Fire Reads, 2022. ISBN: 9781728222325. (Age:Young Adult) Recommended.
After a high-school prank goes wrong, leaving her vilified on social media, 18 year-old Riley Ozment decides that the best way to redeem her reputation is to sign up for a reality TV show that she hopes will portray her in a more positive light.
Transported to the TV set on a small island off the coast of Brazil, she and nineteen other teenage contestants must divide into two teams to complete challenges, and avoid eviction. They also learn that the island may harbour a deadly curse, as well as a hidden cache of Spanish gold that they can search for using an old map and cryptic clues. In this, Riley is ahead of the game, as she had previously visited the island with her treasure-hunting father and mysteriously murdered godfather, and has access to an internet-based treasure-hunter chat group.
Written from Riley’s point of view, she is soon as concerned about how she will appear to the other contestants and the TV viewers, as she was about her social media profile. She is constantly worried about making and being abandoned by friends, misplacing trust, and being judged. In this, she and several of the other characters are drawn realistically and sympathetically, mirroring what many of today’s teens experience.
The plot itself is convoluted, with a large cast of characters and a number of surprising twists as their schemes and motives are slowly revealed. The descriptions of behind-the-scenes conditions and machinations are a sobering insight into reality TV. The daily challenges and clandestine dashes around the island following the treasure clues keep the plot moving, and as alliances are formed and romances develop, manipulation, deception and rejection follow.
Originally published as Reality Gold in 2018, the book was promoted as Survivor meets Lord of the Flies. Readers expecting something as edgy as either of these, may be a little underwhelmed, but it is a well-paced adventure with enough action to keep you turning the pages.
Allen & Unwin, 2022. ISBN: 9781760877026. (Age:8-12) Highly recommended.
Living on an isolated property near a remote township in the Pilbara WA, 13 year old Mia finds herself home alone when her mother has to make an unscheduled vet visit to another property. While she is away, an alert is issued for Cyclone Veronica and Mia has to make herself and a household full of farm and rescue animals safe. While weathering the terrifying winds, she successfully protects the house and property, provides first aid to a neighbour, and saves an injured horse.
As it becomes apparent that climate change is responsible for many of the environmental issues that she is concerned about, Mia finds an inner strength, and realises that there are various ways that she and her friends can make positive change.
Both compassionate and capable, Mia suffers anxiety and panic attacks, and is also worrying about whether the arrival of a new girl in town is affecting her relationship with her two best friends, her emerging feelings for her friend Nick, and preparing her persuasive speech for her English class.
This is a simply told but engrossing story that contains many issues that would resonate with readers, together with possible solutions that teens could take on board. As the plot develops, we learn a lot about animals and their care, life in the outback, techniques for dealing with anxiety, effects of climate change, and cyclones. A number of scenes describe animal injury and death, but Mia deals with these with a common sense and can-do attitude.
Without making them the focus of the book, Wolfer seamlessly weaves details about local history, geography and climate, aboriginal sites, the mining industry and tourism into Mia’s story.
The book concludes with Author’s Notes outlining the background facts on which the story is based, a timeline of Cyclone Veronica’s 2019 movements, and resources for further information.
Mia is one in the series of Through My Eyes; Australian Disaster Zones, and teaching notes are available here and here.
This is a heart-warming and believable story: a fine example of writing that both educates and entertains the reader.
In a world where many young people have lived powerless existences in tunnels and hideouts as ‘human rats’, a new Administration and charismatic leader has emerged that implies that she has a solution to the woes that the young teenagers have faced. Taking Ally, her boyfriend Bon, and her friends out of the tunnels and into the re-purposed and commandeered buildings of former high-class hotels, they are set to work in virtual servitude, but always with the promise that better things will come. The discovery of lies that have been told and the fear that they are being used, leads them to take risks to uncover the truth and give them autonomy over their lives. But while they are ‘under guard’ and useful, any action in defiance of authority may also lead to their death. And what is the significance of the symbol of the moth? And where has Bon gone? And can Ally protect her friends by finding answers to questions or has she been conned by deceivers?
This is a book for lovers of Dystopian fiction, as it has a similar feisty female lead character as The Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins) and The List (Patricia Forde) and the same undercurrent of fear that pervades many Dystopian dramas. There is certainly a real violence that the characters face and the difficulties of prioritising protecting self or fighting against the unscrupulous administration, or coping with the attitudes of fellow citizens who see them only as ‘rats’ or filth, all create a real dramatic background to the storyline. The drama escalates as the teens start to unravel the threads of their existence and the pace increases to the last page, where we realise that there is no immediate conclusion and we must wait for the next book to be published in April 2023! I almost wanted to scream as I was really enjoying this reading journey and had become invested in Ally’s rage against the forces at work against her and her friends. I was whole-heartedly going to recommend this book for teen readers, but I almost want them to wait for the publication of the conclusion, or they too will be left hanging in frustration as I was. Despite that, if you know a reader who is desperate to 'read another book like The Hunger Games', they will also be entranced by The Snow Laundry. Let them devour it now and then re-read it before the April 2023 release.
Highly recommended.
Themes Homelessness, Dystopian society, Human experimentation, Powerlessness, LGBTIQ+.
With the mobility of population in our current age, increasing numbers of children face a lot of change. For schools a mobile student population is so common that it is unremarkable. This does not however diminish the fact that being that new person is always difficult. Hence there is a growth in numbers of books that deal with change. How to be the new person by Anna Branford is such a book.
Branford is author of the equally delightful series about Violet Mackerel. How to be the new person, is told through the clear eyes of ten-year old Hazel Morrison. Hazel loves to secretly make up instructional videos for doing all sorts of things. In the opening of the story this habit is becoming quite frenetic as Hazel feels the residual effect of her family going through a very hard time with Hazel’s older sister Tess. The reader gains a small, limited window into Tess’s issues as would be the appropriate and normal perspective for a young sibling narrator such as Hazel. Extreme bullying resulting in mental issues for the victim (Tess) is alluded to. So serious is the issue that the family have had to relocate. With such an upheaval and such concern for the vulnerable Tess, the younger sibling (Hazel) is quite ignored. We as readers though have a very real insight into Hazel’s problems which seem to go unnoticed by her parents. Hazel becomes increasingly reliant on repetitive list making and increasingly agitated.
The transition to a new school is skillfully described including the all too common uncomfortable, forced buddy system where the embarrassed newcomer is paired up with an unwilling student “friend”. Because How to be the new person is partially set in a current real-life classroom, projects and books typical of current class work are mentioned including Pearl versus the universe and the verse novel Toppling by Sally Murphy. Literally toppling maybe symbolic of what is happening to Hazel. Both Branford and Murphy beautifully evoke small protagonists learning how to deal with the hard realities of life.
A special aspect of How to be the new person is the important and protective friendship that develops between Hazel and the old lady next door called Veronica. The message that change is not confined to when you are young but rather is a life-long issue that has to be faced again and again is an important one.
How to be the new person is a delightful and easy read for mid-primary school age students and an instructional book about learning to accept and deal with change.
There are eleven word for love in the Arabic language and each of these is shown in this impressive picture book, as a family flees their homeland for safety in another country. They carry only a small suitcase, but it is full of the love shared between the members on the family. Their journey reveals the love between friends, that sudden feeling of love when a new baby appears, or the love of strangers showing kindness. Each form of love is shared with the readers, showing the Arabic word and calligraphy for that word. So kindness is al-Hanaan, love between friends, al-Wid. The family knows all the words for love as they become refugees searching for safety. In fleeing they recall cherished moments, particularly of people who have died, and of those who have died on their journey. They recall the love that hits you, the love that keeps growing, the love that makes you yearn for your homeland left behind, but wanting to go back one more time.
All the words relate to someone leaving their country for another, forced to flee, but taking memories and a connection with them that will stay forever in their heart.
The dazzling illustrations reveal a family with a suitcase of love, pictured in postcards and images from an album, underlining the transient nature of their journey, sending cards to loved ones left behind, taking photographs to send to relatives in their homeland to show they have arrived at their destination and as a record of their family together.
There are more than 50 words describing nuances of love in the Arabic language. And this remarkable book focusses on just eleven. Teacher's notes are available.
Themes Love, Family, Refugees, Kindness.
Fran Knight
Uncanny angles by Sean Williams
Wakefield Press, 2022. ISBN: 9781743058923. (Age:15+ - Adult) Recommended for lovers of Sci-fi.
Lovers of Uncanny Angles will have three things in common – a love of the Sci-fi or speculative fiction genres; a profound appreciation of the pleasure of a good short story; and joy in seeing the world and relationships from completely different angles. Sean Williams is a master in all three of these areas, and this is a book that weaves them together in interesting ways. But it is not for the faint-hearted. Williams incorporates quantum leaps in his sci-fi vignettes that integrates matter transfer and transportation via de-materialisation and re-materialisation through his D-Mat booths or machines and the struggles for individuals in love and relationships as they negotiate time and space. Each story has its own ingredients of futurism and science understanding, but each has an underlying element of understanding humanity’s foibles, and some stories are also seasoned with the addition of alien characters. But they are all stirring and sometimes profound. Some stories link, but all are stand-alone experiences and the sparkling power of a good short story shines through them all.
Williams has also gifted the reader with brief explanations of his own inspiration for each of the stories, and this insight is a joy in itself. An extra potential delight is the opportunity to follow the ‘choose your own journey’ suggestions as the route for reading the stories. This means that the reader does not need to read from front cover to back, but can follow a path based on a preference for a ‘type’ of story or a theme to be explored. This ‘quantum leap’ possibility for reading this book adds a personal interactive quality that is intriguing, but I confess I am a little too conventional to have explored this route as I worried that I might miss a story and consequently have missed the ‘largest gem’ along this exploratory path. I do not really love the sci-fi genre, but can see that this anthology of short stories might bring joy to devotees or introduce new enthusiasts to the possibilities of discursive creative thinking.
Be careful, Xiao Xin! by Alice Pung and Sher Rill Ng
Working Title Press, 2022. ISBN: 9781922033932. (Age:3+) Highly recommended.
Xiao Xin (little heart) longs to take on the world as a Red Fire Warrior. He dreams of adventures outside his home, but is confined by an overprotective family. Brought up to the mantra of ‘be careful Xiao Xin’, he knows nothing else except being rugged up for the cold outside, of being told not to fall or slip or jump. He sees other children playing with their parents, running and skipping, without being told to be careful. When his sister arrives he is told he must watch out for her, not to let her fall, to stop her from trying to walk in case she slips over. He is saddened that she is being overprotected just as he was. But he believes that he needs to fall so that he can walk. He must take a chance. He must show his family that he is old enough to try different things, to act independently of them. So one night as they search the house for him, he tucks his dog under his blankets and leaves the house. He does not slip or fall or freeze and comes home with more confidence. a confidence reflected by his parents.
Sher Rill Ng’s graphic novel style of illustration adds another layer of interest and intrigue. The dark shapes permeate the pages giving an ominous ambience, underlining the dark world which exists outside the home, propping up the family’s fears for Xiao Xin. But in his Red Fire Warrior guise he can do anything, and is able to show his family that with their help he will cope with life away from them.
Inspired by Alice Pung’s home life where her grandmother would rug her up against the cold even in summer, so much so that her arms stuck out like those of a penguin. Pung has created a story to encourage all members of the family to take a chance. And this book is presented in both English and Mandarin. Teacher's notes are available.
Themes Confidence, Over protection, Helicopter parents, Growing up.
Fran Knight
News Hounds: The dinosaur discovery by Laura James. Illus. by Charlie Alder
For readers who love dogs and a little bit of crime or mystery this book is perfect. It is told from a dog’s perspective and is a wonderfully funny adventure story.
Puddle Train Station is run by the stationmaster and Bob is his dog, he is also a reporter for The Daily Bark, a newspaper for dogs. It is up to Bob to ensure the trains run on time and who better to sniff out all the comings and goings of the people and animals than Bob. Bob has his station running like clockwork until he hears about the scoop of a lifetime, someone has dug up bones, and not just any bones – a dinosaur skeleton.
Now Bob’s life is crazy as he and the other News Hounds try to catch a sniff of a despicable dinosaur thief and keep life at the station running like normal.
This is a fabulous first chapter book for children, especially those who know that dogs don’t lie in the sun waiting for their owners to come home from work. It is filled with fabulous illustrations that are sure to engage children and ensure their enjoyment on the story. I loved this book and would thoroughly recommend it for any school or home library as a great first step to reading alone, it would also work as a read together or read aloud but I think this is one that children will want to spend time exploring the illustrations and the imaginative text on their own.
Pan Macmillan, 2022. ISBN: 9781838992262. (Age:4+) Recommended.
Any young child who is interested in dinosaurs will love to join Aimee, a Priddy Explorer, to learn some amazing facts about their world and how to identify them. A very useful Contents page starts off the book and gives a simple guide to what the reader can hope to find: What is a dinosaur? Identifying dinosaurs, In the sea, and a quiz, glossary and index.
Like Space in the Priddy Explorers series, the book is full of fun facts and colourful illustrations to enhance the information given in bite sized portions. Photographs of dinosaur skeletons and maps provide further information while Aimee has a Did you know? section on each double page spread with a fascinating piece of information about dinosaurs.
This a well designed, interesting book about dinosaurs that will be welcomed by young children and very useful in a class discussion of dinosaurs.
Mim and her family live in a caravan bookshop, their horse guides them to where they are needed most and Mim and her family try to work out who needs their help and which book on their shelves is the right book for the right person at the right time.
In the second book of the series written by Katrina Nannestad, Mim has arrived on a Greek Island and everyone is talking about the wedding that is about to take place, everyone that is except the bride and groom! Mim really wants to follow in her father's footsteps and guide people through their book choices to make better choices and change their lives, however every time she tries to convince the bride to read a book another book is chosen. Mim is convinced the wedding shouldn't take place but she feels like she is the only one who can see it.
I loved this story as Mim is trying so hard to ensure that Angelica, the bride reads a book that will convince her to stop the wedding, except that Angelica is reading all the wrong books and so is the groom. The reader will love following along and discovering new facets of the bookshop and learning that sometimes the right book might not be the one you think you should read but the one that falls into your lap.
This is a great story for reading aloud or reading alone, it is an easy read that will engage readers of all ages. Definitely one to add to the list of must reads along with any subsequent books in the series.
Pan Macmillan, 2022. ISBN: 9781838992279. (Age:4+) Recommended.
A young boy named Nick is the Priddy Explorer in the series Priddy Explorers as the author aims to teach young children about space. Nick guides the reader through some amazing facts and illustrations about space. Starting with a comprehensive but simple Contents page (What is space? What is the moon?), the reader is invited to explore the contents of the book, either from start to finish, or popping into a section that is of interest. Children will learn about the sun, moon and stars, the solar system and the planets and can check what they have learned with a quiz. A glossary and index are also included at the back of the book.
The book is a sturdy board book, full of colourful drawings. There are also photographs which illustrate topics like telescopes, artificial satellites, rovers, rocket ships and astronauts and the exploration of Mars. Each of the photographs has a caption with fascinating information which will intrigue readers, and Nick the Priddy Explorer is featured on each double page with a Did you know? question for the reader.
This is an ideal book for the young child who is curious about space and wants to learn more. It would be very useful in a classroomwhen learning about space.
Winner of the 2022 Locus Award for Best Collection, in Even greater mistakes, Charlie Jane Anders has written 19 short stories that span her writing career. The publisher’s blurb states: ‘Here are delightful upending’s of genre cliches, and heartfelt revitalisation of classic tropes. Here is social commentary with teeth, and here are scenes of pants-wettingly funny comedy. Here are characters and situations that by their very outrageousness achieve a heightened realism unlike any other. Here is one of the strongest voices in modern science fiction, the writer called by Andrew Sean Greer, 'this generation’s Le Guin.'
These stories are challenging to read and will be enjoyed by lovers of science fiction and fantasy. The first in the book As good as new, has a survivor isolated in a panic room and she turns the fairy story of the genie in a bottle upside down into a memorable tale. Rat catcher’s yellows is an intriguing take on being a carer of a life-time partner and brings all the heartbreak and diffuclties alive for the reader.
All the stories are original, unique, and often strange. Some are not easy to read but for hard core fans of science fiction and fantasy this will be a compelling collection. Some may like to try her novel Dreams bigger than heartbreak.
Themes Short stories, Science fiction, Fantasy, LGBT.
Pat Pledger
Guinness World Records 2023
Guinness World Records, 2022. ISBN: 9781913484231. (Age:8+) Highly recommended.
Guinness World Records books are borrowed constantly by students of all ages keen to catch up on a variety of quite extraordinary records achieved by individuals and groups. The latest 2023 edition will provide endless reading and browsing.
The striking cover and end papers of year’s book has a space/final frontier theme and indeed the introduction is called Missions. The Contents page this year lists ten chapters to browse through with the headings of Space, Life on earth, Human Body, Extraordinary Exploits, Around the World in 300 Records, Epic Engineering, Entertainment, Modern World and finally the ever-popular Sports. Each chapter lists the topics or people discussed with adjacent page numbers and recognises one Hall of Fame award under each main heading.
In the Around the World in 300 Records section, Australia’s list of six records includes the Lone Pine Sanctuary which is the world’s oldest koala sanctuary set up in 1927 by Claude Reid as well as the oldest rainforest, the Daintree, which dates back to around 180 million years.
Towards the end of the book is a Stop Press section where entries that came in after the closing date for submissions are added. This makes for very interesting reading. Did you know the longest time standing on one leg blindfolded goes to an Australian, 12-year-old Max Petoe who stood for 35 minutes? There is always so much to discover in the Guinness World Records book and this latest edition will fly off Library shelves.
I loved this book, and I really wasn't expecting to. As much as I like Adam Hills, I was expecting this to be another TV star writing a book and it isn't, this is a book with twists and turns that is well written and enjoyable.
The story starts with Charley and her best friend George being accused of stealing a priceless painting, the two friends are enjoying a European tour as Charley is the latest internet singing sensation and George is the one who made her videos. As they continue their tour of Europe and keep up with their schoolwork - they are only 12 after all, they now need to solve the building case against them as artefacts go missing from each place they visit.
Charley and George must face accusations from their schoolmates, principal, and international police forces all while trying to keep the tour on track and convince the adults in their lives that they can handle anything the world throws at them. The two friends work together to solve the crimes and clear their names, even when faced with jealousy and sabotage from others in their class.
This is a brilliant book and would be great as a read aloud or as a class text. It is really well written and will engage both young readers and adults alike.
Where’s Wally? Destination: Everywhere! is the 30th anniversary addition of the ever popular Where’s Wally series. As fans of Where’s Wally will know, his journeys can take him to the past, present and future. This well-presented hard cover edition contains 12 classic scenes from past books which have been given a more complex makeover! These scenes include The Great Portrait Exhibition, Jurassic Games, Cake Factory, Pirate Panorama, Dragon Flyers and finishing with The Land of Wallies. This latest book offers the reader the opportunity to find more things that Wally saw on his travels but with multiple surprises instore. Each double page has a paragraph of information explaining what might be found as well as clues to something that may be hidden, doubled, or changed. So many clever twists to each page. This book would make a wonderful gift for all fans of Where’s Wally.
