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This is How We Change the Ending

By Vikki Wakefield

I have questions I’ve never asked. Worries I’ve never shared. Thoughts that circle and collide and die screaming because they never make it outside my head. Stuff like that, if you let it go—it’s a survival risk.

Sixteen-year-old Nate McKee is doing his best to be invisible. He’s worried about a lot of things—how his dad treats Nance and his twin half-brothers; the hydro crop in his bedroom; his reckless friend, Merrick.

Nate hangs out at the local youth centre and fills his notebooks with things he can’t say. But when some of his pages are stolen, and his words are graffitied at the centre, Nate realises he has allies. He might be able to make a difference, change his life, and claim his future. Or can he?

This is How We Change the Ending is raw and real, funny and heartbreaking—a story about what it takes to fight back when you’re not a hero.

 

Monuments 

By Will Kostakis

When Connor Giannopoulos discovers a Monument under his high school, he doesn't have any idea how much his life is going to change forever. It turns out that immortality and strength beyond his wildest dreams is a bit more responsibility than he bargained for.

All 16-year-old Connor is trying to do is avoid his ex-best friend when he stumbles upon a trapdoor to a secret chamber under his school. But when Sally Rodgers breaks into the same secret chamber looking for an ancient being, things take an unexpected turn . . . and Connor's life will never be the same again. Along with the mysterious Sally and, later on, his new friend Locky, Connor discovers the Monuments - gods who have been buried for generations - who created the world and hid themselves away from humanity to keep everyone safe. But now they're exposed and vulnerable, and Connor isn't sure who, himself included, can be trusted with the knowledge and the power these gods have.

 

Greta's Story: The Schoolgirl Who Went on Strike to Save the Planet

By Valentina Camerini

Greta’s story is about hope, courage and determination. You are never too young to make a difference.

It’s 20 August 2018, late summer in Stockholm, and it feels incredibly hot in the city. The TV news reports rising temperatures, and there have been numerous fires throughout Sweden. Fifteen-year-old Greta Thunberg decides she can’t wait any longer: politicians have to do something to save the environment. Instead of returning to school, Greta takes a placard and goes on strike in front of Sweden’s parliament building.

Greta’s protest began the Fridays for Future – or School Strike 4 Climate – movement, which millions have now joined around the world. Greta has spoken at COP24, the UN summit on climate change, and has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. This is her story, but also that of many other girls and boys around the world willing to fight against the indifference of the powerful for a better future.

For readers aged 9 to 12.

 

The Lords of Melody

By Phillip Gwynne

Introducing . . . The Lords of Melody!! From this acclaimed author comes an hilarious new novel for upper primary about the weird and wonderful things that can happen when you have music in your life - whether you want it or not!

The Lord family live in the worst house on the best street. It might have been different if Suzi Lord’s rock ‘n’ roll parents, Strum and Miss Katy, hadn’t stumbled on their way to stardom but after one hit single in Finland, it’s been Lentil Slop Thing for dinner ever since.

But life is about to get a lot more interesting at 92 Melody Street. Renting out their spare room on ZedBedZ seemed like a good idea but with the ghost of a grumpy drummer, a long-lost grandfather as their first guest, angry opposition from a residents action group, AND a broken leg in the first practice match of the soccer season, Suzi ain’t havin’ much of a rockin’ good time.

Then she dares to pick up a set of drum sticks and things really get wild. With the driving beat of a rock anthem, the heart of a country ballad, and the vibe of the latest hip-hop hit, this hilarious mash-up proves that you just can’t stop the music!

 

The Unlisted (Book 1) 

By Chris Kunz, Justine Flynn

Twins Dru and Kal Sharma must work together with a group of underground vigilante teens to stop a sinister organisation from controlling the world's youth population, in this exciting new ABC/Netflix TV tie-in series.

There's nothing Dru Sharma fears more than the dentist. So when his school runs a compulsory dental check, he convinces his identical twin, Kal, to take his spot. What Dru and Kal don't realise is the check-up has been initiated by a mysterious organisation called Infinity Group that are interested in more than the students' dental health. Infinity aims to control the hearts, minds and bodies of the world's youth. It isn't long before Kal and the other students start developing super strength, while the kids who resisted the procedure start to go missing.

With Dru 'Unlisted' and outside of Infinity Group's control, it's a race against time to uncover the truth of the operation. Dru and Kal - with the help of a group of underground vigilante teens - will have to do whatever they can to stop Infinity Group before it's too late.