At the book’s heart is the idea that feelings are never wrong or shameful, they are simply messages our brains and bodies are telling us about what is important.
‘Your feelings are never wrong.
Your
feelings are made to be felt.
Your feelings matter.’
It's very definitely a sweet and engaging read and, a word I
use very deliberately for books of this ilk - wholesome. It's that feel-good,
warm-fuzzy uplifting narrative to which young readers always respond with
alacrity. Actually, it puts me in mind of some of our great middle-grade
authors such as the wonderful Robin Klein and Morris Gleitzman.
We've likely all known a kid like Wren, or maybe even been that kid ourselves. He's the outsider. The one who's friendless and never seems to fit in anywhere. He's quiet and his anxiety often causes him to be tongue-tied. His mum is caring and loving but, as a single mother lacking any support from the ex-husband, she's always super busy and very tired, working two part-time jobs. His older brother works too.
What is memory? It is a storage place for all the things which form an individual – memory, body and genes.
This informative book about the brain and memory will excite readers as it answers questions that may have been a floating fog in their mind.
Suitable for all ages, it consists of animated illustrations, and entertaining prose in a light-hearted tone.
Where do memories go? In Our Marvelous Memory, we can solve these complex queries surrounding the brain and its functions.
‘This is a story of trying to fit in, and discovering the true worth of being yourself.’
Through Indy’s eyes, we are introduced to a rather surprising and enticing
playground world. In it, the children playing are big, tall and rendered in
black and white.
‘There was
no finer place to live than on Mountain,’ is the line that opens the book,
setting the tone for a wander through some very deep, heartfelt issues.
His parents divorced because his dad couldn’t come to terms with his condition.
Connor has Tourette syndrome.
Dad turns up after two years, changed, and hoping to be a part of his son’s life again.
His persistence is scoffed at by Connor.
There is too much anger festering inside him toward his father, as he is unable to forgive his dad for accusing him of being able to control his tics and barks, and won't.
On the first day of school, Connor meets Amanda.
You imagine the baby cuddles, the tired eyes, the giggles, the growth. You prepare for long nights, teething, tantrums, and heart-melting milestones.
But what I never prepared for was parenting while battling cancer.
I was diagnosed just weeks after giving birth to my second child. At a time when I was meant to be soaking up the newborn phase, adjusting to life as a mum of two, and holding my toddler’s hand through her own big emotions, I found myself staring down a fight for my life.
Light is shed on the lives of the people living on Ruby Road; lives well-lived with love and kindness shared, entwined with one another, regardless of their differences.
Mum Betty has not been herself since the birth of baby Maria.
Gran arranges for her to spend some time in the country to recuperate from what she tells everybody, is a bout of influenza.
Twelve-year-old Patsy is sent for her summer holidays to Ruby Road where Uncle Alex and Aunt Mary own a Milk Bar.
She hopes to keep busy to prevent becoming bored, while filling her sketchbook which is her constant companion, with whatever she sees.
Told from Edie’s point of view (but not in the first person), Edie Tells A Lie feels very intimate because the reader is privy to her raw thought processes and dreams.
Like the story itself, the character of Edie is both vulnerable and strong. Ten-year old Edie and her bestie, Bowie, have grown up living next door to each other.
Each
knows the other so well, that even when life throws up challenges their bond
cannot be broken. That’s how it has always been.
Until now.
Because
Bowie has left town. She’s moved far, far away, and is not responding to any of
Edie’s messages. She is obviously having the best time without Edie.
Maybe it’s Pip Harry’s prodigious ability with words. Perhaps it’s Nate and Luna’s blossoming friendship. Perhaps it’s the bittersweet discomfiture of wanting more, missing what was and having to deal with an uncertain tomorrow that makes Drift so appealing.
Nate
is in his mid-teens, an ex-pat child of Singapore, recently rehomed along with
his physically challenged mother in Australia which he finds as alien and isolating
as being on the moon. Luna, his neighbour appears a sensitive and understanding
ally however is nursing her own darkness.
When over 20,000 swarming bees decide Nate’s home is the place to be, he and Luna unite to save them along with local surfy and ace beekeeper, Tyler.
Authors Dani Vee and James Layton, and illustrator Ruth-Mary Smith, have created a fabulous picture book that depicts the wonders and challenges of a young child with ADHD.
As My Supercharged ADHD Brain says, 'all brains are amazing', and in this book the creators have drawn on lived experience to help explain just how amazing ADHD brains are.
My Supercharged ADHD Brain encourages understanding, and will quite likely prompt further thinking or discussion of situations and experiences.
The cover
alone, with a large clump of black (in the form of Jo’s furry, feathered head)
amidst a rainbow of colour and texture, is enough to cause a double take. A tad
risky for a children’s picture book - yet so perfect.
When Jo
first saw the No, Jo didn’t know what it was.
‘Shoo, No!’
said Jo.
The No
didn’t go.
The story dives into the life and death of Hannah Baker, a high school student who takes her own life. But before she does, she leaves behind a series of cassette tapes. Each one is meant for someone who, in her eyes, played a role in her decision.
This innovative narrative draws readers into
her mind, allowing us to hear her voice directly and feel the weight of her
experiences. It’s raw, personal, and often uncomfortable , but that’s what
makes it so effective.
The story begins when Clay Jensen, one of Hannah’s classmates and someone who once quietly admired her, receives the tapes.
Now, at fifteen, he is an inspiration to all those - young and older, who dare to dream even when they are a little different.
Angus loves Crocs and loves candy. But he finds reading and spelling hard.
He decides to do something that excites him and that he is interested in. Making Candy!
This is no easy feat. If at first you don’t succeed,
then try, try again!
The narrator is seventeen-year-old Astrid, who has finished years of homeschooling with her father who lost his job and filled his life with controlling others’ lives.
Astrid is now starting High school.
Her father is not happy about Astrid’s forthcoming schooling,
nor the clothes her mother wears to work. He believes that social media is
breaking everyone’s brain and making them hate.
This is just one of his rants concerning capitalism and its influence on society, that he wars against with a distorted mindset; a thought process that forced his son to leave home.
But he is determined to hold tight to the control over the remaining members of his family.
