Latest Review 
Jul 20 2018
The power of hope by Kon Karapanagiotidis
Harper Collins, 2018. ISBN 9781460755136
(Age: 14+) Highly recommended. Kon Karapanagiotidis is truly an
inspiring person - founder of the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre,
he fights for the rights of people who have no other help available,
determined to make a difference to their lives. And though there are
many despairing and difficult times when he has to tell another
desperate refugee that their claim for asylum has been refused, the
heartfelt gratitude from those he has helped keeps him motivated to
fight on. It is difficult to read that first chapter without being
moved to tears. I am so glad there are people like him in our
society.
However what may come as a surprise to some readers,
Karapanagiotidis has not always been the confident leader and
spokesperson that we now recognise and respect. His childhood and
youth were a struggle with self-doubt and loathing. His book bravely
reveals his young insecurities, struggles with body image, and
anxiety about relationships, issues familiar to many teenagers. What
he did have were parents, migrants to Australia, who were determined
to make a good life for their children - the values that many
migrants and refugees bring to Australia: resilience, family values,
hard work, sacrifice, and courage. Those values provided the
groundwork of his life.
As a teenager, a turning point for him was a book - Martin Luther
King's "Strength to love" with its call to 'honour your integrity,
honour your inner voice and spirit', and most especially not to
stand by but to take a stand at times of challenge and controversy.
Karapanagiotidis discovered 'the fire in his belly'.
That inner fire led to many roles working with the disabled, the
homeless, the most needy people in society, and then ultimately to
starting a project to help the many people in Melbourne seeking
asylum but with nowhere to turn for food or aid. That humble
beginning led to the establishment of the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre
now an established charity completely independent of government
funding, that provides practical support, health care, legal aid and
advocacy services to refugees both in Australia and in off-shore
detention.
This book could be seen as a call to conscience for adults but I
would suggest it for younger readers as well - the issues of sorting
out identity and meaning in life would resonate with teenagers,
particularly finding personal power in a society that doesn't meet
youthful ideals. Throughout the book, particular sentences are
picked up and bolded on a page, as inspirational quotes that can
easily be found on flicking through, serving as reminders to each of
us to go forth with passion, purpose and hope.
Helen Eddy
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Jul 20 2018
Duck by Meg McKinlay
Ill. by Nathaniel Eckstrom. Walker Books, 2018, ISBN 9781925381535
(Age: 4+) Highly recommended. Themes: Humour, Farm animals, Word
play, Ducks. When the duck comes running across the hills to the
other farm animals calling out 'duck' they are all nonplussed. Yes
they know he is a duck,... more
Jul 20 2018
If I was prime minister by Beck and Robin Feiner
ABC Books, 2018. ISBN 9780733338953
(Age: 7+) Recommended. Themes: Prime ministers, Leaders. Beginning
with a few words about why Australia is great, then going on to tell
us about what a prime minister does and how many we have had since
Federation, the book takes a corner and asks... more
Jul 20 2018
Max Champion and the great race car robbery by Alexander McCall Smith
Ill. by Kate Hindley. Bloomsbury Children's Books, 2018. ISBN
9781408886137
(Age: 6-8) Recommended. Themes: Motor car racing. Criminals. Values.
Good versus evil. When Max discovers that his grandfather was the
inventor of the Champion motor cars he is stunned to discover that
the... more
Jul 20 2018
Let me lie by Clare Mackintosh
Hachette, 2018. ISBN 9780751564877
(Age: Adult - Older adolescent) Themes: Mystery and suspense.
Suicide. Grief. The dedication at the start of the narrative
positions us perfectly to be led into a complex story of love,
loyalty and betrayal, with Clare Mackintosh's choice of... more
Jul 20 2018
Tommy Bell Bushranger Boy series by Jane Smith
Big Sky Publishing, 2018.
Gang of Thieves. Book 5. ISBN 9781925675238
Mrs Thunderbolt. Book 6. ISBN 9781925675320
(Ages: 7-10) Themes: Time travel, Bushrangers. Author Jane Smith
presents two new time travel stories with "Gang of Thieves" and "Mrs
Thunderbolt". She... more
Jul 20 2018
Tropical Terry by Jarvis
Walker Books, 2018. ISBN 9781406378627
(Ages: 3-6) Themes: Fish, Appearance. Coral Reef City is filled with
some of the most colourful and fabulous fish of the ocean. A flurry
of action words ("dashing, flashing, swirled") echo the movement of
the sea seen in the illustrations, which... more
Jul 20 2018
I Love You Dino-Daddy by Mark Sperring
Ill. by Sam Lloyd. Bloomsbury, 2018. ISBN 9781408893449
(Ages: 3-6) Themes: Fathers, Rhyming book. As a republication of a
2015 title, initially published as "Dino-Daddy", this puffy
hardcover book has a shiny foil title that somehow makes it seem
cheap at first glance. However, on... more
Jul 19 2018
Master of stillness, Jeffrey Smart by Barry Pearce
Wakefield Press, Revised edition, 2018. ISBN 9781743053393.
(Age: Senior secondary - Adult) Highly recommended. Non-fiction.
"Master of stillness" is the perfect title for this beautiful book
which through its collection of photographic images traces the
evolution of the art of Jeffrey... more
Jul 19 2018
Clash of the keepers by Mitchell Starc and Tiffany Malins
Ill. by Philip Bunting. Mighty Mitch book 3. Scholastic,
2018, ISBN 9781742769158
(Age: 8-10) Themes: Cricket. Sportsmanship. Australian international
cricketer Mitchell Starc continues his popular Mighty Mitch series
in Clash of the keepers. Suffering a loss to Marshall... more
Jul 19 2018
What will I do when I grow up? by Margherita Borin
Berbay Publishing, 2018. ISBN 9780994384157
What will I do when I grow up by Margherita Borin is a picture
book that as the title suggests, discusses a variety of careers
people can do when they grow up. It centres around the high street
of a town (or the Main Street as we know it... more
Jul 19 2018
The silver sea by children from the Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne with Alison Lester and Jane Godwin
Melbourne with Alison Lester and Jane Godwin
Affirm Press, 2018. ISBN 9781925584745
"Let's go down to The Silver Sea,
Come on, I'll hold your hand."
Take a journey with two little children as they explore what is
beneath the waves in this magical adventure created by young... more
Jul 18 2018
Monsters by Anna Fienberg
Ill. by Kim Gamble and Stephen Axelsen. Allen and Unwin, 2018. ISBN
9781760293369
(Age: 5+) Highly recommended. Themes: Monsters, Fear, Confidence,
Friendship. This beautifully presented picture book will have
readers enthralled at the everyday things: plants, furniture,
curtains, even... more
Jul 18 2018
The New Kid : Unpopular me by James O'Loghlin
Pan Macmillan, 2018. ISBN 9781760554255
(Age: 9+) Highly recommended. "The New Kid Unpopular Me" is a
hilarious story about being the new kid in school. If it can go
wrong it will! Sam is 11 and has just moved to Canberra with his
family. He has already been targeted by the class bully,... more
Jul 18 2018
Bab Sharkey and The Animal Mummies: The weird beard by Andrew Hansen and Jessica Roberts
Bab Sharkey and the Animal Mummies
Book 1. Walker Books, 2018. ISBN 9781760650001
(Age: 9+) Recommended. Themes: Ancient Egypt, Humour, Time travel,
Adventure. Award-winning Australian comedian Andrew Hansen, best
known for "The Chaser", has teamed up with his wife,... more
Jul 18 2018
The hole by Kerry Brown
Ill. by Lucia Masciullo. ABC Books, 2018. ISBN 9780733335235
(Age: 4+) Recommended. Themes: Animals, Problem solving. Walking
through the woods, a squirrel comes upon a hole on the path way she
is using. Peering in she falls, and clings onto the top of the hole,
hoping that she has not... more
Jul 18 2018
The coldest girl in Coldtown by Holly Black
Indigo, 2013 (re-issued 2018). ISBN 9781780621296(Age: Senior secondary - Adult) Recommended. Themes: Horror. Paranormal. Vampires. Dystopian. On cover it states: "Dark, decadent and seductive. Not suitable for younger readers." Tana wakes up after a party to find herself surrounded with...
moreJul 17 2018
Changing gear by Scot Gardner
Allen and Unwin, 2018. ISBN 9781760631468
(Age: 14+) Highly recommended. Themes: Journeys. Road trip. Western
Victoria. Merrick tosses in his final weeks of school, just before
his year twelve exams, to take off on his beloved motorbike and see
what happens. Seemingly with no particular... more
Jul 17 2018
My life and other failed experiments by Tristan Bancks and Gus Gordon
Tom Weekly Book 6. Penguin, 2018. ISBN 9780143781615
(Age: 8-11) Recommended. Themes: Pets. Brothers and sisters. Humour.
What's next for Tom Weekly, his sister torturing his guinea pig,
taking on the most annoying ice-cream man and dealing with a killer
possum attack? Tom has a... more
Jul 17 2018
Scaredy Cat by Heather Gallagher and Anil Tortop
New Frontier, 2018. ISBN 9781925594171
(Age: 3-6) Themes: Pets.
"Have you seen my Scaredy Cat?
He's afraid of this and afraid of that!"
Scaredy Cat's gorgeous covers decorated with shiny hearts and
a cute little girl with just a hint of her missing pet are... more
Jul 17 2018
Antidote to a curse by James Cristina
Transit Lounge, 2018. ISBN 9781925760033
(Age: Adult) Following a sexual encounter Silvio Portelli finds
himself increasingly drawn to the Bosnian immigrant Zlatko, whilst
waiting to learn the results of his test for HIV. Portelli wants to
write, and the mystery of Zlatko's life may be... more
Jul 16 2018
From Twinkle with love by Sandhya Menon
Hodder, 2018. ISBN 9781473678736
(Age 13+) Highly recommended. Twinkle, a 16 year old high school
student, dreams of being a movie director. When she hears about an
up and coming film festival, she is determined to make her mark on
the industry and direct an amazing movie for everyone to... more
Jul 16 2018
The Smoke Thieves by Sally Green
Penguin Books, 2018. ISBN 9780141375397
(Age: 12+) Recommended. A princess, a soldier, a hunter, a traitor,
and a thief. Following the paths of Princess Catherine, Ambrose,
March, Edyon, and Tash; these five people will soon come to find
their futures are connected by a mysterious bottle... more
Jul 16 2018
Let's visit the Olobobs by Leigh Hodgkinson and Steve Smith
Bloomsbury, 2018. ISBN 9781408897621
(Age: 1-4) Board book, Lift-the-flaps, Shapes. Based on the English
children's television show "Olobob Top", as seen on ABC, this early
learning book about shape has been created by Leigh Hodgkinson ("Are
You Sitting Comfortably?") and Steve Smith.... more
Jul 16 2018
Bohemia Beach by Justine Ettler
Transit Lounge, 2018. ISBN 9781925760002
(Age: Adult) Themes: Addiction; Musical career; Counselling.
Catherine Bell is a renowned Concert musician, but everything in her
life seems to be swirling in the swill of painful experience. Her
'self-medication' with regular consumption of... more
Jul 16 2018
Can I touch your hair? by Irene Latham and Charles Waters
Carolrhoda Books, 2018. ISBN 9781512404425(Age: 10+) "Can I touch your hair? Poems of race, mistakes and friendship" is described on the blurb as being 'a compelling portrait of two youngsters dancing delicately through a racial minefield' and is a reasonably accurate explanation....
moreJul 13 2018
The world's worst children 3 by David Walliams
HarperCollins, 2018. ISBN 9780008304607
Highly recommended. Where do I start when telling you about David
Walliams "The worlds worst children 3"?! What an awesome storyteller
he is!
This book is full of 10 short stories about a variety of horrible
children or sibling groups who... more
Jul 13 2018
The World of David Walliams Book of Stuff: Fun, facts and everything you NEVER wanted to know by David Walliams
Ill. by Quentin Blake and Tony Ross. HarperCollins, 2018. ISBN
9780008293253
(Age: 7+) Highly recommended. Themes: Humour, Puzzles. Designed
especially for children who can't get enough of David Walliams weird
and hilarious humour and illustrated by two outstanding
illustrators, "The... more
Jul 13 2018
Iguana Boy saves the world with a triple cheese pizza by James Bishop and Rikin Paresh
Hachette, 2018. ISBN 9781444939347
(Age: 8-12) Themes: Superheroes, Brothers and sisters, Bullying.
James Bishop's preteen novel introduces a new group of superheroes,
an evil super villain, militant platypuses and a young boy who longs
for his own super skills. What happens when an... more
Jul 13 2018
The Lily and the Rose by Jackie French
Angus and Robertson, 2018. ISBN 9781460753590
(Age: 16+) Recommended. Themes: Post-World War 1 History;
Independence - Women; Romance; Peace. Set in the aftermath of
World War 1, The Lily and the Rose follows Sophie Higgs, an
heiress from an Australian corned beef producer... more
Jul 13 2018
Peg + Cat : The lemonade problem by Jennifer Oxley and Billy Aronson
Candlewick Entertainment, 2018. ISBN 9781536200614
(Age: 3-6) Themes: Problem Solving, STEM, Mathematics, Cats.
Lemonade stands outside one's house is harking back to a time when
neighbours knew each other, when they supported their kids'
endeavours and there were no worries about... more
Jul 12 2018
Under my bed by John Dickson
Berbay Publishing, 2018. ISBN 9780994384133
(Age: 7+) Highly recommended. Under my bed is a fun picture
book all about those monsters hiding in the dark places of a child's
bedroom. What if the monsters had a party? Would you be invited? It
is your room after all. Imagine lying in... more
Jul 12 2018
It's hard to love a tiger by Anna Pignataro
Scholastic, 2018. ISBN 9781743817582
(Age: 4+) Recommended. Themes: Tigers. Friendship. Difference. Pets.
Our sweet heroine would love to have a tiger to love, just like the
one in the zoo. In pairs of rhyming lines, the story is laid out
from the first page, as the ominous word, 'but'... more
Jul 12 2018
Sweet adversity by Sheryl Gwyther
Angus and Robertson 2018. ISBN 9781460755105
Themes: Acting. Friendship. Australian history. April 1930 finds 12
year-old Adversity McAllister in Emu Swamp Children's Home where her
parents left her temporarily while they sought work for their
theatrical troupe. She and her pet cockatiel... more
Jul 12 2018
The way back from broken by Amber J. Keyser
Carolrhoda Lab, 2018. ISBN 9781541514881
(Age: 14+) Recommended. Themes: Sibling death. Grief. Wilderness.
Survival. Rakmen's baby sister died and the family is working
through the tragedy in their own ways. He and his mother attend
weekly meetings at Promise House, a support group where... more