Just So Stories

Random Reviews and Ramblings from Redcliffe

  • Don’t Trust Fish – Neil Sharpson. Dan Santat.

    Penguin Australia April 2025 What happens when you blend non-fiction with narrative with absurdist humour? In this instance, you get Don’t Trust Fish – which is a book that will make all kiddos and adults alike laugh out loud because of the sheer anarchic ridiculousness of it all. It is SO my kind of book!…

  • The Locked Room – Adam Cece

    Penguin Australia August 2025 Wowzers! Hold on to your hats, and make sure to get yourself sorted with snacks and drinks for this one because you are not going to want to stop reading it once you’ve started. Let’s say you take a really tricky escape room, mix it up with an ever-evolving game with…

  • Yarn Quest series – Brooke Scobie. Illustrated by Jade Goodwin

    Penguin July 2024 RRP: $12.99 Yarn Quest 1: The Search for the Story Realm ISBN: 9781761345227 So This is an exciting new series that has evolved from a highly-successful First Nations led children’s podcast, incorporating stories written by the Awesome Black team. Author Brooke Scobie is, herself, a queer, auDHD, First Nations author, and this has…

  • Tweet – Morris Gleitzman

    Penguin Australia April 2024 This arrived last Friday (22/3), and on Sunday I took it with me when we went up the coast for two days of R&R to celebrate The Kid’s birthday. I read 240ish pages the first evening with only a break to head out for the birthday celebration dinner. I was a…

  • From the Archives: The Nanny Piggins Guide to Conquering Christmas – R. A. Spratt

    Just over a week ago The Kid and I tootled into the city to see R. A. Spratt’s highly entertaining Christmas Stories. Naturally, Nanny Piggins was a feature – but also Friday Barnes. It was a lot of fun and it was clear that so many of the kiddos present were thrilled to be meeting…

  • Peppa Pig: Peppa’s 12 Days of Christmas

    Penguin Random House October 2023 We all know that Peppa’s popularity remains undiminished and that Littles just never get tired of the Pig family. Continue the fun with another lift-the-flap book that will delight your slightly older Smalls particularly. Starting on Christmas Day (of course) with opening presents and then all the excitement in the…

  • Cricket by Bluey

    Penguin Australia December 2023 We know when the season changes in Brisbane. The jacarandas are blooming and the local cricketers are back in the parks and ovals. Of course, there’s a few other matches on TV as well *wink* and, altogether, we know that spring is here, summer is on its way, cicadas will be…

  • Parcel for Turtle – Shelley Knoll-Miller

    Penguin Australia How absolutely delighted am I that the first ‘Parcel for…’ title I review, so closely reflects our happy place – the beach, and some of its very nicest inhabitants – indeed, practically our neighbours. Each book in this series is a clever, but simply written guessing game for Littles, with absolutely gorgeous comic…

  • Eleanor Jones is NOT a Murderer – Amy Doak

    Penguin Australia September 2023 This is a fantastic new voice in Oz YA, and one that will have your fans of Fleur Ferris, Karen McManus and Holly Jackson very excited. I was feeling a little poorly yesterday, which made for a very good reason to spend a lot of time snoozing and reading – peaky…

  • Mistress Masham’s Repose – T. H. White

    So this is rather a different review, as it’s not for a new release. It is, in fact, for a book that was first published in 1946 by the wonderful T. H. White. I had, of course, read The Once and Future King series. In fact, I first read the The Sword in the Stone,…