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Read something you really liked.            

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Kate is sick of her headaches, foggy mind, and forgetfulness. Her parents are desperate for Kate to be back to her old self too. They find I-Can, the country's best neurologic centre for people suffering from concussion and convince Kate to be admitted.

Kate is suspicious when she realises that only a small number of young people are attending the centre, which is located deep in the swaps of Florida. Sarah, one of the other patients, is friendly, and slowly Kate feels more at ease in the centre until she overhears the doctors arguing about a dying patient.

Kate's suspicions turn out to be accurate, and all the patients must escape, but that's not as simple as it sounds, with the clinic deep in the swamp and drug runners, murders and doctors all after the young people.

I enjoyed the exotic location and the chase.

Recommended for young adult readers aged 13 years or more.

Published by Bloomsbury 2013

Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin.

Omar is busy saving his pocket money to buy a Nerf Blaster like his friend Daniel. He couldn’t wait.

Mum is hassling Omar to get ready. He’s dawdling. The family head to their local mosque together. Omar’s parents tell him they like their mosque and feel closer to Allah, but the news is terrible. The mosque will close unless the community can raise enough money to pay for urgent repairs to the roof.

Omar gives his savings to his mother for the mosque and sets about raising money at school. With the help of his teacher and all the other students at the school, Omar raises £1,419.50, but it vanishes. Omar and his friend Daniel set out to find the thief.

I enjoyed the value of community conveyed in the story.

Recommended for readers 8-12 years.

Published by Hodder Children’s books 2020.

Illustrated by Nasaya Mafaridik.

Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin.

Milton, a human, has taken a job on a mining planet and finds himself running from a killer with a Tazman. Tazman is a Freegu, another lifeform with his unique take on life; live for the moment. Recklessness is his middle name, and his tail adds to the chaos he causes.

Milton and Tazman try to negotiate a ride to safety but find themselves caught by a bounty hunter, Luyulla. A woman with a bionic arm and a history.

The three companions are wanted for destroying the planet they were running from. Forced to work together to survive, the trio find endless danger. 

I enjoyed the wild ride.

Published by Magabala Books 2014.

Recommended for readers 10-14 years.

Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin.

Ten-year-old Mim lives in a lovely caravan pulled by their horse. The horse decides where they go, and the family find themselves in a small village in Holland.

The caravan is not an ordinary caravan. It is a bookshop with magical books. Mim’s father knows exactly which book each person who comes to the shop needs. Mim and her younger brother Nat walk through the village, and at the park, they see Willemina being bullied by Gerda. Unsure what to do, they tell their father.

Both Willemina and Gerda visit the bookshop, and Mim’s father gives them the book they need. Mim isn’t at all sure that her father has got it right.

I enjoyed the question why should the victim change?

Recommended for readers 8-10 years

Published by ABC Books 2021

Illustrated by Cheryl Orsini.

Children’s Book Council of Australia notable younger reader book

Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin.

This beautiful picture book tells the story of Vincent’s great-grandfather in clear and simple terms. The illustrations are Vincent’s work and enhance the story of one of Australia’s great artists. 

I enjoyed both the story and the artwork.

Recommended for all readers and lovers of art. The book would be fun to read to children too.

Published by Magabala books 2021

Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin

The dingo pup snuggles closer to his mother and falls asleep, listening to the breathing sounds of his brothers and sisters. 

Exploring outside the den, he is taken by an eagle but escapes when he is dropped. The trouble is he doesn’t know where he is.

A human rescues him, but it is a terrifying experience. What happens to this dingo?

I enjoyed the peaceful tone of the book and the explanation of conservation related to dingos.

Recommended for children aged 8-12 years.

Published by Lothian Children’s books 2021

Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin

Earlatide Hubert Umbray drove into Boonah, knowing The emporium had brought him there. After finding an empty lot, he waited. The emporium built itself overnight. The townspeople were curious, but it was closed.

Earlatide was the custodian of the emporium and knew he had to find a manager for the store while in Boonah. His talent for hearing people’s grief led him to find the person destined to manage the store. Over the ten years, he’d been the custodian of the store. He’d learned that people grieve all sorts of things; loved ones, missed opportunities, and sad life events.

Boonah turned out to be a tricky place to find a store manager. Earlatide got desperate. What did he need to do to find the right person?

I enjoyed the compassionate way Tabitha Bird addressed grief in various forms. 

Recommended for young adult and adult readers.

Published by Viking, an imprint of Penguin Books 2021

Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin

Charlie always wanted a brother or a sister. Now twelve years later, the baby has arrived. Something is wrong. Her parents aren’t telling her what’s happening. She sees the baby, realises her parents are preoccupied with baby Dara, and feels she’s vanished. 

Charlie panics when she hears her baby brother needs an operation and runs out of the hospital. She falls and finds herself in the same forest she’s known all her life but face-to-face with a Stone Age boy. What has happened?

I enjoyed the intertwining of ancient and current understandings of the world—a strong, rich story.

Recommended for readers 8-14 years

Published by Bloomsbury Children’s Books 2020

Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin

Stink can’t sleep. Mum and dad are at a fundraising dinner and might win a prize. They win, and the family’s off to a sleepover at the Aquarium. The biggest in the USA.

There’ll be crabs, jellyfish, and, best of all, sharks. They’ll sleep near sharks. But what if it all goes wrong? 

I enjoyed the worries the characters dealt with. I’m not sure I’d like to sleep near sharks—a great first chapter book.

Recommended for readers aged six to nine years.

Published by Candlewick Press 2015

Illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds.

Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin

Sixteen-year-old Sonny dreams of love. She sits with Najma and imagines a kind and caring life with love and sex. Sonny is the loving family member who feeds, cares for and protects her younger brother. Father comes home, obeys his angry, shouting wife and loves his garden. Mother is angry. What is her story?

Vince, recently released from juvie, searches for a future. What can he find? 

I enjoyed the richness, slowly getting to know the characters, their complexities and their life in Cabramatta.

Recommended for readers 12 years plus.

This edition published by Penguin Random House 2021

Read and reviewed by Judy Wollin

I read and I write.            

If you read why not write?            

More reviews coming from me and you.