After losing his grandfather, teenager Rintaro Natsuki is left lost and alone - as well as Natsuki Books, a tiny second-hand bookshop his grandfather had loving cared for throughout his later years. As his own parents are gone, a distant family member (an aunty) is contacted to become his guardian. With her living far away, this means that Natsuki Books will close as Rintaro will need to relocate. This is difficult to face, as the shop holds precious copies of rare editons, literary masterpieces, well loved books, as well as memories of his life with his grandfather. As Rintaro prepares for the closure, a talking tabby cat appears and informs him that help is needed from the New Proprietor of Natsuki Books. Rintaro is confused, as he is not aware of a new proprietor, however the cat soon clears this up, stating that Rintaro is 'Mr Proprietor', and that he must help save books. The pair set off into labyrinth after labyrinth, on a mission to save books.
Translated from Japanese, The Cat Who Saved Books is such a delightful, heartwarming story that shows the value of books, friendships and courage in life. With numerous likeable characters, this book is written in third person and the cat's gender is never disclosed, leaving it up to readers to either assign or not assign a gender. A simple urban fantasy, the descriptive writing enables readers to picture the book store along with scenes created throughout the book. As it is set in Japan, the book contains aspects of Japan that all readers will take pleasure in reading. Ideal for those who have experienced loss and its aftermath, those who love books and reading, and those who enjoy a tale where the hero uses book knowledge to help save the day!
Sister secrets by Cate Campbell and Bronte Campbell
Allen & Unwin, 2021. ISBN: 9781760525910. (Age:Secondary)
Cate and Bronte Campbell, successful Olympians, share their journey from their childhood in Africa, where they swam before walking (even though they lived in a land locked country!), through to their family moving to Australia, to their dreams and ambitions of being Olympic swimmers. Detailing their ups and downs, the sisters share life lessons with readers, as well as real world aspects of being a swimmer. Containing numerous chapters with both sisters contributing, this book has more in its pages than swimming alone - life lessons, traps to look out for and the do's and don'ts of social media are just some of the things readers will learn while progressing through the book.
Written by sisters Cate and Bronte, this joint autobiographical book goes from one sister's point of view to the other, detailing childhood memories along with outlining what shaped their motivation to pursue swimming at an Olympic level. Incorporating numerous anecdotes, divided into chapters covering dreams, winning, losing, COVID-19, Tokyo 2020 and more, this personal rendition of the lives of two of Australian's beloved Olympic athletes is an easy read. It is littered with family photos, swimming photos and Olympic images, and has bright, colourful pages. This book would make a good addition to high school libraries. Ideal for aspiring swimmers, as well as for those looking for inspiration or going through a hard time.
Australia has unique and highly endangered wildlife, and the most endangered marsupial is the Gilbert’s Potoroo found in Western Australia. When a bushfire in 2015 ripped through Two Peoples Bay in WA, only seven potoroos survived. One Potoroo: A Story of Survival is a gentle story about one potoroo’s rescue and journey to a safe habitat. After being found, treated for burns and nursed to recovery, the potoroo is taken to the fenced Waychinicup National Park where it can safely source food and be free of predators. It is here that the declining potoroo numbers will slowly begin to increase, and the hope of conservationists is to eventually return the Gilbert’s potoroo species to its natural habitat at Two Peoples Bay.
The striking full-page illustrations by Alicia Rogerson complement this well written and engaging story. The author uses a blend of short sentences intermingled with longer ones as well as a focus on key verbs to add to the reader’s understanding of what is happening. Following the story are detailed facts about the Gilbert’s Potoroo across a double paged spread which also includes further information about other potoroos in Australia. One interesting fact included in the Author’s Note at the end of the book is that forward-thinking conservationists prepared for the threat of bushfire ten years before the actual event by transferring small numbers of potoroos to safe environments in 2005.
This story will appeal to children of all ages and the free Teacher Notes available from the publisher are a very worthwhile resource.
Themes Potoroos, Endangered Marsupials, Australian Animals, Bushfire, Conservationists, Natural Habitats.
These Unlucky Stars, written by Gillian McDunn is a thought-provoking story around the concepts of developing friendships and finding out who you are as a person. Delving into the challenges of growing up in a small town and discovering more about yourself, this story will engage many readers. They are sure to grow fond of Annie, as she discovers some of the complexities of life and explores her connections with others.
Annie lives with her family that she feels slightly detached from. Her mum left when she was young, and her Dad and brother, Ray, are like two peas in a pod. They both enjoy routines, practicality and predictability. Whereas Annie is creative, loves art and her hometown mountains and is prepared to try new and different things. Annie feels a sense of disconnection from others, and she is not sure where she fits in. On top of all that, she has been given the idea that she is tainted with bad luck and bad things will always happen to her.
While Annie questions her place in the world and struggles to connect with others to form friendships, everything just doesn’t feel right. But when Annie makes a spur of the moment decision, her life is turned upside down. Once again, she sees this as just her continual bad luck…. But sometimes what you first think is bad luck, can actually be the best thing for you. And maybe in our lives, it is in fact ‘not luck, just life’ that we experience.
Gillian McDunn has written an engaging and enchanting story. The reader connects quickly with Annie and her journey. The clear and carefully written story, with clever descriptive texts enables the audience to acquire a clear picture of Annie’s feeling and how she perceives each situation. A beautiful story and journey through life, love and learnings.
Rachel’s home and studio is her creative space. Fortified against the outside world, protected by cliffs and the river, surrounded by bushland, it has survived bushfires and dodged the pandemic. Here she forges her glass masterpieces drawing inspiration from the natural world around her. Here her self-sufficiency and routines control anxiety and keep her from a very dark place. With the help of her sister she has been able to build a secure life for herself. All that is shattered when a woman with a baby hammers on her door, frantically asking for help as people are dying everywhere. Not a pandemic this time but panic and fear followed by an 'emptying out' and death. Hannah and baby Isiah are from the nearby town where everyone has died and they find that all communications have ceased. When Isiah becomes ill with a fever they set out upriver to find Monique, Rachel’s sister who is a doctor who will have the antibiotics he needs. As they journey through the Australian landscape the scars of bushfires and climate change are balanced against the beauty and details of nature like the marks on the scribbly gum trunks, or the crimson rosella leading them on. Rachel’s habits of a capable person from a capable family enable her to find the resilience at her core and the women’s survival instincts carry them forward. As they journey on they face a maelstrom of horrors and challenges that dwarf anything that has gone before but the brutal events are balanced by the wonder of our world and art along with the notion that, in the words of the Joni Mitchell song ‘You don’t know what you’ve got. ‘Till it’s gone'. Rachel is the last woman in the world you would think could show such strength and resilience but with responsibility comes selflessness and courage.
There is much to think about in this sensitive and thoughtful novel. The poetry of Mary Oliver is mentioned and it is worth following up.
Mrs Bondarchuk is a loyal neighbour to Mr Louis and Mr Angel in their New York apartment. She is their eyes and ears and not quite the harmless old lady she appears, but then neither are Angel and Louis who, we learn, are associates of private detective Charlie Parker and not averse to killing bad people. “Sometimes this is how it must be done. It’s wrong and it stains the soul, but it has to be, because the other option is much worse.”p76. When De Jaager, an old ‘fixer’ in Amsterdam Louis knew and respected, is tortured and killed brutally, his family raped and their bodies placed in a macabre crucifixion arrangement, Louis realises the killing had to do with reprisal from Serbian war criminals Spiridon and Radovan Vuksan of the Zemun crime syndicate who are settling a few old scores before retreating back to Serbia. Sparked by this, killings come thick and fast; connections are made with people smugglers, money launderers, Serbian mafia and Netherlands narcotics rings and unofficially assisted by FBI agents, Lois and Angel set out across Paris, London, Vienna, London and Amsterdam to avenge De Jaager’s death. Private detective Charlie Parker who must feature in previous books is mentioned and there is some connection to the murder of his daughter but the character plays no role in this book. We learn a lot about Eastern European events since 1980 and I sometimes struggled with the numerous characters all apparently intent on killing each other in the most gruesome way; no sooner do we get to know their names than they are killed and replaced with a new set.
Readers who enjoy the anticipation of horror descriptions and who enjoyed Connolly’s 18 other books in this series will embrace this well constructed thriller but for me the cruelty and self-justification left me feeling diminished.
Themes Crime, Murder, Eastern Europe history, Thriller.
In the prologue Maxine Beneba Clarke quotes Nina Simone that “an artist’s duty . . . is to reflect the times” and that is what this body of poetry does, reflecting themes of climate change, bushfires, Black Lives Matter, Me Too, Covid 19, domestic violence, and other current political and social issues. The opening poem “when the decade broke” refers to many of these issues but provides hope with the concluding lines “suddenly, we were wide awake . . . faces tilted to the sky, watching revolution break”. Similarly the closing poem “fires move faster” recalls the many traumas of the last decade but at the same time finds the hope in the simple things, “zucchini plants flower, sharing a meal with friends”, concluding “we all will fight, to live”. So while there are many fierce and confronting issues that thread through this collection of poems, there is still the hope that we will rise up and take action.
These are powerful compelling poems that address issues that should be front of mind. They wake us up, put into words the issues at stake, and drive us to feel, think and act. The title “How decent folk behave” is a fitting admonition, the line coming from the poem “Something sure” about a mother exhorting her son to not be a bystander, to call things out, be a good man and “lead a bad man home”.
The words are strong and emotive, “the monsters are out”, they recall women's suffering and black people’s suffering; it is “blood-truth” that we need to confront. We feel the grief. The poems are vibrant, and thought provoking; there are many historical references that we need reminding about. It is a volume that has an immediate impact, and will be re-read and discussed and provide inspiration for social action.
Young Joey never tires of saying that Christmas always comes, and this becomes a refrain through this heart warming story of Christmas away from home. The two children discuss what will happen on Christmas Day: they run through the expectation of presents, of Christmas Pudding, a Christmas Tree, but older Ellie is more circumspect in what she says, she doesn’t want Joey to be disappointed, she knows that their life droving cattle on the long paddock is hardly a place where Santa and the trimmings will be in evidence. She reassures him that Santa will find them and Joey hangs the socks out in expectation of the event.
1932 sees the country ravaged by drought and the family has no option but to find scarce water and feed along the road for their cattle. But the children wake early on Christmas Day and do find a Christmas Tree, one laden with ripe apricots, and covered in brightly colourful parrots. They marvel at what they see and an older man comes up behind them to remind them that they are on private property. But he relents seeing clearly two young children in awe of his tree, imagining it to be a Christmas Tree, and he is reminded of his dead wife and her delight in the celebration. He offers the fruit to the children, telling them to ask their mother to come and cook two of his roosters and for their father to make use of the feed that is available on his farm.
And the story wraps up with the family celebrating Christmas in this man’s house, taking in all the things they dreamt of happening. A Christmas shared between strangers, their kindness making sure that the day is honoured.
This beautiful story reveals a multi faceted tale that underpins all the goodness that Christmas evokes; love, sharing, giving, companionship, family. Joey says Christmas always come and it does, in the form of a solitary man on his property alone with his memories of his wife and the things they did together. He is able to share his memories with the family striving to maintain their mob of cattle in the hardest of times.
Whatley’s illustrations are magnificent, recalling a time when droving on the long paddock was the only way some farmers could survive, when times of drought meant families had to make tough decisions. Whatley’s old fashioned nib pen has sketched out detail that rings with the times: the loaded dray pulled along by a tired horse, the old socks hung on Christmas Eve, the sagging fence posts strung together with barbed wire, the sparse memories on the piano, the box of supplies by the fire where a billy boils. Each is reminiscent of times past, and will evoke questions from the younger generation for whom a microwave and fridge, car and new clothes are the norm. The apricot tree is a stalwart in many old gardens, laden with fruit at Christmas, children vying with the parrots for the fruit.
What a Christmas treat.
Themes Christmas, Sharing, Loneliness, Droving.
Fran Knight
Somebody's land by Adam Goodes and Ellie Laing. Illus. by David Hardy
Allen & Unwin, 2021. ISBN: 9781760526726. (Age:All) Highly recommended.
This evocative picture book encourages a different way of looking at our past. This glorious promotion of thousands of years of Aboriginal custodianship of the land we call Australia overturns the two words, Terra Nullius, so etched into old history books and now shown to be baseless, a pair of words uttered through ignorance.
In presenting this book, Goodes, Laing and Hardy aim to fill in the background to the words repeated at ceremonies and events all over Australia today. These words acknowledging the Indigenous history of our country are given more context, one that younger and older reads alike can mull over and digest. Repeated refrains capture our attention as the truth is revealed. The first, ‘For thousands and thousands of years, Aboriginal people lived in this land we call Australia’, is followed by four lines of text which in each instance, covers an aspect of the culture and lifestyle of the Aboriginal people. We see on each page, bold images of people going about their daily routines: making tools, dancing, building, playing, telling stories, eating together, all living on Country. This is followed by a four lined refrain:
When the white people came they called the land Terra Nullius. They said it was nobody’s land But it was somebody’s land.
These repeated four lines will make readers stop and think, to reevaluate, to weigh up what they have believed in the past. The four lines are like a mantra, forming a place in your thought process, impelling a change of thinking, a way of viewing that for some may be uncomfortable. And the book as a whole is a wonderful launch pad for discussions and conversations both at home or school, in play groups or libraries.
Hardy’s vibrant illustrations fill each page with colour and life. An Indigenous illustrator, he has worked for Walt Disney Animation Studios, and has written and illustrated books for Penguin and Magabala. His distinctive style using Photoshop and a digital tablet will thrill younger readers as they view the habitat, lifestyle and country of the people in the book.
I love the touches of white encroachment on the land: the ship, the reenactment of the raising of the British flag on this ‘Terra Nullius’, despite being offered food, the chopping down of trees. Hardy compares what was and what is now with the wide view of Sydney on the lat two pages, contrasting with the pristine bush at the start. I love the image of the dark emu, a reference to the books which have turned people’s thinking on its head in recent years.
I recommend this to people of all ages and hope along with the authors for a future where we will all walk together. Teacher's notes and a guide for parents and carers are available from the publisher.
Let's go swimming on Doomsday by Natalie C. Anderson
Rock the Boat, 2021. ISBN: 9781786079121. (Age:14+) Highly recommended.
Absolutely riveting! This is another gripping thriller by Natalie C. Anderson. If you enjoyed her previous novel City of saints and thieves, let me tell you, this one is even better. It is set in Somalia and is a story of the manipulation and exploitation of child soldiers by a ruthless extremist group. Abdi is a young boy caught in the notorious 'Hole' prison and coerced by American agents into infiltrating the Al Shebaab rebel militia group, in order to save the lives of his family. Despite the remembered warning by his father 'Don’t trust guys with guns', Abdi has no choice but to follow the path of his kidnapped elder brother Dahir, to infiltrate the ranks of Al Shebaab and betray their plans in exchange for his family’s freedom.
The story is told in two interleaving time frames until the past catches up and overtakes the present. It vividly conveys the inner conflict of boy soldiers who know that killing is wrong but who, for a variety of reasons, are drawn to the teachings of the 'Doctor' and the 'General'. Abdi himself is drawn into the daily rigours of military training, developing his physical skills and strategic thinking, working as a team with his troupe of fellow boy soldiers. And while the General is harsh, the Doctor lulls him with talk of holy mission. It seems a very realistic portrayal of the kind of mind manipulation that extremist groups use, and has a parallel in this story with deviant religious cults in America.
Anderson is the first to admit that her novel could be criticised for not being an authentic 'Own Voice', in the vein of books like Prize fighter the story of a Congolese boy soldier, but it is based on her long experience working with NGOs and the UN on refugee relief and development in Africa and draws on the many refugee stories she has heard. It is a believable portrayal of the brutality of fanatical militant groups and the crimes they perpetuate against men, women and children, told from the viewpoint of a teenage boy who has to find his own inner strength and work out what is right.
One of the interesting aspects of Anderson's novel is that there is good and evil on both sides; there are friendship bonds within the child soldier group and some of the values Abdi learns from the Doctor are good, whilst on the other side, many of the actions of the American organisation seem just as callous and ruthless as Al Shebaab. Abdi has to work out for himself what is the right thing to do. That makes for lots to think about and discuss after reading this novel!
Themes Child soldiers, Morals and ethics, Survivor guilt, Cults, Brainwashing.
Have you ever wanted a different future for yourself other than the one laid out for you? Twelve-year-old Tor Luna does. So, on Eve, when his village get a single wish, he wishes that his leadership mark gets replaced with that of a water-breather. He loved swimming, which he still found time to do though he was banned from it, to concentrate on his studies.
The following morning bought Tor unimaginable grief. His wish, or the coin he had touched, he wasn’t sure, had caused his three purple rings of leadership to disappear, but he did not have the water-breather symbol either. He had the curse of the eye which also shortened his lifeline. How could he tell his parents? He hadn’t told them what he had been thinking, and now they will be disappointed in him.
He didn’t have to show his friend, Engle, the sightseer, he saw the mark, and tried to get it off, but couldn’t. Melda thought she could help. Legend says if you touch the mark of the curse, you will also be cursed.
This is the start of their long, arduous journey together. They decided they needed to find the Night Witch, who legend has it is the only one to be able to break the curse. The trio must travel across the whole of Emblem Island and face the creatures they know from the book of Cuentos. They cannot afford to not pay attention to the details if they are to survive. But someone is helping them, who is it? They think it is the storyteller, the author of Cuentos, but is it? He must be long dead.
Their strength and stamina are tested, and their lives are often put at risk. Can they reach the Night Witch before their lifelines end, and get back to their village, where their families must be worrying about each of them?
This is the first book in the adventure series. It is full of action; I found it hard to put down. I can’t wait to read to read the next one.
As the title suggests Kate is a young amateur sleuth. She is on a train journey with her father and her pet mouse Rodney to meet her mother who is studying Arctic seaweed.
Kate takes her detective work very seriously and is inspired by her idol Catherine Rodriguez, and excerpts of Catherine’s advice are included in the novel.
Not long into the train trip it becomes apparent that many odd items are being stolen, gingernut biscuits, gymnastics trophies and ancient scrolls. Kate is very suspicious of cranky Madame Maude who is onboard the train with her cantankerous cat.
Is Madam Maude the culprit and how will Kate discover the truth?
The quirky ending was a surprise for me and I suspect every other reader too.
The novel has a vivid appealing cover and the text is accompanied by the many orange and black illustrations.
This is a fun story with a crime to solve and will be enjoyed by 7- to 10-year-olds.
University of Queensland Press, 2021. ISBN: 9780702263316. (Age:Adult)
After Story is a compelling and deeply moving narrative written by Larissa Behrendt, a First Nation’s writer, lawyer and filmmaker. This is her third novel and begins with a map of a literary tour of England undertaken by Indigenous mother and daughter, Della and Jasmine. This is followed by a prologue from Della reliving the time when she realised her young daughter Brittany was missing.
Twenty-five years on, lawyer Jasmine takes Della on an English literary tour visiting homes and landmarks of well-known writers. It is during this tour that a very young girl disappears from Hampstead Heath which strikes at the heart of both main characters in different ways. The chapters, written in first person, alternate between Della and Jasmine. They give the reader important insights into individual behaviours, thoughts and feelings as well different versions of the same interactions that take place between the two.
Jasmine had hoped that the trip would be a chance for both herself and Della to reconnect and perhaps provide an element of greater understanding on the tragic event in their past which has shaped who they are now. In this multi-layered story, the reader is treated to the wisdom of Della, her connection to her culture and her all-encompassing grief over the loss of both Brittany and her beloved husband Jimmy. Jasmine, who pointedly escaped her small-town life as soon as possible, comes full circle in her gradual understanding of Della’s deeply hidden past trauma and her own loss of connection to family and story. The author has also cleverly interwoven into the story layers, British history and literature, as well as giving an honest account of white Australia’s racist past and present.
After Story is a truly special book and would make an excellent read for sharing in Book Clubs and Book Club notes are available from the publisher. In the final pages of the book are Jasmine’s Tour Reading List and Notes on the Literary Tour which may encourage the reader to take a tour of their own post-COVID or read their way through the extensive book list.
Themes Aboriginal Culture, English Literary Tour, Tragedy, Relationships, Family.
DS Vera Stanhope strides confidently through Ann Cleeves' novels, taking charge, nutting things out, catching the killer, and this one, the ninth in the series is no different, except for the creeping thoughts about her past and the niggle of a small child that she thinks may be related to her, prompting a feeling not usually felt in her bones. But bones are chilled throughout this novel, set in the cold, blustery, snow filled days before Christmas, when Vera, taking a wrong turn during a blizzard, happens upon an abandoned car, a small child still strapped in its seat, the door left open to the wild weather.
She takes the child to the nearest house, Brockburn, a manor house where her father, Hector grew up, leaving under a cloud years before, leaving the family estranged.
Her frosty reception is tempered by the local farmer coming in to report a body out there in the cold, and police procedure moves into top gear. Vera’s cousin, Harriet lives with her daughter Juliet and her husband Mark, an arts director from Newcastle. The house is in disrepair and he is holding a party to encourage local moneyed people to invest in a scheme to revitalise both the house and the arts industry in the region. The guests make an interesting clutch of people for the team to interview and check. But it is the people living nearby that pique Vera’s interest: the tenant farmer and his wife, parents of the dead girl, the housekeeper, former lawyer Dorothy and her husband living in one of the estate cottages, while in the nearby village where Lorna lived with her baby, her mentor, Constance Browne, has disappeared. And over all the question of just who the father of the homeless child night be, brings up all manner of consequences to mull over.
A page turner, the character of Vera is a triumph, a many layered police officer, sure of herself, but with niggles of ‘what ifs’ occupying her few spare minutes, she never ceases to grab our attention. Not one to call for back up she finds herself in several heart stopping situations. This is a wonderful read, the background of Newcastle and the landscape nearby unfolding as the story is read, revealing a dark heart in the lives of this small group of people.
Themes Crime, Newcastle, Vera Stanhope, Succession.
Detective Matthew Venn is called to an arts community in a nearby village in the North Devon precinct of Barnstaple where he works. A number of artists work in studios supplied by local philanthropist, Francis Ley. He lives in the big house, while he rents out the cottages and sheds for private work. The peppercorn rents gives these people a place to work, and one of the cottages is rented by his niece, Sarah and her husband in return for farming the property.
One of the artists, glass blower Eve, stumbles across her father’s body in her studio, murdered with a shard of her glass, setting in motion a procedural crime novel revealing the amount of foot work the detectives do in building a case. Matthew’s two officers, Jen and Ross are filled out more in this story: we find Jen drunk at a party held by a newly arrived resident and her husband, a party where Ley tried to talk to her, but she went home. Ross, an ambitious police officer is learning all the time, taking in details, but a little exasperated by Matthew and his techniques. All is fascinating, the quirks of all involved revealed and dissected, and when another murder occurs, using the same methodology, Venn and his team must take urgent steps. Roger, the CEO of a organisation which seek to protect patients' rights, has links to a suicide at his previous workplace, and here he gains the ire of a family whose son has jumped from the cliff and drowned. Venn and his co workers, interview and reinterview, check out cars, houses and alibis, all intriguing, until the end comes like a battering ram. The truth is heart stopping, and the work done by one man manipulating would be suicides to their graves an appalling concept to take in.
Ann Cleeves' writes so convincingly that the North Devon countryside and its people seem as familiar as does Vera Stanhope and her surrounds in Newcastle.
Themes Crime, North Devon, Artists’ communities, Suicide.
