Just So Stories

Random Reviews and Ramblings from Redcliffe

  • 100 School Days – Deborah Frenkel and Laura Stitzel

    Affirm PressJune 2024 AUD RRP $22.99 ISBN 9781922930385 Thirty years ago when I was first teaching a Year 1 class (actually it was a 1/2/3) Qld preschool was optional, and so Year 1 was the official first year of school. The Smalls diligently coloured a new square each day on their 100 page glued into…

  • It’s Boba Time for Pearl Li! – Nicole Chen

    Harper Collins Australia This was a delightful read and has lots of layers to explore for any astute reader. I have to say I’m not personally a fan of boba[bubble] tea but was willing to try it when The Kid was keen to. As it turned out, neither of us really went for it. But,…

  • Happy All Over – Emma Quay

    Harper Collins Australia April 2024 RRP: $24.99 I’ve had such a backlog of PBs stacked up (two boxes)and not because I didn’t want to read and review them, simply because there have been many MG and YA novels pushing their way into my bedtime reading schedule. My mission over the next few weeks is to…

  • Everything Anxiety Ever Told You is a Lie

    *Well, almost everything! Exisle Publishing June 2024 ISBN: 9781922539991 RRP: $37.99 Just a week or so ago, we went to see Inside Out 2. We loved the first one and had been waiting on this one even more, especially The Kid because she was keen to see how Anxiety was handled. We are a family to…

  • And now…

    Those who are of a certain vintage will remember the olden days when we had intermission in movies. A little pause for everyone to get themselves sorted with refreshment and a pee break – and of course, initially to change the reel. This is one of those but without the snack bar (you can find…

  • From Thoughts Become Words – Gretchen Bernet- Ward reblog

  • Keep the Fire Burning – all year

    Thanks for coming along to NAIDOC 2024 here at Just So Stories. I truly hope you have found something to share or learned something from this year’s posts. I can see by the stats that there have been many visitors and many downloads so I’m guessing some people have found it useful. KEEP THE FIRE…

  • A Very Secret Trade

    Allen & Unwin April 2024 ISBN:9781761066344 Imprint: Allen & Unwin RRP: $34.99 The great Australian silence In 1968, anthropologist W.E.H. Stanner talked in his Boyer lecture After the Dreaming about the “cult of forgetfulness” practiced on a national scale in Australia, which he termed “the Great Australian Silence”– where Australians do not just fail to acknowledge the atrocities of the past,…

  • Backyard Tennis – Carl Merrison. Illustrated by Samantha Campbell.

    Hachette JUL 31, 2024 | 9780734421548 | RRP $19.99 The kiddos with whom I shared Backyard Footy last year absolutely loved it, and we had some very energetic discussion about favourite teams and players. Many of the same children had also loved My Deadly Boots, when I had read it to them. For all your readers who love tennis,…

  • Aboriginal String Games

    Did you play these as a child? My girls did and back then I had no idea they were an Aboriginal activity as well. I learned that later but have shared both the information and the how-to with kiddos in libraries for years. Learn how to play string games Many Aboriginal groups traditionally made patterns…