Not Always a Happy Birthday

Birthday by Meredith Russo
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A difficult but worthwhile read. Main characters Eric and Morgan are immediately engaging and you root for them all the way through. Story is told using alternating POV chapters, which works well. Word of warning that there is content here that is confronting: death of a parent; violence and domestic abuse – it puts you through the wringer.
Not a spoiler to say there is a ray of hope at the end, so don’t give up on this one.
However, I would venture to say that this book is at the more adult end of the YA spectrum, so keep that in mind!
For ages 16 and up.

A Transformative Origin Story

Dreadnought by April Daniels
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Wow. This book is a killer superhero origin story – but it’s so much more than that. It’s about identity, acceptance, fighting transmisogyny, family, friendship – and yes, superheroes. Danny, who has never felt comfortable in her “male” body, gets caught up in a battle between superheroes – which in this world is a regular occurance – and becomes the vessel for superhero powers. As a result of this, she transitions into a female body; and awesome superpowers (like flying) into the bargain. As if transitioning so quickly wasn’t enough of a rollercoaster, April Daniels decides to give her protagonist an aggressive father, a superhero nemesis, and a murder plot to solve!
I loved this first instalment in this series. Can’t wait to see what adventures await Dreadnought in the next volumes!
For anyone who seeks to understand the transgender experience, the good and the bad, and enjoys seeing a superhero become what they were destined to be – this is for you.
Highly recommended. Ages 12 and up.

Ten letters, no repeats

Zenobia July by Lisa Bunker

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I loved this book. I don’t want to spoil anything, but if you want a gentle story that lets transgender and gender neutral kids know they are SEEN, read this. Show them THIS. Lisa Bunker has crafted a wonderful, sensitively written story for all those kids who have no-one to tell what it is like to be them. To have to navigate a world and ways of thinking that have never considered them important. Zenobia is a joy, as are her fabulous aunts, and her friend Arli is a revalation in middle fiction. Arli is a beacon for Zenobia and they are someone who shows Zen what real friendship is supposed to be. No judgement, no agendas, just real human interactions. The only low note for me were the “interlude” chapters where we see Zen or Arli through someone else’s eyes. I found these to be a misstep in an otherwise brilliant novel. Quite simply those interlude chapters were unnecessary. Bunker’s writing is good enough to not need that extra exposition. But this is a small quibble.
Just read it. Please.
Suitable for readers 12 and up.

Weekend at Sylvie’s…

The Weekend by Charlotte Wood

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A searing and honest look at women’s friendships and the unseen baggage carried. A mirror that can’t be looked away from, this novel richly deserves its Stella Prize nomination. When I started it I wasn’t sure I would enjoy it as much as The Natural Way of Things and while it is different, there is a familiarity about the care Wood shows in crafting her brittle and flawed characters. Happily, amongst the devastation eventually wreaked, there is a uplift of hope in the final paragraphs, and a show of resilience that all women will recognise. Charlotte Wood is a potent force in Australian contemporary literature. More please.

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Finding her way

The Year the Maps Changed by Danielle Binks

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Review copy supplied by publisher.
Danielle Binks‘s debut novel is wonderful. Written with a light but confident touch, Binks draws on events and places from her childhood to infuse this coming of age story with an authenticity that is hard to deny. Having grown up in Frankston and frequently visiting locations along the Mornington Peninsula myself, it was lovely to see places I knew popping up. Sphinx Rock, Point Nepean, Sorrento and the enduring Farrell’s Bookshop were welcome touchstones all the way through.
Winnifred (Fred) is a clear and affecting character. Still working her way through the grief of losing her mother five years earlier, she struggles with changes happening in her small family. When we meet Fred, her beloved grandfather Jeff is in hospital. With his steadying presence taken away, Fred finds coping with other changes such as her father’s new partner (and her son Sam) even more difficult. Then the Kosovo refugees start arriving.
Fred’s father, Luca, is a local police officer and Fred finds herself caught up in the plight of the displaced people escaping a war zone as her father is volunteering in the safe haven at Point Nepean. As Fred’s life becomes further complicated by the pregnancy of Anika, her father’s girlfriend, she becomes more and more anxious about the fate of the refugees.
The way the author links these events, and the way they are portrayed shows her prodigious writing talent. Binks has commented that this novel was five years in the making, and the care she has taken shows on every page. Not only are the central characters convincingly realised, the supporting characters such as Fred’s teacher Mr Khouri; her friend Jed, and Jed’s mum Vi are great and have important things to add to the story. This would be a useful companion read to something like The Bone Sparrow in a school setting.
There are sad times, confusing times, happy times and most of all, a big dose of hope contained in these pages. I hope this is a huge hit for Binks because I for one can’t wait to read more of her work.
Suitable for ages 9 and up.

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Never EVER change this ending…

This is How We Change the Ending by Vikki Wakefield

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book broke me. I was crying halfway through and continued to do so, sporadically, as I read the rest. Vikki Wakefield has built a well-deserved and highly envied reputation as a searing realist fiction author. Her books always have a raw, immediate quality about them and this story, centred around Nate and his family, has an underlying sense of dread and urgency about it not found in the work of many other Australian authors. Living in a cramped, noisy and basic home with his Dad, Dec, his step mum, Nance, and his younger twin brothers, Otis and Jake; Nate is intelligent, and sensitive, but tries his utmost to hide it from everyone, even his best mate, Merrick. His English teacher, the long-suffering Mr Reid, tries to coax some interest out of Nate, but he consistently resists. Nate, Merrick, and many of the other outliers in his town hang out at the Youth, a drop-in centre staffed by the stoic and supportive Macy. When Macy is badly assaulted one night, there is talk of the Youth being closed down; something that adds to the feeling of isolation and despair that pervades Nate’s life. Nate’s mother, who left him with his father when she was an addict, has re-entered Nate’s life, but he can’t tell his Dad for fear of what might happen at home.
This novel traverses Nate’s slow rise from his downtrodden existence through his realisation that options to improve his circumstances might not be as elusive as he first thought. A great range of supporting characters such as Nance, the gentle stepmother (a nice role flip); Benjamin Peros, the world weary student who’s not a student; the cagey, artistic Tash; and the stalwart Mr Reid all show us the good in Nate – and instill hope for his future.
Nate asks Mr Reid why he left a rich school to come and teach in his town:

‘So I could make a difference,’ he says, flatly.
It’s my cue to tell him he did make a diference, but the words get stuck. It’s like hugging Jake – I know it’s what he needs and deserves, but it’s just so hard.
He supposedly has all the answers, so I give him the next best thing.
‘Mr Reid?’
‘Yes.’
‘What it, in an alternate reality, my fatal flaw is actually a superpower? Do I ditch the flaw, or find a new reality?’
He closes his eyes. ‘Thank you, McKee.’
The truth is, I kind of, possibly, maybe, might be starting to give a shit.

There is so much to love in this student/teacher relationship. It hurt my heart to think about it, as someone working in education, when I see kids like this everyday trying to wrestle with their lives. It felt honest, and real.
I want so badly to quote the last dialogue between Nance and Nate from the book’s final pages, but because I don’t believe in spoilers I will end this review here.
Just read this, as soon as you can get your hands on a copy. It’s brilliant.
For ages 14 and up.

Breaking boundaries

Land of Fences by Mark Smith

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A great conclusion to a brilliant series. Land of Fences retained the momentum of the previous two installments in the Road to Winter trilogy, and delivered everything readers had been hoping for. Revenge, redemption, rescue and revelations are all here. A touch of sadness at the loss of some characters, but also the joy of reunions too. The developing relationship between Kas and Finn was beautifully rendered by Mark Smith, who has a light and lyrical touch when describing them together. The ongoing hardship of the displaced Sileys was also a great plot element – there are definitely parallels to be drawn in today’s cultural landscape, which makes this novel all the more believable (unfortunately). All the threads are drawn together here and while there is not a neat bow tied, all the lines lead to hope and new beginnings. Congratulations Mark Smith – this is a great addition to the #LoveOzYA lexicon, and the series an instant classic. I can’t wait to see what comes next!
For ages 13 and up.

Lost Concentr8tion

Concentr8 by William Sutcliffe

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

(Recently found unpublished draft from 2016)

I was incredibly disappointed with this novel. The premise held such promise – a society that could be our own right now, treating “troublesome” young people with a cheap medication en masse to keep the peace, then the drug is taken away suddenly and there are riots in the streets. The story’s focus then becomes a group of friends who take a low-level government employee hostage – because they can.
I guess part of the reason for writing this book was to show that medicating children, stifling their emotions, is a rollercoaster to nowhere, and Sutcliffe has captured that well, but I wish there was MORE. This felt like lazy writing to me and I kept hoping there would be more to it. Like some other reviewers, I was not “gripped” by this story at all, and I really had to force myself to finish it so I could review it properly. Concentr8 is full of cliches, lots of swearing and not much else. A genuine disappointment from an author who is capable of so much more.
Suitable for mature readers 14 and up (mainly because of the swearing – there’s a LOT of it)

Aces High

All Aces by Ellie Marney

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is my favourite in the Circus Hearts series so far. Contortionist Ren and card-sharp Zep are a great combination. Both trapped in some way by family ties, looking to make their own way, on their terms, in a hostile world that seems to put obstacles up at every turn. Zep is smart, sexy, sensitive, and – despite having the despicable Angus Deal for a father – a straight shooter. Ren is struggling to prove to her family that circus life is what she wants and is a worthwhile career option. She is also recovering from severe smoke inhalation from a fire; a fire Zep Deal saved her from.
Zep and Ren develop an unstoppable attraction and along the way they put themselves in danger to make sure Angus and the saboteurs from the past two novels, go to prison for a long time.
The beautiful, vulnerable, but resilient Ren and the savvy, handsome, and protective Zep are the best romance in this series yet.
More please!

Three of a Kind

Take Three Girls by Cath Crowley

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is an interesting book. There are three distinct voices telling the story, and we see events unfold from a number of perspectives that only enriches the experience. Clem, Ady and Kate are thrown together as part of a “wellness” program exercise and discover things about each other that ends up binding them together in deep, meaningful friendship. Each girl has her own baggage, and each commits herself to steadfast support of the other two.
Gender politics, sexual identity and finding one’s own path are the overriding themes here, with each girl having to make difficult and far-reaching choices about her life.
Not sure I personally would have given it CBCA Book of the Year (2018), but it certainly deserved a nomination, and it is a novel I would recommend highly for readers aged 13 and up.
There is power in this story, for everyone.