Just So Stories

Random Reviews and Ramblings from Redcliffe

  • Friday Barnes #10: Undercover – R. A. Spratt

    Penguin Australia February 2022 ISBN: 9781761043659 Imprint: Puffin RRP: $15.99 Some readers of this blog may recall my review of the ‘re-appearance’ of Friday and her cronies. My kiddos at school lost their minds when it hit the shelves so make sure you stand back again because the rush will be on. Now that Friday et al are…

  • Young Oracle Tarot

    I’m away up the coast so the Kid can have her surf lesson from last birthday but check out my review of this fab Book on KBR now.

  • Not a Book Review!

    We all know the last two years have, at times, been quite fraught and definitely frustrating. The Kid and I had a trip to Thailand that buckled in the first few months of Covid (still waiting on perhaps some refund from Thai Airways after them going belly-up) ……..our usual annual trip to NSW to visit…

  • Mr. Men [Little Miss] in Australia – Roger Hargreaves

    Penguin Australia November 2021 ISBN: 9781761044342 Imprint: Mr Men RRP: $16.99 These characters are so enduring and still so well-loved fifty years after their creation, that this book will make a fun addition to your collection and, indeed, to your classroom unit on Australia, if you are building up a solid title list for that purpose. The gang…

  • Macquarie Junior Atlas of Indigenous Australia

    My review of this spectcular new teaching & learning resource is live now at Kids Book Review – do NOT miss it!

  • Back to School – or not, as the case may be…

    So I’ve had these ones for a while but thought they would be more usefully timed for the start of the school year so was going to post them next week as Queensland schools were due to resume on 24th January. That was the case right up to a few hours ago when the growing…

  • Two for Littlies – lift-the-flap board books

    Where’s George’s Dinosaur? a lift-the-flap book Penguin Australia January 2022 ISBN: 9780241543542 Imprint: Ladybird Format: Board Book RRP: $14.99 We all know two sure things – little ones love lift-the-flap books – and the thirst for Peppa Pig and family never diminishes! George’s dinosaur is missing – where can it be? – so Mummy and Peppa help him look…

  • You’ll Be the Death of Me – Karen M. McManus

    Penguin Australia November 2021 Really, this author and her books need no promo via my humble opinion, although I am more than happy to provide it. In my library and among my reading circle, these are just unstoppable – particularly so since the series exploded onto the small screens. The teen thriller market is just…

  • Einstein the Penguin – Iona Rangeley. Illustrated y David Tazzyman.

    Harper Collins Australia December 2021 ISBN: 9780008475963 ISBN 10: 0008475962 Imprint: HarperCollins GB List Price: 19.99 AUD This is a fun new read for your kiddos who are moving on from those first easy chapter books to something a little more challenging. Imagine stirring up Paddington stories with Mr Popper’s Penguins with a good dash of Finding Nemo and…

  • Clarice Bean: Think Like an Elf – Lauren Child

    Harper Collins Australia November 2021 ISBN: 9780008470845 ISBN 10: 0008470847 Imprint: HarperCollins GB List Price: 24.99 AUD I am just sorry this one didn’t arrive in time for me to get it read and reviewed before Christmas because it really is a perfect gift to share with a young reader. In her own inimitable manner, Lauren Child, takes us…