I was lucky to visit a wonderful Australian primary school library this week so of course I borrowed a pile of books. The first three books are new middle grade Australia titles.
The Edge of Thirteen by Nova Weetman
Publisher blurb: Clem Timmins can’t wait to see her best friends after being apart all summer holidays. But when they get back together, things have changed. Bridge is boy-crazy and acting like a different person. Ellie is wearing a bra and having a real-life romance. Clem feels left behind. When she makes friends with Tom, suddenly everyone’s gossiping about whether they’re going to be a couple. Clem’s got no interest in having a boyfriend. Or does she? At school camp, Bridge crosses the line and Clem has to make a decision. Can she keep growing up with her friends when they’re growing apart? This story of fitting in and falling out perfectly captures how it feels to balance on the edge of who you are and who you want to be.
I am curious about this book because the title makes me think it might be a Young Adult title. I have previously also read Sick Bay by Nova Weetman and The Secrets we Keep.
Balloon Girls by Darrell Pitt
Publisher blurb: Times are tough in the small town of Yallaroo where Ally Simpson has lived her whole life. The whole area is in drought and people are going broke or moving away. So when Ally hears about a competition to win the trip of a lifetime to visit the Smithsonian Museum in the USA, she knows she’s got to do everything she can to try and win. Ally enlists her best friends Harmony and Ping to help her plan the most impressive experiment she can imagine: to send a video camera to the edge of space, and prove once and for all that the earth is round. At first, Ally is pretty sure she’s got the whole competition stitched up. But then, as one disaster after another derails her plans, she begins to learn the importance of staying grounded even while she’s aiming for the sky…
Elsewhere girls by Emily Gale and Nova Weetman
Publisher blurb: Cat has recently started at a new school on a sports scholarship, and she’s feeling the pressure of early morning training sessions and the need for total commitment. Fanny loves to swim and she lives for racing, but family chores and low expectations for girls make it very hard for her to fit in even the occasional training session. Cat and Fanny have never met. They both live in the same Sydney suburb, but in different worlds, or at least different times: Cat in current-day Sydney, and Fanny in 1908. But one day, time slips and they swap places. As each girl lives the other’s life, with all the challenges and confusion it presents, she comes to appreciate and understand herself and the role of swimming in her own life. Narrated in alternating chapters by Cat and Fanny, Elsewhere Girls is a moving and funny story of two girls with a deep connection, one based on the Australian Olympic champion, Fanny Durack. It’s a fresh and engaging exploration of the challenges and pressures for young women growing up in the past and today.
The collaboration of two authors is a fascinating process. Take a look at my discussion of To Night Owl from Dogfish by Holly Goldberg Sloan and Meg Wolitzer. In this video Nova and Emily talk about their book.
With my knife by Andrew Lansdown published in 1992
I have talked about this book ten years ago. It is story that has lingered with me so I am keen to read it again. I have discovered this book is still available as a bind up version with the three titles from the trilogy The Chronicles of Klarin. I am not a fan of bind-ups and this one has 400 pages but it is great that keen readers can still discover the magic of this story.
Left Shoe and the foundling by Annie O'Dowd published in 2005 and now out of print
I have talked about this book previously. When teachers ask for read aloud recommendations this is a book that I think about mentioning but then I worry about the desperately sad opening scenes so I thought it was time to reread this book (and the sequel Marigold and the dark). Here are more details on Annie O'Dowd's web site.
Let me whisper you my story by Moya Simons published in 2010
Publisher blurb: Rachel is German and Jewish and living in Leipzig,Germany. Life is good, and revolves around Sabbath meals shared with her happy family.With the outbreak of World War II, their lives are changed. the family are forced to move from their comfortable home into cramped housing, and when the Nazis arrive to finally take the family away they don't know what is to become of them.But Rachel's father gives her instructions that save her life. He also tells her not to speak.Rachel remains quiet for the rest of the war, but what happened to her family? Will Rachel regain her voice now that she really needs it?
And here is a new book not yet published due in April, 2022
Bored: Milo finds $105 by Matt Stanton
Publisher blurb: Hi, I'm Milo, and right now I'm chasing $105 as it flies down my street. The wind is blowing it towards Evie Watson's house, which is very bad news. It's also making for some pretty awkward running. My neighbours, Rocco, Luisa and Zak, must be laughing their heads off. And who knows what's happening with the new kid next door. His name is Frog and he's invented his own type of martial art, which he's not very good at even though he made it up. Finding this much money should have been a good thing, but it is turning into a disaster!
I have already read this book and I loved it - five stars from me. My advance copy says I cannot review this book but I have plans to contact the publisher because I am very keen to tell you about this terrific, funny, truthful, and poignant story. There is a really terrific book hiding inside this cover.
I am editing this post (it is the next day) because I have two more books on my pile.
Born Behind Bars by Padma Venkatraman
Publisher blurb: Kabir has been in jail since the day he was born, because his mom is serving time for a crime she didn’t commit. He’s never met his dad, so the only family he’s got are their cellmates, and the only place he feels the least bit free is in the classroom, where his kind teacher regales him with stories of the wonders of the outside world. Then one day a new warden arrives and announces Kabir is too old to stay. He gets handed over to a long-lost “uncle” who unfortunately turns out to be a fraud, and intends to sell Kabir. So Kabir does the only thing he can–run away as fast as his legs will take him. How does a boy with nowhere to go and no connections make his way? Fortunately, he befriends Rani, another street kid, and she takes him under her wing. But plotting their next move is hard–and fraught with danger–in a world that cares little for homeless, low caste children. This is not the world Kabir dreamed of–but he’s discovered he’s not the type to give up. Kabir is ready to show the world that he–and his mother–deserve a place in it.
I adored a previous book by Padma - The Bridge Home.
How I saved the world by Polly Ho-Yen
Publisher blurb: Billy’s mum isn’t like other mums. All she wants is to teach him the Rules of Survival – how to make fire, build shelter and find food. She likes to test Billy on the rules until one day she goes too far, and Billy is sent to live with a dad he barely knows. Then the world changes forever as people begin to be infected with a mysterious virus that turns their skin grey. As chaos breaks out, Billy has to flee the city. Suddenly he realises that this is what his mum was preparing him for – not just to save his family, but to save the whole world.
I previously read an easy chapter book by Polly Ho-Yen - Two Sides.
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