At our upcoming author signing this Saturday 4th December, George Ivanoff, among other authors will be instore signing books. Check out his series at http://www.gamersquestbook.com. Or see the book trailer below.
Also see the blog below for more details about the event.
Filed under Events
At our upcoming author signing this Saturday 4th December, George Ivanoff, among other authors will be instore signing books. Check out his series at http://www.gamersquestbook.com. Or see the book trailer below.
Also see the blog below for more details about the event.
Filed under Events
I was quite excited to see this new series for girls coming from Penguin. Publishing goes in cycles, and of late there hasn’t been a huge amount of new Australian stories for younger girls, which is why Billie B Brown has been so successful. This new series, the first books of which will be available in February 2011, so sorry, not in time for Xmas this year, is historically based, and is for girls aged 7 or 8 up.
There are four characters, each set in a different time period:
Grace is a convict girl and her stories start in 1808 and are written by Sofie Laguna
Letty is a free settler and her time starts in 1841 and are written by Alison Lloyd
Poppy is a gold rush girl and her stories start in 1864 and are written by Gabrielle Wang
Rose is a Federation girl, so her stories start in 1900 and are written by Sherryl Clark
Throughout 2011 there will be 4 books about each of the characters and two more each in 2012
They will be illustrated by Lucia Masciullo and will cost $14.95
We are really looking forward to these books, and will review them as they become available next year.
Filed under Jottings, Junior Readers (8-11 years)
Anita Shreve hit the big time as an author some years ago with The Pilot’s Wife. Since then she has regularly written novels which appeal to a wide range of (mostly) women. For a while she lost me with some historical novels, which I didn’t enjoy, so it’s been a few years since I’d read one of her books. Just released is Rescue and having read it, I can recommend the book if you are after a good story about people just trying to do the best they can in their lives.
The story starts with Webster a rookie paramedic who attends a car accident where the young female driver is injured, having been driving while drunk. While he knows it isn’t a great idea, Webster is drawn to Sheila, and a relationship develops. They have a daughter and marry. But Sheila’s old habits reappear, and there is a showdown. The story then goes forward to the last year of their daughter’s school life, and Webster seeks out Sheila again.
The characters are sympathetic and realistic and make for an enjoyable holiday read. Paperback $33
Filed under Fiction Reviews
To Her Door, From Little Things Big Things Grow. Australian classics we all know and love, by the one and only Paul Kelly; autobiography out now!Paul Kelly is an Australian icon of both music and Australiana in general. There are few Australian artists with such a dedicated fan base. So it’s not surprising that his autobiography How To Make Gravy, has been flying off the shelves these last few weeks. Whether you grew up with his music or, like me, learnt half his lyrics when studying them as a Year 12 text, everyone knows Paul Kelly and at least a few of his songs.
This biography makes an excellent Christmas present in a beautiful hardback ($49.95), there is also a special edition box set that comes with additional ‘A to Z recordings’. This includes EIGHT CD’s of new live recordings, plus 64 pages of photos, all for $125. This beautiful and well priced collection is no longer available from the distributor, but never fear as Fairfieldbooks has several left. Better get in quick as this one probably will be gone before that last-minute Christmas present scramble!
Filed under Non-fiction Reviews, Xmas Gift Ideas
Another in the recent run of co-written books for teenagers, Dash & Lily is by the authors of best-seller Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist, Rebecca Cohn and David Levithan.The real plus of these alternating perspective, co-written novels is that each character is so believably different because they’re written by different authors. Just like Nick and Norah, Dash and Lily are witty, intelligent, alternative types with a surprisingly solid, if…blurred, sense of self. Underneath the adolescent worries and trials you can tell they are two real individuals, who are well aware of what makes them different from everyone else, and each other.
They’re just still on the way to figuring out whether that’s actually a good thing.
Lily, aka ‘Shrilly’, is smart, excellent at soccer, and hyper-sensitive, unless things don’t go her way (hence ‘Shrilly’). As a girl who loves Christmas, the holidays without Mum and Dad is one of those not-going-her-way times. Lily’s brother Landon decides all she needs is a boyfriend and plans to hook Lily’s dream man by planting a red Moleskine in her favourite bookshop (the Strand) next to her favourite book (Franny & Zooey). Inside is a series of instructions to weed the weak from the strong, the incompatible from the grammatically aware. And that’s how Lily “meets” Dash (short for Dashiell, aka ‘Snarly’), who isn’t content just to follow some instructions and hand over his email, but instead to gives her a set of instructions right back. And thus we have the Book of Dares. Dash is a sarcastic thoughtful-type who hates Christmas so much he has manipulated his non-speaking parents so that he can spend this one alone.
Dash & Lily is sweet, smart, and very New York*. A Christmas-time story about teenager-hood and looking for love with some really likeable characters and fun storylines. – Steph.
*The author of this review has never actually been to New York. But she has watched a lot of Sex and the City.
Filed under Young Adult (14+)
Just in time for Christmas, we have received a beautiful collection of novels by Kate DiCamillo. This author has not only won numerous awards, she is also a firm favourite amongst children aged from about eight to twelve (my nine-year-old daughter is a big fan!). This collection contains the books Because of Winn-Dixie, The Tiger Rising, The Tale Of Despereaux and The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, all presented in a lovely slip-case. At only $34.95, it’s great value too! Perhaps the perfect gift for a child you know?
Filed under Junior Readers (8-11 years)
Two years ago we had The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society. Earlier this year we had Mr Rosenblum’s list and Major Pettigrew’s last stand. For Christmas this year your ‘feel good’ read is The Hundred-Foot Journey by Richard C Morais.
The story starts in India, where Abbas Haji is patriarch of a noisy family and runs a restaurant. When tragedy strikes he packs everyone up and they drive across Europe coming to a halt in a remote French village where he sets up an Indian restaurant opposite the famous chef, Madame Mallory. We have culture and personality clashes and the revered French chef finds she has a challenger in her midst.
The book is funny, poignant, and deals with racial differences brilliantly. It isn’t a frivolous book, but humour helps with some of the more difficult moments.
If you are looking for a charming holiday read as a gift at Christmas time, you need to look at this book. Paperback $28
Filed under Fiction Reviews, Reviews
Recently translated from the original French, The Fleurville Trilogy has the kind of charm only the French can manage. The trilogy follows the adventures of Sophie, a little girl who used to be naughty but has since become good. Each chapter is almost a short story in itself, making for perfect bedtime reading. And the pretty covers make this trilogy a brilliant Christmas gift.
All three titles in Countess de Segur’s trilogy are now available instore – Sophie’s Misfortunes, Camille and Madeleine, and The Holidays (all PB $17).
Recommended for girls 7-10.
Filed under Junior Readers (8-11 years)
