Just So Stories

Random Reviews and Ramblings from Redcliffe

  • Final Storm – Deborah Abela

    Penguin August 2019 ISBN: 9780143794462 Imprint: Puffin RRP: $16.99 When Deborah Abela started her ‘cranky climate change’ series it was because she was prompted to do so by the refusal of world governments to take action against the obvious and dangerous climatic changes threatening the world as we know it. A decade after the publication of Grimsdon our…

  • Flights of Fancy: stories, pictures and inspiration from ten Children’s Laureates 😉

    Walker Books, April 2019, 80 pp., $27.99 (hbk), ISBN 9781403687858 Quentin Blake, Anne Fine, Michael Morpurgo, Jacqueline Wilson, Michael Rosen, Anthony Browne, Julia Donaldson, Malorie Blackman, Chris Riddell, Lauren Child. Naturally we are not the only ones to celebrate our creators of extraordinary children’s books and this compilation is a real treat. The above authors,…

  • Story Time Stars: Favourite Characters from Australian Picture Books – Stephanie Owen Reeder

    NLA September 2019 ISBN:   9780642279408 RRP: $24.99   During the week the Story Time: Australian Children’s Literature exhibition was officially opened at the National Library of Australia. Judging by the photos posted by many friends it was a superb occasion with the glitterati of our children’s literary creators and supporters in attendance. To commemorate this special…

  • …and the Three Little Pigs…

    Me and my amazeballs library team!

  • Jinxed! The Curious Curse of Cora Bell (Book #1) – Rebecca McRitchie

    Harper Collins August 2019 ISBN: 9781460780169 ISBN 10: 1460780167 RRP: $17.99 Sometimes you pick up a book and it just sparkles! Young Cora is an orphan who was found and raised by elderly Dot. She’d lost an eye with a resulting nasty scar and has a mysterious special bracelet. Dot and Cora are collectors in the virtually…

  • My Culture and Me – Gregg Dreise

    Penguin May 2019 ISBN: 9780143789376 Imprint: Puffin RRP: $24.99 Gregg’s first picture books were contemporary styled versions of traditional stories told to him by his family and elders. They were beautiful, joyous and hugely popular with my readers. This latest diverges a little but is a glorious celebration of First Australian culture. As readers of this blog are…

  • Hooray for Book Week!

      We wear ourselves out getting ready for it – with planning over months and are thoroughly but satisfyingly over it by the time it’s done and yet we wait impatiently for the next year’s theme so we can do it all over again! Our preparations have been underway for weeks and our library looks…

  • Bear Out There – Jacob Grant

    Bloomsbury July 2019 ISBN: 9781526607416 Imprint: Bloomsbury Children’s Books   RRP: $14.99 We all need a friend who will help us out at times and when that friend goes way beyond their ‘comfort zone’ it’s even more special. Bear and Spider are great friends but they are very different. Spider loves being outdoors with the…

  • Roald Dahl’s Beastly Brutes & Heroic Human Beans

    A Brilliant Press-out Paper Adventure Roald Dahl: Illustrations by Quentin Blake Penguin August 2019 ISBN: 9781760891589 Imprint: Puffin RRP: $39.99 Roald Dahl is really like the ‘gift that keeps on giving’ don’t you think? For decades thousands of children have been eating up his stories which all remain as fresh and funny as when they were first published.…

  • Murder Most Unladylike #8: Top Marks for Murder – Robin Stevens

    Penguin August 2019 ISBN: 9780241348383 Imprint: Puffin RRP: $16.99 Yes there are seven previous books but this series has been somewhat of a ‘sleeper’ in my library. Now, however, due to the enthusiasm of several devoted fans it is steadily growing in its popularity. I know that this newest volume will be avidly sought after and the reservation…