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My Brother Ben is a story of birds, boats and the bond brothers share. An ode to nature and a reminder that not all heroes wear capes.

Luke is a quiet boy who loves sketching birds and thanks to his Aunty Gem, is becoming an expert at recognising their calls. His big brother Ben is bold and brave as he climbs on the roof or leaps out of the huge twisted paperbark Jumping Tree into Cabbage Tree Creek.

Despite their differences, Luke and Ben stick together like Apostlebirds, especially since their father moved away. The brothers share a dream of owning their own boat to explore the channels and secret inlets of Cabbage Tree Creek. The perfect opportunity arises when the local council runs a competition to celebrate the creek and first prize is a boat.

Luke and Ben come up with a plan to win, but it is threatened when Ben starts high school and the boys begin to drift apart.  When Ben and Frankie become friends, the trust the brothers share is tested, especially when Ben starts sneaking out of the house at night. Luke will discover that all is not as it seems and his brother Ben really does mean it when he says "Trust me."

Peter Carnavas captures the beauty of nature with lyrical descriptions that immerse you in the sights, sounds and life of Cabbage Patch Creek.

The cool water swallowed me and I sank until my toes dipped in the mud at the bottom. Then I rose up, floated on my back and watched the paperbark leaves dance against the sky. Ben did the same. We were two sea stars spinning slowly on the surface.

Scattered throughout the book are sketches of birds from Luke’s sketchbook. My favourites are the sketches of Luke’s magpie, Maggie in the chapter headings that remind me of the magpie family who have called my backyard their home for many years.

“When you open your eyes to birds, the world opens itself in return.” (Aunty Gem)


My magpies enjoying sunset
Here is Peter talking about his book My Brother Ben...

My Brother Ben is one of my favourite reads this year.

Thank you for the copy of this book to review UQP.

Happy reading!

Teacher notes

10

Sima is an Afghan girl living in a detention centre. Dan is a 'parkie kid' living at the local caravan park. Both are seeking freedom beyond their wire fences.

Sima’s dad told her to run.

Dan finds her hiding in the school toilet block.

What should Dan do? Help her? Dob her in? She’s breaking the law, but is it right to lock kids up?

And if he helps, should Sima trust him? Or run?

This moment, these decisions, will change their lives.

Twelve-year-old Sima is an Afghan Hazara refugee whose family has been locked up in a detention centre for two years. They are in fear of being sent back to Afghanistan where their lives will be in great danger. Along with fifty others, Sima and her family make a daring attempt to escape at 5.28 am one morning. A guard raises the alarm and in the chaos, Sima finds herself alone and running for her life. She hides in the toilet block at the local high school, but the escape has triggered a school lockdown and Border Force officers are checking every room. Then Dan finds her…

Dan lives on the wrong side of town in an old, battered blue-and-white Jayco caravan at Midgenba Pines caravan park. His mum is often absent and he does his best to look after himself and go to school. Sadly, most people expect 'parkie kids' to break the law and end up in jail. That's not what Dan plans for his life. However, this is exactly what might happen if he decides to help Sima...

"But how can he raise the alarm, knowing what she said will happen to her and her little sister? A baby. How can that be the right thing to do? How can what's legal and what's right be two different things?"

Detention is a gripping and fast-paced story about trust, courage, freedom, hope and doing what you think is right. You will be on an emotional roller coaster with Sima and Dan, thinking about what you would do in the same situation as you quickly turn pages, hold your breath and hope Sima makes it to Leeton.

Tristan Bancks has written a book that both makes your heart race and fills it with compassion. 

What would you risk to save a life?

Free-Photos / Pixabay

You can read the first three chapters of Detention HERE. Tristan would love to hear what YOU thought about his book!

Happy reading!

Teacher Notes

2

Nat Amoore is a shiny new author whose shiny new book Secrets of a Schoolyard Millionaire is a story filled with heart and humour.

Finding a million dollars in your backyard - every kid's dream, right?
That's what me and my best friend Toby thought too. 

Tess Heckleston is ten years old, wise for her age and a natural born entrepreneur who is always dreaming up ingenious plans to make money. Toby her best friend, is a numbers guy who is smart, organised and her moral compass. Coming from a large family where money is tight, Tess wants to get rich while Toby who was adopted from Bolivia, wants to donate to every worthy cause he can find. Together they make a formidable team.

When Tess' dodgy neighbour Scotty dumps a million dollars in her backyard it changes everything. There's so much Tess and Toby could do with a million dollars, but there are also a lot of unexpected decisions and problems that come with that amount of money.

Who knew it would be SO hard for kids to spend a million dollars even when they want to do good with it?

Tess and Toby's skills and friendship are challenged as they 'creatively' try to find ways to spend the money. Personally, I loved their idea of a coffee and donut cart for the school staffroom, but you might prefer the jumping castle and lollipops and they might be on to something with their solution for a home for Kathy and Mr Piddles. But what happens when the Really Bad Guy, Scotty wants his million dollars back...all of it!

This book cleverly begins with the end as Tess opens her school locker to reveal a million dollars in front of the whole school and you want to keep reading. I read the first three chapters to Year Four classes in the library and one student said "I normally don't like reading, but I HAVE to read this book!!"  So don't just take my word for it!

Nat has written one of my favourite books this year and between you and I, I think there might be quite a bit of Nat in her character, Tess!

Here is Nat at her million dollar book launch for Secrets of a Schoolyard Millionaire at The Little Bookroom in Melbourne.

If you found a million dollars in your backyard
what would you do with it?

Happy reading!

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