Just So Stories

Random Reviews and Ramblings from Redcliffe

  • The Library That Made Me: 200 Years of The State Library of NSW: edited by Richard Neville and Phillipa McGuiness

    New South Publishing New South Books 9781761170713 / March 2026 / RRP $49.99 This magnificent volume has been on my shelf for a couple of months now and I have been glorying in dipping in and out of it. I’ve still not quite finished exploring every single page and detail but the time is right for the review to…

  • Scare B’n’B – Catherine Doyle

    Bloomsbury June 2026 ISBN 9781526655141 Imprint Bloomsbury Children’s Books RRP: $16.99 Well this is a complete departure from the previous Catherine Doyle books I’ve reviewed which were all far more magic realism, echoing folk tales and legends and ‘serious’. But this is very different – hilarious fun whilst also taking a good look at family…

  • Blossom Possum: 20th Anniversary Edition – Gina Newton. Kilmeny Niland.

    Well I wouldn’t mind a dollar for every time I’ve shared this delightful re-tell with an appreciative audience over the many years in the many libraries. And it’s never on the shelf unless you keep it in reserve for when you do want to share it. There is something about the familiarity, yet difference, of…

  • Old Bertie – Perrella & Osborn

    Fremantle Press August 2026 ISBN: 9781760996390 RRP: $24.99 This is 100% completely bonkers but I mean that in the most positive way possible. This is dystopia as you’ve never read it before. If you imagine – and forgive me for showing my age – humour such as that of Young Einstein or The Castle – that…

  • The Rainbow Egg: The Tinysaurs #2 – Sally Odgers. Illustrated by Adele K. Thomas

    Scholastic Australia July 2026 ISBN: 9781761723858 ISBN-10: 1761723855 RRP: $14.99 The cutie-pie Tinysaurs are back for their second adventure and this one gets even cuter than the first. Much like Redcliffe for the past month, the Tinysaurs are quite fed up with the endless rain and are very happy to see a magnificent rainbow arching overheard. Surely…

  • Nanny Tobbins and the Midnight Plan – Lucie Stevens

    Harper Collins Australia May 2026 ISBN: 9781460766538 RRP; $18.99 Nanny Tobbins #1 was great fun and liberally laced with solid historical references. Now #2 continues the fantasy six months on with Bertie once again finding herself in the midst of misadventure. The Great Exhibition is over and as the remaining displays and exhibits are packed…

  • The Goodbye Tree – Pip Harry. Illustrated by Christina Booth.

    Walker Books Australia July 2026 ISBN13:9781760658168 Australia RRP:$25.99 New Zealand RRP:$27.99 Forty-six years ago today my beautiful brown-eyed girl arrived very much in a hurry and now it’s over 11 years since we lost her, so this moving and very personal new book from Pip Harry, is especially poignant for me – particularly at this…

  • Reckless: the Saga of Australian Crawl – Jeff Apter

    Allen & Unwin August 2026ISBN: 9781760879792 RRP: $34.99 I will openly admit I was not particularly a fan of Aussie Crawl back in the day. For one thing, I was more absorbed raising small children but my musical tastes, though eclectic as they still are, veered in other directions. But let’s face it, it’s basically…

  • Our History: Hill End Gold – Sue Whiting

    Walker Books Autralia June 2026 ISBN13:9781761601491 Australia RRP:$18.99 New Zealand RRP:$21.99 There’s absolutely no doubt that despite its long existence in the curriculum of every state [I mean to say, it was in the primary school syllabus when I went to school!] it is also always a popular topic with students. And one can never…

  • Freedom Braids – Monique Duncan. Oboh Moses.

    Lantana Distributed by Simon & Schuster May 2026 LIST PRICE: AU$ 24.99 / NZ$ 28.99 While I make a point of sharing own our Blak kids lit books and creators, it is always important to remember the struggles of PoC from other settings and cultures. This is a particularly beautiful picture book which relates an…