In May, 1980 six Arabs from Iran stormed the Iranian Embassy in London and took 26 hostages; Iranians, journalists, secretaries, a policeman who was deployed at the embassy, and visitors. They were held for 6 days, the trained negotiators prevaricating, aiming to wear them down, trying to head to a resolution. But the forces involved were preparing for the worst. The London Police terrorist squad was called in, SAS readied for action, a dog squad, specialist listening devices used, roads blocked, people were cleared from the nearby apartment houses, the Ethiopian Embassy next door sequestered. Extraordinarily Royal Albert Hall af ew doors away was presenting Tchaikovsky’s fifth, cannon fire and all. The discussions about its possible cancellation must have been surreal. And Margaret Thatcher was the PM,her second in command, William Whitelaw, both hawkish in theirpolitics.
Ben Macintyre’s incredible research is laid out in a way that impels the reader to absorb every detail. He projects us into the minds of the terrorists and we have a close up of their reasons for doing this. We see that they have been recruited and groomed, their handler flying out the same day, sponsored by Saddam Hussein, Iraq’s dictator, their demands unattainable. They are there to die. But they do not know this. They believe they are bringing world attention to the plight of the minority population of Arabs in Iran.
We also see into the minds of the hostages. Policeman Lock is part of a contingent which guards embassies, the only police in Britain who wears a a gun, but once the siege has started, he is unable to use it against the firepower of machineguns and grenades. He goes to extraordinary lengths to stop the gunmen seeing it on his belt. One of the hostages understands some of the different languages and is able to translate. Meanwhile the police are drilling into the walls enabling them to hear what is going on.The Metropolitan Police are initially involved but as the day progresses the British Army is brought with their remarkable unit, SAS, now arming themselves ready for action. The bullish prime minster is ready to set the team loose. The scene is set for a bloody end.
A marvellous addition to the story of hostage taking around the world, this breathtaking account takes readers behind the scene and into the mindsof all involved. I listened to this via Audible, and found it impossible to put down, finding myself alternatively gasping, sometimes having tears in my eyes,and then laughing with Macintyre’s amazing writing. He points out the absurdities with a wry sense of humour, but never undermining everyone’s bravery and achievements. This siege changedt hings. SAS, usually a secretive branch of the army was exposed, on the spot TV coverage was used for the first time, cutting into the finalists of the World Snooker championship with the remarkable segue, we leave one Embassy (a cigarette company sponsoring the snooker finals) to an embassy in siege.
Talented Australian authors Helen Edwards and Kate Gordon have combined their incredible writing talents to share an extraordinary story about two young girls and a fantastical circus. Emme and Ivy are both weighed down by a terrible sense of loss and run away separately to escape their despair and feelings of hopelessness. Meeting quite by accident as they find themselves captured by an astonishing array of ‘actual, imagined and extinct creatures’, the two girls initially struggle to understand what has happened to them and where they actually are.
Ring mistress Seraphina harbors a heartbreaking secret and her bitterness and controlling personality leads the girls and the quirky, unique collection of creatures into the possibility of an unfortunate ending. With help from some of the partly vanishing creatures, Emme and Ivy share a complex journey to discover their chosen talents in order to save both themselves and the disappearing circus.
This story has many twists and turns within the main narrative and Emme and Ivy have alternate chapters in which to allow the reader to build an understanding of their background story. The text is rich in imagery and descriptive language with each character, real or unreal, having their own special role and story to tell.
The Disappearing Circus is an absorbing and entertaining read with friendship, belief in oneself and hope shining through.
Jemima, a beautiful yellow Labrador loves all the things other dogs love: playing with her toys, catching a ball, sleeping, getting cuddles, and eating, especially eating. But she also has another aspect to her life, she is a fully qualifies guide dog, trained to keep her handler safe. Jemima and her handler graduated together, Jemima wearing her harness, a sign for others that she is working. When working, Jemima can veer herhandler away from obstacles, find bus stops, find road crossings, and be aware that sometimes when her hander gets confused, Jemima is there to keep her safe. Jemima is her eyes. Sometimes Jemima gets confused, and then her handler can help to find their way. Each helps the other, they are a team.
They go to the beach or the park, art gallery, shops, the footy and the library. On special occasions they fly to another city, but most days they are at the office, Jemima lying at her handler’s feet. Jemima explains that when they travel by train, people want to give her a pat or cuddle, and this distracts her for her main job, keeping her handler safe. And some people give her food, but as this is not the right food for her, it can cause stomach aches which means she must stay home when her handler goes to work, and so is not there to keep her safe. Even people talking to her when she is working, means she is not paying attention to what her handler is doing. Jemima tells her audience that she is very happy to have people admire her from afar, but to leave it at that, when she is working.
This delightful story told from Jemima’s point to view will be loved by all readers. In a gentle way we are told what a guide dog is for, how she operates keeping her handler safe. It tells us about distracting the dog, or patting it or giving it food and the problems associated with this intervention. Jemima tells us to notice when she has her harness on as this means she is working, a time not to feed, pat or cuddle. Children will learn how to treat the dog if they see one in their community.
The delightful illustrations are humorous and involving, as they show a happy Jemima with her training, keeping her handler safe. The pictures show what might happen when Jemima is distracted, and in a funny way, underline the importance of the dog being allowed to work for her handler.
A soothing book, written in rhyme about the tender, loving connection between children and their fathers. Each double page expresses times when a child will be experiencing an emotion and how they can rely on their dads to help them through whatever the world brings to them. A swing around when they’re happy, a snuggle when they feel sad, listening when they are scared or worried, a hug when they are grumpy or lonely. In Dad’s arms being the special place to feel safe and loved, especially at naptime. The colourful full-page illustrations use familiar animals in their natural habitats to show this special bond between children and their dads, featuring kangaroos, koalas, native mice, whales, monkeys, penguins, pandas, bears and pelicans. A satisfying book that reads aloud very well and will be enjoyed by children and teachers, especially around Father’s Day.
Themes Fathers, Animals.
Gabrielle Anderson
No trace by Michael Trant
Random House Australia, 2023. ISBN: 9781761046933. (Age:Adult - Senior secondary) Recommended.
After following Gabe Ahern in the thrilling Wild dogs by Michael Trant I was eager to find out what had happened to him, after the cliff-hanger ending in that novel. He is on the run after leaving many villains dead, hiding out on Goldmont Station in the Pilbara, the home of a pastoralist friend. When the station is opened to tourists, Gabe becomes increasingly paranoid, wondering if one of the newcomers is out to kill him, especially as the brother of one of the men he killed is out of prison. When a helicopter he is supposed to be on falls from the sky, communications drop out and a tourist is found dead, his fears could prove correct. And to make matters worse a flood has completely cut off the roads out of the property, leaving everyone isolated. Who can he trust? Who will be the next to die?
No trace is another tense, exciting novel with a terrific outback setting. The problems of isolation for a small community when floods occur and loss of internet and phones make getting help impossible are vividly described by Trant. A child falling down a well and the desperate attempts to rescue him kept me glued to the page. It was easy to relate to Gabe and his companions as they struggled with life in the bush, while haunted by the likelihood of having a murderer in their midst. Gabe needs to keep his wits about him as he investigates the murder.
This is a fast-paced thriller with engaging characters and some surprising twists and turns that make it difficult to put down. I look forward to more novel starring Gabe Ahern.
It may be 65 million years since a meteor apparently wiped out the land-dwelling dinosaurs and ended the Age of the Dinosaurs but stories with headlines like this, 'Fossilised footprints found at Queensland school' from just a month ago, still make national news and capture the imagination.
Because no matter our age, there is still a fascination with these creatures particularly when we realise that a lot of the early evidence of how life began on Earth is actually to be found in Australia such as the <>stromatolites which still exist in Hamelin Pool, Shark Bay, WA. Thus, this book, another of Myke Mollard's fascinating creations, is going to have wide appeal as it explores the range and diversity of Australian wildlife from prehistory through to the final days of our unique megafauna. Covering over 70 animals that lived in Australia at various times during the Mesozoic and Cenozoic eras including sea creatures to amphibians, dinosaurs, reptiles, birds and mammals and with meticulous attention to the environment and flora of each period portrayed in both exquisite, detailed illustrations and text suitable for independent readers who want more information than just a starter book, it introduces a succession of the huge animals that marched, flew and swam across our landscape, from the terrifying Daspletosaurus to the more sedentary Diprotodon.
The endpapers set the scene.... The endpapers set the scene....
Maps, timelines, and comparison charts all add to the visual and learning experience, making this one an ideal addition to the 567.9 collection because it delves deeper, going beyond description and explains how the Australian continent has changed over the millennia and the impact of the change on the landscape and its inhabitants. Definitely one for those whose interest was piqued by that remarkable stone at Biloela High School!
Mini the elephant has the best memory in the whole animal kingdom. She remembers the good stuff, the bad stuff and everything in between. And because Mini remembers everything, she also remembers mistakes. Usually other people's mistakes. So when her best friend Milo the rabbit accidently loses Mr Cuddles, Mini has to learn how to forgive and forget.
The tag on this book is "Big Skills for Mini People" and it is a series written for our youngest readers to not only help them manage their emotions but help them navigate their way through relationships as they venture into the world of friendships beyond family and have to learn about competitiveness, managing inner voices, learning to listen, and communicating effectively. (Others include The Teeny-Tiny Voice, Big Flappy Ears, Elephants Can't Jump, and The Last Plum. Learning to negotiate, compromise and consider others as they emerge from that egocentric world of toddlerhood can be tricky and so books like these, read with sensitive adults who can ask questions like "What could Mini have done instead of ...?" can help develop skills and strategies that will provide well for the future.
While using animals as the main characters to portray human behaviour, particularly that of young children, is a common trope in these sorts of stories, doing so enables a lot of humour and unexpectedness to be injected into the story so it doesn't become didactic and overbearing, putting something that is common for target audiences to have experienced at arm's length so they don't feel as though they are being admonished but can put themselves in the place of both characters and start to understand feelings. Did Milo mean to make Mr Cuddles vanish? How did he feel when it happened, and how did he feel when Mini got cranky? But why did Mini get so cranky? Teachers' notes for both teachers and parents can help guide the discussions further.
One for the mindfulness collection that will help young people learning about the issues associated with assuming things.
Barbara Braxton
Goodnight glow worms by Aura Parker
Penguin Random House Australia, 2025. ISBN: 9781761354915. (Age:2-6) Highly recommended.
Reminiscent of the rollicking fun of Parker's Meerkat Christmas this entertaining, colourful book has been republished in board book format for even younger readers to enjoy at bedtime. Four coloured glow worms have trouble settling down to sleep, the pictures perfectly capturing the mayhem of over excited children bouncing around, wide awake. The rhyming text playfully incorporating all the bedtime routines employed by parents everywhere, counting to three, the kisses goodnight, teddy bear cuddles, a toy to sleep with and the blankie, Parker has it all covered for this age group. Concepts such as colours and numbers are cleverly included and contribute to a soothing and sleep-inducing read as sleepy children listen to predict the next rhyming word. The watercolour and pencil illustrations fill the small pages, creating a visual feast of details for young eyes to explore after reading.
Themes Fireflies, Bedtime.
Gabrielle Anderson
Wild child by Annabel Tempest
Bright Light, 2025. ISBN: 9781761213298. (Age:3+)
This wild child wakes up wild, jumping and squeaking, roaring and stamping and talking just wildly. She chuckles and prances, dances and tiptoes, all with lots of noise and wildness. She can pounce and sneak, and cause lots of hullabaloo, she is chaotic and tremendous, and fiercely fabulous. Lots of wonderful words are used to describe this girl’s behaviour: she is a magical stew of descriptive words, words which kids will love to read for themselves, rolling the word around until they can say it well. I can imagine adults reading the story to a group of kids and all saying some of the words together, learning the new words and confidently saying them as they read.
Wildness cannot last forever, and we see the wild child calming down, realising that her behaviour can be contained as she begins to speak in a quiet voice, being very still, and actively smiling and being kind.
The illustrations are fabulous, drawing the little girl and her family with an eye to the unusual. We see the girl displaying all her wild behaviour with a red outline behind her each time acting out the wildness. Each red shadow is in the form of an animal, so we see her eating her breakfast like a monkey, dressing like a peacock, stomping like and elephant and so on. Each animal has qualities paralleled by the child. And kids will love emulating that animal’s behaviour, as the book is read to them. Almost at the end of the book is a wonderful illustration of the wild child in her bath, all of her animals lined up on the rim, and the red outlines on the wall. The wildness is turned upside down as it becomes wild to be tidy and wild to be careful and loving. The concept of being wild means something quite different now. Children will enjoy the different meanings for the word wild, and think about when they have been noisily wild, and at other times wild in being calm and loving.
Josephine, or Jet to her family and friends, has just moved along with her family, and beloved dog, to a small village in the French countryside to a run-down chateau, that they plan to renovate and turn into a wonderful place to stay. All is going well, until Josephine finds a locket, and upon opening the locket, releases a ghost of a 18th century boy. Both are shocked to find themselves in the predicament – Josephine to have a ghost in her room, Louis to find himself a ghost! After many disagreements, with Josephine able to lock Louis away whenever she sees fit, the two finally come to an understanding and learn to tolerate each other – and to learn more about each other’s lives. Meanwhile, Josephine is adjusting to life in France, and having to hide the fact that her new companion is a 18th-century royal!
Jacqueline Harvey has written an interesting story here with likeable characters that readers will relate to, and an easy to follow plot. Real history is included, with some creative license taken as well. A historical facts section is included at the end of the book for those interested in learning more, while a map of the village is included at the beginning of the book. Great for fans of her other work such as Kensy and Max.
Themes Mystery, Adventure, Historical, Relationships, Ghosts, International move.
When Lilly May finds it hard to go to sleep, her mother suggests the age-old solution of counting sheep. Which would be all very well if they were the sort that leapt one by one over the traditional fence, moon and stars looking down from the night sky.
But Lilly May's sheep are not the 'calmy kind' - "to gently glide is not their way. No Lilly's sheep just want to play."
And so begins an hilarious tale of all the things that sheep can get up to in one little girl's bedroom.
Behind the door is Number One having such a lot of fun He's busy painting Number Two with stripes of pink and spots of blue...
In fact, there are ten in all, each causing havoc and each portrayed in the most appealing way that is not only make the young reader LOL but also engage in their antics as they use their counting and rhyming skills to predict the text. They might even want to suggest other things the sheep could get up to if it was their bedroom they were in!
I find that if I pick up a book and can immediately picture and hear myself reading it to little ones, then I know it is a winner, and this is one of those. It's bright, it's colourful, it's original, it's funny and it's fun - the preschoolers I read to on Fridays will love it!
Themes Bedtime, Sheep, counting.
Barbara Braxton
My Nonno loves by Adelle Frittitta & Claudia Frittitta
Hardie Grant, 2025. ISBN: 9781761214479. (Age:3+)
A wonderful celebration of family and in particular a grandfather’s place in the family is presented in this loving homage to a man who is everything to his grandaughter.
Each double page beings with ‘My nonno is’ and then goes on to show one aspect of the tie between the girl and her grandfather.
The day starts with coffee. Nonno makes it in his cook top espresso, taking in the smell that wafts through the kitchen telling the girl how happy the day will be starting with his coffee. They sit at the table for breakfast, Nonno reading the paper, chuckling at some of the articles. His granddaughter loves going to the garden with him, surveying the growth of the seeds they have planted together. The basil and tomato doing well, as nonno loves watching them grow. Nonna makes his day special, as he remembers their courtship and marriage. His family is most important and they are invited around for sharing food and listening to his jokes, especially on special days which celebrate something that has happened within the family. He passes on stories and songs of their family, those Italian traditions passed down through the generations. But along with all of this, he loves listening, and the pair talk about their collections and some of the pieces are used to create a mobile. But of course, all the things he loves, the most important is his granddaughter.
This lovely book extols the relationship between grandfathers and their grandchildren, here shown in all its glory as everything he does they do together. Each page shows another area of the family, breakfast, lunch, Nonna in the kitchen, the garden, family meals and get togethers, and the shed. Everything they do sings out the virtues of a close knitted family, doing so many things together.
Illustrated by Adelle’s sister, Claudia, the text and images all show a loving relationship within the family. Each page shows another aspect of the household, with lots of detail to search out. I love the image in the centre of the book showing the family celebrating, with everyone there, eating and sharing lots of dishes, singing Italian songs, chatting, laughing and hugging, passing on traditions and love.
Themes Migrants, Humour, Family, Grandparents.
Fran Knight
The enchanted greenhouse by Sarah Beth Durst
Tor Books, 2025. ISBN: 9781035042388. (Age:15+) Recommended.
Fans of the cosy fantasy The spellshop will eagerly devour this companion novel, The Enchanted Greenhouse, with its feel-good messages of hope and the possibility of second chances to flourish.
Because she was lonely, Terlu, a lowly librarian in the Great Library of Alyssium used a spell to make a sentient spiderplant, Caz, to be her companion. By law, only sorcerers could use spells and she was tried by the Court. Her sentence was horrific – she was to be made into a wooden statue for breaking the law. Placed in the North Reading Room of the Library where librarians could see her, Terlu spends years hearing the warning about using spells illegally and the sort of punishment that could be meted out. Then one day she awakens in a snow filled glade on a magical island filled with greenhouses containing the most incredible plants. There is only one inhabitant, Yarrow, a grumpy gardener, who gives her dry clothes, a place to stay and delicious honey cakes to eat. But there is trouble on the island, the greenhouses are gradually being ruined and Terlu knows that only magic can rescue them. What will happen to her if she starts using spells again?
Fantasy lovers will be delighted with the mythical creatures and plants that Durst has created in this lonely island – a winged cat that befriends Terlu and wonderful sentient plants. Terlu found these plants in a deep sleep and knew she needed to wake them with a spell, and the reader gets to know them as wonderful characters that can talk and work. Terlu is a courageous and positive young woman who hides her fear about being punished again for using spells, knowing that she must rescue the greenhouses and the plants in them. Grouchy Yarrow’s story gradually emerges as his underlying generosity shines out – as well as his baking skills making delicious honey cakes and vegetable dishes. The pair work together to save the greenhouses and support each other’s strengths as love gradually unfolds between them.
Readers who haven’t read The Spellshop will immediately want to pick that up, while others may enjoy Rewitched by Lucy Jane Wood and Can't spell treason without tea by Rebecca Thorpe as well as Durst’s Queens of Renthia fantasy series, starting with The queen of blood.
Its scientific name is hippocampus meaning "horse-like sea-monster" but anything less like a monster would be hard to find as the gentle seahorse spends its days and life swimming amongst the weeds and reeds of the seabed.
As mysterious as it is misnamed, the life of this little creature is explored in this book for young readers. One of about 45 known species, the focus is the tiny Barbour's seahorse, endemic to South East Asia, as it hides from passing predators, mates, and the male taking care of the eggs for 45 days until they hatch and are released into the ocean to immediately have to fend for themselves despite the risks. No going back into the pouch like a baby kangaroo for them!
While Australia is home to about 230 species of the Syngnathidae family (meaning "fused jaw " and which includes pipefish and sea dragons), one of those - the native White's Seahorse (Hippocampus whitei) - which is found only along the eastern coastline from Hervey Bay, Qld south to St George's Basin, NSW, has been listed as endangered by the IUCN because of its declining habitats, only the second seahorse species to have been labelled as such. However, its future is brighter because of the seahorse hotel project, an innovation that is now being replicated throughout the world. (The origins of this project which actually began in Port Stephens, NSW is told in Little Horses, while visitors to Tasmania can see them live at Seahorse World, Beauty Point.)
This is another in the wonderful Nature Storybooks series that uses a narrative non fiction format, personalising the focus creature as its story is told but also providing factual information alongside so they are reading and learning at the same time.
In the seventh in the series, Detective Sergeant George Cross, of the Avon and Somerset Police plies his craft superbly well, learning much about the book trade as he tracks down the killer. No-one will work with him, and George, a man who finds people difficult to understand, sees beyond the mask people present to nut out the detail which points to the killer. He is able to delve into details that others dismiss. He asks questions that no one else dares, and spend copious amounts of time researching, much to the chagrin of his co-workers.
He spends each Wednesday evening with his father having a take out Chinese meal, where little is said, and on Thursday he goes to a church where he practices the organ for exactly one hour, the only audience being the appreciative priest, Stephen.
George has a routine driven life but in this novel, his routine is mangled when his father tells him he has cancer. George’s life of routine is over, and it takes him a long time to work out how to cope.
But a bookseller has been stabbed to death exposing decades of estrangement and conspiracies. Seemingly an open and shut case, when George delves into the background of this bookshop and that of its rival, questions arise. Only George can separate the facts from the lies and half truths.
Meanwhile, George’s mother has returned to Bath after a lifetime of absence. George is diffident about her being there and seems to resent her renewed presence in his father’s life. He has decided to resign from the police to be his father’s full time carer, and cannot understand why his father is so much against the idea.
This is an absorbing part of the novel as we see George having to change and make decisions, allowing other people to enter his narrow life. Sullivan makes this all credible, and George’s problems are woven around the case he is trying to solve.
Sullivan concludes the story to everyone’s satisfaction: George and his parents are happy with the situation of father’s care, and the murder of Ed Squires, the bookseller is beautifully resolved, bringing the secrets of the past to the fore. And we as an audience learn a great many facts about the book industry. Which is always a plus.
