Just So Stories

Random Reviews and Ramblings from Redcliffe

Wombat Stew 40th Anniversary Edition – Marcia K. Vaughan/Pamela Lofts

Scholastic Australia August 2024 It’s not that I’m not happy to see yet another old favourite with a new anniversary dress but 40 years!! EEEEK! It’s kind of hard to believe and yet, obviously it is not because apart from anything else, I bought this one for The Kid’s mum when she was a Small…

September 9, 2024
Night Watch – Jodi Toering/Tannya Harricks

Walker Books February 2024 ISBN13:9781760655310 Australia RRP:$26.99 New Zealand RRP:$28.99 With a task to completeand a journey ahead, Tawny Frogmouth calls a drumming call. Moon answers, rising gently over the stubble to meet her and light the way. What a beautiful lullaby of a book this is! as the reader glides across the night sky…

August 18, 2024
Tracks in the Mist: #4 The Adamson Adventures – Sandra Bennett

Rosella Ridge Books June 2024 ISBN: 9780648938240 RRP: $18.00 Sandra Bennett This is the first of this series I’ve read but I definitely enjoyed it, and think your readers would as well, especially those who like a combination of adventure, mystery and family. Although I hadn’t read any of the previous episodes, it wasn’t too…

June 5, 2024
Protectors – Wylah the Koorie Warrior #3 – Jordan Gould/Richard Pritchard

Allen & Unwin June 2024 ISBN:9781761180798 Publisher:A&U Children’s Imprint:Albert Street Books RRP: $16.99 I know there will be many excited readers to see that Wylah is back in her third adventure. This series has taken off and it is really pleasing to see. I recall 25 years ago in my first library having an audit…

May 31, 2024
Walking the Rock Country in Kakadu – Karrire kundenge karribolknan kunwarddehwardde – Diane Lucas and Ben Tyler, illustrated by Emma Long

Allen & Unwin June 2024 ISBN:9781761067860 Publisher:A&U Children’s Imprint:A & U Children RRP: $29.99 Many will already know the magnificent book Walking in Gagudju Country: Exploring the Monsoon Forest, and now there is an equally stunning companion book, coming from the same multiple award-nominated creative team. Look into these lush green bushes.We might find something…

May 29, 2024
An Amazing Camping Trip – Jackie Hosking/Lesley Vamos

Walker Books Australia ISBN13: 9781760654948 Australia RRP: $24.99 New Zealand RRP: $27.99 Jackie Hosking’s excellent rhyming is a byword in the kids lit community and this is another great example. While neither she, nor illustrator Lesley Vamos, are First Nations creators (in fact, Jackie is ‘Nigerian-born Cornish Australian’), I think this is a terrific book…

May 28, 2024
Wurrtoo: the wombat who fell in love with the sky – Tylissa Elisara. Illustrated by Dylan Finney

Hachette Imprint: Lothian Children’s Books MAR 27, 2024 | 9780734421982 | RRP $19.99 I read this charming little book quite a few weeks ago but wanted to save it for this week. The publishers describe it as a cross between Winnie-the-Pooh and Blinky Bill. For me, yes, a little Blinky Bill for sure, but I mostly felt a vibe…

May 27, 2024
The Big Book of Australian Nursery Rhymes – Frané Lessac

Walker Books Australia March 2024 ISBN13:9781760655099 Australia RRP:$26.99 New Zealand RRP:$28.99 Frané once again brings her extraordinary talent to a new picture book that epitomises joy in our Australian wildlife and landscapes, this time for the very smallest of Smalls. For those of us with long experience in literacy and teaching, we know that exposing…

March 22, 2024
Sensational Australian Animals – Stephanie Owen Reeder. Illustrated by Cher Hart.

CSIRO Publishing February 2024 | $ 29.99ISBN: 9781486316892 This new book from Stephanie Owen Reeder is every bit as sensational as the titular creatures! She has taken a very original approach to this factoid smorgasbord, by categorising animals aligned with each of the five (basic) senses. Check out the list of contents below to see…

February 14, 2024
Wombats are Pretty Weird: a [not so] serious guide – Abi Cushman

Harper Collins Australia October 2023 Here in the land of Down Under, we are pretty relaxed about wombats. They are, for many of us, the most loveable buffoons of the marsupial clan. They have been immortalised in literally dozens of picture books, including, so notably, Jackie French’s wombat series, ensuring that our kiddos are pretty…

November 8, 2023