Tag Archive | growing up
Stone Girl
Stone Girl by Eleni Hale My rating: 4 of 5 stars Not for the faint-hearted, Stone Girl is an uncompromising look at what life was/is/can be like for wards of the state, at how a bureaucracy of ‘safety’ creates a state of loneliness and despair, of rudderless-ness, of deep, deep self-loathing. Of misunderstanding. On all […]
Exchange of Heart
Exchange of Heart by Darren Groth My rating: 4 of 5 stars Munro is on exchange to Australia from Canada. We are privy to his history, but he is choosing to keep the death of his sister on the lowdown. But huge secrets like this one are hard to keep quiet – especially with the […]
Welcome to Orphancorp
Welcome To Orphancorp by Marlee Jane Ward My rating: 5 of 5 stars This is an extraordinary novella. Set in a not-too-distant future, the story is visceral, frightening, and all too realistic.Mirii is a survivor, a young woman on the edge of adulthood and ‘freedom’. But how free are you, really, when your whole life […]
Take Three Girls
Take Three Girls by Cath Crowley My rating: 4 of 5 stars St. Hilda’s Grammar School. Hotbed of teenage girl angst. Ady, Clem and Kate have nothing in common other than the school they attend. At first it’s hard to distinguish the individual voices of the characters. The tone and language used for each girl […]
No Limits
No Limits by Ellie Marney My rating: 5 of 5 stars Wow. Just…wow. Marney really raises the bar in this companion book to the Every series. Harris and Amie are spot on, clearly and fully realised as living breathing people. Although only vaguely known to each other – country Victoria can be a small world […]
The Most Important Thing: Stories of Sons, Fathers and Grandfathers
The Most Important Thing: : Stories about Sons, Fathers and Grandfathers by Avi My rating: 3 of 5 stars Some stories are more successfully executed than others, but overall, this is an insightful collection of stories about male family relationships. Covering a wide range of scenarios, Avi explores the dynamics of the successful and not-so-successful […]
Still Life with Tornado
Still Life With Tornado by A.S. King My rating: 3 of 5 stars 3.5 starsI’ll tell you straight up, this isn’t my favourite A.S. King book, but it’s still pretty good. The main character in this book, Sarah, is pretty messed up. She’s dropped out of school (it’s unclear why), she’s withdrawn from her family […]
Sixth Grade Style Queen (Not!)
Sixth Grade Style Queen by Sherryl Clark My rating: 5 of 5 stars This ‘verse’ novel is an absolute heartbreaker. Clark gets right inside the head of Dawn. Dawn is in grade 6 and her best and longest friend has joined the style queens (read bitches), her mum and dad are fighting, and school and […]
Journey from Peppermint Street
Journey from Peppermint Street by Meindert DeJong My rating: 5 of 5 stars This gentle coming-of-age story still resonates with me more than 40 years after I first read it. Siebren goes with his grandfather on a great adventure – walking across the marshes to visit Aunt Hinka. Siebren has never left his small village, […]
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