Reviews
Adult fiction
The Skeleton House (Katherine Allum, Fremantle)
Released June 2024
The Skeleton House is a powerful and riveting literary debut, delving into themes of motherhood, coercive control, and life within a remote and rigid society. Meg’s life, like that of many mid-20s women in her Mormon community in Nevada, seems straightforward on the surface. Despite not being Mormon herself, she feels the pressure to be… Read more
Things I Need You to Know (Mark Lamprell, Text)
Released June 2024
Birdie’s world is torn asunder when Ned, her husband and the father of their five daughters, dies unceremoniously of stomach cancer. In a reversal of stereotypical gender roles, Birdie was the primary breadwinner and Ned was the stay-at-home parent, adored by his progeny and community alike. As Birdie sleepwalks through her newfound responsibilities, cloaked in… Read more
Adult nonfiction
Blossom: Practical and creative ways to find wonder in the floral world (Adriana Picker, Hardie Grant Books)
Released June 2024
Blossom goes beyond merely showcasing the beauty of flowers, offering wonderful and practical ideas for using flowers through the seasons. In her latest book, botanical illustrator Adriana Picker shares her love of the floral world and shows readers how to prepare and eat flowers, make drinks from them, and make tinctures and perfumes at home.… Read more
Everything Is Water (Simon Cleary, UQP)
Released June 2024
Like the river at its heart, Everything Is Water takes readers on a meandering journey full of unexpected delights, surprises and challenges at every turn. Novelist and hiker Simon Cleary (The War Artist) decides to become intimately acquainted with the Brisbane River he loves by embarking on the four-week, 344-kilometre journey alongside it, not against the… Read more
Children's picture books
Hide & Seek Beautiful (Nicki Esler Gill, illus Jedda Robaard, Scholastic)
Released June 2024
Hide & Seek Beautiful by Nicki Esler Gill explores a tender and heart-warming story of friendship and the little things in life. Best friends since birth, Annie and Boo find beauty in the same things, such as ‘feet-in-mud beautiful’ (‘the squelch and suck and silky-cool between their toes’) and ‘big belly-laugh beautiful’. However, for Annie,… Read more
The Real Cowgirl (Isabelle Duff, illus Susannah Crispe, EK Books)
Released June 2024
The Real Cowgirl tells the story of young Sal, who wants to be a ‘real’ cowgirl, ‘with boots and a hat just like Dad’s’, but doesn’t yet have confidence in her own strength or value. Unexpectedly and touchingly, the book is narrated by the pony she rides, with whom she is always ‘brave and smart… Read more
Younger readers
Brock the Croc (Adrian Beck, illus Dean Rankine, Larrikin House)
Released June 2024
Brock the Croc is a humorous early chapter book for kids aged 7+ who have recently become comfortable with independent reading. Brock is the only crocodile in the swamp, and he likes it that way. He basks in the attention, riding his motorbike and throwing elaborate parties. All the other animals love him and enjoy… Read more
Freddie Spector, Fact Collector: Space Cadet (Ashleigh Barton, illus Peter Cheong, Lothian)
Released July 2024
Freddie Spector, Fact Collector: Space Cadet is the first instalment in this funny, fact-filled junior fiction series, ideal for ages 7 to 10. Freddie is a wacky, confident eight-year-old boy who collects facts on sticky notes. When Freddie gets interested in a topic, he dives deep, poring through books and websites until he has enough facts… Read more
Young adult
Father of the Lost Boys: The Mecak Ajang Alaak story (Yuot A Alaak, Fremantle)
Released June 2024
In Father of the Lost Boys, former child refugee Yuot A Alaak immortalises the hero who rescued 20,000 boys from the brink of death—his father, Mecak Ajang Alaak. Affectionately embraced as ‘Dad’ by the thousands of boys he cared for during the Second Sudanese Civil War, Ajang will captivate readers of his family’s story in this… Read more
Liar’s Test (Ambelin Kwaymullina, Text)
Released June 2024
The latest YA novel from Palyku author Ambelin Kwaymullina is a high-action, thematically rich fantasy with a gutsy, intuitive protagonist who must become a good liar to survive in the city-kingdom of Radiance, where Treesingers have long been living under oppression by the Risen. Fifteen-year-old Bell Silverleaf is a Treesinger and a memory-walker with the… Read more
Recently released titles
Deep Is the Fen (Lili Wilkinson, A&U Children’s)
Released April 2024
Lili Wilkinson’s latest fantasy novel is set in the same magical world as her Victorian Premier's Literary Award–winning novel, A Hunger of Thorns. It’s a realm where all magic is controlled by corporations who sell magical disguises and trinkets to the masses. This is the story of three friends—Merry, Sol and Teddy—who, at 17, are… Read more
Sanctuary (Garry Disher, Text)
Released April 2024
Grace has been stealing her whole life. She is an expert thief, taught by pros and specialising in small, high-value items, such as stamps and watches. However, a life of crime comes with danger, so she lives life on the edge, ready to disappear at a moment’s notice. When she sees Adam Garrett, a familiar… Read more
