Fluff: Mess Up! by Matt Stanton (ABC Books) “ ‘Hello? Is this Organised Grime?’ Fluff says into the phone. ‘I’m looking for someone to clean our caravan. Yes, it’s urgent. There’s been an accidental food fight and … well, we have a fish with a poop problem.’ ” (Fluff: Mess Up!) Fluff: Mess Up! by Matt […]
Read More Fluff: Mess Up! by Matt StantonDesert Tracks by Marly & Linda Wells (Magabala Books) Desert Tracks is co-written by mother-daughter duo Linda and Marly Wells. It won the Daisy Utemorrah Award in 2024. The Authors Marly Wells is a proud Warlpiri woman who grew up between Alice Springs and Melbourne. She has worked in social services and the creative art sectors, […]
Read More Desert Tracks By Marly and Linda Wells2026 CBCA Shortlisted Book We welcome Karys McEwen and The Paperbark Tree Committee, her new middle-fiction novel to Paperbark Words. You can see that there’s a perfect synergy between the book’s title and setting and the blog. Karys’s protagonist is even called ‘Art’! Karys also shares her valuable expertise about the right book for the […]
Read More The Paperbark Tree Committee & the Right Book for the Right Reader by Karys McEwenINSIDE THE CBCA 2025 SHORTLIST & WINNERS The Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Shortlisted Books for 2025 have been announced. 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 creators who […]
Read More Inside The CBCA 2025 Shortlist & WinnersFrom Middle Grade to Picture Books by Pip Harry On the occasion of multi-awarded Pip Harry’s Over and Under? picture book being announced as a CBCA 2025 Notable Book and the publication of The Inside Dog, Pip writes about moving from middle-fiction to picture books. Guest Author Post by Pip Harry for Paperbark Words blog […]
Read More From Middle Grade to Picture Books by Pip HarryThe Buried Life by Andrea Goldsmith (Transit Lounge) ‘His interest in death had come about, somewhat to his surprise, when he was exposed to religious belief for the first time. Both his grandparents were avowed atheists, and he didn’t attend religious instruction at school. But at university he met people of faith, and he was […]
Read More The Buried Life by Andrea GoldsmithLexie Moon & The Word Burgling Bungle by Melissa Garside Illustrated by Lauren Mullinder Published by Riveted Press Guest Author Post by Melissa Garside about Lexie Moon & The Word Burgling Bungle Thank you for speaking to Joy in Books at PaperbarkWords blog about your debut junior novel Lexie Moon & The Word Burgling Bungle, Melissa. In my review of the book […]
Read More Lexie Moon & The Word Burgling Bungle by Melissa GarsideBrightest Wild by Tania Crampton-Larking Published by Lothian Children’s Books, Hachette Australia “It’s so quiet here. Even though Art has a large yard, it feels better to be here in the bushland. Yellow, brown and green shades glow mysteriously. My heart skips a beat or three with overwhelming awe and wonder. This place is deeply […]
Read More Brightest Wild by Tania Crampton-LarkingIsobelle Carmody & Comes the Night Published by Allen & Unwin Author interview with Isobelle Carmody ‘Will marvelled all over again that people would try to stop their government building domes. Didn’t they know how bad the air was, how dangerous the sunlight? Domes were designed to filter both, and to screen out damaging radiation. […]
Read More Isobelle Carmody and Comes the NightTaronga Presents by Kristin Darell, ill. Laura Wood Published by Penguin Random House Australia Kristin Darell is a treasure in the Australian children’s literature space. As well as being a relatively new author of two series: Taronga Presents (for readers aged 7 and up) and Football Fever, she is the Program Manager for the Australian […]
Read More Taronga Presents by Kristin Darell
