The Lies We Tell Ourselves

The Lies We Tell Ourselves by Maura Pierlot (Big Ideas Press) PB RRP $22.99

ISBN 9780645099836

Reviewed by Kylie Buckley

Harley is struggling with the recent death of her nan as well as her parent’s deteriorating marriage. Despite this, she is looking forward to starting Year 10 and, even though her best friend did not contact her over the school break, she is optimistic about the year ahead. Harley sets her intentions for the year: get a job, get a boyfriend, get a life.

 

When Harley establishes a friendship with Carter, the hot new guy at school, she cannot help but imagine a future with him as her boyfriend. However, her critical inner voice tells her she needs to lose weight and reinvent herself. Harley’s hopes are high. But, why is her manifesting failing? Why are her friendships crumbling? Why is everything going wrong?

 

The Lies We Tell Ourselves is a young adult novel about staying true to yourself and the futile nature of seeking approval from others. This coming-of-age narrative is written in the first person by 15-year-old Harley and gives off 2004, American teen comedy film, Mean Girl vibes. Its themes include body image, toxic friendships, first love, belonging, family dynamics and grief. The Lies We Tell Ourselves is recommended for an audience aged 13 years and older.

Clutterbugs

Clutterbugs (Big Ideas Press) Maura Pierlot & Maya Bora PB RRP $27.99 ISBN 9780645099829

Reviewed by Karen Hendriks

Maura Pierlot is an award-winning author, playwright, and filmmaker based in Canberra, Australia. Her creative work spans multiple genres and art forms, focusing on themes such as identity, mental health, ethics, and environmental sustainability.

Maya Bora is a Turkish illustrator and visual artist renowned for her vibrant and imaginative work in children's books, comics, editorial illustrations, and game design. She is the founder of Megami, a creative studio, and developed Okku, a mobile app dedicated to the creation and publishing of digital books.

In her wildly cluttered bedroom, Steff loses Jay’s birthday gift—until buzzing clutterbugs appear and help her turn mess into a thoughtful present.

Maura Pierlot writes rhyme in a fun and thoughtful way crafting a highly imaginative story, that helps young children understand the problems that clutter can create and how to deal with it. Her rhyming text is well written, and this is not easy to do. The opening sentence introduces the clutter problem immediately. Steff's room was quite messy, but she didn't mind. Whatever she needed, she managed to find. Her believable story world is filled with real life tips about clutter, repurposing and gifting. Even Steff’s dog, Pierre disappears in the mess. A boss clutterbug appears declaring, 'We love mess, said the bug, 'though it may sound absurd. 'We?' Steff repeated. 'You mean there are more?" Steff is faced with the unsettling idea that her belongings might be taken away.

Pierlot thoughtfully highlights that people value the freedom to choose what to keep and what to give away. Woven through the story is a gentle message about recycling and repurposing, emphasizing the responsibility that comes with decluttering. The narrative offers multiple meaningful layers, making it adaptable for exploration with readers of varying ages. The text has clever twists and the ending is surprising.

Maya Bora’s illustrative style is characterised by bold colours, whimsical characters, and a playful approach, making her work appealing to young readers. Her illustrations carry the themes of sustainability, creativity, and the joys of childhood imagination. Her delightfully eye-catching cover shows a pile of clutter, Steff, her dog Pierre and a cheeky clutterbug on top of Steff’s head. The characters and theme are introduced right away, with a playful energy shining through in vibrant colours and expressive illustrations.

As a reader, I could feel the overwhelming impact of the clutter—it's practically bursting off the pages. Bora’s visual storytelling unfolds across dynamic double-page spreads that beautifully complement and enhance the text. There is lots of movement and action. I love her depiction of the clutterbugs, they are cute and cheeky.  

Clutterbugs is a picture book with an important message, about the impact of clutter in lives and how to deal with it. This book is ideal for children aged 4 years and up, and its charm will resonate with parents and teachers as well. I can already imagine children excitedly talking about clutterbugs showing up in their own bedrooms. It’s both an engaging story and a valuable tool for sparking conversations about clutter, creativity, and responsibility.

 

Fragments: Journeys from Isolation to Connection

• Fragments: Journeys from Isolation to Connection by Maura Pierlot (Big Ideas Press) YA hybrid RRP $24.96 ISBN 9780645099812

Reviewed by Karen Hendriks

Maura Pierlot is a talented award-winning author and playwright who writes across art forms for both children and adults. Her work often explores the complex intersection of self, identity, belonging, culture, and memory. She often writes what she feels needs to be heard rather than for a particular market. She brilliantly shows how our modern world has become complicated for teenagers, and actively promotes kindness, empathy, tolerance, and mental health. Her writer’s voice speaks with wisdom and truth. Pierlot spends her time between Canberra and Jamberoo in NSW, Australia.

Fragments is a riveting read about eight ordinary teens (Will, Freya, Reena, Vijay, Mila, Nicky, Lexy, & Mason.) The teens are given a creative task that requires each to explore their own mental health and well-being. As each teen’s story unfolds and goes into the depth of their psyche, it reveals hidden truths about themselves and their worlds. Each teen’s story becomes a fragment of an elusive whole as they search to connect, be seen, and to be heard.

Fragments shows that stress at home, at school and in life is challenging young people beyond their usual coping abilities: this leaves them vulnerable and disenchanted. The book starts with preface about Pierlot and why she wrote Fragments. This is followed by a contents page, The Task, and a Current Forecast. Each teen is then introduced by a short paragraph. The book moves onto each teen’s story and ends with Tomorrow’s Forecast, an author interview, feedback, and author information.

Pierlot has realistically written monologues for both the male and female characters unbelievably well.  Last night when I showed my father the estimate for my final marks, I thought he’d crack open the champagne. But instead, his mouth formed a straight line, all because I’m a point off the max. ‘I didn’t raise you to become second best.’

The language used reflects current teen speak and the voice of each teen is realistic and compelling. Problem is everyone thinks you have to be bleeding or bandaged to be in pain, like if they can’t see the damage, it’s not real. If you could see inside my head, you’d know it’s real. The text is heartfelt, and the monologues can stand alone or be part of the whole.

Fragments: Journeys from Isolation to Connection is a recommended text for children 12 years and older. Although set in Australia, the stories could take place anywhere in the world. Fragments was first produced by The Street and enjoyed a premier sell-out season at the Street Theatre, Canberra. It is also a Web Series and is published online by Australian Plays Transform. It won best Screenplay and best TV/Web series at the Canberra Short Film Festival 2022. 

Fragments is a highly recommend text for high school teachers and parents. This new book is Edition 2 and is available March 2023.