Make Them Say Poo: a gross book perfect for giggles by Stephen (Steve MinOn), illustrated by Rudi de Wet

Make Them Say Poo: a gross book perfect for giggles by Stephen (Steve MinOn), illustrated by Rudi de Wet (Affirm Press, Simon & Schuster) Make Them Say Poo: a gross book perfect for giggles is a subversively funny picture book filled with hidden surprises. It delights in trickery, wordplay and fun. Thank you for speaking to PaperbarkWords, […]

Spotlight on Jo Dabrowski Inside the CBCA Shortlist

Spotlight on Jo Dabrowski Inside the CBCA Shortlist Dear Broccoli Shortlisted 2026 CBCA Picture Book of the Year Written by Jo Dabrowski, Illustrated by Cate James (Affirm Press) The Thing About Christmas Shortlisted 2026 CBCA Early Childhood Written by Jo Dabrowski, illustrated by Briony Stewart (Little Book Press) The Making of Martha Mayfield Notable Book […]

Myra in the Middle by Seetha Dodd

Myra in the Middle by Seetha Dodd, illustrated by Peter Cheong Published by UQP Seetha Dodd writes a guest author post about her impressive debut children’s novel, Myra in the Middle for ‘Joy in Books’ at Paperbark Words. When my sister was born, I was exactly three years and eleven months old. I had been […]

The Belly of a Wolf by Julianne Negri

The Belly of a Wolf by Julianne Negri (UWA Publishing) “Musty books, ink-scratched drawings black and white with gashes of red. Look, it’s us, Wolf gasped. inhaling the pages. Hunting different versions of the story. Rummaging dog-eared collections of fairytales. Searching columns on contents pages, hungry for our title. In op shops, secondhand bookshops, the […]

Inside the 2026 CBCA Shortlist

INSIDE THE CBCA 2026 SHORTLIST The Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Shortlisted Books for 2026 have been announced from the Notables list. Follow the links to those books I have already reviewed, or interviewed the author or illustrator, at PaperbarkWords blog. I will add to this list until the winners are announced in August. Congratulations to those […]

The Boy and the Dog Tree by Fiona Wood

The Boy and the Dog Tree Written by Fiona Wood Illustrated by Judy Watson Published by University of Queensland Press Interview with Fiona Wood Argos had said, ‘Quests do not always announce themselves.’ There was no dragon or treasure or lost kingdom but Mitch had discovered the world anew with Argos. Quests were […]

My Brother Otto by Ingrid Laguna

My Brother Otto by Ingrid Laguna (Text Publishing) “In the middle of her desk was her laptop. She had whole folders of stories on there. She opened to a screen she had titled The Invisible Girl and added some notes. No one sees the girl. Her colours are fading. She hides behind her cowgirl boots.” […]

e. Lockhart & We Fell Apart Interview

We Fell Apart by e. lockhart Interview with e. lockhart about We Fell Apart “It was a bad place to fall in love. On the property called Hidden Beach, a wooden castle stood on a monstrous cliff. It was a place of barbecues, sunblock, acoustic guitars, and midnight swims. Oil paint, intrusive briars. Hungry dogs. […]

Beth is Dead by Katie Bernet

Beth is Dead by Katie Bernet Published by Penguin Random House Beth is Dead is Little Women on steroids. Based on Louisa May Alcott’s classic novel, Katie Bernet’s debut YA/adult novel reads like the best fanfiction. Told from the viewpoint of each of the four March sisters in the past and present, it is addictive. […]

Departure(s) by Julian Barnes

Departure(s) by Julian Barnes Published by Jonathan Cape, an imprint of Vintage, Penguin Random House Julian Barnes is the eminent English author who won the 2011 Booker Prize for his novel The Sense of an Ending. He is a ‘hybrid’ author, whose books range from the fictional Flaubert’s Parrot and The Only Story to non-fiction, […]