Song of a Thousand Seas
Title: Song of a Thousand Seas Author: Zana Fraillon Publisher: UQP Publication date: September 2, 2025 Themes: Friendship, empathy, curiosity, creative thinking, connection, hope, home, octopuses Comprehensive teachers’ notes are available on the UQP website here. Song of a Thousand Seas by Zana Fraillon and published by UQP gifts the reader the unique and memorable experience of […]
The Giant
Title: The Giant Author: Sophie Masson Illustrator: Lorena Carrington Publisher: MidnightSun Publishing Publication date: August 2025 Author Sophie Masson, illustrator Lorena Carrington and MidnightSun Publishing have teamed up again to create another phenomenal picture book, The Giant. This poignant, fable is about a gentle giant who has slept in a cave for a very long time. He […]
Sonny & Tess
Title: Sonny & Tess Author and illustrator: Nova Weetman Publisher: UQP Publication date: July 2025 Themes: Relationships, romance, family dynamics, friendship, parental expectations, change Comprehensive teachers’ notes are available on the UQP website here Sonny & Tess by Nova Weetman and published by UQP is an uplifting, charming and absorbing story that readers 11+ will devour and […]
Music Camp
Title: Music Camp Author: Penny Tangey Publisher: University of Queensland Press – UQP Publication date: June 3, 2025 Themes: Friendship, resilience, jealousy, courage, music, climate change, floods, advocacy, action, loss Comprehensive teachers’ notes are available on the University of Queensland Press (UQP) website here Music Camp by Penny Tangey and published by UQP is an absorbing, thought provoking […]
On Gallant Wings
The latest historical fiction novel by Helen Edwards, On Gallant Wings, published by Riveted Press, distributed by Simon and Schuster,is an enthralling story that brings a part of Australia’s history alive. Readers are immersed in Ava’s world during World War II when Darwin was bombed and what the aftermath of that looked and felt like; […]
Little Bones
Title: Little Bones Author: Sandy Bigna Publisher: University of Queensland Press Publication date: March 2025 Themes: Grief, friendship, courage, acceptance, collections, hope, healing Comprehensive Teachers’ Notes are available on the University of Queensland Press website here Little Bones is a stunningly captivating, tender, lyrical middle grade verse novel by debut author Sandy Bigna and published by University […]
Laughter is the Best Medicine
Laughter is the Best Ending by Maryam Master and illustrated by Astrid Hicks shines a light on the beauty of intergenerational friendships. It also highlights the powerful and unlikely friendships that are formed when tweens come together for an extended period of time sans devices and creating an online identity as an “influencer”, the relentless […]
The Midwatch
The Midwatch by author and illustrator Judith Rossell and published by Hardie Grant is an exceptional middle grade mystery full of adventure with a cast of determined, inventive, courageous girls who work together and use their unique skills to solve mysteries. This hardback novel is an exquisite, enticing and sumptuous production, a perfect invitation to […]
All The Beautiful Things
All the Beautiful Things by Katrina Nannestad with illustrations by Martina Heiduczek is a meticulously researched, enthralling historical fiction novel aimed for readers 10+. This story is set in the Bavarian Alps in World War II between 1943 and 1945. It is about belonging and what it was like to live in Germany during WWII […]
Thunderhead
Title: Thunderhead Author: Sophie Beer Publisher: Allen and Unwin Publication date: 29 October 2024 Themes: Friendship, adjusting to change, music, identity, family bonds, D/deaf or hard of hearing community A comprehensive teaching resource is available from the publisher here Thunderhead is an affirming, powerful, moving middle grade epistolary novel that is sure to make readers feel the […]