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Picture Book Month Bonus # 6: Kip of the Mountain – Emma Gourlay
Harper Collins Australia October 2023 I really think the first adjective that comes to mind to describe this debut novel is ‘astonishing’, in all aspects. The setting is Cape Town, and, truthfully, I struggle to think of any kids’ books I’ve read with this location – although Nick Earls’ book New Boy certainly references South…
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Picture Book Month Bonus #4: A Kind of Spark – Elle McNicoll
Walker Books Australia October 2023 ISBN13:9781913311056 Imprint: Knights Of Australia RRP:$18.99 New Zealand RRP:$21.99 Today I had a train trip to the city which I knew would be tiresome as it was not from my usual station, and therefore longer. As I always do, I took a book with me and I can tell you, I…
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Ruby and the Pen – David Lawrence. Illustrated by Cherie Dignam.
EK Books August 2023 ISBN: 9781922539380 RRP: $16.99 I’m fairly sure that at one time or another, we’ve all wished we had a magic wand to just ‘swish and flick’ to remove any obstacles, problems or annoyances. Somehow, I’d never pictured it as a magic pen though! 12-year-old Ruby is an inveterate cartoon-sketching kid, who…
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Katrina Nannestad: new dresses for old favourites
Harper Collins Australia July 2023 Olive of Groves (Olive of Groves #1) Olive of Groves and the Great Slurp of Time(Olive of Groves #2) Olive of Groves and the Right Royal Romp (Olive of Groves #3) Here comes one of the most popular series I’ve had in my primary libraries, all dressed up in delectable…
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Picasso and the Greatest Show on Earth – Anna Feinberg
Allen & Unwin July 2023 ISBN:9781760296988 Publisher:A&U Children’s Imprint:A & U Children RRP: $17.99 It’s been quite some time since I’ve read a book from Anna, so I was well pleased to receive this one to review (thank you lovely A&U peeps!) and it is absolutely beautiful. There is a lot going on in this…
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Being Jimmy Baxter – Fiona Lloyd
Penguin Australia This is often a very funny book. This is often a very moving book. I ate it up in one sitting because Jimmy’s story is one that demands to be read. Jimmy is not so good with school stuff, and he has a kind of innocence in his thinking that completely reminds me…
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Queen Narelle – Sally Murphy. Illustrated by Simon O’Carrigan.
Walker Books June 2023 ISBN13: 9781760655334 Australia RRP:$16.99 New Zealand RRP:$18.99 Although I have often noted that the kiddos in my libraries are not all that taken with stories in verse, the one exception, always, is Sally Murphy’s books. These have invariably been on a constant rotation in our circulation stats. Clearly, this delightful new…
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The Edge of Limits – Susanne Gervay
Flying Elephant Media November 2022 ISBN: 9780648203551 RRP: $15.99 Susanne Gervay is no stranger to tackling difficult topics in her books and this one, is possibly one of the trickiest to navigate and pull off successfully, with the utmost sensitivity and awareness for the audience. The topic of consent, consensual relationships, toxic masculinity and the explosion…
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James Gong: the Chinese Dragon – Paul Collins
Hybrid Publishers February 2022 ISBN: 9781925736793 RRP: $16.99 Your middle school kids will love this second instalment of James Gong (see James Gong: The Big Hit if you missed the first). Paul Collins has drawn on his experiences as a martial arts expert to bring another action-packed episode in the life of James Gong to…
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When the War Came Home – Lesley Parr
Bloomsbury Australia March 2022 ISBN: 9781526621009 Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing. Imprint: Bloomsbury Children’s Books RRP: $14.99 A year ago I reviewed my first Lesley Parr historical fiction and absolutely loved it – I book-talked it for weeks afterwards to my kiddos, many of whom also enjoyed it hugely. So I was most excited to receive this…
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