Just So Stories

Random Reviews and Ramblings from Redcliffe

  • Q&A with Idan Ben-Barak

    Welcome to Just So Stories Idan, and thank you for your time – you are the first Q&A for 2024 and I am so glad I get to kick off the year’s interviews with someone who is both interesting AND quirky! Yaay! Thanks for having me! First of all, I think many of us would…

  • The Boy Who Slept Through Christmas – Matt Lucas. Illustrated by Forrest Burdett.

    Harper Collins Australia October 2023 To be completely honest, when I first got this one I thought – uggh, another “celebrity” book – so many, most disappointing IMO. But with Xmas coming up, I was determined to give it a go to add to my rather scanty list of new festive releases, and to be…

  • Pink Santa – Tanya Hennessy. Illustrated by Ben Whitehouse.

    Allen & Unwin August 2023 ISBN:9781761180392 Publisher:A&U Children’s Imprint: Albert Street Books RRP: $19.99 Most folks know I/we don’t really do Xmas in a traditional kind of way. Ever since we lost The Kid’s mum, it really has lost more and more appeal each year, even when K was still quite Small. So now we…

  • The Christmas Wish (The Wish Sisters series) -Allison Rushby. Illustrated by Karen Blair.

    UQP October 2023 ISBN: 9780702266362 RRP: $12.99 The Wish Sisters series has already established a following among those young newly independent readers who respond well to everyday family life with an added twist of fantasy and humour. These stories have a flavour that strongly reminds me of E. Nesbit’s Five Children and It, in which…

  • Picture Book Month Bonus #7: Friendly Bee and Friends: Woe is for Worm! Sean E. Avery

    Walker Books Australia October 2023 ISBN13:9781760654382 Australia RRP:$15.99 New Zealand RRP:$17.99 This is my first encounter with Friendly Bee and Friends, but hopefully not the last. As many or most know, I’m not a huge fan of graphics – they just don’t do it for me. But this is exactly the kind of absurdist humour…

  • Madame Badobedah and the Old Bones – Sophie Dahl. Illustrated by Lauren O’Hara.

    Walker Books Australia October 2023 Imprint: Walker Books Madame Badobedah Series ISBN13:9781406384420 Australia RRP:$27.99 New Zealand RRP:$29.99 In case you haven’t yet met Madame Badobedah and Mabel who live at the Mermaid Hotel, you are in for a fine treat. And, in case you didn’t know, author Sophie Dahl has quite the pedigree. She is the…

  • G.O.A.T – Kate & Jol Temple. Illustrated by Rebel Challenger.

    Scholastic Australia Novembeer 2023 ISBN: 9781761292989ISBN-10: 1761292986 RRP: $18.99 You already know if it has the Temple names on it, it’s going to be a fab and funny book that your kiddos will love. And I love their books as well, for off-the-wall absurdist humour and no need to go digging deep (though I’m sure some will…

  • 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…

  • Nothing Ever Happens – Heidi McKinnon

    Scholastic November 2023 ISBN:   9781761298561 RRP: $19.99 Be careful what you wish for is almost always good advice. In this instance, it most definitely is. The text is simplicity itself, but the illustrations are what tell this most hilarious story. ‘Nothing ever happens!’ ‘Every day is always the same.’ ‘Same old rock. Same old shell.’…

  • A feathered funny

    I thought this was quite amusing especially given the timing as it was shared just after my earlier review of Getting to Know the Birds in Your Neigbourhood. And yes, it’s a totally legit story, reported in several news forums here’s the BBC link. #whenbirdsgobad