Reviews

Selfie by Allayne L. Webster

Set in a fictional school in South Australia, this is the story of friendship, online likes, and the battle to find yourself in a constantly shifting environment. Tully comes from a non-traditionally configured family. Her artist mother has left and is now far removed from Tully’s life. Her father’s new partner is now the live-at-home (and work-from-home) mother while her father pursues his busy career in Sydney. Things are complicated. Tully, a high-schooler, is often attached to her phone and besotted with the online world of young influencers and Insta-famous identities. When Dene, an Insta-heroine, arrives at school, Tully loses perspective and abandons an established friendship to get close to the radiance of this online ‘personality’. Dene is both vulnerable and powerful, but it is the ‘like’ culture, the self-promotion of Insta-fame and the absence of perspective in Tully’s life that causes seismic ripples to occur in their lives. What does friendship look like? How can friendship last in a fake, like-unlike world? Who is Tully (and Dene) really when no-one is looking?

This is an appealing teen story about friendship that is complicated by online perspectives. It is both a critique of the falsehood of the selfie and friendship based on the ephemera of a moment-in-time click or hashtag, but also an insight into the world of the influencer and the battles of the teenage years in being able to navigate one’s own path in life, particularly when there are many obstacles in the way and the enticement of the online world is always present. ‘Control-Alt-Delete’ is not an option. Teens will instantly connect with this book. It is not overly complex, but it does address some serious family concerns obliquely as the overarching theme of self-awareness and identity unfolds. The world of teen ‘connection’ and family connection criss-crosses through the story. Teens aged 13+ will enjoy this book. Teacher's notes are available.

Themes Social media, Friendship, Family, Identity.

Carolyn Hull

Selfie by Allayne L. Webster

Year 8 student Tully Sinclair has been picked by new girl Dene Walker to be her bestie. For Tully this is a dream come true as Dene Walker is a social media influencer with thousands of adoring followers. However, for Tully this newfound friendship and all it entails is not an easy one to navigate. Dene is not all that she appears to be and while she offers friendship to Tully she is also very manipulative.

Tully finds herself caught up in a rift with her loyal friend Kira, at loggerheads with her step mum Michelle and brother Luke, while her absent Dad is conveniently working interstate and has little time to be involved in the lives of his family. Running parallel to this is Tully’s angst and grief over her missing artist mother who walked out and left the family.

Throughout this sensitively written story, each character has an important role to play in the often-turbulent relationship developing between Tully and Dene. Tully’s family tries to protect her and encourage her look at other options. Dene exploits Tully’s adoration for her own misguided needs, but the reader will eventually come to realise that Dene is also struggling.

This is a book of complex relationships all beautifully explored by author Allayne L Webster. She shows a genuine understanding of the way social media influences the lives of young people and how so often it can have a devastating impact on relationships. The uplifting ending written for Tully and Dene provides a real sense of hope that relationships in life can be mended. A wonderful read. Teacher's notes are available from the publisher.

Themes Friendship, Social Media, School, Relationships, Bullying, Family.

Kathryn Beilby

Sam's surfboard showdown by Allayne L. Webster and Amanda S. Clarke

Scholastic, 2018. ISBN 9781742991894
(Age: 8-10) Recommended. Themes: Friendship, Competition. Sam Sumner's comfortable life changes with the arrival of a new sixth-grade student, handsome Finn Hester. Sam's the best at the weekly maths pop- quiz, regularly receiving the prized scratch'n'sniff stickers and stamps, until Finn bumps him out of first place. Finn dominates at lunchtime cricket taking five wickets and beating Sam's best score. Even in PE he kicks ten goals for his team, poor Sam feels totally intimidated.
When Finn joins Nippers, Sam's favourite activity in the whole world, he's angry. To make matters worse, Mrs Hester Finn's mother is an excellent cook and her cupcakes are better than Sam's mum's chocolate slice. When the Nipper's coach announces a special competition for all the junior club members, Sam is determined to win and so is Finn. The prize is a surfboard signed by his idol Mick Fanning.
Sam's family live in Robe, South Australia, and his dad works with the council, in environmental protection and has set up gardens with Aboriginal native plants honouring his heritage. Sam's mum is the best cook in Robe, winning prizes at the local show, she also feels threatened by the new mum in town. With touches of humour - the burping scene - and some more emotional encounters, both Sam and Finn learn some life lessons along the way. Sam's Surfboard Showdown is a quick to read relatable story suitable for those students with a high interest and lower reading age.
Rhyllis Bignell

The centre of my everything by Allayne L. Webster

Penguin Random House, 2018. ISBN 9780143783336
(Age: Older high school students) Recommended. Themes: Country life. Alcohol. Drugs. Sexual violence. With the opening words, "My head's gunna explode", we know that we are in Australia. Language, way of life, characters and the issues of country town life, are all vital elements that are explored in Webster's very emotional story.
Told by four main characters in sequential order, the slowly unravelling narrative is confrontational. Webster depicts the issues of modern country towns, the isolation, the lack of jobs, the drinking, drug use and the violence, in a narrative that reveals events slowly, and one that only presents each of the four narrators' understanding of what has happened. Yet slowly we begin to grasp the background story and come to understand the web of relationships, connections and issues that face the local adolescents and their families.
This is not a book for the faint-hearted, as Webster plunges us into the harsh elements of modern country life, the binge drinking, parties with alcohol, drugs and sexual violence. With the depiction of good, loving, kind characters juxtaposed to the angry, abusive characters, we slowly begin to understand the complexity and troubles of the past and present, and the different relationships and families. The adolescents are fearful of the future, knowing that there is little for them in the town, unsure of what they can do when school is over. They are desperate to understand what their lives will be like, given the traumas and the violence to which so many have been subjected.
Told from the perspective of the different characters, this book is vibrant and challenging. It would be recommended for older high school readers, with its description of anger, family troubles, binge-drinking, sexual violence and emotional trauma.
Liz Bondar

A cardboard palace by Allayne L. Webster

Midnight Sun Publishing, 2017. ISBN 9781925227253
(Age: 10-14) Highly recommended. Themes: Poverty, Refugees, Child Labour, Survival. Allayne Webster's A Cardboard Palace is a powerful story giving a voice to the plight of Romany children taken from their parents and forced to work as pickpockets and thieves in Paris. Jorge lives in No Man's Land a shantytown with ramshackle huts made from scavenged materials. It is a life of desperation and poverty. His controller Bill forces his gang of six girls and four boys to steal from the tourists and locals, at ATMs, in the Louvre, and on the Metro Stations. The children are quick-witted, cunning and fast, taught the tricks of the trade by the villainous Bill.
Jorge is torn between obeying this man and trying to protect his friends. There is a moral dilemma and he wants his voice to be heard. While Abel keeps some of the money he steals to buy food, Jorge keeps nothing for himself. Camp life is confronting, a sick child disappears, trafficked children are locked up and twelve-year-old girls sold as child brides to older men. Their parents keen to receive the dowry money.
When Jorge scavenges in a dumpster behind a cafe, he meets Sticky Ricky an Australian chef who befriends him, feeds him leftovers and takes up the fight to free these children from the gang. There are tense scenes as the special taskforce moves in to evacuate the children and the Catacombs setting where friends save the day.
A Cardboard Palace is a modern Oliver Twist story, where one boy's courage, resilience and determination shine through. Allayne Webster's Parisienne setting shows a different reality, one of poverty and hardship. The light and shade of the narrative, the emotional resonance of Jorge's voice and her honesty in portraying these deeper issues, make this a novel suited to more mature readers. In Year 7 and 8 students engaging with this literary text, can discuss the ethical dilemmas presented and the interpersonal relationships of the characters. (ACARA)
Rhyllis Bignell