Alexa Dretzke
Alexa Dretzke is a children’s & YA book specialist at Readings Hawthorn
Review — 29 Jan 2013
The Great Snortle Hunt by Claire Freedman and Kate Hindley
Sshh – ‘on a hill bumpysteepy, there’s a house scary creepy’, and what sort of creature lives there?* Well, it’s a Snortle, of course! Three friends set out to find…
Review — 30 May 2021
Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome
Before there was Enid Blyton’s Famous Five adventures there was Arthur Ransome’s 1930 classic Swallows and Amazons.
Wild Cat Island has been invaded by the holidaying Swallows (the four…
Review — 29 Jul 2012
The Probability Of Miracles by Wendy Wunder
[[wendy1]]Any work of fiction where the main character has a terminal disease can be tricky. How to get the voice right and avoid over-sentimentality?
There have been two standout young…
Review — 19 Jun 2012
Small Change For Stuart by Lissa Evans
[[lissaevans]]This is a ripper little adventure that has magic, mystery and family intrigue.
Stuart and his family have moved back to his dad’s hometown where he finds out that a…
Review — 19 Jun 2012
Code Crimson: Arkie Sparkle Treasurehunter by Petra James
The contradiction of Arkie Sparkle’s dilemma is that while she may have access to amazing technology it is to the ancient world she has to return in a bid to…
Review — 4 Jun 2012
The Onion's Great Escape by Sara Fanelli
Highly regarded worldwide, Sara Fanelli’s distinctive artistic style is known for being exciting and stimulating, and this is precisely what we get with her new book. I’m sure it will…
Review — 4 Jun 2012
Zebedee's Balloon by Alice Briere-Haquet and Olivier Philipponneau
Oo la la, I love this picture book that began life in France and now, with this English translation, we also get to enjoy. The charming two-tone wood engravings on…
Review — 4 Jun 2012
Sophie Scott Goes South by Alison Lester
What an adventure! Antarctica is almost like another world and Sophie Scott is going there. Her dad is captain of Aurora Australis, an icebreaker (a type of ship) that travels…
Review — 22 Apr 2012
Sweet Dreams by Rose Lewis & Jen Corace (illus)
With lullaby lilt Sweet Dreams gently and rhythmically takes us through a night-time of nature and nurture. Any child snug in their parent’s embrace will feel a tranquil perception of…
Review — 3 Apr 2012
The Children of the King by Sonya Hartnett
Storytelling is often like Matryoshka dolls, layers of story, tales within tales and Hartnett uses, seamlessly, this device in her latest novel for middle readers. Beautifully written and hauntingly evocative…