#AussieAuthors2022, #LoveOZMG, #LoveOzYA, adventure, animals, Aussie authors, Australian literature, Australian women writers, Belinda Murrell, biography, Book Industry, Books, challenges, check in post, Children's Literature, Covers, Crime/Mystery, Easter, Fables, Fairytales, Fantasy, historical fiction, history, humour, Junior Fiction, Kate Forsyth, literary fiction, middle grade, Picture Books, Publishers, quiz books, Reading, Reviews, Scholastic, series, Skandar, Wherewithal Way, Young Adult

QBD Reading Challenge 2022

This year I participated in the QBD Reading Challenge again and managed to complete it all within six months. Some categories were easier to fill than others, but what I like about this challenge is that the categories are always open and not overly prescriptive, which means it is easier to find books. Challenges like… Continue reading QBD Reading Challenge 2022

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May 2022 Reading Round-Up

In May, I managed to read 26 books. All were review books, and most were Australian, and twenty-three were  by women. I have almost completed all my chosen challenges – with one category in the Dymocks Reading Challenge and one in the QBD Reading Challenge left. Some reviews are scheduled for June and July as… Continue reading May 2022 Reading Round-Up

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April 2022 Monthly Wrap Up Post

Aussie Author Reading Challenge: 75/24 End of Year Post: Dymocks Reading Challenge: 24/26 QBD Reading Challenge: 22/24 Goal: 102/150 Australian Women: 64 Australian Men: 13 Australian: 75 Non-Australian: 27 Men: 23 Women: 82 In April, I read 27 books – some quiz books, but mostly review books, and some reviews are still yet to go… Continue reading April 2022 Monthly Wrap Up Post

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March 2022 Reading Round-up

In March I read twenty-one books. Most of them were Australian books, and mostly Australian women. Some are not out yet (at date of posting this), and three were quiz books, so I haven’t reviewed those. I have almost finished my Dymocks and QBD reading challenges. Even though I am well past my level for… Continue reading March 2022 Reading Round-up

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My Reading Journey February 2022

In February I read thirty books and have almost completed my reading challenges. I’ve hit my target for the Aussie Author Reading Challenge. There are only a few books I haven’t reviewed – mostly books I have had to read for my work as a quiz writer haven’t been reviewed. I’ve read a variety of… Continue reading My Reading Journey February 2022

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Revisiting a Favourite: The Beast’s Garden by Kate Forsyth

In 2015, Kate Forsyth published what I think was one of her most powerful, most harrowing, and most effective novels: The Beast’s Garden. Set in Germany in World War Two, it follows Ava as she does what she can to resist the Nazi regime and help her family and those she loves. To save them,… Continue reading Revisiting a Favourite: The Beast’s Garden by Kate Forsyth

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My January 2022 Reading Update

Aussie Author Reading Challenge: 16/24 Dymocks Reading Challenge: 18/26 QBD Reading Challenge: 15/24 Goal: 25/150 Australian Women: 13 Australian Men: 3 Australian: 16 Non-Australian: 9 I made a good start on my reading in January – I got through all the review books sent to me that have been slated for release between January and… Continue reading My January 2022 Reading Update

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December 2021 Reading Wrap Up

In December, I read twenty-five books, some of those were books for quiz writing and others were 2022 releases that I decided to read, review and schedule the post for so I don’t fall behind. As a result, these reviews are not included but the books themselves are. I have also completed all my challenges,… Continue reading December 2021 Reading Wrap Up

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Challenge Completed – Australian Women Writers Challenge 2021

2021 marks the end of the Australian Women Writer’s challenge as a general challenge focusing on women authors throughout Australian history. From next year, it shifts focus to the unknown, lesser recognised authors from the 19th and early 20th century. Interesting, but I don’t think I’ll be able to focus on that with all my… Continue reading Challenge Completed – Australian Women Writers Challenge 2021

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Ella at Eden: The London Thief by Laura Sieveking

Title: Ella at Eden: The London Thief Author: Laura Sieveking Genre: Contemporary Publisher: Scholastic Australia Published: 1st November 2021 Format: Paperback Pages: 192 Price: $15.99 Synopsis: Ella and Grace are off to London to represent Eden College in an international art competition. They’ll be staying in a proper English boarding school, and their art will… Continue reading Ella at Eden: The London Thief by Laura Sieveking