The Serpent Rider by Yxavel Magno Dino

The Serpent Rider by Yxavel Magno Dino Bloomsbury Children’s Books With roots in Filipino folklore, The Serpent Rider by Yxavel Magno Dino is an original and intriguing middle-fiction fantasy. Yxavel is now based in Sydney and has written a discerning piece about her novel below. Please note that The Serpent Rider is published in Australia […]

The 113th Assistant Librarian by Stuart Wilson

The 113th Assistant Librarian by Stuart Wilson (published by Penguin Australia) Author interview with Stuart Wilson “‘My dear boy, books are powerful ….’ The librarian paused to cough with a horrible chesty rattle, wincing as he did. ‘They are more than simple bound pages. Books may record the past, predict the future, or hold the […]

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 […]

How To Free A Jinn by Raidah Shah Idil

How To Free A Jinn by Raidah Shah Idil How To Free A Jinn is Raidah Shah Idil’s middle fiction fantasy debut. It is published by Allen & Unwin. How To Free A Jinn, A Love Letter: Guest Author post by Raidah Shah Idil When I first migrated from Singapore to Sydney, it was a tough transition. […]

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 […]

Lights Out, Little Dragon! by Debra Tidball & Rae Tan

Lights Out, Little Dragon! by Debra Tidball & Rae Tan (published HarperCollins Australia) Debra Tidball is a children’s author of award-winning picture books. The Scared Book won the SCBWI Crystal Kite Award for Australia and New Zealand, and is a CBCA Notable Book. When I See Grandma won the Caleb Award and both books have been shortlisted for the […]

Smoke & Mirrors by Barry Jonsberg

Smoke & Mirrors by Barry Jonsberg Author Interview at PaperbarkWords “ ‘I want to be a magician,’ I said. ‘That’s what I want to be. It’s all I want to be. I don’t know if I can earn a living from it. Maybe I can’t. But when I think about the future, that’s what I […]

Meet Me at the Moon Tree by Shivaun Plozza

Meet Me at the Moon Tree by Shivaun Plozza Guest author post by Shivaun Plozza about Meet Me at the Moon Tree Thank you for your superb body of work for YA and middle-grade, Shivaun and for writing so beautifully about Meet Me at the Moon Tree (published University of Queensland Press) for Joy in […]

A Giant’s Trek by Nick Stella

A Giant’s Trek by Nick Stella (Text Publishing) Guest author post by Nick Stella about A Giant’s Trek, an imaginative, well put-together fantasy adventure, at PaperbarkWords blog I love a good quest. A group of heroic characters bound together to achieve a common goal. Striding across plains, wading through marshes, climbing over mountains. Fighting monsters, solving riddles, […]

Nightbirds by Kate J. Armstrong

Nightbirds by Kate J. Armstrong Author Interview ‘I’ll tell you another secret … about Simta. Everyone in this city wears a mask. They pretend they’re someone braver, smarter, more cunning: whatever mask best suits them. Wear it well and no one will see you – not the real you. They’ll only see what you want […]