Just So Stories

Riveted Press

Distributed by Simon & Schuster

October 2024

ISBN13: 9781763526013

RRP: AU$ 17.99 / NZ$ 19.99

What an enchanting story Helen Edwards has created with its rich blend of history, legend, family and love!

Set on Kangaroo Island in the 1970s, Mona McKenna and her little brother, Albert, live an idyllic family life in a lighthouse off the coast of South Australia until a disaster strikes. A fire burns the lighthouse down, their mother is trapped inside and their father, in his attempts to rescue his wife, is both badly burned and also, somehow, disappears from their lives.

Five years later, Mona and Albert are living with their maternal grandparents, caretakers of, South Australia’s oldest and still functioning, Cape Willoughby lighthouse – along with Biscuit, the dog and various wildlife species, including quite often seals and sea lions

The children are much-loved and well-cared for but, naturally, still yearn and grieve for their own parents [as we know well with the loss of The Kid’s mum, the grief only softens around the edges – it never leaves].

Mona is struggling since a recent diagnosis with diabetes, finding it (as so many do) scary and restrictive. She feels sorry for herself with all the do’s and don’ts, and for some unfathomable reason finds herself not just picking up her usual beach treasures, but pilfering small objects from people and places.

When Mona encounters an apparently lost sea lion pup, who strangely seems to connect with her immediately, she and Albert find themselves not just unravelling a long-time legend of selkies, but a family mystery. At the same time, their wondrous home, the lighthouse, comes under threat due to bureaucracy and it seems, that there is not just Mona’s own fears to conquer.

She and Albert, along with their grandparents and a concerned community must come together with resilience and fortitude in a fight to save their home and to protect the sea lions. In the strangest twist of all, the children uncover the long-hidden secret of their missing father. It is a magical tale and family secret for the siblings, but at the same time, a sadly commonplace one regarding the threat to the lighthouse, in the sense that ‘government’ presumes to know best in decisions, invariably based on $$. But as we know, when a community joins together in solidarity, great things can be achieved.

Helen Edwards has really created a seamless weaving together of disparate ideas here: the grief and loss, the legend in real life, history of Kangaroo Island, Mona’s diabetes and her continued anguish, life in a small community and the joy of living close to the ocean and its many wonders.

It’s a thoroughly satisfying read that discerning middle-graders will enjoy, with the author incorporating many instances of her own story and family history. I can see this being a great inclusion in HASS for South Australian schools in particular ,but it will sit equally comfortably in other states provoking rich discussions on the environment, the preservation of history, family and resistance. And by the way, that cover art is perfect! I’m giving it a 5 🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊 rating for readers from around Year 5 to Year 7/8.