Kim Gruschow
Kim Gruschow is the Book Buyer at Readings St Kilda.
Reviews
When Rain Turns to Snow by Jane Godwin
Much-loved Melbourne author Jane Godwin’s newest book is an appealing and emotional novel about families and friendships. Lissa doesn’t know what to do when a boy named Reed shows up on her doorstep …
Notes from an Apocalypse by Mark O’Connell
This isn’t the first time I’ve written a book review while wearing trackpants in bed but it’s the first time I’ve written like that on a weekday morning and in accordance with government instructions…
When It Drops by Alex Dyson
Every bedroom music producer dreams of fame and when one of Caleb’s tracks goes viral after being leaked by a pesky sibling, you’d think he’d be totally delighted. Instead, he’s a wreck. The song is …
Your Birthday Was the Best! by Maggie Hutchings & Felicita Sala
This is a delightful and energetic picture book about a happy-go-lucky cockroach crashing a birthday party. The cake looks absolutely delicious and that’s not at all a surprise because this book is i…
Why Do I Feel Like This? by Shinsuke Yoshitake
Japanese author Shinsuke Yoshitake is one of my favourite picture book creators. From death to getting dressed, he tackles topics for kids in hilarious but extremely helpful ways with cute comic-styl…
The House of Madame M by Clotilde Perrin & Daniel Hahn
As a kid I remember being completely enthralled by Jan Pieńkowski’s Haunted House, a creepy, kooky spooky, pop-up book by an exceptional illustrator. The House of Madame M, by the French creator Clot…
A Little Bit Different by Claire Alexander
Who are the ‘ploofers’? They look like they could be cousins of the Ribena berries, or maybe they are type of baby Pokémon. Whatever they are, I hope these cartoon cuties feature in more books becaus…
Just Because by Mac Barnett & Isabelle Arsenault
‘Why is the ocean Blue? Every night, when you go to sleep, the fish take out guitars. They sing sad songs and cry blue tears.’
And so begins this surreal and gorgeous picture book. A girl is tucked…
The Monster Who Wasn’t by T. C. Shelley
A strange imp boy is born in the underworld. Immediately compelled to escape, he joins up with a hilarious gang of crabby chocolate-loving gargoyles and makes his way above ground to the world of the…
Sincerely, Harriet by Sarah W Searle
This new middle-grade graphic novel from a Perth resident explores loneliness and illness. Harriet is having a tough time, she has moved to a new home in a new city, she’s been unwell and is being sn…
With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo
Emoni has a deep love of cooking. She’s extraordinarily talented in the kitchen and has dreamed of being a chef since she was a child. When a culinary arts course is offered at her school, she is, na…
Pie in the Sky by Remy Lai
Jingwen, his mother and his pesky little brother, Yanghao, have just moved to Australia. It’s not easy starting a new life in a new country and Jingwen feels like an alien. This book is part novel an…
Song for a Whale by Lynne Kelly
Iris is an extremely clever and industrious kid. She spends her spare time fixing up old radios but lately she’s been having a bit of a rough time. As the only deaf student in her school, Iris often …
Love Your Body by Jessica Sanders
Young Melbourne author and social worker Jessica Sanders has written Love Your Body to help prevent negative body image issues in young women. Stylish and fresh, this book is similar in presentation …
The Witch in the Cherry Tree by Margaret Mahy & Jenny Williams
In the back of The Witch in the Cherry Tree there was a recipe: ‘How to Make Gingerbread Witches’. I have very fond memories of my mum helping my siblings and me to make and decorate these when we we…
Sherlock Bones and the Natural History Mystery by Renée Treml
Picture book author Renée Tremel’s first junior graphic novel takes place inside a natural history museum. Sherlock Bones is a very talkative bird skeleton. His best friend is not as talkative. In fa…
The Girl, the Cat and the Navigator by Matilda Woods
We loved Matilda Woods’ first book, The Boy, the Bird and the Coffin Maker, which was shortlisted for our Readings Children’s Book Prize in 2018. Her follow up is another fantastic, lyrical book with…
Two Can Keep a Secret by Karen M. McManus
The author of the bestselling young adult mystery One of Us is Lying has come through with a new thriller that will not leave her fans disappointed.
Twins Ellery and Ezra have been sent to live wit…
Noni the Pony Rescues a Joey by Alison Lester
Alison Lester is truly a legend; time and time again she delivers perfect picture books. Her illustrations are delightful, her text rhymes seamlessly and her word choices never feel forced. Noni the …
A Winter’s Promise by Christelle Dabos
The first volume of this best-selling French quartet has now been translated into English and is available locally. The story is set in a world that is fractured into floating chunks, known as ‘arks …
Zenobia by Morten Dürr & Lars Horneman
This heartbreaking Danish graphic novel calls our attention to the thousands of people who each year go missing or die during migration, particularly those deaths that happen at sea. Millions of Syri…
Catching Teller Crow by Ambelin Kwaymullina & Ezekiel Kwaymullina
Catching Teller Crow is a story told through two unique voices, both belonging to young Aboriginal women. Beth Teller has died in a tragic accident but she stays with her father, who is aware of her …
The Survival Game by Nicky Singer
Mhairi is 14 and on a journey toward her grandmother’s home in Scotland. It’s the not-so-distant future. The ice-caps no longer form and countries have euthanasia policies in place for population con…
Bad Nana: Older Not Wiser by Sophy Henn
Bad Nana is not like Jeanie’s other grandparents. Bad Nana is often up to no good, but she is always good fun. Bad Nana wears a lot of black, and has a pink cat named Liberace. She’s been known to ca…
The Peacock Detectives by Carly Nugent
Cassie is a sweet and inquisitive 11-year-old girl who is known to many as a successful peacock detective. She has been chasing her neighbour’s escaped peacocks (William Shakespeare and Virginia!) al…
All of This Is True by Lygia Day Peñaflor
A group of teens has become completely obsessed with the novel Undertow and they are absolutely delighted to form a close friendship with YA author Fatima Ro after meeting her at a book signing. Afte…
The Price Guide to the Occult by Leslye Walton
I absolutely adored Leslye Walton’s extraordinary debut novel, The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender, and was so excited to read this long-awaited witchy follow up.
Nine generations of …
The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill
The 2017 winner of the Newbery Medal is available to Australian readers in a new paperback edition.
Xan is a good and kind witch. Each year she makes a journey to rescue a child who’s been left in …
The Explorer by Katherine Rundell
Following a plane crash, four children are left to fend for themselves alone in the Amazon. They forage for fruit and bugs to eat, find shelter and build a raft as they try to look after each other i…
The City of Secret Rivers by Jacob Sager Weinstein
She has only just moved to London, but things are already very weird and very dangerous for Hyacinth. After a bizarre incident involving tap water, Hyacinth’s mother has been kidnapped by slimy creat…
News
Meet the bookseller with Kim Gruschow
I like very specific visual catalogues. I like sharp novels that come i…
The Readings Children’s Book Prize shortlist 2020
We’re very excited to reveal this year’s shortlist for the Readings Children’s Book Prize. This prize celebrates exciting new voices in Australian children’s literature for readers aged 5 to 12.
The six shortlisted books are:
Pie in the Sky by Remy Lai The Dog Runner by Bren MacDibble Wombat, Mudlark & Other Stories by Helen MilroySherlock Bones and the Natural History Mystery by Renée Treml …
Jo Sandhu wins the 2018 Readings Children’s Book Prize
We’re thrilled to reveal that the winner of this year’s Readings Children’s Book Prize is Tarin of the Mammoths: The Exile by Jo Sandhu!
Established in 2014, the Readings Children’s Book Prize celebrates on-the-rise Australian authors and is awarded to the book that children will love best. Jo Sandhu’s captivating and cinematic middle-fiction novel, set 30,000 years ago in Lapland, Finland is a …
The Readings Children’s Book Prize shortlist 2018
We’re very excited to reveal this year’s shortlist for the Readings Children’s Book Prize.
This Prize celebrates exciting new voices in Australian children’s literature. This year’s six shortlisted titles are all for readers between the ages of 8 to 12.
The six shortlisted titles for 2018 are:
Tarin of the Mammoths: The Exile by Jo Sandhu Nevermoor: The Trial of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Towns…