Alexa Dretzke
Alexa Dretzke is a children’s & YA book specialist at Readings Hawthorn
Review — 2 Aug 2020
Loner by Georgina Young
Loner won the Text Prize in 2019. It is the universal story of becoming an adult and all the uncertainty, drifting and questioning that entails. Some lucky young people know…
Review — 2 Aug 2020
The Bird Within Me by Sara Lundberg
The Bird Within Me is a compact gem of a book that is based on the life of Swedish Artist Berta Hansson. Raised in a small farming community, she is…
Review — 29 Mar 2020
Paolo, Emperor of Rome by Mac Barnett & Claire Keane
Paolo, a dachshund, lives in a hairdressing salon but he is desperate to escape and experience Rome in all its historic glory. One day he manages to slip out and…
Review — 23 Feb 2020
Anisa’s Alphabet by Mike Dumbleton & Hannah Sommerville
Anisa’s Alphabet is a moving depiction of how a young girl’s life is desolated by war. Told alphabetically in rhyming text, we follow Anisa’s perilous journey from a free person…
Blog post — 18 Feb 2020
Meet the bookseller with Alexa Dretzke
In our latest Meet the Bookseller column, we chat with Alexa Dretzke, the Assistant Manager & Children’s Book Buyer for our Hawthon shop. Alexa fell into the book industry by…
Review — 23 Feb 2020
ANZAC Girl: The War Diaries of Alice Ross-King by Kate Simpson & Jess Racklyeft
World War I seemed a noble, almost thrilling, prospect for many who went to fight or assist, but the horror was more than anyone could imagine and surviving proved an…
Review — 27 Jan 2020
Izzy and Frank by Katrina Lehman & Sophie Beer
Izzy and Frank are best buddies and they love exploring the beach on their island home. One sad day Izzy has to move from her beloved home to the city.There…
Review — 29 Mar 2020
I’ll Always Be Older than You by Jane Godwin & Sara Acton
Being an older sibling can be challenging; patience is required, as the little girl in the book learns.
A little planning doesn’t go astray and so she hops into her…
Blog post — 14 Nov 2019
The best picture books of 2019
Every year our staff vote for their favourite books, albums, films and TV shows of the past 12 months. Here are our top 10 picture books of the year, voted…
Review — 21 Oct 2019
The Secrets of Magnolia Moon by Edwina Wyatt & Katherine Quinn
Magnolia Moon can keep secrets. She makes very interesting comparisons that give a unique perspective on life. She likes to ask questions and is inspired by Greek myths. She’s an…
