Just So Stories

Random Reviews and Ramblings from Redcliffe

  • Extraordinary Stories – Katherine Owens

    ISBN: 9781764398640 ISBN-10: 1764398645 May 2026 Contempo Publishing/Katherine Owens It was an exciting challenge to be contacted by Katherine and asked to create some supporting resources for this book, as it is something completely out of my usual repertoire. But this collection of micro-memoirs is such a worthy addition to a library, a counsellor/guidance officer’s shelves or…

  • Small Wonder – Ross Montgomery

    Walker Books September 2025 ISBN13:9781529526127 Australia RRP:$18.99 New Zealand RRP:$21.99 I loved The Chime Seekers and I am Rebel, both of which cemented Ross as an exciting author of adventure/fantasy, so I was very pleased to get this one. What a rousing rollercoaster adventure this one is! Tick has been raised by Grandfather along with…

  • How to Have the Best School Year Ever – Jess Sanders. Art by Andrea Onishi.

    Simon & Schuster Publisher: Affirm Press November 2025 ISBN13: 9781923135949 LIST PRICE: AU$ 22.99 / NZ$ 27.99 This one takes another tack altogether from the previous two reviews. This is intended for any child or class at the start of a new year and is, essentially, a primer in resilience, self-belief and growth mindset. All…

  • Whispers and Roars – Patrick Guest. Jonathan Bentley.

    Simon & Schuster September 2025 Little Book Press ISBN13: 9781923141391 LIST PRICE: AU$ 24.99 / NZ$ 29.99 As if to prove my comments about these two creators previously in this 2025 line-up of picture books, here is a stunning one with them in combination as they were for the acclaimed The Second Sky. And this…

  • The Drought Kangaroo – Jackie French

    Harper Collins Australia October 2025 ISBN: 9781460765197 ISBN 10: 1460765192 Imprint: HarperCollins AU List Price: 24.99 AUD A new Jackie French is always a moment for celebration. When I’m invited to write supporting notes for one, I’m even more excited. This new one follows on from The Fire Wombat and The Turtle and the Flood in the sense that…

  • When the Mountain Wakes – Matt Shanks

    Affirm Press Simon & Schuster August 2025 ISBN13: 9781923419056 RRP: $AU$ 29.99 / NZ$ 36.99 Somewhere, towards the beginning of time, a mountain rose from the ocean and came to rest above the clouds.Life sang a lullaby, and the mountain slept for many millions of years.Until one day, when the world became too silent for…

  • Boys Do Cry – Gus Worland. Illustrated by Heath McKenzie.

    Penguin Australia February 2025 ISBN: 9781761346583 Imprint: Penguin Format: Hardback $19.99 To be fair, Gus Worland, former Triple M breakfast presenter, wouldn’t have initially appeared to be a prime candidate to pull together one of the most successful mental health initiatives in the country. I don’t mean that he wasn’t capable or that he was lacking in some…

  • Courage be my Friend: the Vivian Bullwinkel Story – Jenny Davis

    Fremantle Press April 2024 ISBN: 9781760993726 RRP: $17.99 It would be completely unAustralian to not know the name of Vivian Bullwinkel and to know of her significant role in our history. But I’ll be honest in saying that I didn’t know very much beyond the general details. This is a fictionalised account of Vivian’s extraordinary courage…

  • The 113th Assistant Librarian – Stuart Wilson

    Penguin Australia October 2024 ISBN: 9781761342257 Imprint: Penguin RRP: $19.99 When you get an ARC all wrapped up pretty just like a birthday present, you can be pretty sure it’s going to be an exciting surprise inside and so it was. I mean to say, how could they possibly go wrong sending me something called this with a…

  • Zoom – Dannika Patterson/Ross Morgan

    Ford St Publishing September 2024 ISBN 9781922696427 RRP: $17.99 Some days are just too much… for any of us, let alone Smalls. And it’s not always big stuff that makes them so. Often, it’s more like one not-so-big thing after another until they all roll into one huge dump of misery. As adults most of…