Just So Stories

Random Reviews and Ramblings from Redcliffe

  • My Story, Our Country: a First Nations Family History – Ryhia Dank

    Harper Collins Australia October 2025 When I read this, I immediately sent a text to a dear friend, a committed First Nations ally who always strives to teach her class with solid embedded cultural perspectives, that if she only buys one new book to explain Aboriginality, this is the one. I was so impressed with…

  • Bear to the Rescue – Romane Cristescu and Nic Gill. Illustrated by Sylvia Morris.

    Hardback | October 2025 | $ 26.99ISBN: 9781486314904 Publisher: CSIRO Publishing With splendid synchronicity, I had both Dogs with Jobs and this charming new CSIRO Publishing title to review and schedule together! Huzzah! I love it when a plan comes together – even by happenstance. And doubly fortuitous because Bear is one of the Dogs…

  • Dogs With Jobs – Max Hamilton

    Allen & Unwin ISBN:9781761181016 Publisher:A&U Children’s Imprint:Albert Street Books RRP: $19.99 There have been a few books for younger readers which feature assistance dogs of various types, but this one is quite a comprehensive overview. And I certainly learned about a couple of examples, of which I was previously unaware. I haven’t been to the…

  • Australian Lullaby Treasury – Sally Odgers. Lisa Stewart

    Scholastic Australia December 2025 ISBN 9781761643088 RRP: $29.99 [Pre-order from your usual suppliers] Combining all four of the Lullaby stories into one exquisite hardcover this would make a truly beautiful gift for a Small in your circle or, of course, to share with your class of little humans. The gentle verses could easily be used…

  • Aussie Native Plants A-Z – Joey Farrell. Jocelyn Gibson

    This gorgeous book was sent to me kindly from Boolarong Press some time ago – though not as long ago as its publishing date! It has been waiting patiently for Picture Book Month though and it’s timely to sit with some of these others on our rich nature in Australia. I love that this is…

  • Save the Gum Trees, Bees and Big Blue Seas – Luke John Matthew Arnold.

    Scholastic Australia ISBN: 9781760264970 ISBN-10: 1760264970 June 2025 RRP: $26.99 It’s big and bold and beautiful and essentially, it’s a call to arms for even the Smalls to step up and be protective of our precious environment. I love that the artwork – and I’m not familiar with this visual artist’s work – is so striking and…

  • All Aboard! Discovering Sydney’s Central Station – Jackie French. Martina Heiduczek.

    New Frontier Publishing August 2025 ISBN : 978-1-923145-38-2 PRICE : $26.99 As a Sydney kid growing up in the late 50s and 60s Central Station, as was, felt very familiar to me. Not that we regularly went to the city every week or even every month, but we did quite often for special occasions. And certainly we…

  • Our World Full of Wonder – Jevita Nilson/Jess Racklyeft

    Publisher: CSIRO Publishing November 2024 ISBN: 9781486318155 $ 24.99 Sometimes, despite all my good intentions, some books just linger for months tucked away in one of the several tubs/boxes I have for review books. I do have regular re-shuffles, and there are those books that just don’t make the cut for me, and so are…

  • Sid and the Very Hard to Find Squid – James O’Hanlon

    Publisher: CSIRO Publishing June 2025 | $ 26.99ISBN: 9781486319664 To finish off this deep dive into our oceans and marine life is another fabulous title from CSIRO for which all your critter lovers will go wild. Sid, like many kiddos, loves animals of all kinds and is always on the look-out for them. He thoroughly…

  • Ningaloo

    For those of us who have loved Tim Winton’s Blueback since it was first released in 1997 [can you believe that?? eek!], the Ningaloo reef and the continuing struggle to preserve it has always been an issue of real concern. Even The Kid has taken interest since first seeing the film version of Blueback a…