Just So Stories

Random Reviews and Ramblings from Redcliffe

  • The Postman’s My Mate – Kelly Louise Jarris. Illustrated by Natalie Herington

    Books on Tour PR & Marketing: Blog Tour  KLJ Books June 2024 ISBN: 9760645535181 RRP: $24.95 There are two things I want to say straight up. I love the stories that are set in outback or remote areas, and while there are a few, possibly not enough. I think the kiddos in those locations love…

  • Leo and Ralph – Peter Carnavas

    UQ Press February 2024 ISBN: 9780702266218 RRP: $16.99 I did have to wait a while to get my hands on this one, but thank you UQP for allowing me to do so at last 🙏. Not only because Peter is a ‘local’, and I’ve had the good fortune to meet with him, but because his…

  • The Last Bookwanderer: Pages & Co #6 – Anna James. Illustrations by Marco Guadolupi.

    Harper Collins Australia March 2024 Synchronicity has been a theme in my life the last few weeks and reading this was no exception. I started reading it two nights ago, the same day I started listening to David Mitchell’s Unruly on audio in the car. I’d enjoyed one of the early chapters in which DM,…

  • We Know a Place – Maxine Beneba Clarke

    Hachette AUG 30, 2023 | 9780734421579 | RRP $24.99 Imprint; Lothian Books To be fair, I probably should have reviewed this when it was Love Your Bookshop Day, but, of course, I have been hoarding picture books for this month. This is just a glorious expression of love for bookshops in general, and, specifically, Maxine’s own favourite bookshop. And,…

  • 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…

  • Sam the Snowman – Laura Mennecozzi. Illustrated by Noemi Cesanelli

    Busybird Publishing October 2023 ISBN: 9781922954466 RRP: $14.99 Those of us still working with children know all too well just how greatly they were impacted by the pandemic, both at the time, as well as with the continuing after-effects. So any book that we can share with Smalls to encourage some reflection on anxious times,…

  • Foxlight – Katya Balen

    Bloomsbury Australia October 2023 ISBN 9781526640437 Imprint Bloomsbury Children’s Books RRP: $16.99 Katya Balen rapidly became one of my favourite authors after reading her debut novel, and I have loved every word in her first three novels, each of these so fresh and original (see my reviews: The Space We’re In , October October, The…

  • Aggie Flea is NOT a Liar- Tania Ingram

    Scholastic Australia September 2023 ISBN: 9781760972547 RRP: $16.99 Move over, Barbie – there’s a new girl rocking the pink all over town, and hers is fluoro! Meet Aggie Flea, whom you will immediately fall for,  because she’s inquisitive, imaginative and completely inept in most situations. Really, she’s a bit like Anne of Green Gables in…

  • Moon Sailors – Naomi Woodward. Illustrated by Rachel Gregg

    Ford St Publishing October 2022 ISBN: 9781922696182 RRP: $16.95 If you are exploring the depths of the ocean or the limitless skies or if you simply are looking for a beautiful lyrical book to share with our kiddos, this would be a wonderful choice. It offers so much for even very young readers with elegant…

  • Peppa Pig: Peppa’s Dragon Adventure

    Penguin Australia August 2022 We can always depend on Peppa and her family to provide us with warm fuzzies, plus imagination combined with happy reality. When George Pig doesn’t want to go to sleep, fearful of bad dreams, Daddy Pig tells a wonderful story about a dragon. Peppa and George enjoy the story so much,…