Ash Barty & Jasmin McGaughey (text) and Jade Godwin (illustrator), Doubles Disaster (Tennis Camp Diaries #1), Harper Collins AU, July 2024, 192 pp., RRP $15.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781460762745
Tennis Camp Diaries seems like a natural progression from the first Ash Barty Series Little Ash, which has also been reviewed on Reading Time, as Doubles Disaster is a significantly longer read.
This series is pitched at readers eight years and older and takes the format of diary entries as Ash attends her first two-week tennis camp with a mix of nerves and excitement.
Camp activities, developing friendships, problem-solving and personality clashes are all explored. However, the emphasis remains on Ash’s determination to improve her tennis skills in the pursuit of her dream to become a tennis star, therefore the series may appeal more to readers with an inclination for sport. Each diary entry ends on a positive note, recording something new she has learnt that day.
The personal diary entries are interspersed with black and white doodles and drawings about the day’s activities. The use of varying font styles and sizes in the entries bring emphasis to key events and match the narrator’s age, making the diary feel authentic. The tennis-themed page borders lend a consistency to the layout.
One small quibble – from an editing point of view, there was a preponderance of exclamation marks! Book number two has just been released!
Reviewed by Bronwyn Joseph
