Kids
Whimsy & Woe by Rebecca McRitchie & Sonia Kretschmar
Reading this book, I felt like a child immersed in a good old-fashioned stage melodrama, barracking for the dauntless Whimsy and Woe and heckling the fiendish villains; through the magic of this story I relived the rapture of childhood.
Whimsy…
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 in a…
In My Room by Jo Witek & Christine Roussey
In My Room is the fifth book in the highly successful series of novelty books that started with the phenomenally popular In My Heart. Our little protagonist is back and she’s got her creative hat on, well, several creative…
The Owl Service by Alan Garner
It begins with Alison hearing a scratching sound in the roof above her bedroom. Gwyn thinks it’s mice but when he knocks on the roof, it knocks back. When Gwyn goes into the roof to investigate, he discovers an old…
The Shop at Hoopers Bend by Emily Rodda
The Shop at Hoopers Bend is the kind of book that’s chock-full of all sorts of amazing coincidences. It starts when Jonquil, who has been staying with her aunt’s PA while waiting to be sent to a summer camp, finds…
Pip and Houdini by J.C. Jones
Pip and Houdini follows the success of Run Pip Run, J.C. Jones’s shortlisted book for the CBCA Book of the Year for Younger Readers 2016 and winner of the Readings Children’s Book Prize. Pip is one of those characters…
The Fighting Stingrays by Simon Mitchell
Adventure, Australian history and the power of friendship come together in this extremely engaging novel about a trio of boys living on Thursday Island during World War II. Charlie, Alf and Masa spend their leisure time acting out Biggles-inspired war…
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 creatures in postal uniforms. Hyacinth finds herself thrown…
The Boy, the Bird and the Coffin Maker by Matilda Woods
When a devastating plague sweeps through his little town, Alberto loses his whole family and the once happy and successful furniture-maker now applies his care and skill to making coffins. But when a mysteriously silent boy appears, Alberto’s life transforms…
Swimming on the Lawn by Yasmin Hamid
It’s a real eye-opener spending time with Farida and her lively family. Told from the perspective of the responsible and acutely perceptive young Farida, Swimming on the Lawn chronicles life in the Sudan of the 1960s; going to school, doing…
Browse our reviews by category
