Library News

NEW BOOKS

Sensitive By Allayne L. Webster

When thirteen-year-old Samantha moves to a new town, she decides to reinvent herself. She wants to be called SJ now. She’s going to be cool and mysterious. But above all, she’s going to pretend to be healthy.

SJ suffers from chronic eczema and allergies - she’s sick of doctors' appointments and tests, sick of itchiness and pain, sick of looking different, feeling different. All SJ wants is to be ‘normal'. She’ll do whatever it takes to keep her illness a secret. After all, would new friend Livvy or cute boy Sam still want to hang out with her if they knew the truth?

Shining : the story of a lucky man By Abdi Aden

Abdi was a happy-go-lucky fifteen-year-old when Somalia’s vicious civil war hit Mogadishu and his world fell apart. Separated from his family, he fled the city with countless others, heading for Kenya. The journey was a nightmare, Abdi and his friends enduring sickness, starvation and the violent assaults of death squads. After three months, Abdi and a mere handful of survivors arrived at a refugee camp in Kenya. But the place proved to be no refuge, so, desperate to find his family, he turned around and undertook the dangerous journey back to Mogadishu. When the search was fruitless he relied on his quick wits and the kindness of strangers to escape Somalia, first to Romania, then Germany and, finally, Australia. He was just sixteen when he arrived in Melbourne with no English, no family, no money. Against all odds, this extraordinary boy not only survived but thrived. Abdi’s story is one of hardship and struggle, but also of courage, resilience and heart-warming optimism.

Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children By Ransom Riggs

As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children who once lived here - one of whom was his own grandfather - were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a desolate island for good reason. And somehow - impossible though it seems - they may still be alive.

A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

Arab Australian Other : stories on race and identity Edited  by Randa Abdel-Fattah and Sara Saleh

Although there are 22 separate Arab nationalities representing an enormous variety of cultural backgrounds and experiences, the portrayal of Arabs in Australia tends to range from homogenising (at best) to racist pop-culture caricatures.

Edited by award-winning author and academic Randa Abdel-Fattah, and activist and poet Sara Saleh, and featuring contributors Michael Mohammed Ahmad, Ruby Hamad and Paula Abood, among many others, this collection explores the experience of living as a member of the Arab diaspora in Australia and includes stories of family, ethnicity, history, isolation, belonging and identity.

The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling by Wai Chim 

Anna Chiu has her hands pretty full looking after her brother and sister and helping out at her dad’s restaurant, all while her mum stays in bed. Dad’s new delivery boy, Rory, is a welcome distraction and even though she knows that things aren’t right at home, she’s starting to feel like she could just be a normal teen. 

But when Mum finally gets out of bed, things go from bad to worse. And as Mum’s condition worsens, Anna and her family question everything they understand about themselves and each other.  A nourishing tale about the crevices of culture, mental wellness and family, and the surprising power of a good dumpling.

The Other Boy By M. G. Hennessey

Twelve-year-old Shane Woods is just a regular boy. He loves pitching for his baseball team, working on his graphic novel, and hanging out with his best friend, Josh.    

But Shane is keeping something private, something that might make a difference to his friends and teammates, even Josh. And when a classmate threatens to reveal his secret, Shane’s whole world comes crashing down.    

It will take a lot of courage for Shane to ignore the hate and show the world that he’s still the same boy he was before. And in the end, those who stand beside him may surprise everyone, including Shane.

Station Eleven By Emily St. John Mandel

One snowy night in Toronto famous actor Arthur Leander dies on stage whilst performing the role of a lifetime. That same evening a deadly virus touches down in North America. The world will never be the same again.

Twenty years later Kirsten, an actress in the Travelling Symphony, performs Shakespeare in the settlements that have grown up since the collapse.  But then her newly hopeful world is threatened. If civilisation was lost, what would you preserve? And how far would you go to protect it?

My New Home After Syria By Linda Barghoorn

Roj and his family have lived in Germany for three years after fleeing civil war in Syria. Although his family faces discrimination from some in their small village, and hearing news about home from friends and family can be sad, Roj’s dreams for the future are high as he faces each new challenge with hope and resilience. Interspersed with facts about the current situation in Syria and the experiences of Syrian refugees in different countries, Roj’s story offers a window into the complex and ongoing journey of refugees as they adjust to their new homes.