Sonia Audoly (text), Francesca Quatraro (illus.), The Magic Mail Fairy, Little Steps Publishing, 1 Oct 2017, 36pp., $14.95 (hbk), ISBN: 9781925545524 In the electronic age, letter writing seems to be a dying art. However anyone who grew up in the days before email and Snapchat would remember the excitement of receiving a handwritten letter, addressed just to you. For Nina, that excitement is enhanced when she visits her Great Aunts, because not only do they have regular mail, they have Fairy Mail! The Magic Mail Fairy actually lives quite close to their house, and although she is often out delivering mail,…
Author: Admin
Lisa Papp, Madeline Finn and the Library Dog, Walker Books Australia, 1 Sept 2017, 32pp., $24.99 (hbk), ISBN: 9781910646328 Madeline Finn does not like to read – and she especially dislikes reading out loud. The words become tangled, and the children listening giggle when she stumbles – and no matter how hard she tries, she just can’t get a star from her teacher – only hearts, which say ‘keep trying.’ Luckily for Madeline, when her mother takes her to the library she meets Bonnie, who is a very good listener. Bonnie never laughs when she makes a mistake, and she…
Reviewer Kay shares her picks for 2017… Force of Nature – Jane Harper A standout for me in 2017 was Jane Harper’s Force of Nature. Set in the fictional Giralong Ranges, east of Melbourne, five women reluctantly enter the rugged bushland as part of a corporate team building exercise – but only four return. Each of the women have their own secrets, and their relations with each other range from frosty to downright hostile. What happens during those few days in the bush is a mystery, and Federal Police Officer Aaron Falk finds himself drawn in to the complex stories…
Reviewer Amy shares her top books of 2017… 2017 was an awesome year for both new releases, and for sequels and continuations of some of my favourite series!! Due to the sheer multitude of incredible books that I read this year, my mini-reviews for this list will all be for debut novels or the starts of new series, so that no context is required! I’ll leave a little list of favorites sequels underneath- Happy New Year everyone, and happy reading! Avery (The Chronicles of Kaya #1) – Charlotte McConaghy Adult Fantasy New. Favourite. Trilogy! I loved loved loved this series- beginning…
John Flanagan, The Caldera (Brotherband #7), Random House Australia, 30 Oct 2017, 432pp., $18.99 (pbk), ISBN: 9780857980137 As a younger child myself, The Rangers’ Apprentice was one of my favourite series, and when John Flanagan released Brotherband as a new series, I loved it. Sadly, over the years I’ve been drawn away from his books, but reading the series again for review has reminded me of just how much I love his work. The Caldera is the conclusion to the Brotherband series, being the seventh book. Continuing to follow Hal’s journey in his wolfship with all of his ‘brotherband’ members, the Caldera…
Beattie Alvarez (editor), A Christmas Menagerie, Christmas Press, Oct 2017, 96pp., $24.99 (pbk), ISBN: 9780994528049 A Christmas Menagerie is a compilation of Australian and Christmas themed short stories told from the perspectives of a variety of children and animals. From wombats to small girls in koala onesies, the book was a thoroughly enjoyable compilation and quite satisfactorily fulfilled its purpose as a Christmas-based book for me. Each story presented a small moral or physical issue for the main character, and all were resolved with the charm of a children’s book- with the strength of friendships new and old, the ingenuity of…
Lisa Nicol (text), Daniel Gray-Barnett (illus.), Dr Boogaloo and The Girl Who Lost Her Laughter, Random House Australia, 2 Oct 2017, 192pp., $19.99 (hbk), ISBN: 9780143782599 Have you ever suffered from Forever Forgetting To Wear Underpants Syndrome? Or caught a bad case of Can’t Sit Down, Not Ever, Not Even At The Movies Syndrome? You should probably call for an appointment with Dr Boogaloo and his wife Bessie at the Boogaloo’s family clinic. Dr Boogaloo can treat all kinds of misfortunes and maladies with his musical treatments, that is, until he meets Blue. Blue is a young girl who has completely,…
Suzanne Barton (text), Anil Tortop (illus.), Meeka, Bluebell Books, 1 Sept 2017, 32pp., $22.00 (hbk), ISBN: 9780648099307 Meeka is the story of a young girl and her Dad, their stew-selling market stall, and their birdy friend Meeka. While the young girl helps her Dad make “spicey, dicey stew,” Meeka flies around making friends with all the other stallholders. He also trials all of their fare: crusty bread, corn on the cob, fluffy fairy floss and more. These are not bird-appropriate treats and Meeka ends up with quite the sore tummy. When the stew stall crew is ready to pack and go…
Francesca Armour-Chelu (text), Fenn Halflin and the Seaborn (Fenn Halflin #2), Walker Books, July 2017, 278pp., $16.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781406366181 When I was growing up in the 1960s, Enid Blyton’s Famous Five Series was the pinnacle of excitement in juvenile fiction. In 2017, there are adventurers like Fenn Halflin to take us to an exotic world of danger and suspense and into situations that require bravery and cunning. Our imaginations are rekindled at every turn in Fenn Halflin and the Seaborn, another book in the series about Fenn Halflin’s adventures by author, Francesca Armour-Chelu. For children of 9 to 12…
Cameron Macintosh (text), Dave Atze (illus.), Selfie Search (Max Booth Future Sleuth #2), Big Sky Publishing, 1 Oct 2017, 123pp., $12.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781925520880 Max and his robot dog, Oscar, live in a packing case in the Bluggsville City Museum, around the year 2400. When his friend, Jesse, finds a strange black object, it is Max’s job to identify it. It turns out to be a mobile phone from 2017, and the adventurers discover that it reveals the site of a lost statue of Nicole Squidman, for which there is a $7 million reward. How the three find the statue, nearly lose it…