Which
children’s book are you currently reading?
I have two
enormous piles of books, one by my bed; the other in my office. I’m often
reading more than one at a time. And then there’s research. But to answer the
question: I’ve just finished Scythe
by Neal Shusterman. It’s a YA future novel about a perfect world where there is
no government, no numbering of years, no disease or aging, Oh my!
In a
dystopian future world, death is obsolete and people can live forever unless
‘gleaned’ by a scythe. Two teenagers are plucked from their ordinary lives, apprenticed
to a Scythe, and then set against each other.
I found
this story riveting. There are so many moral and ethical questions bound up in
this twisting turning flipping novel, I needed to keep reading. I’m still
thinking about it. It’s a fascinating insight into human nature, in all its
good and badness.
What made
you choose this title? Was it a review, advertising, the cover, the blurb, the
author/illustrator, or the subject/genre?
This was an
advance copy courtesy of The Book Bird, where I work part time, so it didn’t
have the proper cover. It was recommended by a fellow Book Birder. We often try
to get more than one of us to read a title so we can help readers choose books we
hope they will enjoy.
What other
titles are on your bedside table /To Read Pile?
There’s a
question. There are review books for Aussie Reviews, advance copies from The
Book Bird and books I have heard or read about that I need to read. I begin to
panic if I have less than a dozen. Here’s a few: A Little History of the World by EH Gombrich (re-read), Androgynous Objects by Maureen McKenzie;
Bird of New Guinea by Pratt and
Beehler, Cinnamon Rain by Emma
Cameron; Hive by AJ Betts; Endsister by Penni Russon; Far From the Tree by Robin Benway; Turtle Tracker by Samantha Wheeler; Break Your Chains by Emily Conolan and The Goose Road by Rowena House. There is
also a pile of picture books but because I can read them at a single sitting, that
pile changes often.
A mix of
ways. I buy books, I borrow from friends, I am sent review books, and I have
access to advance copies. I am so lucky to have access to many books. I buy mostly
new, but will source second-hand if I can’t find either new or in libraries. I
do borrow books from my library too, but when my piles are so tall, I tend not
to as I won’t get them back in time.
Do you have
a favourite genre? If so, what is it, and why do you prefer it?
I read
widely, both by choice and as part of my work. I love really literary books and
I love much lighter stories. I read crime for escape (I know, odd). I’m a big
fan of YA fiction as well as middle-grade stories. I like history, and
contemporary realism. I like to mix it up. Particularly if I’m in the middle of
writing something that has needed a lot of research. I can’t really separate
reading for pleasure and reading for work, but I do love it when one book
serves both. I love to read picture books and source them as widely as
possible. There are such different sensibilities in books from different
places, I feel I’m getting insights into culture as well as being entranced by
language and image and the way they speak together as a story.
Do you read
from printed books or some other medium? Please expand a little on the why of
your choice.
I research
online and in books, but reading for pleasure is always in printed books. I’m
sure there are times where an e-reader is wonderful, e.g. when travelling, but
I’ve always managed to find ways to travel with printed page. I spend enough
time with a screen in my office, whereas I can take my book anywhere, and do!
