Dr Bravery clearly states in the introduction to his book that it is about his diagnosis and treatment experiences as a young 28 year old bowel cancer patient, that led him to become a doctor so he could change how the medical system (in New South Wales) treats patients.
The book is a detailed memoir of the author’s early life, family, career, friendships, diagnosis and treatment experiences as well as the training he received to become a doctor.
Dr Bravery writes in an engaging manner (I felt compelled to read the book in two days) and covers a range of personal and social issues as well as medical system concerns.
This book may be of interest to older students wishing to become doctors as it gives a comprehensive picture of what is involved.
'I will send you to a world without men, where thousands of heroines face danger you never dreamed of.' (Page 14)
Ming & Marie Spy for Freedom is the second book for upper middle grade/early YA readers in The Girls Who Changed The World series written by well-known author Jackie French. Ming has angered the mysterious Herstory whom readers were introduced to in the first book, Ming & Flo Fight for the Future. She and her twin brother Tuan are transported back to January 1916 where they face extraordinary danger and hardship but show immense courage.
Set in Belgium, the story begins with Ming and her twin brother Tuan trapped in an underground cellar with explosions and fire all around them. Tuan is badly injured, and Ming leads him to safety with the help of experienced spy, 12-year-old Marie who becomes Ming’s friend and ally. Through Marie, Ming is found shelter, food and clothing as well as gaining a deep understanding of the appalling conditions imposed on the country of Belgium by the invading German Army. Tuan is hospitalised for concussion and a broken leg and is separated from Ming but through the bravery of the secret women’s resistance in the town, they are eventually reunited after a series of horrific events that Ming plays a pivotal role in.
While staying with Marie, Ming becomes part of La Dame Blanche, The White Lady, a group of women and girls who sabotage the Germans at every opportunity. The organisation is very much one that works in complete secrecy - the little you know the better and Ming only follows Marie’s instructions. Her first role for the organisation is to spend time knitting at the train station to monitor the movements of German troops. Within the knitting are a series of codes to be passed onto British Intelligence. It is while Ming is there that she learns of a devastating train delivery taking place one Friday evening. Using knowledge from the future she is able to impress upon the saboteurs that this train needs to be stopped. But at what cost to those who have taken her in.
For those readers who are fascinated by war genre, this story based on true facts is a must read. It is full of danger, apprehension, excitement, and the opportunity to learn about the roles women and girls played in major historical events and can play in the future. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.
Themes Women & Girls in History, Time Travel, World War 1, Danger, Belgium, Resistance, Saboteurs, Hardship.
Kathryn Beilby
Four silly skeletons by Mark Sperring, Sue Hendra and Paul Linnet
Four silly skeletons named Fred, Sid, Belle and Bill live at the top of a very steep hill. Lucky for them their dear old Aunt June lives near the bottom of the hill and she is very sensible. The four do some very silly things, slipping on a banana skin, overfilling the bath, hitting a ball with the tennis racket and smashing a vase. But sweet Auntie June is there to put things right. One night they become entranced with the music that they hear. They dance and jive, leap and swish, all over the top of their hill. Auntie June calls out very sensibly to take a torch but they do not listen, and fall over the cliff. They become a jumble of bones at the bottom of the cliff, and Auntie June must try to put them together again. She gets out her sticky glue and attaches the bones together. But she does not do it at all correctly and the four silly skeletons are arranged a little differently.
This is a very cute rhyming cautionary tale. It reminds readers through a fun story, of taking note of your elders, of taking precautions when out at night, of watching where you are going. It will raise gales of laughter from the intended audience and readers will want to write their own 'Four silly skeletons' verse. The luminous illustrations add to the fun of the story and an astute teacher will have skeletons ready to be cut out and danced across the pin up board, and use the tale to introduce work on the body.
Editor's note: This is the review of the 2016 publication.
Themes Humour, Skeletons, Bodies, Verse.
Fran Knight
The fortunes of jaded women by Carolyn Huynh
Simon & Schuster, 2022. ISBN: 9781761106934. (Age:16+) Highly recommended.
Jade is highly valued in Asian societies for good luck and protection against bad spirits. The necklace handed down in this story is a purple green colour, one of the rarest forms of jade. The Duong women are a multi-generational Vietnamese family cursed by a witch to never know love, to marry poorly, only ever have daughters, and never be able to invite the spirits of their ancestors into their home. The women are also ‘jaded’, the resentment and spite continually spiralling into heated arguments that become fiery and dangerous. Mothers are pitted against daughters, sisters against sisters, and cousins against cousins. The curse has been passed down by Oanh Duong through the years to Ly Minh Duang and her four daughters and then to her eight granddaughters.
The story is told from the perspective of each of these 13 or so women. It’s an incredible achievement – Huynh draws out each of these voices in interleaving chapters. They are each thoroughly rounded and realistic characters that we get to know and empathise with, though I must admit I did appreciate being able to refer to the family tree provided in the opening pages.
The saga takes us from predictions, to a funeral, a pregnancy, a wedding and a birth. The women are ‘dramatic, emotional, loud’. The men they encounter are variations on the white male Asianphiles, Vietnamese ‘Kevin Nguyen’ types, Korean heart throbs, and the American loser guy. There are a lot of laughs, and many farcical moments, as the romantic involvements become one huge tangle, that erupts just when it seems like there might be an opportunity for reconciliation.
Huynh has created a wonderful cast of characters, vividly depicting a community where everybody has their nose in everybody else’s business. It is very funny, but also a heart-warming revelation of the insecurities and loneliness that many women strive to overcome, to achieve the peace or the love that they need, - and such a powerful depiction of the mother-daughter dynamic, and the strong ties that underlay the relationship. It all comes together in an ending that is surprisingly unpredictable yet a satisfying conclusion. Just brilliant!
Wow! What a powerful and memorable story Sedgwick has packed into 131 pages with an engrossing mystery, a missing girl and themes of climate change and friendship. Right from the opening chapter I became involved in the fate of Cassie, a teenage girl who has gone missing. Her friend Fitz is determined to find her, feeling guilty because he had not been there for her before her disappearance.
Cassie has been hearing a hum, a sound that no one else around her could hear and which she claims came from the Earth itself. She tells Fitz about it but neither he nor other members of the band they belong to can hear it. She becomes increasingly isolated and the COVID lockdown has made life very difficult. After being ridiculed at school for her belief in the hum, she disappears. The police are called in, but it is Fitz who tries to follow clues leading to her disappearance.
Told from the point of view of Fitz, the story takes place in Scotland and Sedgwick has created an atmosphere of fear and tension with storms and freezing rain hampering the search for Cassie. Fitz does not believe that she has just taken off to a demonstration about climate change, and must work out why she has left
The feelings surrounding emerging from lockdown and worry about climate change will be familiar to readers who can identify with both Fitz and Cassie. Fitz lives with his supportive father and is trying to navigate his way around his feelings for Cassie. Teens will identify with issues of peer pressure, bullying and wanting to belong to a group, and they will learn with Fitz when to keep quiet about things that are told in confidence.
People interested in Science will want to research The Schumann Resonance to learn about the hum that Cassie hears, while others who like a mystery and want to follow clues will enjoy Wrath, and may like to read other books by Sedgwick like Revolver and She is not invisible.
Delacorte Press, 2022. ISBN: 9780593125014. (Age:15+) Recommended for those who like thrillers.
This is chilling and tense! A teen thriller that scares deeply, with even the awful blizzardy winter weather working to add drama to the plot.
Izzy is one of the few teens in her school and wider community that has not shared on a social media platform her personal fear of the worst way to die. When two teens in her school are found dead in the manner of their published fear it begins a chain of frightening events that seem to have Izzy set into the role of curious enigma solver, with potential deadly consequences. Is one of her classmates the murderer, or has she cast him in a bad light just because of his grumpy demeanour? Who can be trusted? Why aren’t the police able to stop the serial killer from pursuing more victims? This is a very teen focussed murder mystery, set within the world of school-based activities and teen interests. There are mean girls and jocks, but also there are good parents who have rules and expectations and bad parents that cause distress. And into this ordinary USA school context intrudes a mystery killer with evil intent. The police are involved, but Izzy is portrayed as the ‘one’ with the inside wisdom to solve the mystery. This adds an element of unbelievability – surely the police would have been more active in solving the crime and better able to search their small community! The responses and risks taken by individual teens are also a bit unlikely, but because they do, the tension ramps up higher.
With most of the story written from Izzy’s perspective, we see inside her teen logic and the tension she feels. But there are a number of chapters interspersed through the story that are written from the perspective of ‘Fear’, the character assumed to be the murderer. This technique arcs up the tension for the reader. Although this story does have some significant plausibility holes, teens will still engage with the thriller, overlooking many weaknesses because of the fast pace and the strength of the central character. And right to the very end there is uncertainty, fear and concern for all the characters! Although this isn’t great literature (it is not even great mystery writing), it is readable.
Themes Thriller, Murder, Social media, Fear, Mystery.
Carolyn Hull
A little spark by Barry Jonsberg
Allen & Unwin, 2022. ISBN: 9781760526924. (Age:12+) Highly recommended.
For those familiar with Darwin based, award winning author Barry Jonsberg's books including My life as an alphabet and A song only I can hear, there will be no disappointment on reading A little spark Don't let it go out. The title captures the main idea. There is a spark in all of us and certainly in people like 13 year-old Caitlyn Carson (CC) the central character of this story. A little spark is told in the first person giving the reader direct access to Caitlyn's funny, thoughtful and sometimes quirky outlook on life.
Caitlyn is busy trying to hold life together as she lives between the homes of her divorced parents. All the adults in this book are very likeable people; their marriages have just not worked out. Caitlyn has been living happily with her mother and nice boyfriend Sam during the week and going to her father on the weekends. She compartmentalises these parts of her life and keeps both parts privately not sharing either life with her parents. When she stays with her Dad amazing adventures, orchestrated by him, unfold. At school, Caitlyn has a close friend Elise whose parents are going through an acrimonious divorce. Caitlyn is a gifted writer, recognised by the school. She wins $2000 as part of a prestigious writer's award.
This calm flow of life is interrupted when Caitlyn is forced to make an unbearable choice. Very sad and confronting things happen as A little spark moves into the territory that Barry Jonsberg handles with such warmth and skill: love, pain, the mysteries of people and 'a bit of madness and why we need it.'
Difficult subjects are handled well in Jonsberg's hands. I suspect A little spark will be a helpful read for young people who have to witness or experience the detailed stages of divorce as the third party or death or shifting friendships or attempted suicide. Told through Caitlyn's matter of fact and sometimes hilarious voice we see new parental partners presented well, mixed feelings described, difficult dilemmas, pain and sorrow dealt with and the relationships that students have with their teachers and friends powerfully depicted. It will come as no surprise that Jonsberg was a lecturer and head of an English faculty in the UK and is a High School English teacher when the reader sees what insight he has into the lives and thinking of young adults.
A little spark is a captivating read. Be warned- there are heartbreaks, there are joys and there are surprising twists. It is about nurturing that precious spark that is you no matter what life has in store. That is the important message. Teacher's resources are available.
Themes Divorce, Family dynamics, Friendship, Belonging, Identity.
Wendy Jeffrey
A family of strangers by Fiona Lowe
HarperCollins, 2022. ISBN: 9781489298690. (Age:Adult - Young adult) Recommended.
In the wake of a spectacular betrayal, three women are forced to face the uncompromising truths about the choices that have shaped their relationships with those they love most. The consequences will shatter their lives and all they hold dear. After such a disaster is rebuilding even possible? Publisher.
The story is set in Tasmania, and covers the stories of three women and their families. The writing is very engaging, and descriptive. The places and people are all easy to imagine in your mind, and as you read the book you feel as though you know them personally.
The mother / daughter relationships and how each of the characters navigate these relationships give a realistic perspective on everyday human relationships. The central connection between the three main characters through the choir and how their lives and issues spill into each other makes this an engaging read, but still lighthearted despite some of the complex issues covered.
Hot Dog longs to be like all the other dogs he sees on the beach. He would love to have legs, a head, and be able to run and fetch a stick or a ball. Without warning the Mustard Fairy happens along. She has heard him and with a squirt or two of mustard, grants his wish. He has legs and a head, and fetches that stick and goes after that ball and chases his wagging tail. He is thrilled.
But the other dogs can smell something rather tasty. Some can smell a sausage, the others a nice warm bun and their tummies begin to rumble.
Hot Dog runs to the stand where Flo sells ice creams, and asks for help. Without hesitation Flo looks behind the counter and throws ice lollies at the pack of dogs and blasts them with strawberry sauce.
The dogs run off covered in sticky goo. She picks Hot Dog up from the sand and falls in love asking him to be her pet.
A charming warm hearted story of fitting in, Hot Dog finds that being a dog like all the others has its drawbacks. But in the end he finds a place where all his dreams are realised.
In rhyming stanzas, younger readers will thrill to the story of Hot Dog wanting to be like all the rest. They will love predicting the rhyming word, and learn some of the stanzas to read out aloud for themselves. And laugh at poor Hot Dog wanting to be different, but finding himself on the menu.
The illustrations will draw many laughs as the hot dog is illustrated lying amongst other hot dogs on the hot dog stand, but dreaming of a better life. They will love checking out all the delights of being at the beach, and spotting the many animals that also live there. I love the mustard and Flo‘s hair and her solution to finding a friend for Hot Dog. This is a laugh out loud read which adults will be ask to read and read again.
Themes Dogs, Wishes, Dreams, Humour, Beach.
Fran Knight
The house on Pleasant Street by Sofie Laguna and Marc McBride
Allen & Unwin, 2022. ISBN: 9781760526450. (Age:4+) Recommended.
Looking at the splendid endpapers, intrigued readers will wonder what has happened in the exciting tree house to make such holes in the carpet, as the family moves into Pleasant Street just before Halloween. And a most unusual family at that. Their house sits on top of a tree, their pet is a dragon in training and all Alby wants to do is meet the kids and make friends. But with an embarrassing father this may prove difficult.
On Halloween the neighbourhood kids all don their outfits and go door to door. Alby’s parents do not need to dress up and instead of offering a treat all other parents do, Dad pushes Alby to plays a trick. Dalai, normally a bit behind in her dragon fire efforts, conjures a Halloween flash that startles all comers. Abby is mortified, but the neighbours cheer loudly. Alby and his family sit down for their dinner but hearing nosies from the back garden, peer out and Dad is elated when he spies the neighbourhood children playing a trick.
Delightfully illustrated, McBride painting by hand and airbrushing details along with digital technologies, the energetic drawings full of colour and verve, will mesmerise all readers, intent on vacuuming up all the details, looking for Halloween clues in the backgrounds while marvelling at Alby’s family. I loved the endpapers, and loved checking out the details in the house, and their clothing, matching them against other things which make Halloween recognisable. Readers will be able to spot many of the customs associated with Halloween, and join in the fun themselves when their neighbourhood street becomes involved.
In this beautifully illustrated older reader picture book, a father tells of his sadness that his adult daughter is not able to celebrate Chinese New Year in her own birth country. She has her own life in Paris with her husband and while the father is accepting of this, he feels it is important she returns home if she is able.
Throughout the story the father reminisces about his daughter’s childhood and her likes and dislikes. There are wonderful words and images of how Chinese New Year is celebrated but the overlying theme is that father is lonely and misses his daughter terribly.
This picture book is not one to be shared with younger children. There is a deep sadness and melancholy around it and those readers, who during the global pandemic were separated from family members over many months, will be able to relate to the story.
Themes Celebrations, Chinese New Year, Separation, Family, Nostalgia.
Kathryn Beilby
Noongar Boodja Waangkan Noongar first words by Jayden Boundry and Tyrown Waigana
The importance of learning and recognising First Nations language is beautifully represented in this new release, Noongar Boodja Waangkan - Talking on Noongar Country. This brightly illustrated non-fiction picture book is written in Noongar and English and is a collection of first Noongar words. The striking and colourful cover draws the reader to the book and the front endpapers show the area of the south-west corner of Western Australia where the 14 different groups of the Noongar nation live.
For the learner new to the Noongar language, the collections begin with moort (family) and names for ngany (body parts) and moolymari (face). This is followed by names for boodja (country), boorn wer djet (trees and flowers), boodja (land), kep (water) and worl (sky) barna (creatures) as well as bonar (seasons). The seasons are represented by six bold circles called kambarang, birak, boonaroo, djiran, mookaroo and djilba. Throughout the book is the opportunity to learn Noongar words for greetings, feelings, numbers, colours and movements. The final double page spread focuses on Noongar-midi (things) including kitj (spear), wana (women’s digging stick) and woonda (shield).
This is a wonderful book to share with children and to foster an appreciation and understanding of First Nations languages throughout Australia. A Pronunciation Guide introduction is available.
Themes Noongar Language, First Nations people, Western Australia.
Kathryn Beilby
Rise of the School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani
HarperCollins, 2022. ISBN: 9780008508029. (Age:Older Children, Young Adult) Recommended.
Soman Chainani will no doubt delight fans with this surprise prequel to his bestselling The School for Good and Evil series. Rise of the School for Good and Evil is an unexpected but very welcome story for the canon. Set many years before the adventures of Sophie and Agatha, the novel is concerned with twin brothers Rafal and Rhian, one good and one evil, who are the founders of the magical School for Good and Evil. As in the rest of the series, we are introduced to the school through a new batch of recruits; ‘good’ and ‘evil’ fairy tale characters who are plucked from their lives and quite literally dropped into opposing cohorts in the school.
Rise of the School for Good and Evil focuses on Aladdin, a much harder and grittier character than the Disney version. Somehow, this cunning street thief ends up being placed in the good side of the school, setting into motion a series of events that will pit student against student, brother against brother, and have far-reaching consequences for the realm.
It is not necessary to have read the prior books to enjoy Rise of the School for Good and Evil. New readers may in fact prefer to begin chronologically. The novel is as well-written and engaging as Chainani’s other books and fans can be assured of a story true to the spirit of the original series. There is also an intriguing twist in the final pages, which bodes well for those hoping for a future release.
Themes Fantasy, Fairy Tales, Good vs Evil, Schools, Brothers, Identity.
There are two narratives running side by side here that intersect throughout the story. The first character we meet is Rex; he's a dinosaur who has been frozen in ice for millenia but now finds himself defrosted and living in the big city. He is quickly spotted as an outsider by Mr Foot, a Yeti who is doing all he can to pass himself off as a human. Mr Foot convinces Rex that he'll never be accepted the way he is and that he must also pretend to be human. This sets off a humorous journey as Rex learns all the things he needs to be a human and does all the wrong things (he gets fired from three jobs, goes on a shopping spree with Mr Foot's credit card and becomes addicted to cheesy snacks).
The other narrative thread is that of Sandra, a nine-year-old wanna-be detective with triplet baby brothers and friendship troubles. She is feeling a bit neglected by her parents, and her best friend has up and left her for two other friends and they are all being downright mean to her. She does, however, have a problem to solve (that of the mysterious Mr Rex...is he an alien?) and maybe she can make a good friend along the way.
There are definite messages threaded within both narratives about belonging, social isolation and discrimination. In the end, Rex and his animal friends decide to stop hiding and come clean about who they really are and the parents and children who are forward thinking band together to protect each other and their new animal friends. Even Sandra realises that she is important to her parents even through they are very busy with the babies. While quite a long book it does have colour illustrations on nearly every page which will help with engagement. There are many funny moments, although some of the humour may be a bit inaccessible for the lower end of the target age group.
Children of all ages will enjoy this wonderful new book with stunning illustrations by Tania McCartney. It follows on from the first in the series, Plume: world explorer. In this book, Plume: global nibbler, Plume is determined to introduce his penguin friends to foods with different flavours from across the globe. He and Ava the albatross travel on the Albatross Express to a myriad of countries, different from those he visited in his first book, to experience the tastes and flavours of wondrous new dishes.
First stop is Japan where Plume visits Kyo in a sushi bar. Here he learns how to make sushi with a fiery dash of wasabi and gari. From there they travel to Thailand where they taste pad thai. On they travel to Iran where they have roasted corn cobs and kebabs garnished with torshi. In Ethiopia they try injera flatbread and wat curry. In Italy, pizza, and in Sweden kanelbulle. In Morocco Plume is served a fragrant orange cake called meskouta and in Mexico he makes flautas with Valeria. In Hawaii they are shown the art of the poke bowl and finally in Argentina they dip fruit and churros into dulce de leche. A sweet treat to end their gastronomic exploration!
When Plume returns to Antarctica, he and Ava set up a gourmet tasting table from all over the world for his penguin friends to share. They are not so convinced by the tastes on offer until Plume has a clever idea. He adds a secret ingredient to all the dishes and it’s a winning combination.
This wonderful book is a great addition to a classroom and school library. A gorgeous introduction for younger students to the diversity of countries from around the world: the food, the people, the language and the culture.
