Sir Terry Pratchett is renowned for his humour and insight and Tales of Mistletoe and Mischief is a wonderful example of both. Readers will be enthralled to read or listen to, tales about Father Christmas’ beard, a computer who asks for presents, an abominable snow-baby and the twelve gifts of Christmas.
Pratchett’s stories are not simple or straightforward and provide the reader with many examples of humour that reward on a rereading. In Father Christmas’s fake beard, the letters from F.P. Picklins, Personnel Manager to J. Chan Toy Department and especially to Mr Nicholas, temporary sales assistant, are hilarious and the quirky illustrations by Mark Beech add another dimension to the humour. I particularly love the last story, The twelve gifts of Christmas, which is a clever parody of the Christmas rhyme, and here the illustrations are hilarious.
Young and old will love these four stories in Tales of Mistletoe and Mischief. The adult who reads to a child will have a very enjoyable time grinning over the humour, while independent readers, both adult and children, are in for a treat. The book would be an ideal read aloud in the classroom or library before Christmas and is sure to give a lift in spirits to anyone listening.
Readers new to books by Terry Pratchett, may like to try The Wee Free Men; which introduces Tiffany Aching, while others may want to start with the first in the Discworld series.
Themes Humour, Christmas, Santa Claus.
Pat Pledger
Miles Thorne and the forbidden magic by Rebecca Ahola
Rhiza Edge, 2026. ISBN: 9781761113390. (Age:8-14)
Auroria has been at war with the Grimlings for some time and Miles comes from an important military wizarding family, wielding magic for the protection of their country. He has attended some of the best private boarding schools for wizards but his lack of magical ability led to him being asked to leave. Bullied and shunned and a disappointment to his father, Miles is packed off to live with his grandfather and attend the local mixed school. Here for the first time he makes friends with Freya, a fairy, Colter, a werewolf and Eric, a fire monster, they are all misfits in some way and bond over playing the strategy game Legends in the library. The bullying from a particular group of wizards escalates and the friends come up with the idea of entering a mixed team in The Battle Games, a legendary test of magical skills where teams are pitted against each other in magical arenas to see who survives. The bonus is that once a team is entered any interference with another team results in instant dismissal. Miles’ grandfather and his friend Lewis won the original Battle Games and they undertake to coach the team, in the process they all learn more about each other and how they can use strategy to make up for their wizarding weakness. They are all challenged in some way, by prejudice, family issues or lack of confidence and they need to develop resilience and teamwork to survive. The story is poignant, sometimes funny and there is lots of action to move it along but some parts, like the Grimling war, that became important towards the end could have been better articulated earlier and the ending seemed rushed and confusing. Still, my 12-year-old grandson enjoyed it and thought it had some similarities to Sorceries and Small Magics by Maiga Doocey which he had just read.
Themes Magical fantasy, Friendship, Resilience.
Sue Speck
Dear humans, we stole your crayon! by Anna McGregor
Anna McGregor, author of many picture books including Spiro (Early Childhood Book of the Year Award shortlist 2025, KOALA shortlist 2026), has brought readers another delightful picture book featuring two small aliens, Meep and Zimothy, who invade a classroom where they discover a crayon ’that that reads minds and transfers thoughts onto paper.’ The children in the class had been drawing with crayons and McGrgor’s delightful illustrations of what they were imagining show the diversity of thoughts from the children. There is a picture of a bat, a dinosaur, a teddy bear, a mermaid and a car. Each desk has crayons left on the paper. On Anna’s desk the little aliens find an orange crayon and the fun begins. They draw with it, snap it into two pieces and find it makes two crayons and discover what they can do with it.
Humour abounds in the book, starting with the note to the reader stating that ‘This book has been translated from Alienese into English for your convenience.’ Children will enjoy following the adventures of Meek and Zimothy, while thinking about what drawing means to them and what ideas they can express with their illustrations, as well as having fun doing it. McGregor’s illustrations draw the reader in, begging for a close examination of the details. On the title page, the reader will discover a tiny picture of the aliens descending into the classroom in their space shuttle. Turning the page, the drawing of the size of the enormous desk in comparison to the aliens shows the difference in their sizes. I loved the little one-eyed aliens with their six legs and whisp of hair and the drawings that they make are wonderful.
I can easily imagine Dear Humans, We Stole Your Crayon! being on future award lists and certainly it will be a hit in the library, celebrating the joy of creativity and the imagination.
Themes Art, Creativity, Crayons, Aliens.
Pat Pledger
Bloodsuckers by Steve Worland
Penguin, 2026. ISBN: 9781761352935. (Age:10+)
Perfect for Halloween, Bloodsuckers will grab the imagination of any reader who delights in horror with a touch of humour. Jett Torrens is thrilled to be flying to Hawaii. He loves anything to do with planes, plays games where he practises being a pilot and imagines many scenes from Top Gun, using their code names as substitutes for swear words. But to his dismay, things are strange on board. Does the flight attendant, Pam, have fangs? What has happened to the passengers who seem to be glamoured? Can he escape the bloodsuckers and land the plane?
A thrilling ride takes Jett in and out of forbidden places on the plane, trying to evade the vampires. With ingenuity he manages to keep calm and work out how to survive, using his knowledge of the aeroplane, its lounges, flight attendant rest areas and cargo holds to hide. Worland tempers the horror with humour, and Jett’s internal dialogue will have the reader smiling.
With a fascinating plot of vampires on a plane 40,000 feet in the sky, some unexpected twists and funny moments, Bloodsuckers will keep the interest of fans who like a good vampire story with an engaging main protagonist. A trailer can be found here.
Roland Bickering-Jones lives with order (in fact he is dependent on it for stability), he is also a big fan of the Squidape comic series, but his life hits a major (exceptionally major!) awful hurdle that throws many things into turmoil but leaves him occasionally frozen and unable to move forward. His dad too must cope with change and delicately support Roland. But a mystery involving some missing collectibles from locals who frequent his Dad’s second hand treasure trove (called The Trevor Trove) enable Roland to move beyond his frozen moments and even enable him to reflect the antics of his comic book hero Squidape.
This story has a naive charm even though Roland is dealing with the awful accident that takes his mother from his life. He is obviously on the ASD spectrum, although young readers may only be aware that he needs lists, order and a regular pattern in his life. The trauma he must face is elegantly and sensitively traversed for young readers, but it is still a serious issue in a book. Some young readers may not even be aware of the trauma it is so subtly addressed. The light-heartedness of his love of the comic book Squidape and the love and understanding of his father (despite his own grief) lightens the mood and enables the simple mystery-solving skills of the ordered and observant Roland to come to the fore. In a nod and a twist to the Enid Blyton child ‘detectives’ that solve mysteries, Roland connects and co-opts adults to uncover a series of thefts in a smuggling ring within the antiques and collectibles realm.
This is a charming and surprisingly uplifting story for readers aged 8-11 but do be aware that deep grief and the loss of a parent and the ASD child’s behaviour might confuse or challenge some younger readers, but there may be opportunities to learn empathy. As an adult reader, Roland and his father’s bravery as they negotiated their new normal were quite impressive.
Themes Antique-collecting, grief, ASD (Autism spectrum), Mystery, Thefts, Comics.
Carolyn Hull
The country schoolmaster: A mystery in 88 letters by Kate Grenville
Black Inc Books, 2026. ISBN: 9781760646257. (Age:Adult, young adult)
In researching her family history, the author travelled to the NSW State Archives in the awkwardly located far western suburbs of Sydney. While there, after finding the material she came to see, she looked up the records for the Currabubula school her mother and grandparents had attended. In the file was a collection of documents and a letter complaining about the teacher caught her eye. The language, the accusations and the fact that it was a hundred years old piqued her interest. The material remained unexplored until a further visit between Covid lockdowns and subsequent transcribing. Ten years on and the intriguing letters were still in limbo, neither suitable for fiction nor comprehensive enough to stand alone.
The strength of this book is that Grenville has created a connection with the reader, we know exactly where we are, we understand the process, the gaps and the author’s dilemma. We see the research method and are prepared to go on the journey. In the 1880’s schooling was made compulsory for children between the ages of six and fourteen leading to a proliferation of small schools serving communities like Currabubula. The subject of the letters, Joseph Connor became the teacher in 1884 and remained there until his death in 1897. The author has used the documents verbatim but then reflects on the possible motives and underlying messages contained in them. She also draws parallels with her own experiences with things like corporal punishment in school and some of the personal recollections were the most interesting. Sometimes I felt the analysis of motives was pushed too far and it seemed she was struggling to keep the narrative connected and moving forward. That said, it is beautifully written and will appeal to those familiar with regional small communities and anyone who has done any research and found treasures in a dusty archive.
Themes Australian regional school history, Archival research, History writing.
Sue Speck
Calm your farm by Dale Baker
Big Sky, 2026. ISBN: 9781923514256. (Age:3+)
When the rooster starts crowing, the farm descends into chaos, everything is not what is should be. Pigs are flying, ducks are toting guns, cows are running amok, the tractor is up the tree with eggs flying by. Rhyming couplets lay bare the problem besetting the farm where everything is awry. One little duck tries to deal with the mayhem. The duck breathes more slowly, and finds the farmer to work together. They approach the rooster, who is as chill as he can be, but the duck notes that the problem began when the rooster did not crow. He did not crow it turns out, because he does not like his food, and has no company. So the farmer tries to deal with these issues, buying different food for the rooster, and spending time with him. So the next day he crows out 'Cock-a-doodle-do' to wake the whole farm. It takes a few days for the chaos to subside, and things to get back to normal. One problem however remains, how to get the tractors down from the trees.
Readers will love predicting the rhyming word as the book is read, and look closely at the illustrations which adorn each page, putting the words into equally funny images.
A more serious note to the book is the importance of nourishing food while having company is seen as a most important issue amongst people. Learning to breathe more carefully to calm yourself down is also touched on, and this meditative approach can be used to help children calm down when they know they are not as calm as they want to be.
Themes Meditation, Farming, Humour, Nutrition.
Fran Knight
Hometown by Shaun Tan
Allen & Unwin, 2026. ISBN: 9781761180811. (Age:10+) Highly recommended.
Once upon a time, a girl lives happily in her home town. It is all she has ever known: a beautiful house, a loving family and wide circle of friends.
Every now and then, she wonders if there is something more. And one day there is. Initially she reacts badly towards the visitor, but feeling a little responsible, takes the guest home.
Here she and her family try to communicate with the new arrival, they speak to him, despite the odd noises they hear in response, they take their guest out to dinner, and play games with him. Eventually the noises are recognised as words, and the guest removes his helmet, revealing that he is human, telling her that she is too, and does not belong here.
Belonging is for me the central theme in this amazing work. The girl is markedly dissimilar to her family, but they are her family and where she lives is her hometown. But being so different where does she really belong? Tan throws grenades into our thoughts as we read this most fantastic of tales. Readers cannot help but question. Why is she like us and not her family, what are we to think about acceptance and difference, how do we see identity and the biggest question of all, what is meant by home. Every page makes the reader think, posing different questions, evoking different responses.
The illustrations are memorable, depicting a family of the oddest looking people, her friends almost reptilian creatures; bulky, long armed and an amazing contrast with the narrator. The dark gritty illustrations evoke the sense of a dystopian society, its sombre colours only relieved by the blue of the night sky when the guest tries to draw her away.
She listens to his words inviting her to go with him, stressing she may not belong here. She takes him on a tour of her hometown, thinking he will see it with her eyes, but he is dismissive and critical of her home and family.
Eventually he leaves, expecting her to be with him. Readers will not be able to predict what happens.
A wondrous tale of asking where we belong, this book will have readers thinking about it long after the last page is read, coming back to it to reignite the questioning, and renew the impact of the splendid water colour and pencil illustrations. Tan presents us with full page images of the girl’s home and family, with a page of smaller images of the girl taking the visitor’s hand, for example, followed by double pages of the night sky and of her floating in the clouds. Eyes will linger over the bus, and be drawn into the girl asleep on a cloud, look closely at her friends and her parents and their differences, ponder the background of the planet she lives on, and muse about his spaceship. Wow.
Every page is so different, taking the eye and mind on a surprising journey across its variety and detail.
The Giant Mystery, written by Rachel Morrisroe and illustrated by Steven Lenton, is a brand-new chapter book and a beautiful spin-off from the picture books series, How to Grow Magic by the same author. Bringing together magic, gardening, friendship, mystery and a generous sprinkling of delight, this story is sure to appeal to many young readers.
Set on Enchantment Street, where magic appears everywhere, the local primary school is a place where special things happen. Young readers will discover it is a place where fun and adventure abound, and that true imagination can grow into the most unexpected outcomes.
Meet seven-year-old, Sarah who is particularly excited, along with the rest of her friends, that Mr Pottifer, a talking Venus flytrap, will be returning to school to teach another magical gardening lesson. Today’s lesson is all about planting runner beans, in preparation for the school’s sports day. The children carefully follow every step of the gardening method, but there appears to be something or someone causing a little bit of mischief, as one of their beans grows into a giant beanstalk!
What follows is a wonderfully imaginative adventure. With some clever references to Jack and the Beanstalk, this story has its own special twists, joy and happiness, taking readers somewhere much more joyful and unexpected. As the mystery unfolds, there are surprises, more magic and plenty of moments to keep young readers intrigued.
Steven Lenton’s illustrations are presented in a distinctive monochrome style that perfectly complements the storyline. With an easy to read, well-spaced font, The Giant Mystery is an excellent choice for children who are developing their confidence as independent readers. It would also make a wonderful read aloud, giving younger listeners plenty of opportunities to imagine, wonder and predict what might happen next.
A sweet and cheerful story, it will particularly appeal to those who love fantasy, magic, mystery and happy endings. It reminds readers that sometimes the most ordinary things, like planting a seed, can grow into something truly extraordinary.
Detective Sergeant Anastasia, Ana, Brown is sent to investigate the odd death of a man found in a small NSW town - where she hopes she can also escape the scandal that has just broken out in her homebase of Sydney - which gave her the option of an unjust suspension or working this case out in rural NSW. The case is strange to start with - a man found burned to a crisp, chained to a fence on a nearby mountain, identity unknown though signs point to it being a beloved local GP, and the boy who found him saw a ghost lingering in the trees. Then a pagan symbol is found carved into the soles of his feet - there seems to be many secrets in this town, can Ana get to the bottom of this mystery.
Starting full throttle, this novel dives right into mystery, misogyny and murky plot lines, but manages to pull through, if readers are willing to stick with it. There are the typical frustrating male characters that basically appear in most women's lives or careers - be it the ones making life hard for them or making their career difficult; the 'he said, she said' case which readers have to wait to find out if there is a resolution; the 'he's such a good guy' trope and lots of issues that still face women today - sexual violence in the workplace, domestic violence, suffering in both workplace and homelife. While the novel started with the audience maybe not sympathising with the main character, by the end of the book, readers will at least appreciate the dedication to the work and fighting for what is right - and the author's attempt to highlight real world issues.
Subtitled, How to care for your new hair pets, Ah, nits! will have readers scratching their heads in anticipation as Bunting rolls out his hilarious look at nits and how to live with them. Lots of Bunting’s illustrations cover each page, from the wonderful close up of this pest, to the lines of baby nits laid by one female, to its anatomy, a head covered with nits, and the tantalising end papers, full of funny descriptions of a mob of nits. Bunting welcomes the newly nit covered reader, letting them know that this book will tell them all they need to know about their new pet. A diagram shows the insect and a photograph of the insect under magnification reveals just how small they are (less than 1m).
A fascinating array of information is given. In answer to why the scalp feels so itchy, three delightful reasons are given (nits suck your blood, they leave corpses on your head and they leave their poo).
To keep your pets alive and healthy, Bunting tells his readers not to use lice shampoo, or a nit comb and do not cut your hair short or cover the nits with a beanie. Over the page, Bunting offers a page of myth busters, for example the myth of one lice leaving from one person to another is not true, as lice move from head to head.
Moving on, Bunting asks his readers to name their nits, offering a page of suggestions, and a range of blood recipes to make them happy. And of course, your lice must be exercised so Bunting has several pages of exercising nits followed by the importance of socialisation, when nits can be shared with other heads. This shows us how nits move from one head to another, certainly not be leaping as the myth buster showed.
By the end of the book, most people will be scratching and be happy to see the last two pages offering sound advice to rid the hair of these pests.
A very funny look at a problem that will beset most children at some stage of their lives, presented as a handbook of how to care for your hair pets.
Dervla McTiernan returns with a taut psychological thriller that will keep readers up to the early hours, holding their breath as Detective Sergeant Judith Lee tries to track down the perpetrator of attacks on a psychologist, a socialite and a struggling single father. Each had been sent a mysterious gift that will wreck their lives. It all started when Alexis Turner reports that a respected clinical psychologist had assaulted her, but when Lee tries to track her down, she has disappeared. Lee carries the burden of not doing enough years before, when a similar assault was reported and is determined to do everything in her power to investigate this one.
McTiernan’s clever writing builds up the suspense and the reader is kept wondering what is going on right until the dramatic conclusion. Her character portraits are detailed: the life of the rich who can afford a nanny for their children, and the struggling single father Jack and his lovely son are brought to life. Lee’s angst about her early failure to follow up a case ensures that she doggedly follows every lead that she has and fearlessly puts herself in danger when the final confrontation comes.
Three Reasons for Revenge is a gripping thriller and I would happily read another novel featuring Detective Sergeant Judith Lee.
Little Hare, 2026. ISBN: 9781761218309. (Age:3+) Recommended.
Intrigued by the sight of a house on long coloured tiled legs striding over a bridge, the cover illustration of The house that walked away, I was immediately drawn into the story wondering why the house was moving. And the answer was on a gorgeous double page spread: “Once there was a house that didn’t feel at home. And so it stood up and walked away to find one.” The reader is then taken through many landscapes, a crowded town, a houseboat and a park overshadowed by skyscrapers, but the house doesn't feel at home in any of them. It is ignored by almost everyone, except a family who begins to follow it for a very long way. And the house grows fond of them because they too are looking for a home.
The illustrations are gorgeous. I loved the scaly tiles of the house’s legs, the two windows that looked like eyes, a porch that made up a nose and a tiled roof for hair. The family that followed consisted of a grandmother, mother, father, two children and a dog. and all were musical. The joy on their faces as they walked along singing and playing instruments is captivating and Howe’s picture of the house striding along behind them in time to the music is delightful.
The house that walked away would be a lovely read aloud, and I can see children returning to it and examining the wonderful illustrations and imagining what it would be like to live in some of the places where the house didn't find a fit. The message of finding the right home and belonging is one that children and adults will empathize with and could lead to lively discussions about the meaning of home.
In a post-apocalyptic scenario, Seventeen - the titanium-clad robot, is sent on a quest by a ‘sonorous voice’ to find humanity. Along the way he encounters and rescues Hazel (a young girl who is also on a search for her family). But analysing the world via his databases is enough to realise that there is little possibility for the future of humanity. Despite that, Seventeen exercises his sentient consciousness, explores the richness of the literary world and philosophy and proceeds to care for Hazel in a way that promotes the idea of hope and humanity. Is Seventeen a robot or a man? Who is in control of his destiny and purpose and what can we learn from his present dilemma?
This story is fairytale, fable, allegory, quest and sci-fi all rolled into one - and it is done so well! There are moments of simplicity, but also deep complexity that inspire reflection. In our world where AI is trusted and distrusted in equal measure, this book exposes the challenges that humanity might face in the future. It is a powerful story but written in a gentle style (not unlike The Wild Robot, another story with a robot with ‘heart’) and so could be enjoyed on a simple level by 10-year-old readers, but equally would engage much older readers. As an adult reader I was impressed with the literary references, the philosophical depths of what it is to be human and the intriguing aspects of science, power, altruism and compassion. Should the world and humanity be forever changed by a major infectious disease, what are the prospects for the future, and can science and AI solve all problems or is there something more? This is a book that would make a wonderful Middle School novel (year 7-8) for English students. There is enough depth to encourage deep reflective thinking, but the simple quest story is also accessible for those who prefer a simple narrative. Analysis of fables, quest stories (eg Rowan of Rin), fantasy or morality tales could walk alongside this wonderful story. But the use of poetry/literature to demonstrate human emotions or understanding would also be a powerful connection. Is Science more important than compassion, belief or selflessness? What an amazingly inspiring book packaged with a delightfully impressive descriptive style, by an author with a difficult name to pronounce! This is a story that will linger the longer you consider it.
Pan Macmillan, 2026. ISBN: 9781761776670. (Age:8+) Highly recommended.
Maryam Master has a knack for tackling tricky issues for children in short engaging novels with heart. This latest release is very difficult to review without spoilers but here goes…
Leif is almost 12 years old and named after a Viking, so feels he should be valiant and strong. But he is the first person born with Climate Induced Anomalies (CIA) so is often unwell. His growth is stunted and he’s scared of almost everything. He even has phobophobia - a fear of phobias!
This is a future near-dystopian world, full of holograms, climate controlled domes and robot police. Leif's family have moved closer to a big city, to have easy access to doctors and to escape the drastic climate change ravaging outlying areas.
In this new city Leif is a self-described misfit who makes just one friend, Albie. His family think Albie is a bad influence and want Leif to cut ties. An allergic reaction, a traumatic incident at school, and a ban on technology lead Leif to run away, back to his home town.
The break gives him a chance to experience new human connections and be thankful for what he has. Readers learn lessons as well, about family, being the sibling of a sick child, friendships, climate change, and tech addiction.
There are some clever choices in this book to keep interest for middle grade readers. It switches back and forth between first person accounts from Leif and his big sister Holly, with the font and tone of chapters different to mark the change of view. The book also includes a variety of text choices including scripted speech, lists, poems, extra-large font for dramatic impact, and a ‘stream of consciousness’ section.
