The Kindness Project (Deborah Abela, Puffin)

Nicolette is unconfident and shy and feels like she doesn’t fit in anywhere. However, she loves spending time with her nanna and takes comfort in her visits to her nursing home, where they bond over jigsaws, and Nicolette feels like she can be herself. School is challenging, and it is only when a new student, Leaf, starts that Nicolette’s life begins to change. Leaf offers Nicolette hope through friendship and his drawings of them as superheroes, which helps her to become more resilient. She realises that a lot of kids are dealing with issues in their lives, including the bullies, the mean girls, and even Leaf. The Kindness Project (the book’s title alludes to the school project the kids are working on) is a verse novel employing a lyrical form similar to poetry to convey its narrative. It’s a great choice for readers aged 8+ who may feel overwhelmed by too much text on the page or have limited attention spans. Deborah Abela (The Book of Wondrous Possibilities) writes with authenticity as big topics, such as mental health, are discussed with clarity and grace. Nicolette’s character develops beautifully, and her nanna’s nuggets of wisdom are gold. For readers who loved Pip Harry’s The Little Wave, Abela’s The Kindness Project will also have you cheering for the underdogs and delighting in their achievements, big and small.

Books+Publishing reviewer: Katie Haydon is a library officer in Geelong, a newly converted verse novel fan and a former assistant editor of Books+Publishing. Books+Publishing is Australia’s number-one source of pre-publication book reviews.

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