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Books I’m buying for kids this year
I’m sure it’s no surprise to hear that a good portion of the gifts I buy each year are books. This year I’m buying for two specific groups of kids – the just turned 10 to almost 11-year-old girls, and the fairly newly independently reading boys. I thought I’d share a couple of the titles I’ve picked out for them. For 10ish yr old girls: – The Audition by Maddie Ziegler My daughter has been watching Dance Moms and is going to love this:Twelve-year-old Harper McCoy has danced practically since she could walk, and she is making her mark as one of the top dancers at her studio. Until her…
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Review :: The Glow by Sofie Laguna, illustrated by Marc McBride
What is The Glow about? Megan and her best friend Li must team up and draw on all their creativity and courage to defeat a strange monster that threatens their town. Megan is obsessed with drawing fantastical creatures and she shares them with her best friend Li who writes stories to go with the pictures. They are kindred spirits with big creative dreams. One day everyone in town – except Megan and Li – is immobilised by a strange glow coming from their phones. Megan and Li are initially frightened and alarmed, but when they realise they are somehow immune, they set out to seek help. Soon a battle unfolds,…
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Q&A with Aussie kids author Jeremy Lachlan
I’ve been reading more and more middlegrade/children’s fiction novels by Aussie authors over the past few years – as my daughter grows our reading tastes seem to be coming closer to each other and this year it’s the category I’m judging for the Aurealis Awards. There are soooo many amazing Aussie kids books and authors – literally someone for every reader to love – and one of my favourite series for kids who love adventure books is Jeremy Lachlan’s Jane Doe Chronicles. Today I’m lucky enough to have Jeremy as a guest here on my blog, chatting about his books and reading and summer. Read on for our chat, and…
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Review :: The Goodbye Year by Emily Gale
I really love books about those times when people – young people especially – are about to step into a new phase in their life, where they are just on the cusp of something new and the story centres around all be bittersweetness of beginnings and endings and change. This is one of the things I really love about both YA and children’s novels, and with a title like The Goodbye Year I had a feeling that Emily Gale‘s latest book was going to hit right on all of those feels! What is Emily Gale’s The Goodbye Year about? It’s the start of 2020 and Harper is filled with anticipation…
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Currently Reading :: The Wintrish Girl by Melanie La’Brooy
I know I keep talking about how obsessed I am with ‘middlegrade’ books at the moment, but honestly, spending any time in the “older readers” section of my local bookshop has me wanting to take a year off work to read them all. I thought I’d pop in tonight and share my current read, because after only 2 days I’m just over halfway through the 400+ pages of Melanie La’Brooy’s The Wintrish Girl, and I absolutely loving it so far. Also, can we please take a moment to admire that gorgeous cover? The illustration is by Lili Uivel, and I love it. I feel like every time I think I’ve…
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Book Stack :: Spooky Reads for Kids
Obviously October is the perfect time for all things spooky, and this year I’ve got a little collection of kids’ books I’ve been saving to read in the lead-up to Halloween. You’ve already heard me talk (maybe more than once) about A Girl Called Corpse by Reece Carter (you can see my review here) – today I’ve pulled together a few other books I haven’t read yet but am hoping to get to really soon, and that I think would make great softly spooky reading for the 8+ yr old readers in your life. These are all books that I’ve bought myself for our shelves (in fact, I accidentally bought…
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Review :: A Girl Called Corpse by Reece Carter
I’m so excited to finally be sharing my review of Reece Carter’s debut children’s fantasy novel, A Girl Called Corpse, which hits shelves today. I have been looking forward to this one from when it was first announced and busting to talk with fellow kids’ book lovers since I was lucky enough to get my eyes on a super early copy (you can see my preview here). What is Reece Carter’s A Girl Called Corpse about? Find the thing the Witches call a treasure,’ says Old Man, ‘and you’ll get back all those memories you’re missing.’ With a body made of wax, seaweed for hair and polished abalone shells for…
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Kidlit :: Itty Bitty Kitty by Maddy Mara
What is Maddy Mara’s Itty Bitty Kitty about? Itty Bitty Kitty LOVES empty boxes, string and sleeping on clean washing. She HATES being called cute. She is almost a tiger, after all! She may still be a kitten, but Itty Bitty is ready to take on the world. And she knows all the Cat Laws. So when a family want to make Itty Bitty their pet, she is NOT HAPPY. Cats choose their humans, not the other way around! This is the very first Cat Law. Join Itty Bitty on three epic adventures. Will she stick to the rules? Or will this kitty make up her own rules for life?…
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Preview :: Wylah The Koorie Warrior and My Spare Heart
The amazing books just keep coming, don’t they?! I feel like there are soooo many titles coming out at the moment, and a bunch this week that are on my ever-growing tbr. I wanted to pop in today to share a sneak peek at two new Aussie kids’ books by First Nations writers that are out this week from Allen & Unwin (who kindly sent me free copies for review) – Wylah The Koorie Warrior: Guardians by Jordan Gould and Richard Pritchard, and My Spare Heart by Jared Thomas. I’m hoping to get to reading and reviewing these ones in the next week, so keep an eye out for that…
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Preview :: A Girl Called Corpse by Reece Carter
It’s not very often that I get my hands on a book quite so far out from the publication date, and even less often do I actually read something as soon as it arrives. Reece Carter’s upcoming middlegrade fantasy debut A Girl Called Corpse, however, is coming out in October, and not only have I already got it on my shelf (massive thanks to Allen & Unwin for sending me an early copy!) but I just couldn’t resist jumping straight in. And let me tell you, friends, this book is worth the hype it’s getting. In fact, it might just be one of the best books I’ve read so far…
