The Year We Escaped by Suzanne Leal, ARA Historical Prize Winner

The Year We Escaped by Suzanne Leal, ARA Historical Prize Winner The Year We Escaped by Suzanne Leal (HarperCollins Australia) has just won the 2025 ARA Historical Prize – children’s/young adult book. This comparatively new award showcases historical novels where “most of the narrative takes place at least 50 years ago.” Mark Macleod, Chair of […]

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The Great Undoing by Sharlene Allsopp

The Great Undoing by Sharlene Allsopp (Ultimo Press) “…there are other forms of history. There are songs and laments – poetry. There are ancient songlines. There is continued existence. There is thriving where there was once only surviving. I drew a deep breath as I walked on that silent country, thinking these thoughts, searching for […]

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The Midwatch by Judith Rossell

The Midwatch by Judith Rossell Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing Author Interview with Judith Rossell about The Midwatch ‘Miss Mandelay says we should all learn as many useful things as we possibly can,’ said Harriet, ‘so we’re ready.’ ‘Holy mackerel. Ready for what?’ asked Maggie. Harriet took a bite and said with her mouth full, ‘Ready […]

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The Lost History by Melanie La’Brooy

The Lost History by Melanie La’Brooy The Lost History follows the The Wintrish Girl in the excellent ‘Talismans of Fate’ middle fiction high fantasy series by Melanie La’Brooy. The series stands out for its beguiling storylines deftly layered with light and dark threads.  These are entertaining, intelligent books. Both are published by UQP (University of […]

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The Helios Book by Slade Carter

The Helios Book by Slade Carter Guest author post about The Helios Book by Slade Carter for Joy in Books at PaperbarkWords blog The Helios Book is first and foremost an adventure story. I wanted to write a book where things happen, so it’s packed full of action. The book starts out as a mystery, with Londoner twins Hugo […]

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Pet Sitters by Ella Shine

Pet Sitters series by Ella Shine Guest author post by Ella Shine, Cecily Paterson on behalf of herself and co-author Penny Reeve for Joy in Books at PaperbarkWords blog The magic of writing together Our collaborative writing story began when my friend, writer Penny Reeve, and I decided to make a foray into writing a […]

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