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At eleven, Tobias is apprenticed to a ship’s captain and sent to sea. He joins several other boys, all training to work on galleons, trading ships. At first, he finds life harsh, but he quickly finds his place and settles in the night shift, learning to steer the boat, which he thoroughly enjoys once he gets over the terror of working with the harsh first mate.
There is a mystery surrounding the captain. Their galleon is terrorised by pirates. The pirate captain turns out to be the captain's brother. A ghost ship is spotted that rescues Tobias. The ghost ship is linked to Tobias’s father. Can he get to the bottom of the mystery?
I enjoyed the mix of fact and fiction of life onboard a galleon for boys and sailors in the 1530s.
Recommended for readers 10 years and older.
Published by MidnightSun 2022
Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin
Abena’s mother is in London having a baby, and her father sends her to live with her Aunt and cousin in Accra, Ghana. Aunt has a dress material and accessories shop, and Abena and Gifty are expected to help in the shop. Life is simpler with none of the servants and wealth Abena usually lives with. It takes Abena a while to get used to market life away from her usual surroundings.
In the market where her aunt’s shop is, young girls carry the goods people buy on large pans on their heads. One girl catches Abena’s eye, and a friendship blossoms between two young girls who wonder if they have anything in common.
Fazia is from a poor rural family and is in the city to earn money. She had never been to school and Abena goes to an expensive private school. Both girls share details about their worlds. Abena’s decision to bring Fazia into the shop to show her , her aunt’s computer leads to serious trouble and Fazia is sent scurrying into the depth of the market with a threat the police will be called.
The story closes with the girls meeting again under completely different circumstances.
I enjoy the beautiful portrayal of girls discovering worlds bigger than the ones they know. Both growing with the experience.
Recommended for readers aged 10 years or more.
Published by Little, Brown and Company 2022
Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin
Life was tough in Sydney in 1931, and this story conveys how people managed. I enjoyed the mix of fact and fiction. The tough schools, the description of the church's power, and the total trust people held in it were insightful. The reign of SP bookmakers brought back memories of one such bookmaker who ran his book out of the lane behind my childhood house.
Joe did his best to avoid trouble at home but ran his own billy cart racing book to get ahead. Sent to boarding school for discipline and a better class of friends, he met a paedophile Brother and was sent to a reformatory farm school for telling lies about the Brother.
Joe finds his way back into his family but learns harsh lessons along the way.
A thoroughly enjoyable read.
Recommended for readers 12 years and older.
Published by Allen & Unwin 2014
Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin
Jamie, Lenny, and Dally are tight. They are mates who grew up in the same small town, live in the valley with the other Koori families and hang out together. Dally usually leads, and Jamie doesn’t plan much; he follows. Lenny tags along; he is not sure he wants to be there.
Mark Cassidy and Porter are heroes in their own white world. Footballers, and they have it in for Jamie, Lenny, and Dally. Mark and Porter bully Jamie at school, follow in Mark’s car and generally try to push buttons.
After a drinking session, Dally suggests that Lenny and Jamie go with him to trash Mark’s car. The consequences of this one bad decision are devastating. Can Jamie find a way forward?
I enjoyed the realism of the story. A must-read for everyone.
Recommended for readers ten years and older.
Published by Allen and Unwin, 2023
CBCA longlist 2024
Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin
The main character, Sora, has been taken out of school to look after her younger brother as her parents struggle to feed their family. They have a small farm and rely on what they can grow to sell and eat. Harsh winters mean they go hungry. The family is isolated from other North Korean families due to their faith, which the regime does not allow.
War came in 1950, and Sora’s father hides buried underground, only coming out to eat and exercise at night, but it is not enough. The family must run if they wish to escape the regime. They join hundreds of refugees walking South, hoping to reach safety away from both the North army and the American bombs landing in their village.
A bomb lands close to the group, and Sora and her young brother find themselves alone. They must overcome daily dangers, war and predatory people to reach safety in the South. Can they make it?
I enjoyed the child’s point of view and insight into this war. It was the first time I’d read a novel focused on the Korean War.
Recommended for readers aged ten years or more.
Published by Holiday House 2020
Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin
This verse novel conveys a rich story of three children's lives with a minimum of words. I loved how the three characters' lives were woven together and dealt with an issue that any child could face.
Noah is a keen surfer who lives to surf and struggles at school. Lottie loves bugs and wants to be an entomologist. Both Lottie and her father have struggled to cope since her mother died. Jack lives in a tiny town in far west NSW and is trying very hard to be good and get on the school trip to the beach. He struggles to deal with a bully.
Recommended for readers aged eight years or more. Reluctant readers will enjoy the fast pace, loads of white space, and lack of excess words.
Published by UQP 2019
2020 Short-listed NSW Premiers Literary Awards
CBCA Shortlisted Book
Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin
I enjoyed the rich characters. Breakfast was my favourite. He had very itchy balls. This story is a dystopic look at survival and living. Arek has survived underground in The Hole after human-eating giant insects invaded. He’s had one fishing trip above ground, and that changed his world. At sixteen, he wanted out and ran away in a mobile home his fathers had set up. To his surprise, his friend Mel was hiding in the bathroom.
The pair set out to find Arek’s father but discover the world they have only heard and read about. They decide they want to live, not just survive. This includes Arek coming to terms with sixteen-year-old sexuality. His anxiety, guilt, and embarrassment are opposite to Mel’s certainty about herself.
They meet crazed older people in their travels but still haven’t found any other post-invasion young people. That is until Arek is found unconscious by Breakfast and Olive, a unique pair who are WILD. What do these four companions find?
I enjoyed the vivid characters, the fast pace and the extended reality of the story.
Recommended for readers ten years and older. This is the book for writers wanting an excellent example of vivid, differentiated characters.
Published by Simon and Schuster BFYR 2019
Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin