sunshine on Vinegar Street has been acknowledged on the 2024 CBCA Notable list for Younger Readers. Written in verse with layers of metaphors and symbolism, Sunshine on Vinegar Street is a deep and meaningful read. It covers a diverse range of topics but in particular unique families, friendship, change, bullies and building…
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Freya Blackwood, The Garden of Broken Things, HarperCollins Publishers, May 2024, 32 pp, RRP $26.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781460757550 Number 9 Ardent Street was a lonely place, with windows like sad eyes. A story’s first line can do so many things: capture attention, conjure emotions, pique curiosity, create anticipation, evoke nostalgia. The opening line to The Garden of Broken Things masterfully achieves all these things and more. One day, Sadie follows a cat into the scrub behind Number 9 Ardent Street, where tangled vines concealed things from another time … things that had come to a final halt. Deep in the…
Rose Davidson (text) and Andy Smith (Illustrator), Science FACTopia!: Follow the Trail of 400 STEM-tastic Facts!, Walker Books, April 2024, 208 pp., RRP $25.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781804660249 What a title—and with not one but two exclamation marks! This time, in the sixth of the FACTopia series, the focus is upon STEM-style facts. STEM is an approach to learning embedded in the Victorian State curriculum (with various iterations across most other states). The aim is to integrate science, technology, engineering and mathematics into kids’ learning, and imbue their knowledge with problem-solving skills. So, we have an admirable aim, but maybe one…
Robyn Dennison, Blind Spot, Text Publishing, July 2023, 288 pp., RRP $22.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781922790347 Blind Spot is a thought-provoking coming-of-age novel that delves into complex issues surrounding friendship, relationships, and mental health. Robyn Dennison tackles themes of mental health, drug and alcohol use, eating disorders and sexual assault with honesty and sensitivity, delivering a narrative that is both raw and impactful. Seventeen-year-old Dale finds himself grappling with a moral dilemma after witnessing a troubling situation at a party. Drunk and looking for his friend, Dale stumbles upon an intoxicated girl being undressed by two guys in a bedroom, he…
Melissa Greenwood, Miimi and Buwaarr, Mother and Baby, HarperCollins Publishers, March 2024, 24 pp., RRP $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9780733343018 Miimi (mother) shares the story of her love for her Buwaarr (baby), as she bestows her Gumbaynggirr culture to the next generation. A beautiful selection of aphorisms passes from mother to baby about her hopes and dreams for their future, I want you to walk proudly in life knowing who you are… …all the answers that you seek in this lifetime… lie within your heart. Melissa Greenwood, a Goori nyami (woman) generously shares her Gumbaynggirr language and artistic storytelling, that is…
Kayla Miller, Break (Click #6), Walker Books Australia, March 2024, 224 pp., RRP $17.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781760655198 Break is the sixth graphic novel in Kayla Miller’s bestselling ‘Click’ series. Just like in previous titles such as Click and Camp, Break tackles highly relatable issues for the target age group, such as family dynamics, missing out, loneliness and forgiveness. It’s Spring Break and Olive is being forced to spend time with her previously absent father instead of joining her friends on their epic adventures. As the week goes on, Olive’s easy-going nature gets shaken up by feelings of loneliness and resentment…
Aleesah Darlison, Grace the Amazing, Wombat Books, May 2024, 140 pp., RRP $26.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781761111174 Curious, creative Grace dreams of becoming a magician called Grace the Amazing. And the sooner, the better. Because eleven-year-old Grace is on a mission to cure her beloved art teacher and only friend, Pamela, who is gravely ill. This simple premise ushers young readers through a gamut of experiences and emotions as the world of determined, free-spirited Grace is rocked by the fragilities of life. As adults, we have grown to know how love and loss are irreparably intertwined, but for children, death is…
Kate & Jol Temple (text), and Niharika Hukku & Ronojoy Ghosh (illustrators), That Bird has Arms! Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing, July 2023, 24 pp., RRP $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781761210310 Roy has arms. This all sounds very normal, except that Roy is a bird. Do all birds have arms? No, Roy is unique in the world of birds. Roy has trouble accepting his individuality when he realises he is the only bird with arms. This makes him different. And sometimes it’s difficult to accept being different from our peers. Roy decides to hide his arms. If no-one knows he is different,…
Joaquin Camp, The Robbery, Berbay Publishing, May 2024, 40 pp., RRP $26,99 (hbk), ISBN 9781922610737 Thief 1, Thief 2 and Thief 3 have a very simple plan: dig a tunnel and rob a bank. They attend an excavation course run by the best teacher but only one of them really benefits. On the way through their tunnelling, they discover that Thief 3 is an excellent violinist. Their karate black belt skills are needed at one point. But finally, they decide they’ve had enough digging because they can’t find the bank though they did discover some interesting destinations. Thief 3 suggests…
Peter Cheong, Every Night at Midnight, Affirm Press, August 2023, 40 pp., RRP $24.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781922992383 Feeling lonely can be tough. Especially when you know you are different from others. Felix feels this way all of the time – because he turns into a wolf every night at midnight. How to explain that to his human friends? It’s something that Felix wrestles with each day. Instead, Felix keeps his secret for fear of being ostracised by his friends in case they don’t understand. When Felix meets another wolf at midnight, he feels an immediate connection, befriending this other wolf…