Just So Stories

Random Reviews and Ramblings from Redcliffe

  • The Girl, the Dog and the Writer in Provence (The Girl, the Dog and the Writer, Book 2) – Katrina Nannestad

    Harper Collins Australia ISBN: 9780733338182 ISBN 10: 0733338186 Imprint: ABC Books – AU October 2018 RRP: 16.99 AUD Young Freja, sensitive and intelligent, along with the hairy hound Finnegan and eccentric crime writer Tobby have left Rome to go to the picturesque village of Claviers in Provence, where it just happens their beautiful friend Vivi has also moved to…

  • The Gum Family Finds a Home – Tania McCartney/Christina Booth

    Publisher:   National Library of Australia Edition:   1st Edition ISBN:   9780642279255 Publication Date:   01 August 2018   Tania McCartney is not only one of my very favourite author/illustrators but also one of my favourite humans. This impossibly talented woman is clever, stylish, generous, beautiful inside and out and passionate about our unique country. It took a while…

  • Bring on the Empty Horses, so the old saying goes…….

    …though these are far from ’empty………..   As my village knows Miss Small has now been riding for about 18 months and is about to compete in her second show tomorrow (last show she got a first in her class of Beginner Rider!) so despite a lifetime in almost total ignorance of riding, except for…

  • The Dollmaker of Krakow – R. M. Romero

      Penguin Random House Sep  2017 | 336 Pages | Middle Grade (8-12) ISBN: 9781406375633 ISBN-10: 1406375632 RRP $24.99  There is war. There is pain. But there is magic and there is hope. I’ve read many books both fictional and non-fiction concerning World War II and particularly the horror of the Holocaust but never have I read one that…

  • The Getaway : Diary of a Wimpy Kid #12 – Jeff Kinney

    Penguin Australia 9780143782797 November 7, 2017 Puffin 224 pages RRP $14.99   Well as if there isn’t always enough going on for the Heffleys on a regular day-to-day basis their holiday plans go completely awry and full on pandemonium ensues!   The Heffley parentals have decided that they are going to completely avoid the stress…

  • Paper Cranes Don’t Fly – Peter Vu

    Ford St August 2017 ISBN 9781925272765 RRP $19.95 Exquisitely poignant and so beautifully written this is a young adult book which will touch the hearts of every reader. There have been other books that look at the lives of young people with life-threatening or terminal illnesses but this is the first I’ve read that really…

  • Opposite Land – Charlotte Rose Hamlyn

    Penguin Random House ISBN 9780143780816 July 31, 2017 Random House Australia Children’s $14.99 Having a really bad first day at a new school and mother/daughter conflicts are nothing new but this new graphic novel for younger readers presents these in a completely fresh style. Readers who enjoy cartoons of the Adventure Time ilk will really…

  • Chook Doolan series – James Roy. Illustrated by Lucinda Gifford

      Walker Books Sometimes it can be tricky finding those transition type books for the little ones who are ready to take on their first chapter books. I have found the Chook Doolan series to be ideal for this and I know that many people will already have some in their collection. Now we have…

  • When We Go Camping – Sally Sutton. Illustrated by Cat Chapman

    Walker Books ISBN  9781921977787 Imprint: Walker Books Australia October 1, 2016 Australian RRP: $24.99 New Zealand RRP: $27.99 This is another one that had slipped through the cracks and shouldn’t have! It’s a really fabulous read aloud that will have little ones bouncing in their seats and joining in the choruses.   With lots of rhyming and onomatopoeia…

  • The Shop at Hoopers Bend – Emily Rodda

    Harper Collins       ISBN: 9781460753668       ISBN 10: 1460753666       Imprint: HarperCollins – AU      On Sale: 24/07/201      List Price: 16.99 AUD When you go to bed feeling a little tired and start reading a new book and then just keep reading it until you’re finished, you know it’s a terrific piece of writing. It’s been a while since…