The Making of Martha Mayfield by Jo Dabrowski

"I make sets. At least that's what I call them. My sets aren't life-sized, of course. I make them in boxes. ... I've made loads of sets. One of nearly every room in our house. ... I've also made a set for every shop on Charlotte Street ... (and) I've made every classroom I've ever had up to Year Five. ... Oh yes, I made paper people too. ... I use my sets to practice first days of school, excursions and sports days. I've practiced tricky conversations and playdates too. When something is coming up that makes me nervous I do a 'dress rehearsal' with my sets."

Grade five is a time of change for Martha. Mum loses her job. Iris, her sister gets yet another boyfriend, it is the time at school with elections for School Captain, and all of Grade five have to prepare things to sell at a Market Day. Martha is so shy she cannot talk at school, at all. At home she wants to tell her mum about school but she holds back because mum seems so distracted and sad. 

Could Martha run for School Captain? She makes a list from the application form and then she puts the words into two origami boxes - green and red. She has these covered - cares, listens, organised. She needs to find a way to achieve these - contributes, voices ideas, good at teamwork, and confident public speaker. 

About halfway through The Making of Martha Mayfield I stopped to think about the title. Martha does indeed do some making but then a couple of hours after I finished this book, which is a 2026 CBCA Younger Readers Notable title, I realised of course this book is about the 'making' of Martha herself. Martha moves from a very shy and quiet girl who rarely if ever speaks to a girl who finds her voice and a way to express all those terrific ideas she has had bubbling away in her brain and even a way to try out for School Captain.

This book was published in August last year but I overlooked it in many bookshops. The cover didn't really appeal to me but you can see I should not have let this guide me as I have given this book four stars.

The Making of Martha Mayfield is a long book with close to 300 pages of fairly small print so keen readers aged 10+ will need some reading stamina but I did read the final half of this book in one sitting because I become quite invested in Martha hoping she would be able to overcome her shyness and succeed with both the Grade 5 Market Day Project and the bigger challenge of the School Captain elections. In fact as a shy kid with a shy mother some parts of this story really did touch my heart. 

Jo Dabrowski creates four distinct characters:

Martha - "I know why Mum says being quiet is a good thing, and why she goes on about me noticing stuff. She does it to make me feel better about myself. So I feel quiet and interesting, not quiet and boring, which is what the kids in my class think I am. If they think of me at all, that is. I might be good at noticing but I'm even better at going unnoticed."

Iris her sister has no emotional intelligence. The new boyfriend is awful but Iris is so set on having a boy friend she will do anything to please him including taking on a whole new 'goth' style and of course ignoring or dismissing her little sister. There is an awful scene in this book in the chapter entitled 'Sticky Notes' that broke my heart - it is so cruel.

Mum is shy and still grieving the loss of her husband. She finds social situations especially difficult. I imagine she was herself, badly bullied at school. "I picture Mum staying behind, sitting at her machine, too shy to join in." Mum is also a bit overwhelmed by Stella, her husband's mother, who is never short on advice. 

Stella, the grandmother - the girls have to call her Stella not grandma. She's obsessed with Michelle Obama and with looking young and stylish. Stella's character is so well described to the point where I actually did not like her at all. This is so different from most books where the grandmother character is usually compassionate and wise. Stella is so egotistical that she turns every conversation back into a boast about herself. Here is a quote from Stella:

"Stella talks about Dad all the time, without anyone asking. She doesn't tell stories so much as facts. They start out being about Dad but end up being about her. Like, she'll say he was a wonderful son ('He absolutely adored me.'); he could turn the most ordinary event into a funny story ('He got his sense of humour from me, you know.'); people were drawn to him ('He got that from me too,') ... "

I did love creativity of Martha. As you read in the quote at the beginning of this post, she makes models of her home, classroom, and even the shops in her street. These projects are given detailed descriptions in the story - you can almost see her work. And her idea for the market day is brilliant.

Publisher blurb: Martha Mayfield has always been the quiet kid. Martha is, after all, her mother's daughter. The shy child of an even shyer mum. And she likes it this way. That is, until Martha's mum loses her job. And Martha's teacher overlooks her at school. And soon, Martha realises something has to give. Can she really go through life being so quiet that nobody takes her seriously? Should she really keep all her good ideas to herself forever? Putting yourself out there is every quiet kid's worst nightmare, but Martha is determined to make the most of it. And perhaps to make something of herself along the way ...

Click these review comments for more plot details:

The pace is perfect, leading to a dramatic climax that is surprising and very satisfying to read. Kids' Book Review

Whether you’re an anxious fifth grader or not, The Making of Martha Mayfield is an endearing and highly relatable read, with multifaceted characters that you’ll fall in love with. Story Links

Here are the CBCA Judges comments from the Notables booklet:

Jo Dabrowski is the author of two other Notables - Dear Broccoli a 2026 CBCA Notable (Picture Book) and The Thing about Christmas (Early Childhood).

Dear Broccoli

Bravepaw and the Fangstone of Flintfall by LM Wilkinson illustrated by Lavanya Naidu

Titch and her friends Huckleberry, Dollop and their new friend a squirrel named Briar are on a quest to heal a crack in the heart of Alluria. Titch has the Heartstone but ...

"It had been a wise old squirrel who told Titch that the Heartstone was incomplete - that there were other gems out there. One of them - the Clawstone - had hung around the nect of the turtle wizard. But there were more to find, which was why they were on their way to the library city of Lexhelm, to learn more about the Gems of Harmony and the history of Bravepaw."

All librarians and Teacher-Librarians will be thrilled that Titch needs to visit a library! BUT how horrid that they are confronted by armoured silversfish and they are holding the head librarian Master Sticklepin, a hedgehog, captive in his own office. Titch, Briar and Huckleberry fight the silverfish but while some are destroyed many just slither away (I hope we don't mee them again in the next Bravepaw book). 

Master Sticklepin explains to the group about the history of Bravepaw - the first was a rabbit princess named Hazel but more importantly they hear about an ancient monster of pure evil called the Deadroot. This monster is responsible for the danger facing Alluria because every hundred years he stirs again.

Titch has the Heartstone on the top of the staff given to her by Prince Vetiver and she now has one of the four Gems of Harmony - Clawstone. The other three are Fangstone, Dreamstone and Songstone. Titch and her group are now on a quest to find the Fangstone and this will involve a journey deep underground to a crystal cavern. It also means their trust will be betrayed. (Spoiler alert) Why is Clover, a very small, white, delicate looking mouse offering to help them? 

The underground scenes in this third installment are so vividly written I felt utterly claustrophobic. Oh and those awful curseworms are at work again and thank goodness the group rescue and meet Raia, the lavender wolf who I am sure will be back again. 

In 2022 I discovered the first book in the Bravepaw series and I fell in love with the characters and these little chapter books. In 2025 I rushed out to buy the second book and it was an equally terrific quest story. Late last week I saw the author LM Wilkinson and illustrator Lavanya Niadu mention the third book had been published early in March - how did I miss this? 

Yesterday I picked up Bravepaw and the Fangstone of Flintfall and I read the whole book as soon as I arrived home. If you haven't found this series you do need to begin with the first book and please take a minute to read my first two blog posts. I wonder how long I will need to wait for the final two installments. If you work in a school library this book set will look so splendid on your shelves. If you haven't added these to your library make sure you do this now - especially because sadly Book One is from 2022 so, unless it is reprinted, copies could become scarce. 

Bravepaw and the Heartstone of Alluria

Bravepaw and the Clawstone of Rotwood Mire

Is it Asleep? Olivier Tallec

Squirrel and his friend Pock (a mushroom) set out on a walk through the forest to the meadow. They love listening to the birds, especially the song of the blackbird but there is no song. Then they see the blackbird:

"It's lying there completely still. We've never seen a bird so close-up. It must definitely be asleep. So we keep very quiet and wait for it to wake."

The bird does not wake up even after they move in for a close look at the beautiful feathers, even after they whisper to the bird 'Are you asleep?', and then they clap their hands but nothing happens. Three heads are better than two so they fetch their friend Gunther. Guther says they should lift the bird to help it fly but they discover blackbird is too heavy and that's when we read something you and your young reading companion probably suspected:

"That's when Pock says maybe the blackbird is dead."

Here is an interview with Olivier Tallec and Gecko Press.

I seem to be sharing a few books lately about deep sadness, grief and death. Take a look at this video where the presenter talks about when and why to share picture books about these topics. Yes, It is Asleep? is desperately sad but it is also a gentle story about friendship and caring and memories. There is so little text in this book - it demands to be read very quietly and slowly. You should add this book to your library and don't be afraid to pop it on your regular picture book shelves - no need to hide it away in a parent or teacher reference collection. It is also a NSW Premier's Reading Challenge title (K-2). [1367138]

Children read a book about death like they read a story on a completely different subject. They don’t identify with it in the same way as adults. Children are not apprehensive about entering this story. And I believe we shouldn’t be afraid to read them these books. Death is part of life. Olivier Tallec

A laudably candid yet child-friendly examination of life and death. Kirkus

With moving reflection, and a tribute to life lived and lost, death is gently portrayed in a pure, uncomplicated way that children can comprehend.  Kids' Book Review

Olivier Tallec’s work has been called “sensitive”, “stunning”, “breathtaking”, and “beautiful.” Tallec was born in Brittany, France, in 1970. After graduating from the École Supérieure D’arts Graphiques in Paris, he worked in advertising as a graphic designer, after which he devoted himself to illustration. Since then he has illustrated more than sixty books.

We have already met Pock and Squirrel and Gunther the mouse in this previous book:

A Better Best Friend

Here are a few other books to explore on the topics of grief, loss and death:

The Memory Tree

The Bear and the Wildcat

The Hare-shaped Hole

Ruby's Web by Ellen van Neerven

This is a heartfelt story which covers some very important and disturbing themes. The audience for this book is most certainly High School students although I do wonder if the cover will appeal to this audience.

At times, reading Ruby's Web I became a little overwhelmed by all the issues and extra plot details that the author included in a book of just 126 pages. The timing of this story is the 2023 Voice Referendum. Ruby lives with her mum. Her dad has sadly died. In Primary School Ruby had special friends including her confident and outspoken cousin Amber, but now, in Year Seven, Amber has told Ruby she no longer wants to 'hang out' with her.

There are other indigenous kids at this school but not many. For reasons that are not really explained one girl in Ruby's class - Zara - has decided to bully and ridicule Ruby and she does this via a school based social media platform called Quik. I sincerely hope this program does not really exist but of course there are plenty of other 'dangerous' forms of social media on the internet. You might ask why doesn't Ruby just decide not to interact with this platform but unfortunately (and for me slightly unbelievably) this is the place where students access their class assignments. Wait a minute doesn't the school have a duty of care and a social media policy? This book does paint a very bleak picture of the inaction of teachers and school authorities.

"When Ms Hall asked me if there was anything else she could help me out with, I thought about mentioning Zara and the others who were posting comments about me on Quik. How come Ms Hall hadn't mentioned their posts and online behaviour but she had bought me into her office to talk about the anonymous trolls, people I didn't know? Was it because Zara's comments weren't as bad? Or because Zara was a kid? Or she just hadn't seen them?"

Ruby decides to fight back with a social media post that identifies the web of bullies - think about the title. Meanwhile at home Nan is unwell and she has moved in with Ruby and her mother. Nan shares important cultural traditions and she helps Ruby understand the importance of the YES vote (the 2023 referendum sadly failed). 

By the end of this book Ruby does find her voice. A big piece of the puzzle in this story is a poem written by Ruby that has been entered into a competition. I really wanted to read this poem and expected to find it on the final pages of the book but alas no - we never get to read Ruby's winning poem. 

Here are some text quotes to give you a flavour of the writing in this book. It took me a while to settle into the style of the writing and in fact I ended up reading Ruby's Web twice (which is not something I usually do).

"The school became a Monopoly board at lunch. Where you could and couldn't sit was was revealed. The spaces were divided up and ranked. The popular group had access to the nice clean spaces, like the new wooden benches in the friendship garden. The cool sporty kids got access to the oval and the area around the basketball courts. The mid-tier kids sat on the benches outside the auditorium. And then there were kids like me."

Zara "was constantly posting stuff about me on Quik and controlling who could see the comments. She would write comments to my classmates about how messy my hair was and how many pimples I had. She took secret photos of my torn second-hand clothing and posted them ... "

"I knew what Zara had posted was about me being Indigenous and it wasn't right or funny. It wasn't fair, no matter if it was me or someone else who was the target."

"I had seen the comments last night. I was old enough to understand that they were attacking my identity. They used words I know were deeply offensive about Indigenous people, like 'Abo', and they even said they would 'kill me'."

Thanks to Magabala for my review copy. Here is the book blurb from their web page: And here are some very detailed teachers notes. My view is Ruby's Web is for readers aged 13+. There is a reference suicidal thoughts and actions by one boy, Jimmy, in Ruby's class although this is not mentioned in the teachers notes. Nan helps to find Jimmy and then she tells Ruby and her cousin Amber:

"No one is more or less Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander. It's not a competition. We don't make someone feel bad for who they are or whether they have light or dark skin. That's what the colonisers did to us."

Blurb: Starting high school has been anything but smooth for Ruby. Not only has she become a social outcast for no apparent reason, but her cousin Amber has started pretending not to know her and she has no idea why. When Ruby becomes the subject of vicious racism and bullying on the school’s online platform, she longs more than ever to be invisible and left alone. But as events spiral out of control, online and off, she finds herself more and more in the spotlight…  'Ruby’s Web' is a powerful story about finding your voice, seeking help, and addressing cyberbullying and victimisation.

Ruby's English teacher gives her some interesting books to read: Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Braiding 
Sweetgrass and in class they are reading books by Seamus Healey, Annie Dillard, Kirli Saunders and Ali Cobby Eckermann. 

If you share this book in a High School class you should talk about 14-year-old Dolly Everett.

I have a good friend who works for Djirra which was founded in 2002. "Djirra is a place where culture is shared and celebrated, and where practical support is available to all Aboriginal women and particularly to Aboriginal people who are currently experiencing family violence or have in the past."  I have a plan to send Ruby's Web to my friend because I would love to hear her thoughts about this Young Adult novel. I am also keen to share this book with the Teacher-Librarian at one of my local High Schools which hosts Indigenous students from remote regional areas in NSW. The students live in a nearby hostel. I wonder how they might react to this book - Ruby's Web.

Ellen van Neerven (they/them) is an author, editor and educator of Mununjali and Dutch heritage. Ellen‘s first book, Heat and Light (UQP, 2014, was the recipient of the David Unaipon Award, the Dobbie Literary Award and the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards Indigenous Writers Prize. Their first poetry collection Comfort Food (UQP, 2016) won the Tina Kane Emergent Award and was shortlisted for the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards Kenneth Slessor Prize. Throat (UQP, 2020) was the recipient of Book of the Year, the Kenneth Slessor Prize and the Multicultural Award at 2021 NSW Literary Awards and the inaugural Quentin Bryce Award. Personal Score: Sport, Culture, Identity (UQP, 2023), a book that weaves history, memoir, journalism and poetry, received the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Non Fiction and was released in North America in 2024 through Two Dollar Radio. They are the editor of three collections, including Flock: First Nations Storytelling Then and Now, Homeland Calling: Words from a New Generation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voices and Unlimited Futures with Rafeif Ismail.

Noah's New Home by Zeshan Akhter illustrated by Nabila Adani

Many years ago my Grade 6 students and I used to watch a ABC program where refugee children talked about leaving their homeland, their dangerous journey across the world, arriving in a new place, and their hopes for the future. I vividly remember one young girl who talked about her sister's reaction to planes flying over head. She would run for cover - shaking and terrified - even though she was safe here in Australia, because the sound of a plane meant a bomb was about to be dropped. I watched this program many times but that interview is the one that has lingered with me decades later. 

In this book it is the sound of fireworks that are terrifying for young Noah. He recalls his memories - good and bad - of his homeland. One day a bomb landed and it killed his Baba. This is such a terrible memory.

"The air shook. The windows shook. Noah shook. Noah my darling it's just fireworks ... But fireworks made Noah remember when the sky exploded outside his old home."

Luckily Noah has good friends and neighbours who offer other activities such as drawing, music and delicious food - and each of these allow Noah to remember the good times. Best off all someone suggested headphones so Noah can see the pretty colours without the scary sounds. 

This book is included on the Inclusive Books for Children (IBC) Awards and Read For Empathy – Primary list. Noah's new home is available in paperback for a really good price here in Australia. I highly recommend this book as an addition to your Primary school library. 

Bookseller blurb: In a tale of home and healing, Noah’s family have taken a journey no one should have to make. They arrive in a different country as refugees. While settling into their new house, Noah misses his Baba, Jida and their old home. When a fireworks display brings back both happy memories and difficult moments of their journey and arrival, his family and their new community support him in facing his fears and feeling hopeful for the future. This timely and heartfelt story is a deeply emotional exploration of the lasting impact of the refugee experience and the tragedy of war. The perfect companion to The Suitcase, The Journey and The Other Side.

I am not sure if these are the books the publisher blurb means:

The Suitcase

To the other side

I previously talked about this book by Zeshan Akhter. She lives in Glasgow.

My name is a gift

Nabila Adahi lives in Indonesia. You can see more of her books here. I am keen to see this one:

The Geronimo Stilton Cookbook

This post is not really about this specific cook book but I just wanted to pop in and say books like this simply delight me!  I found The Geronimo Stilton Cookbook in my local Street Library. It was published in 2005 and this copy is in mint condition. I am not sure kids really engage with the Geronimo Stilton series any more - we have a big shelf of them at Westmead Children's Hospital in our Book Bunker Library but over time we have been reducing our holdings. I just read that there are actually over 300 Geronimo Stilton titles including several spin off series. 

I am fairly sure I would not cook any of the recipes in The Geronimo Stilton Cookbook but it is filled with cookery hints and every section ends with a page of jokes. If you have a picky eater in your family the food in this book is presented in fun ways with faces and characters. 

Here are some other books like this which I enjoyed collecting for my library and others I wish I had seen. Sadly nearly all of these will be long out of print but you might be lucky and find one or two in your local or school library or at a charity bookfair. If you find others I would love to add more books to this collection - cooking books, craft books, etc.:

The little library cookbook

I would love to see this one by Jane Yolen (2006)

Story Boat by Kyo Maclear illustrated by Rashin Kheiriyeh

Check out my previous post about Story Boat.

A colleague and I have been working on a video presentation entitled 

"The Refugee Experience through Picture Books".

We plan to share familiar and hopefully unfamiliar titles from Australia, UK, Canada, and USA. If you join IBBY Australia you will find this and other videos on a variety of topics. (The videos are fairly simple but I think over time we have shared some very useful content and book ideas).

Story Boat is a Canadian picture book. 

Here are a couple of other books on this topic you could share with the youngest children in your school library:

Mustafa

Amira's Suitcase

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