A FLASH IN THE DUST
By Meg Caddy
$21.99
With their newest young adult novel, A Flash in the Dust, Meg Caddy has deftly blended Australian queer history with thrilling adventure through the bush.
It’s 1899 at the Fremantle Asylum, and after three long years learning to make herself invisible, Gilberta Brady’s fragile peace is broken by the tumultuous arrival of Norah Devaney. Norah’s insistence that she witnessed her mother’s murder leads to her and Gilberta breaking out of the asylum on a quest for justice. Along the way they run in with two Indigenous brothers, Kedalak and Malkar, and they all quickly realise just how much they need each other.
Caddy has written the book beautifully, injecting carefully researched aspects of queer history into the narrative without it ever feeling forced. I would recommend this book for readers 13+ as some of the themes can get a bit heavier towards the end.
RAISED BY
By Tristan Bancks
$17.99
In Raised by Wolves Tristan Bancks returns to the world of Two Wolves (2019), bringing middle grade readers another brilliant and fast paced thriller.
Olive Silver has always wanted her dad back in her life, never mind his criminal past. But when he suddenly shows up in need of cash Olive has to decide whether or not she actually wants to help. After all, her big brother Ben is finally about to graduate from the police academy and having her Dad around might threaten that.
Set across one long night, Raised by Wolves invites its readers to decide for themselves what it really means to be a good person, all the while taking you on an action-filled adventure across the city after dark.
Reviews by the Sun Bookshop – sunbookshop.com
Honour Thy Father
By Susan Mackie
I really enjoyed this book. It is a beautiful story about family, love, secrets, and the choices people make. The story is set in both 1911 and 2026, moving between the past and the present.
The story showed how one decision made in 1911 could affect a family for many years. I especially liked discovering the family history along with Abigail as the truth slowly came out.
The book was emotional at times, but it was also warm and hopeful. The story kept me interested and made me want to keep reading to find out what would happen next.
This was an engaging and heartfelt read. If you enjoy family sagas, historical fiction, and stories about strong women, I will definitely recommend this book. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.
Rain on a Hot Tin Roof
By Stella Quinn
It is a story about family, healing, and finding love again.
I liked Luke as a father. He cares so much about his son, Jace, but sometimes he worries too much. Jace is also a fun character. He just wants to live his life and be free.
Felicity was very interesting to me. She used to be brave and travel the world, but now she feels scared and unsure. I liked seeing her slowly grow stronger and try new things, even when she felt nervous.
One of my favourite parts of the story is the small town of Clarence. The people, especially the tennis ladies, made the story feel warm and a bit funny. They brought joy to the book.
The story also shows that life is not always easy. Both Luke and Felicity have problems from the past, but they try to move forward. I liked how the story shows that healing takes time.
Reviews by Aryani Siti
Game Day
By Patty Mills with Jared Thomas
This book is about Patty Mills and how when he first starts playing basketball, he’s not that good. But he plays a lot and goes on different teams and gets better and better and he turns out to be a really good basketball player and he helps his team win grand finals. My favourite part is when he’s playing for Canberra in a tournament and he plays in the grand final and wins. The part that Patty was very nervous about was telling the team about the set plays but then one of the other players said why don’t you just change the numbers. So then they changed the numbers and then the other team didn’t know what set plays they were doing. That is my favourite part because it feels so exciting, like I just won a tournament too. People should read this book because it feels so exciting reading it and it feels so true because it is true!
Review by Oscar R – St Augustine’s Primary School
