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| Recommended for 4+ |
Jason Hook & Ilaria Demonti
May 2015 | V&A Publications | $24.99hb
Wendy can't sleep, no matter what she tries. She counts sheep, reads books and even turns somersaults, but nothing works. Eventually Wendy's parents take her on holiday to stay at her grandpa Walter’s house, and he invites Wendy to stay in whichever room is her favourite. Wendy is amazed to discover interiors covered in wallpapers that come to life, and their sights, sounds and smells fill her head with images and ideas. As she wanders happily from room to room, she finally finds a way to drift off. Featuring the work of artist and designer Walter Crane, this book – published by The Victoria and Albert Museum – is a romp through his extraordinary imagination. Beautiful and funny, too, it’s one of our favourite picture books. BiP staff review by Lucinda
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| Recommended for 13+ |
I’ll Be There
Holly Goldberg Sloan
April 2015 | Scholastic | $16.99pb
It isn’t often that a character in book stays with you long after the final page turn, keeps you wondering about what will happen to him next, but Holly Goldberg Sloan – author of the wonderful Counting By Sevens – has done so again in I’ll Be There. This is the story of Sam, raised by an abusive father on the run from the law, dragged from town to town with his younger asthmatic brother Riddle in tow. Life for Sam and Riddle is lonely and grim, their father exerting total and utter control over their lives. The boys don’t attend school and friends are definitely out of the question. One day Sam wanders into a church to listen to the choir and hears Emily singing. Emily is so terrified of singing to the crowd that she decides to focus on one face, and that face happens – luckily – to be Sam’s. Theirs is an instant connection, and this chance encounter profoundly changes both of their lives. Ultimately, Sam triumphs over the immense adversity life has thrown his way as his, Riddle’s and Emily’s lives entwine. The characters in this novel are so well developed and endearing and their stories are powerful enough to make them truly unforgettable. BiP staff review by Cathy
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| Recommended for 13+ |
A Single Stone
Meg McKinlay
May 2015 | Walker Books | $16.95pb
Cut off from the outside world by a catastrophic earth tremor years earlier, the people trapped in the village at the heart of this novel develop their own system of survival. With little to grow and eat, the village must do whatever it can in isolation to continue; they tunnel deep into the mountains that tower over and encircle their village to harvest the mica that provides them with the fuel to go on. Every girl dreams of being part of the line - the chosen seven who harvest it - and no work is more important. Jena is the leader of The Line and, as all girls must be, she is small. Years of tough, physical training have seen to that. But what happens when one tiny discovery makes Jena question everything she has ever known? What happens when moving a single stone changes everything? This genuinely original, thought-provoking and beautifully-written story will, as with Holly Goldberg Sloan’s I’ll Be There, stay with readers long after the book has been finished. Wonderful. BiP staff review by Cathy
