Just So Stories

Random Reviews and Ramblings from Redcliffe

  • To the Moon and Back – Bryan Sullivan with Jackie French

    Harper Collins May 2019 ISBN: 9781460757741 ISBN 10: 1460757742 Imprint: HarperCollins – AU RRP 16.99 AUD In our library we marked the 50th anniversary of the moon landing before the holidays and I was quite taken aback to find that not only did we not have a copy of this 2005 winner of the Eve Pownall Award but that…

  • The Good Thieves – Katherine Rundell

    Bloomsbury ISBN: 9781526608130 Imprint: Bloomsbury Children’s Books RRP $14.99 I have quickly become a fan of Katherine Rundell’s writing. After The Wolf Wilder and especially The Explorer (still the most visited blog post I’ve put up!) it would be hard to ignore such magical and adventurous narratives. Once again Katherine has put a group of…

  • The Pinballs – Betsy Byars

    Harper Collins ISBN: 9780062881786 ISBN 10: 0062881787 Imprint: HarperCollins – US July 2019 List Price: 16.99 AUD   Now in her 90s award-winning American author Betsy Byars first published The Pinballs in 1977. As I re-read this new edition I wondered if she thought that perhaps the fate of some children might improve over time. It seems that the…

  • Diary of an Awesome Friendly Kid – Jeff Kinney

    Penguin Random House 9781760892517 April  2019 Puffin RRP: $14.99   After 13 Wimpy Kid books the series shows no signs of losing any popularity – kids from 8 to 15 are still lapping them up voraciously.  However, if such an unlikely event were to occur, Jeff Kinney has come up with a superb new twist…

  • Startalk with Neil deGrasse Tyson: Young Readers Edition

    Penguin Random House Paperback | $17.99 Published by National Geographic Children’s Books Mar 20, 2018 Middle Grade (10 and up)| ISBN 9781426330872 Neil deGrasse Tyson, astrophysicist/author/TV and radio personality, has been a popular identity for decades and many young readers will know his special blend of pop culture, science and comedy particularly from the National Geographic.…

  • My Name is Not Peaseblossom – Jackie French

    Harper Collins June 2019 ISBN: 9781460754788 ISBN 10: 1460754786 List Price: 16.99 AUD     So as I chuckled my way through this (and truthfully at times snort-laughed) I thought to myself ‘I reckon Shakespeare would entirely approve of this retell’. After all, he did write to entertain or move people but he also wrote to subtly convey…

  • The Puffin Book of Bedtime Stories

      Penguin 9780143796732 July 2, 2019 Puffin RRP $29.99 If you are looking for a special gift for a little reader – and it’s never too early to think about Christmas, let’s face it! – this would be the perfect fit. Eight of Australia’s best- loved picture books from some of our best and brightest…

  • Malory Towers: New Class at Malory Towers: Four brand-new Malory Towers 

      Enid Blyton, Narinder Dhami, Patrice Lawrence, Lucy Mangan, Rebecca Westcott Smith Hachette JUN 25, 2019 | 9781444951004 | RRP $14.99 If there’s anything Enid Blyton readers love more than EB stories – it’s more of them! The prolific writer who created so many memorable characters and series has left a legacy that continues to resonate with new generations of young readers. Now…

  • Malamander – Thomas Taylor

    Walker Books Australia   ISBN: 9781406386288 May 2019 Australian RRP: $17.99 New Zealand RRP: $19.99 Ok, so I’m a bit slow getting to this one (cue: moving house etc) but it is one not to be missed. Two orphans are brought together in the Grand Nautilus Hotel in a slightly odd town known as Eerie-on-Sea. Herbert Lemon is…

  • Pirate Boy of Sydney Town – Jackie French

    Harper Collins ISBN: 9781460754795 ISBN 10: 1460754794 Imprint: HarperCollins – AU May 2019 RRP: 16.99 AUD Just a few weeks ago I reviewed the third in Jackie’s Miss Lily series and now it’s another superb historical fiction, plus I have two others on my review shelf. I begin to wonder when the woman sleeps! Her prodigious output, the diversity…