How to go to Big School
By Sarah Ayoub & Mimi Purnell Reviewed by Mia Macrossan When it's time to learn new things and grow is when you go to Big School is the beginning of this charming, warm-hearted picture book aimed at all those newbies going to
All About Starting School
By Felicity Brooks & Mar Ferrero Reviewed by Mia Macrossan Felicity has worked at Usborne for over 30 years and has written and edited hundreds of titles from books on tractors to genetics. Mar was a cartoonist before becoming an illustrator and
How to Have the Best School Year Ever
By Jess Sanders & Andrea Onishi Reviewed by Margarite Igras Jess Sanders is a social worker, educator and award-winning Australian author. She is well known for her Life Lessons For Little Ones Series, with titles such as You Can Do Hard Things,
A Murder is Going Down
By Kate Emery Review by Alison McCaffrey Claustrophobic? Paranoid? Afraid of being stuck in a lift? Then hold on to something, because you’re going to feel all that and more while immersed in the story of Heidi and her extended, and rather
Otto’s INK-redible First Day of School
By Rory H. Mather Illustrations by Rebel Challenger Reviewed by Sophia Evans Otto the Octopus just wants to fit in, but he tends to overthINK. And when he does, he releases lots of…INK! Otto the Octopus is starting school tomorrow and he’s shy.
Compassion
By Zanni Louise & Kim Drane Reviewed by Margarite Igras Australian author Zanni Louis has written over forty books spanning all ages from picture books to teen fiction. This is the first in a new series called Handbooks for Little Humans, a
Handbooks for Little Humans: Confidence
By Zanni Louise & Kim Drane Reviewed by Margarite Igras. Bestselling and prolific Australian author Zanni Louise has completed her second book in the series Handbooks for Little Humans. This time her topic is Confidence, but she has flagged that she will
When The Mountain Wakes
Written and illustrated by Matt Shanks Reviewed by Lara Cain Gray Author and illustrator Matt Shanks is probably best known to young readers for his many lively, humorous picture books, particularly his series of contemporary Australian nursery rhymes. His online journaling and
The Making of Martha Mayfield
By Jo Dabrowski Reviewed by Lauren Spencer Jo Dabrowski is an Australian author who has proven her capabilities as a diverse writer for children’s books. With her back-and-forth letters between boy and Broccoli in Dear Broccoli (2025) and the hilarities of awkward
Tart
by Beckl Jayne Crossley Review by Lucille Rose Tart by Beckl Jayne Crossley is a heart-felt, coming of age novel following the lives of two girls with one thing in common: Chipping Hollow. This little not-so-slice of heaven has been a source
Completely Normal (and Other Lies)
By Biffy James Reviewed by Annaleise Byrd Elizabeth ‘Biffy’ James holds a Masters in Creative Writing from RMIT and has worked as a boarding house mother and high school teacher. Completely Normal (and Other Lies), her debut novel, was written during lockdown
Nush and the Stolen Emerald
By Jasbinder Bilan Reviewed by Annaleise Byrd Jasbinder Bilan is a British middle grade author whose family moved from their farm in India to Nottingham, England when she was eighteen months old. She has worked as a teacher and studied a masters
Happy Holidays to everyone
From everyone at StoryLinks we wish all our readers and supporters a happy and safe holiday season. We will be back with more reviews in the first week of 2026.
Another Year Around the Sun
By Katrina Germein & Alice Lindstrom Reviewed by Margarite Igras. Katrina is an award-winning Australian author of titles such as Fabulous Frogs, One Little Duck (CBCA shortlisted), Bev and Kelly (CBCA Honour Book) and numerous CBCA Notable listings. Some of her works
We Fell Apart
By E. Lockhart Reviewed by Alison McCaffrey On a sleepy road on Martha’s Vineyard, there’s a house that looks like a castle, with a private beach at the bottom of a cliff. The castle-house belongs to reclusive, world-famous artist Kingsley Cello, and
Wednesday: A Novelisation of Season One
Adapted by Tehlor Kay Mejia Based on Wednesday Season One episodes written By Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, Kayla Alpert, April Blair, Matt Lambert Based on the characters created by Charles Addams Reviewed by Zewlan Moor This novelisation of the hit Netflix series is
The Adventures of Pongo and Stink
Written by Lisa Nicol Illustrated by Karen Blair Reviewed by Zewlan Moor What adorable pigs! This is honestly a perfect read-aloud for Prep to Year 4. I hope it fills many Christmas stockings this year, and many classrooms in 2026. Pongo and Stink are
Up, Up, and Away: The History of Aviation
Written and Illustrated by Tomáš SMOT Svoboda Translated by Andrew Oakland Reviewed by Lauren Spencer Tomáš SMOT Svoboda is a graphic designer and illustrator from Brno, Czech Republic. Although Tomáš has previously illustrated three books, Up, Up, and Away is his debut as
Book Links News December 2025
Book Links News December 2025 The December issue of Book Links News contains important dates for your 2026 calendar. You can look forward to another wonderful year filled with carefully curated children's literature programs, events, and reviews. Happy holiday to everyone and many
Ella and the Sleepover Safari
By Cassy Polimeni Illustrated by Hykie Breeze Reviewed by Helen Gearing The second title in a new junior fiction series by the author of the multi-award winning picture book The Garden at the End of the World, Ella and the Sleepover Safari is
The Puppy Project: Millie and Stella Best Friends Forever
By Josephine Moon Illustrated by Jedda Robaard Reviewed by Helen Gearing Josephine Moon’s second installment in the heartwarming Millie and Stella series continues exploring rich friendships, family relationships, and classroom dynamics in a story perfect for animal-lovers eight years and older. This time, the
Throne of Khetara: His Face is the Sun: Book 1
By Michelle Jabès Corpora Reviewed by Lauren Spencer Michelle Jabes Corpora describes herself as ‘a humble student of Egyptology.’ With her Egyptian heritage spanning two generations, her passion for Ancient Egypt developed early in life. Michelle notes in her author’s note that
The Wheels on the Bus and Other Songs
A celebration of classic songs with Australia's favourite Play School toys By Playschool Reviewed by Mia Macrossan The iconic children’s program Play School is celebrating 60 years on TV, encouraging generations of Australians to wonder, to feel and to imagine. Their books such
A Barney Gumnut Christmas (Barney Gumnut, #2)
By Tamsin Ainslie Reviewed by Mia Macrossan Here is a beautiful Christmas book that shows the true Christmas spirit of giving, sharing, and celebrating our blessings. Tamsin Ainslie has illustrated for ABC Books, Scholastic and UQP. Her books include In My Garden
My Name is Samim
By Fidan Meikle Reviewed by Annaleise Byrd Fidan Meikle is an Azerbaijani-British writer and linguist based in Scotland. My Name is Samim, her debut novel, was inspired by the true story of an Afghan refugee boy. The author worked with Afghan photojournalist
Meet the author: D J Taylor
Jenny Ruge talks to author DJ Taylor about her debut novel, Anna’s War. Thank you for taking the time to speak with StoryLinks, Di. Anna’s War is your first novel. How would you describe the experience of being a debut author, and
The Wildest Dreams Bookshop
By Gracie Page Reviewed by Alison McCaffrey Anna is the girl who had her whole life planned – from a summer internship after high school to what she would do after graduating college. But when everything that could go wrong, does, Anna
The Awesome Physics in Your City
By The Amazing Theatre of Physics. Illustrated by Tomáš Kopecký Reviewed by Lauren Spencer The Awesome Physics in Your City is part of the ‘Science is all around us’ series and follows on from the first book, The Awesome Physics in Your Home.
The Disappearing Circus
By Kate Gordon and Helen Edwards Reviewed by Jenny Ruge Kate Gordon is the award-winning author of numerous books, including the Aster series, the Secret Detectives Club series, and My Brother Finch. Helen Edwards has published three previous novels including Legend of
Everything Under the Sun: All Around the World
A curious question for every day of the year By Molly Oldfield Illustrated by Folasade Adeshida, Neil Badenhorst, Belinda Chen, Sophie Escavy Lim, Marta Antelo, Fernando Martin, Juliana Eigner, Andrés Landazabal, Henry Rancourt, Francesca Tiley, Daniel Gray-Barnett, and Meg Rennie Reviewed by Mia
