September 2019 Round Up

Readings and Musings on all things books, Aussie authors and everything in between

This month, I reached my overall reading goal of 150 books with Whisper by Lynette Noni. Overall, I have reached 71 books in my Australian Women Writer’s challenge, and am nearing the end of my PopSugar Challenge, with only a few categories left. I also filled out my Book Bingo card for the year, with my final wrap up post to be written after my final post for that goes live.

#Dymocks52Challenge

Here is a breakdown of what I read.

September Round-Up – 15

Book	Author	Challenge
The Impossible Quest #1: Escape from Wolfhaven Castle	Kate Forsyth	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019
A Lighthouse in Time	Sandra Bennett	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019
New Coach	Tim Cahill	General, #Dymocks52Challenge
488 Rules for Life	Kitty Flanagan	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019
Silver	Chris Hammer	General, #Dymocks52Challenge
Beauty, Beast and Belladonna	Maia Chance	General, #Dymocks52Challenge
There Was Still Love	Favel Parrett	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019
Rebel Women who Changed Australia	Susanna de Vries	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019, Book Bingo
Binder of Doom: Boa Constructor	Troy Cummings	General, #Dymocks52Challenge
The Deathless Girls	Kiran Millwood Hargrave	General, #Dymocks52Challenge
The Book of Dust Volume 2: The Secret Commonwealth	Philip Pullman	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, Book Bingo
The Christmasaurus and the Winter Witch	Tom Fletcher	General, #Dymocks52Challenge,
Dragon Masters: The Land of the Spring Dragon	Tracey West	General, #Dymocks52Challenge,
The Mitford Scandal	Jessica Fellowes	General, #Dymocks52Challenge,
Whisper	Lynette Noni	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019,

The Impossible Quest #1: Escape from Wolfhaven Castle by Kate Forsyth
A Lighthouse in Time by Sandra Bennett
Tiny Timmy: The New Coach by Tim Cahill
488 Rules for Life by Kitty Flanagan
Boa Constructor (Binder of Doom) by Troy Cummings
Silver by Chris Hammer
Beauty, Beast and Belladonna by Maia Chance
There Was Still Love by Favel Parrett
Rebel Women who Changed Australia by Susanna de Vries
The Deathless Girls by Kiran Millwood Hargrave
The Book of Dust Volume 2: The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman
The Christmasaurus and the Winter Witch by Tom Fletcher
Dragon Masters: The Land of the Spring Dragon by Tracey West
The Mitford Scandal by Jessica Fellowes
Whisper by Lynette Noni

48987121_1508329715968294_4870693570241101824_n

Book Bingo

Rows Across:

Row One: BINGO

A book with a red cover: Children of the Dragon: Race for the Red Dragon by Rebecca Lim – #AWW2019

Beloved Classic: Seven Little Australians by Ethel Turner – AWW2018

A novel that has more than 500 pages: Rebel Women who Changed Australia by Susanna de Vries, The Book of Dust Volume 2: The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman

– #AWW2019, The Book of Dust Volume 2: The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman

A novella no more than 150 pages: Deltora Quest: The Forest of Silence by Emily Rodda – #AWW2019

Prize winning book: Somewhere Around the Corner by Jackie French – #AWW2019, Alexander Altmann A10567 by Suzy Zail – #AWW2019

Row Two: BINGO

A book by an author with the same initials as you: The Book Ninja by Ali Berg and Michelle Klaus – #AWW2019

Non-Fiction book about an event: The Suicide Bride by Tanya Bretherton – #AWW2019

Fictional biography about a woman from history: Fled by Meg Keneally – #AWW2019

Memoir about a non-famous person: Australia’s Sweetheart by Michael Adams

Book written by an Australian woman more than 10 years ago: Deltora Quest: The Lake of Tears by Emily Rodda – #AWW2019 (2001)

Row Three: BINGO

Themes of Science Fiction: Daughter of Bad Times by Rohan Wilson

Themes of Culture: The Lost Magician by Piers Torday

Themes of Justice: What Lies Beneath Us by Kirsty Ferguson – AWW2019

Themes of Inequality: The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer – AWW2019

Themes of Fantasy: Vardaesia by Lynette Noni – AWW2019

Row Four: – BINGO

Book with a place in the title: The French Photographer by Natasha Lester -AWW2019

Book set in the Australian Outback: The Last Dingo Summer by Jackie French (Matilda Saga #8) – #AWW2019

Book set on the Australian Coast: The House of Second Chances by Esther Campion – AWW2019

Book set in the Australian Mountains: The Orchardist’s Daughter by Karen Viggers – AWW2019

Book set in an exotic location: Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte – #AWW2019

Row Five: BINGO

Written by an Australian Man: The Honeyman and the Hunter by Neil Grant

Written by an Australian Woman: Zelda Stitch Term Two: Too Much Witch by Nicki Greenberg – AWW2019

Written by an author under the age of 35: Archibald, The Naughtiest Elf in the World Causes Trouble with the Easter Bunny by Skye Davidson – #AWW2019

Written by an author over the age of 65: Miss Franklin: How Miles Franklin’s Brilliant Career began by Libby Hathorn – #AWW2019

Written by an author you’ve never read: The Dog Runner by Bren MacDibble – #AWW2019

Row Six: BINGO

Literary: Zebra and Other Stories by Debra Adelaide – AWW2019

Crime: All the Tears in China by Sulari Gentill – AWW2019

Historical: The Familiars by Stacey Halls

Romance: Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

Comedy: Best Foot Forward by Adam Hills

Rows Down:

Row One: – BINGO

A book with a red cover: Children of the Dragon: Race for the Red Dragon by Rebecca Lim – #AWW2019

Book by an author with the same initials as you: The Book Ninja by Ali Berg and Michelle Klaus – #AWW2019,

Themes of science fiction: Daughter of Bad Times by Rohan Wilson

Book with a place in the title: The French Photographer by Natasha Lester -AWW2019

Written by an Australian man: The Honeyman and the Hunter by Neil Grant

Literary: Zebra and Other Stories by Debra Adelaide – AWW2019

Row Two: BINGO

Beloved Classic: Seven Little Australians by Ethel Turner – AWW2018

Non-Fiction book about an event: The Suicide Bride by Tanya Bretherton – #AWW2019

Themes of culture: The Lost Magician by Piers Torday

Book set in the Australian outback: The Last Dingo Summer by Jackie French (Matilda Saga #8) – #AWW2019

Written by an Australian woman: Zelda Stitch Term Two: Too Much Witch by Nicki Greenberg – AWW2019

Crime: All the Tears in China by Sulari Gentill – AWW2019

Row three: BINGO

Novel that has 500 pages or more: Rebel Women who Changed Australia by Susanna de Vries

– #AWW2019, The Book of Dust Volume 2: The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman

Fictional biography about a woman from history: Fled by Meg Keneally – #AWW2019

Themes of justice: What Lies Beneath Us by Kirsty Ferguson – AWW2019

Book set on the Australian coast: The House of Second Chances by Esther Campion – AWW2019

Written by an author under the age of 35: Archibald, The Naughtiest Elf in the World Causes Trouble with the Easter Bunny by Skye Davidson – #AWW2019

Historical: The Familiars by Stacey Halls

Row Four: – BINGO

Novella no more than 150 pages: Deltora Quest: The Forest of Silence by Emily Rodda – #AWW2019

Memoir about a non-famous person: Australia’s Sweetheart by Michael Adams

Themes of inequality: The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer – AWW2019

Book set in the Australian mountains: The Orchardist’s Daughter by Karen Viggers – AWW2019

Written by an author over the age of 65: Miss Franklin: How Miles Franklin’s Brilliant Career began by Libby Hathorn – #AWW2019

Romance: Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

Row Five: BINGO

Prize winning book: Somewhere Around the Corner by Jackie French – #AWW2019, Alexander Altmann A10567 by Suzy Zail – #AWW2019

Book written by an Australian woman more than ten years ago: Deltora Quest: The Lake of Tears by Emily Rodda – #AWW2019 (2001)

Themes of fantasy: Vardaesia by Lynette Noni – AWW2019

Book set in an exotic location: Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte – #AWW2019

Written by an author you’ve never read: The Dog Runner by Bren MacDibble – #AWW2019

Comedy: Best Foot Forward by Adam Hills

Of these, due to work obligations, not as many were Australian Women as I would have liked but will aim to get more read in the coming months. Other challenges will hopefully be filled in then as well so I can add those lists in towards the end of the year and in my final wrap up posts for each challenge.

Until next month!

Rebel Women Who Changed Australia by Susanna de Vries

rebel women who shaped australia Title: Rebel Women Who Changed Australia

Author: Susanna de Vries

Genre: Biography

Publisher: Harper Collins Australia

Published: 15th April 2019

Format: Paperback

Pages: 592

Price: 34.99

Synopsis: Celebrate the women who changed our nation. From Lillie Goodisson, pioneer of family planning, to Eileen Joyce, world-famous pianist, Enid Lyons, our first female cabinet minister, Stella Miles Franklin, who endowed our most celebrated literary prize, and Dr Catherine Hamlin, whose fistula hospitals in Africa have given hope to thousands, Australian women have made a difference to our own country and the world.

While the history of Australia is rich with the accounts of the deeds of men, women’s contributions have often been overlooked. This updated and condensed edition of Susanna de Vries Complete Book of Great Australian Women remedies that and celebrates, for a new generation, women who broke the mould, crashed through ceilings, and shaped the nation in the fields of medicine, law, the arts and politics.

These are women who helped to forge the Australia we know today.

Dr Agnes Bennett – Dr Dagmar Berne – Nancy Bird Walton – Edith Cowan – Fanny Durack – Stella Miles Franklin – Mary Gilmore – Sister Lillie Goodisson – Dr Catherine Hamlin – Eileen Joyce – Annette Kellerman – Sister Elizabeth Kenny – Kundaibark – Louisa Lawson – Joice Nankivell Loch – Enid Burnell Lyons – Mary McConnel – Nellie Melba – Roma Mitchell – Oodgeroo Noonuccal – Sister Lucy Osburn – Margaret Rose Preston – Henry Handel Richardson – Joan Rosanove – Rose Scott – Ella Simon – Dr Constance Stone – Florence Mary Taylor – Kylie Tennant

~*~

Rebel Women Who Changed Australia brings to life many stories that have been hidden for a long time – and some that might not have been wholly known, mixed in with the few whose names are often known. Of the women in this book, I probably had heard of and knew something about at least eight, whilst the rest I may have only heard in passing or never heard at all in my history lessons – something that I think can effectively be included without denying other important events and figures their place in history. They all matter, why shouldn’t we teach them all?

Books like this allow hidden history to be revealed, and it covers white women, Indigenous women, rich women, and poor women. Women whose families had different ideas about what they should do, and women whose families supported them and helped them. These women all made different sacrifices or changes in their lives, and never let anyone else define them.

They each had a different journey, and passion but what unites them is their stories have often been hidden, forgotten or even framed alongside those of men, as many of the women in the medical field were. They fought to have their voices heard, and eventually did. Sometimes, they may have received credit in their day, and other times, it may have been assigned to a man in their field or lives – and only later did they get equal billing.

But now, we are hearing these stories and it makes history richer – and interesting as well. It allows women who achieved things in times when they were expected to do not much more than marry and have kids within society to be showcased, and gives girls heroes to look up to who aren’t passive princesses (although, in some fairy tales, the girls do hold their own. One just needs to read the originals instead of the sanitised, watered down versions).

What I’m enjoying about books like this is it shows women as more than what history books represent them as at times, and identify who they are and what they did, what made them exceptional for their time. It allows for readers of all ages to see what women could do, not only what they were expected to do, proving that these unstoppable rebel women refused to let anything, and anyone stop them reaching their goals. They pushed through barriers as much as possible, and at times, worked in their field until they were physically unable to, but by that time, they had made their mark and will forever be remembered for their remarkable achievements in the face of various barriers and attempts at resistance. A book that would effectively complement any Australian history course, and many women overlap, and indeed knew each other, and seeing these connections made it interesting as well.

The Unforgiving City by Maggie Joel

the unforgiving city.jpg Title: The Unforgiving City

Author: Maggie Joel

Genre: Historical Fiction

Publisher: Allen and Unwin

Published: 3rd September 2019

Format: Paperback

Pages: 425

Price: $29.99

Synopsis: Secrets and lies throw three lives into chaos in the last days of the nineteenth century.

Colonial Sydney in the final weeks of the nineteenth century: a city striving for union and nationhood but dogged by divisions so deep they threaten to derail, not just the Federation, but the colony itself. There are chasms opening too when a clandestine note reaches the wrong hands in the well-to-do household of aspiring politician Alasdair Dunlevy and his wife Eleanor. Below stairs, their maid Alice faces a desperate situation with her wayward sister.

Despite sharing a house, Eleanor, Alice and Alasdair are each alone in their torment and must each find some solution, but at what cost to themselves and those they love? Evocative, immediate and involving, this is the sweeping story of three people, their passions and ambitions, and the far-flung ripples their choices will cause.

~*~

Set in the final weeks and months of the nineteenth century and the Federation campaign, Australia is still a series of colonies, each run by its own government and without a common transport system. There are divisions amongst society, those that wish to Federate to unite the colonies, and those that wish to remain as colonies. Yet beyond the political issues of the suffragettes and Federation, there are secrets kept within one household in the colony. The Dunlevy household – headed up by Alasdair Dunlevy, is rocked by a note sent to his wife, Eleanor. Whilst Eleanor seeks to hide her secrets and uncover her husband’s, their maid, Alice, has her own secrets.

She’s trying to help her sister, Milli, who has debts to pay off, and is about to give birth. In her quest to save the child, the seemingly separate secrets they are trying to protect will inevitably collide – and the fates of these three people will remain unsure until the very last minute.

An historical fiction novel that is uniquely Australian, The Unforgiving City tells the story of the struggle to unite Australia as one country, and touching on more of the story than people might know – the struggles and opposition, and how the suffragist movement was anti-Federation – unless women got the vote – which might explain or help explain how women (white women) got the vote so soon after Federation.

Though there were many people involved in, or affected by, Federation in various ways, this book closely explores the lives of three people in particular – Alasdair and Eleanor Dunlevy and their maid Alice. It touches on the issues that affect other classes, Indigenous people, and others within the colonies, and follows Alasdair as he journeys across New South Wales as he works to convince the towns to vote yes to Federate.

Eleanor and Alice drive the majority of the narrative with their secrets, and Alasdair’s secrets are woven in and out as they forge towards a Federated nation. This story revolves around the relationships of family, and of the rich and poor, and the chasms between the poorest of the poor and those who serve the rich, in a cut-throat world where laws prohibit women from making their own decisions, and where desperate people will do desperate things to keep their secrets and get help where they need it.

There’s not a lot of romance in this book, which allows the story to have a different slant and focus that make it more powerful for me, because it is about survival in a city where what are now areas for the rich, were once the slums and dominion of the poor and those who have, according to the colonial society, fallen from grace. Maggie Joel cleverly writes each character as dealing with their secrets separately but at the same time, united in trying to keep these secrets that will eventually collide with tragic yet somewhat hopeful results, even if these results are not what should have happened for the individual characters.

Book bingo Eighteen: A Book with a Red Cover

20181124_140447

End of August, and I’m up to my eighteenth post for 2019’s book bingo with Theresa and Amanda. Looking at my text log, you may notice I’ve moved my book in one category – turns out it didn’t quite fit there but will fit into a broader category that I will explain in the post for that square on the fourteenth of September. This week, I’m ticking off a book I finished months ago, but had to hold off until it was published to write this post. So this is where it fits in. A book with a red cover – another broad category that I had a few options for.

However, I decided to go with another review book – as the review was already written, and so far, it has been the only book with a red cover I have read this year. The new instalment in Rebecca Lim’s, The Children of the Dragon series, Race for the Red Dragon, fits this category really nicely. Following on from Harley and Qi’s adventures in the first book, now they are dodging and evading capture by those who do not want the dragon’s children freed. They want the vases for themselves.

race for red dragon

It is a fast-paced and exciting addition to the series and is very enjoyable and fun with great characters and an excellent plot.

Rows Across:

Row One:

A book with a red cover: Children of the Dragon: Race for the Red Dragon by Rebecca Lim – #AWW2019

Beloved Classic: Seven Little Australians by Ethel Turner – AWW2018

A novel that has more than 500 pages:

A novella no more than 150 pages: Deltora Quest: The Forest of Silence by Emily Rodda – #AWW2019

Prize winning book:

Rows Down:

Row One: –

A book with a red cover: Children of the Dragon: Race for the Red Dragon by Rebecca Lim – #AWW2019

Book by an author with the same initials as you:

Themes of science fiction:

Book with a place in the title: The French Photographer by Natasha Lester -AWW2019

Written by an Australian man: The Honeyman and the Hunter by Neil Grant

Literary: Zebra and Other Stories by Debra Adelaide – AWW2019

Until next time, with a new book bingo!

The Burnt Country by Joy Rhoades

the burnt country.jpg Title: The Burnt Country

Author: Joy Rhoades

Genre: Historical Fiction

Publisher: Penguin Random House/Bantam

Published: 6th August 2019

Format: Paperback

Pages: 375

Price: $32.99

Synopsis: The stunning new novel from the author of The Woolgrower’s Companion, whom the Australian Women’s Weekly described as ‘a wonderful new voice in literary rural fiction’.
A scandalous secret. A deadly fire. An agonizing choice.

Australia 1948. As a young woman running Amiens, a sizeable sheep station in New South Wales, Kate Dowd knows she’s expected to fail. And her grazier neighbour is doing his best to ensure she does, attacking her method of burning off to repel a bushfire.

But fire risk is just one of her problems. Kate cannot lose Amiens or give in to her estranged husband Jack’s demands to sell: the farm is her livelihood and the only protection she can offer her half-sister Pearl, as the Aborigines Welfare Board threatens to take her away.

Ostracised by the local community for even acknowledging Pearl, Kate cannot risk another scandal. Which means turning her back on her wartime lover, Luca Canali …

Then Jack drops a bombshell. He wants a divorce. He’ll protect what’s left of Kate’s reputation, and keep Luca out of it – but for an extortionate price.

Soon Kate is putting out fires on all fronts to save her farm, keep her family together and protect the man she loves. Then a catastrophic real fire threatens everything . . .

~*~

Set on a farm in country NSW, The Burnt Country is unique amongst rural fiction I have read. It’s 1948, and World War Two has been over for three years. Kate Dowd has been running the sheep station Amiens alone since her father died and her husband, Jack, left her. Left to support herself, her half-sister, Pearl, Pearl’s mother Daisy, and another relative, Harry, Kate is faced with decisions about selling and rumours floating around town about her family.

Yet it is a time of drought as well, and whilst the fires of what people want from her and expect from her start to flicker around her, a very real fire threatens her home and community, and leads to investigations and events that could change Kate, her community, family and Amiens forever.

Her wartime lover, Luca, and ex, Jack return at about the same time. Yet this storyline does not take over, rather, the romance bubbles beneath the main storyline of family and home, and what it takes to protect what you hold close. Throughout the novel, the dark spectre of Jack looms as he comes in and out of Kate’s life with threats, demands and conditions to go along with a divorce he demands. He knows Kate cannot pay the price he demands, and Kate and her friends use their knowledge and skills to uncover what Jack is after – so there is a bit of a mystery in this book to go along with bubbling romances – two, it turns out, and one of which I felt was a lot more prominent between another couple, and it was one I quite enjoyed,

Determined to help her family, and stand up for herself, Kate does what she can to get them through a bushfire that sweeps across the region. I was swept up in this book, because it allowed Kate to be a woman of her time, but at the same time, she stood up for what she believed in, and what was right. She did not let what many people saw as normal and right dictate what she should do, and she showed compassion and strength in the face of accusations that at one point, she feels she cannot defend herself against.

Kate faces blatant sexism and disrespect as she does things her way, from her burning off method, to hiding Daisy and Pearl from the Aborigines Welfare Board – determined that they won’t be separated and determined to make the necessary sacrifices to save her family and her farm. It is a story about a woman who finds herself in circumstances she never foresaw, much more than a romance. It is a very human story, with circumstances and a setting very real to many Australians, as the threat of drought and bushfire linger all the time in rural communities. This aspect was my favourite, because I believe it really allowed Kate to shine and grow as she stood up to those who doubted her who blamed her for things beyond her control and knowledge. It showed that those who are loyal to you in times of trouble are important and true family will always find a way to come back together.

Populated with a diverse group of characters from several backgrounds and attitudes, like many books, The Burnt Country is a snapshot of a community, illustrating a variety of views that we see as abominable today, yet would have been accepted in the post-war years. Including these is undeniably uncomfortable, but at the same time, we shouldn’t shy away from a very real reality that many faced in the mid-twentieth century in those conditions. It is a great novel, because Kate does not allow what society expects dictate what she does, and she is a wonderful character, and her story is powerful. It is always good to see women in fiction front and centre beyond romance, perhaps with romance bubbling on the side or in the background. Seeing them in other positions and plots shows there are many more aspects to these characters than might be present in some places.

July Reading Round-Up

cropped-Readings-and-Musings-on-all-things-books-Aussie-authors-and-everything-in-between.jpg

Seven months into the year, and in total, I have read 118 books. Of those 118, 58 have been by Australian Women, and the remaining 60 by authors across the board – male, female and international. I am still trying to make progress on my Jane Austen challenge and have one square left to tick off for book bingo – a book over 500 pages. Many of my reads this year have fallen short of this, so I am still looking and hoping something in my own collection will come up.

#Dymocks52Challenge

Most of the books have been reviewed, with a few exceptions for books read for work or Squirrel Girl and Captain Marvel. Some reviewed books have not been released yet, so the links will be included in later wrap ups or maybe added to this one when they go live. I read 25 books in July, and have managed to stay on top of a lot of my reading as well.

Until next month, and more reviews and posts!

General

The Silver Well by Kate Forsyth and Kim Wilkins
Blood and Circuses by Kerry Greenwood (Phryne Fisher #6)
The Aunt Who Wouldn’t Die by Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay
The Secret Dragon by Ed Clarke
Aladdin and the Arabian Nights
Deltora Quest: The Maze of the Beast by Emily Rodda
Deltora Quest: The Valley of the Lost by Emily Rodda
Deltora Quest: Return to Del by Emily Rodda
Deltora Quest #1 by Emily Rodda
Somewhere Around the Corner by Jackie French
Alexander Altmann A10567 by Suzy Zail
The Binder of Doom: Brute Cake by Troy Cummings
Beatrix the Bold and the Curse of the Wobblers by Simon Mockler
Where the Dead Go by Sarah Bailey
Firewatcher #1: Brimstone by Kelly Gardiner
Purrmaids #1: The Scaredy Cat by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen
The Dragon in the Library by Louie Stowell
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Illustrated Edition by JK Rowling, illustrated by Jim Kay
The Burnt Country by Joy Rhoades
The Book Ninja by Ali Berg and Michelle Klaus
Pages and Co: Tilly and the Bookwanderers by Anna James
Top Marks for Murder by Robin Stevens (A Murder Most Unladylike #8)
Bentley by Ellen Miles
Fast Forward to the Future (Time Jumpers #3) by Wendy Mass
Is it Night or Day? by Fern Schumer Chapman

Pop Sugar Challenge

A book becoming a movie in 2019:
A book that makes you nostalgic: The Lost Magician by Piers Torday
A book written by a musician (fiction or nonfiction): Best Foot Forward by Adam Hills
A book you think should be turned into a movie: Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte
A book with at least one million ratings on Goodreads:Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by JK Rowling – 20th Anniversary House Editions
A book with a plant in the title or on the cover: Bella Donna: Coven Road by Ruth Symes, Eliza Rose by Lucy Worsley
A reread of a favourite book: Beauty in Thorns by Kate Forsyth
A book about a hobby: The Bad Mother’s Book Club by Keris Stanton
A book you meant to read in 2018: Eliza Rose by Lucy Worsley
A book with POP, SUGAR, or CHALLENGE in the title: Poppy Field by Michael Morpurgo, Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers
A book with an item of clothing or accessory on the cover: 99 Percent Mine by Sally Thorne, The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer
A book inspired by myth/legend/folklore:Mermaid Holidays: The Magic Pearl by Delphine Davis and Adele K Thomas
A book published posthumously: Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
A book you see someone reading on TV or in a movie:
A retelling of a classic: Enola Holmes: The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets (Enola Holmes #3) by Nancy Springer
A book with a question in the title: Is It Night or Day? by Fern Schumer Chapman
A book set on college or university campus: Marvel Rising: Squirrel Girl and Ms Marvel by Devin Grayson, Ryan North and Willow Wilson
A book about someone with a superpower: The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl Volume One: Squirrel Power by Ryan North
A book told from multiple POVs: Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte
A book set in space: Captain Marvel: Higher, Faster, Further by Kelly Sue DeConnick
A book by two female authors: The Silver Well by Kate Forsyth and Kim Wilkins
A book with SALTY, SWEET, BITTER, or SPICY in the title: Australia’s Sweetheart by Michael Adams
A book set in Scandinavia: The Wolf and the Watchman by Niklas Natt och Dag
A book that takes place in a single day: Archibald, The Naughtiest Elf in the World Causes Trouble with the Easter Bunny by Skye Davidson
A debut novel: What Lies Beneath Us by Kirsty Ferguson
A book that’s published in 2019: Vardaesia by Lynette Noni
A book featuring an extinct or imaginary creature: Dragon Masters: Treasure of the Gold Dragon by Tracey West
A book recommended by a celebrity you admire: Split edited by Lee Kofman – recommended by Myf Warhurst
A book with LOVE in the title:
A book featuring an amateur detective: All the Tears in China by Sulari Gentill
A book about a family: The House of Second Chances by Esther Campion
A book by an author from Asia, Africa, or South America: Children of the Dragon: Race for the Red Dragon by Rebecca Lim
A book with a zodiac sign or astrology term in title:The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna by Juliet Grames
A book that includes a wedding: The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer, Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen, A Dream of Italy by Nicky Pellegrino
A book by an author whose first and last names start with the same letter:Mermaid Holidays: The Talent Show by Delphine Davis and Adele K. Thomas, The True Story of Maddie Bright by Mary-Rose MacColl, Explorer’s Academy: Nebula Secret by Trudi Trueit
A ghost story: The Aunt Who Wouldn’t Die by Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay
A book with a two-word title: Saving You by Charlotte Nash
A novel based on a true story: The Familiars by Stacey Halls – The Pendle Witches
A book revolving around a puzzle or game: Deltora Quest #1 by Emily Rodda
Your favourite prompt from a past POPSUGAR Reading challenge:

2016 – A book based on a fairy tale: The Blue Rose by Kate Forsyth – based on Chinese fairy tale, The Blue Rose

2017 – A steampunk book:

Advanced

A “cli-fi” (climate fiction) book: The Dog Runner by Bren MacDibble, Daughter of Bad Times by Rohan Wilson
A “choose-your-own-adventure” book: Choose Your Own Adventure #2: Journey Under the Sea by R.A. Montgomery
An “own voices” book: Children of the Dragon: Race for the Red Dragon by Rebecca Lim
Read a book during the season it is set in: Archibald, The Naughtiest Elf in the World Causes Trouble with the Easter Bunny by Skye Davidson (Easter Season),The Shelly Bay Ladies Swimming Circle by Sophie Green (parts are set during Autumn)
A LitRPG book:
A book with no chapters / unusual chapter headings / unconventionally numbered chapters: Kensy and Max: Undercover by Jacqueline Harvey (Ciphers used to give the chapter headings)
Two books that share the same title: Deltora Quest: The Forest of Silence by Emily Rodda
Two books that share the same title: Deltora Quest: The Lake of Tears by Emily Rodda
A book that has inspired a common phrase or idiom: Aladdin and the Arabian Nights – Open Sesame
A book set in an abbey, cloister, monastery, vicarage, or convent: Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

beatrix-the-bold-and-the-curse-of-the-wobblers

AWW2019

The Silver Well by Kate Forsyth and Kim Wilkins – Reviewed
Blood and Circuses by Kerry Greenwood (Phryne Fisher #6) – Reviewed
Deltora Quest: The Maze of the Beast by Emily Rodda – Reviewed
Deltora Quest: The Valley of the Lost by Emily Rodda – Reviewed
Deltora Quest: Return to Del by Emily Rodda – Reviewed
Deltora Quest #1 by Emily Rodda – Reviewed
Somewhere Around the Corner by Jackie French – Reviewed
Alexander Altmann A10567 by Suzy Zail – Reviewed

55.Where the Dead Go by Sarah Bailey – Reviewed

Firewatcher #1: Brimstone by Kelly Gardiner – Reviewed
The Burnt Country by Joy Rhoades – Reviewed
The Book Ninja by Ali Berg and Michelle Klaus – Reviewed

48987121_1508329715968294_4870693570241101824_n

Book Bingo

Rows Across:

Row One:

A book with a red cover: Children of the Dragon: Race for the Red Dragon by Rebecca Lim – #AWW2019

Beloved Classic: Seven Little Australians by Ethel Turner – AWW2018

A novel that has more than 500 pages:

A novella no more than 150 pages:Deltora Quest: The Forest of Silence by Emily Rodda – #AWW2019

Prize winning book: Somewhere Around the Corner by Jackie French – #AWW2019, Alexander Altmann A10567 by Suzy Zail – #AWW2019

Row Two: BINGO

BINGO!

A book by an author with the same initials as you: The Book Ninja by Ali Berg and Michelle Klaus – #AWW2019*

Non-Fiction book about an event: The Suicide Bride by Tanya Bretherton – #AWW2019

Fictional biography about a woman from history: Fled by Meg Keneally – #AWW2019

Memoir about a non-famous person:Australia’s Sweetheart by Michael Adams

Book written by an Australian woman more than 10 years ago: Deltora Quest: The Lake of Tears by Emily Rodda – #AWW2019 (2001)

Row Three: BINGO

BINGO!

Themes of Science Fiction: Daughter of Bad Times by Rohan Wilson

Themes of Culture:The Lost Magician by Piers Torday

Themes of Justice: What Lies Beneath Us by Kirsty Ferguson – AWW2019

Themes of Inequality: The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer – AWW2019

Themes of Fantasy: Vardaesia by Lynette Noni – AWW2019

Row Four: – BINGO

BINGO!

Book with a place in the title: The French Photographer by Natasha Lester -AWW2019

Book set in the Australian Outback: The Last Dingo Summer by Jackie French (Matilda Saga #8) – #AWW2019

Book set on the Australian Coast:The House of Second Chances by Esther Campion – AWW2019

Book set in the Australian Mountains: The Orchardist’s Daughter by Karen Viggers – AWW2019

Book set in an exotic location: Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte – #AWW2019

Row Five: BINGO

BINGO!

Written by an Australian Man: The Honeyman and the Hunter by Neil Grant

Written by an Australian Woman:Zelda Stitch Term Two: Too Much Witch by Nicki Greenberg – AWW2019

Written by an author under the age of 35: Archibald, The Naughtiest Elf in the World Causes Trouble with the Easter Bunny by Skye Davidson – #AWW2019

Written by an author over the age of 65: Miss Franklin: How Miles Franklin’s Brilliant Career began by Libby Hathorn – #AWW2019

Written by an author you’ve never read: The Dog Runner by Bren MacDibble – #AWW2019

Row Six: BINGO

BINGO!

Literary: Zebra and Other Stories by Debra Adelaide – AWW2019

Crime: All the Tears in China by Sulari Gentill – AWW2019

Historical: The Familiars by Stacey Halls

Romance: Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

Comedy: Best Foot Forward by Adam Hills

Rows Down:

Row One: – BINGO

BINGO!

A book with a red cover: Children of the Dragon: Race for the Red Dragon by Rebecca Lim – #AWW2019

Book by an author with the same initials as you: The Book Ninja by Ali Berg and Michelle Klaus – #AWW2019*

Themes of science fiction: Daughter of Bad Times by Rohan Wilson

Book with a place in the title: The French Photographer by Natasha Lester -AWW2019

Written by an Australian man: The Honeyman and the Hunter by Neil Grant

Literary: Zebra and Other Stories by Debra Adelaide – AWW2019

Row Two: BINGO

BINGO!

Beloved Classic: Seven Little Australians by Ethel Turner – AWW2018

Non-Fiction book about an event: The Suicide Bride by Tanya Bretherton – #AWW2019

Themes of culture: The Lost Magician by Piers Torday

Book set in the Australian outback: The Last Dingo Summer by Jackie French (Matilda Saga #8) – #AWW2019

Written by an Australian woman: Zelda Stitch Term Two: Too Much Witch by Nicki Greenberg – AWW2019

Crime: All the Tears in China by Sulari Gentill – AWW2019

Row three:

Novel that has 500 pages or more:

Fictional biography about a woman from history: Fled by Meg Keneally – #AWW2019

Themes of justice: What Lies Beneath Us by Kirsty Ferguson – AWW2019

Book set on the Australian coast:The House of Second Chances by Esther Campion – AWW2019

Written by an author under the age of 35: Archibald, The Naughtiest Elf in the World Causes Trouble with the Easter Bunny by Skye Davidson – #AWW2019

Historical: The Familiars by Stacey Halls

Row Four: – BINGO

BINGO!

Novella no more than 150 pages: Deltora Quest: The Forest of Silence by Emily Rodda – #AWW2019

Memoir about a non-famous person:Australia’s Sweetheart by Michael Adams

Themes of inequality: The Things We Cannot Say by Kelly Rimmer – AWW2019

Book set in the Australian mountains: The Orchardist’s Daughter by Karen Viggers – AWW2019

Written by an author over the age of 65: Miss Franklin: How Miles Franklin’s Brilliant Career began by Libby Hathorn – #AWW2019

Romance: Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

Row Five: BINGO

BINGO!

Prize winning book: Somewhere Around the Corner by Jackie French – #AWW2019, Alexander Altmann A10567 by Suzy Zail – #AWW2019

Book written by an Australian woman more than ten years ago: Deltora Quest: The Lake of Tears by Emily Rodda – #AWW2019 (2001)

Themes of fantasy: Vardaesia by Lynette Noni – AWW2019

Book set in an exotic location: Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte – #AWW2019

Written by an author you’ve never read: The Dog Runner by Bren MacDibble – #AWW2019

Comedy: Best Foot Forward by Adam Hills

July Round Up – 25

Book	Title	Challenge
The Silver Well	Kate Forsyth and Kim Wilkins	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019, Popsugar
Blood and Circuses (Phryne Fisher #6)	Kerry Greenwood	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019
The Aunt Who Wouldn’t Die	Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, PopSugar
The Secret Dragon	Ed Clarke	General, #Dymocks52Challenge – released 6th August.
Aladdin and the Arabian Nights	Anonymous	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, PopSugar
Deltora Quest: The Maze of the Beast	Emily Rodda	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019
Deltora Quest: The Valley of the Lost	Emily Rodda	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019
Deltora Quest: Return to Del	Emily Rodda	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019
Deltora Quest #1 Omnibus	Emily Rodda	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019, PopSugar
Somewhere Around the Corner	Jackie French	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019, Book bingo
Alexander Altmann A10567	Suzy Zail	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019, Book bingo
The Binder of Doom: Brute Cake	Troy Cummings	General, #Dymocks52Challenge
Beatrix the Bold and the Curse of the Wobblers	Simon Mockler	General, #Dymocks52Challenge
Where the Dead Go	Sarah Bailey	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019
Firewatcher #1: Brimstone	Kelly Gardiner	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019
Purrmaids #1: The Scaredy Cat	Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen	General, #Dymocks52Challenge
The Dragon in the Library	Louie Stowell	General, #Dymocks52Challenge
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Illustrated Edition	JK Rowling, illustrated by Jim Kay	General, #Dymocks52Challenge
The Burnt Country	Joy Rhoades	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019
The Book Ninja	Ali Berg and Michelle Klaus	General, #Dymocks52Challenge, #AWW2019
Pages and Co: Tilly and the Bookwanderers	Anna James	General, #Dymocks52Challenge
Top Marks for Murder (A Murder Most Unladylike #8)	Robin Stevens	General, #Dymocks52Challenge
Bentley	Ellen Miles	General, #Dymocks52Challenge
Fast Forward to the Future (Time Jumpers #3)	Wendy Mass	General, #Dymocks52Challenge
Is it Night or Day?	Fern Schumer Chapman	General, #Dymocks52Challenge

The Dragon in the Library by Louie Stowell

the dragon in the library.jpg Title: The Dragon in the Library

Author: Louie Stowell

Genre: Fantasy

Publisher: Nosy Crow/Allen and Unwin

Published: 25th July 2018

Format: Paperback

Pages: 224

Price: $12.99

Synopsis: Save the library, save the world!

Kit can’t stand reading. She’d much rather be outside, playing games and getting muddy, than stuck inside being quiet with a book. But when she’s dragged along to the local library at the start of the school holiday by her two best friends, she makes an incredible discovery: the local library is run by wizards … and she’s one too! The youngest wizard ever, in fact.

But someone is threatening to tear down the library and disturb the powerful magical forces living beneath it. And now it’s up to Kit and her friends to save the library… and the world.

The first book in a fantastically exciting, imaginative and brilliantly funny new series.

~*~

It’s the first day of the summer holidays, and Kit can’t wait to go out and climb trees and get muddy. But her best friends, Alita and Josh, want to go to the new library and check out the latest book in a series they love, Danny Fandango. While they are there, they meet the new librarian, Faith. Alita and Josh head off to scour the shelves, leaving Kit alone to explore the library. When she finds herself pulled into a book of dangerous animals, and has to be rescued by Faith, Kit learns that she is a wizard – the youngest wizard in the world in fact. Showing her powers earlier than usually expected, Kit has to keep the secret from her family – but Alita and Josh overhear, and the three friends and Faith are soon pulled into a quest to save the library from a horrible man called Hadrian Salt – a developer who wishes to take the new library and build a shopping centre. So Kit, Faith, Josh and Alita set out to save the library – and uncover a much more sinister plot, involving the secret hidden beneath the library.

Kit is the third of five children – and at the start of the novel, feels quite left out between her perfect older sister, her rebellious big brother and the youngest children, a toddler and a baby. So when she discovers she is a wizard, she finally has something that makes her special – but like in most stories about wizards, she cannot let anyone know, and her newfound powers are unpredictable.

Louie Stowell combines wizards, dragons, and libraries with a diverse and adorable cast of characters, whose passions for magic and the written word were my favourite aspects of this book, and everyone who reads this book will be able to see various aspects of themselves in all the characters in the book, whether it is what they look like, or what they love or their personality, which is really delightful and fabulous.

Their fight against Hadrian Salt is only just beginning – his quest to buy the library is more sinister than imagined, and it will be up to Faith, Kit, Alita and Josh to save the library – but of course, as the first in the series, there will be much more to come, and I think we will see much more of Salt in subsequent books.

With a reluctant reader as the main character, supported by a diverse cast – Alita, Josh and Faith – Kit is the a wonderful and fun character, and hopefully this book will appeal to eager readers who will see themselves in Alita, Josh and Faith, reluctant readers like Kit, and readers of all ages, genders and races, who will find something about each character to relate to, which I find really nice, and Louie Stowell has pulled this off in a brilliant way to show aspects of the real world alongside magic and fantasy elements.

As the first in a series, it does a fantastic job of setting up the plot and the characters and the challenges they will be facing in subsequent books. I love the idea of a dragon living below the library, and I can’t wait to see what happens next.

The Book Muse

Books, reading and writing

Tag: diversity

September 2019 Round Up

Rebel Women Who Changed Australia by Susanna de Vries

The Unforgiving City by Maggie Joel

Book bingo Eighteen: A Book with a Red Cover

The Burnt Country by Joy Rhoades

July Reading Round-Up

The Dragon in the Library by Louie Stowell

Books, reading and writing

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this: