Roses are Blue

Roses are Blue by Sally Murphy, illustrated by Gabriel Evans (Walker Books)

PB RRP $ 16.95

ISBN 9781922244376

Reviewed by Anastasia Gonis

This superlative verse novel is about people being different and varying perceptions of what that means through a child’s eyes. Highly emotive, this gentle story has additional sub-themes of fitting in, acceptance and trust.

Amber Rose thinks a lot about her family; about before and now. Before the accident her mum was a free spirit - happy, playful, and artistic. Now she sits in a wheelchair, with a lopsided mouth, unable to talk or care for herself. Amber’s before mum has disappeared and she misses all the things Mum was and isn’t anymore. It is only one of many changes in Amber’s life.

Moving house, starting a new school and making new friends is hard. So Amber hasn’t yet told anyone about Mum. Not even her new best friend, Saffron. She doesn’t know how people will react. We see the state of Amber’s heart and mind, and the internal battle she is dealing with. Her feelings and thoughts reach the reader through her measured and precise descriptions about her doubts and fears. Mother’s Day and high tea at school puts Amber in a panic. She has a lot to consider and difficult decisions to make. And if her mum comes, will being different make a difference to anyone?

Sally Murphy’s preference for verse novels is an inspired choice. Amber’s narrative voice is perfect. This book taught me so much about acceptance and seeing things from both sides of every situation. A thought-provoking and moving book.

Miss Emily

Miss Emily by Burleigh Muten, illustrated by Matt Phelan (Walker Books)

HC RRP $ 19.95

ISBN 9780763657345

Reviewed by Anastasia Gonis

Almost everyone knows the poet Emily Dickinson. In this verse novel, we get an insight into her private life and her incredible enjoyment of life which she shared with her nieces, nephews, and their friends with whom Emily spent a great deal of time in Amherst, Massachusetts.

Theirs was a world of make-believe and imagination. Filled with adventure and daring, the story portrays a freedom and way of life unknown to children of today. Play and invention, and the art of storytelling fill the pages. The properness of the era, the regard one person had for the other, and the gentility of life one hundred years ago is strongly represented.

The story is told from the point of view of the youngest member of the group Mac Jenkins, son of Pastor Jenkins, a close friend of Emily’s. Mac later became a writer and wrote several books on Emily Dickinson.

This is an adventure filled with delight and memories. Emily takes her band of young friends on a secret midnight excursion to see the circus arrive by train. Dressed as Amherst gypsies, the outing becomes a play, as do most of their get-togethers. The real gypsies discover the group and draw them into their circle for an added experience. They slip back into the night as quietly as they came, trying to keep their outing a secret.

But a fall causes Mac to sprain his ankle and their escapade is uncovered. Instead of punishment, the Pastor takes the children to the circus. It becomes a night to remember.

It is beautifully told in perfect prose by the gifted Burleigh Muten, a member of the Emily Dickinson International Society, and stunningly interpreted by the highly acclaimed author-illustrator, Matt Phelan. Their collaboration has created a collector’s delight.

The characters in the book were real people. A short biography in the historical notes at the end allows us to learn something about their lives. Included is a rich bibliography. 

The Simple Gift

The Simple Gift by Steven Herrick (University of Queensland Press)
PB RRP $19.95
ISBN 978 0 7022 3133 9
Reviewed by Jo Antareau

On Steven Herrick’s blog, he stated that his inspiration for The Simple Gift was Bruce Springsteen’s song The Ghost of Tom Joad. As I was reading it, I wondered if Steinbeck was Herrick’s touchstone as he was crafting the narrative. Although set in modern Australia, Herrick covers similar territory to Steinbeck, such as the honour of poverty, the humanity of the most humble and that those who give the most often have nothing themselves.

Told in verse by three different voices, it tells the story of Billy Luckett, a young adult who has drawn life’s short straw. Abused by his father with an absent mother, friendless and failing at school, he chooses to try his luck as a street kid. What might then spiral into a tragedy of substance abuse and crime, Herrick instead takes the story into the unexpected direction of hope and redemption.

Billy ends up living in a disused railway carriage in the town of Bendarat, a thinly disguised Ballarat. He subsists by scavenging on scraps and what he earns for some itinerant work, and revels in his freedom and solitude – days spent between the creek and library. Yet he allows two other souls to enter his life.

Caitlin is a private schoolgirl who annoys her status-conscious parents by mopping floors at Macdonald’s and dreams of the day she turns eighteen and can leave her family. Old Billy, another person who takes advantage of the free accommodation in the disused railway carriages, is an angry man broken by his own tragic past. Yet both are touched by Billy. To Old Bill, he gives the simple gift of a packet of cigarettes, to Caitlin he gives the simple gift of courtesy and a note with the etymology of her name. And with these humble offerings, he starts to reconnect with his fellow humans as each takes tentative steps away from their demons. This is ultimately a story of the healing power of relationships, as the trio all take control of their lives and help Billy in unexpected ways.

Written with sparse language and a light touch, this is YA novel is an uplifting read which I recommend to those who feel disconnected or otherwise alienated from society, and I suggest they read and enjoy it voluntarily before it is imposed on them as a text on the HSC syllabus.

Nobody’s Boy

Nobody’s Boy by Dianne Bates (Celapene Press)

PB RRP $12.95

ISBN: 978-0-9872556-0-0

Reviewed by Jenny Mounfield

Ron is nobody’s boy—and everyone’s. He has spent his young life moving between his troubled mother. foster parents Pearl and Brian, and assorted relatives. When Ron’s mother is sent to prison, he must stay with a new couple, Rosie and Bob. All he wants is to live with his father, but Dad now has Anna and the situation is complicated.

‘I hid behind the curtains

when I saw her in our street

mum

in a mini-skirt with

bare feet

a bottle of beer’           Excerpt from MOTHER  p10

Written in verse narrated by Ron, this is an original and competing account of a confused boy trying to make the best of his constantly changing situation. Ron is hopeful and resilient—to a point. He has friends, values relationships, and dreams of the most basic need: a life with his dad.

                            ‘MOST DAYS

                             I act remote

as the island I can see

from my bedroom window

I hurl words like grenades

all around me

brutal and deadly

Bob says he can’t understand me

Rosie shakes her head

son you’re not trying

I answer I’m not your son

I’m no longer part

of their happy-ever-after story life

no longer

trying to impress

no longer

hiding behind the mask

I’ve worn for years

no longer

checking my words

one by one

minding my damn manners

I’m the me that spells

trouble

who wants to be

who aims to be

who demands to be

for once and forever

my father’s son’           P81 (After Ron is rejected by his father)

Rather than being a tragedy in many parts, which this book could have easily been, this is a story of hope and love that ends on a distinctly positive note. The stream-of-consciousness narrative flow, devoid of punctuation, feels authentic and immediate. It is pure emotion with all the usual literary filler taken out.

Bates, an author of more than 90 books for kids and a foster-mother to boot, has a rare understanding of children in Ron’s situation. Nobody’s Boy pulls no punches. It will bring a lump to readers’ throats, but so, too, it will lighten the heaviest heart. I hope this story finds its way into classrooms. Dealing with issues all too common in today’s society, this is a book that begs to be discussed.

Jenny Mounfield is the author of three novels and a number of short stories for young people. She has been a regular reviewer for seven years, both online and in print publications. Her first novel for adults, The Unforgetting, has recently been added to the Kindle Store.

Pookie Aleera is Not My Boyfriend

Pookie Aleera is Not My Boyfriend by Steven Herrick (UQP)
PB RRP $16.95
ISBN 9780702249280
Reviewed by Vicki Stanton

Australia's master of free verse, Steven Herrick has excelled himself with his latest release. Pookie Aleera is Not My Boyfriend is the tale of class 6A from a school in a country town. The story is told through multiple perspectives: a number of class members, their teacher and the grounds-keeper.

Herrick has an amazing ability to immediately immerse readers in the story and the characters with such few words. Each of the characters has their own cross to bear, their own joys, frustrations and idiosyncrasies revealed within the wider school and town communities. It is remarkable how Herrick can fit so much into his stories - grief, crushes, loneliness, friendship, love and more. There's no car chases, aliens or amazing gadgets in this book. What you'll find is the ups and downs of life in all its wonder.

I'm unable to pick out a favourite verse and there are so many heart-warming moments it's impossible to list them all. To do so would not do them justice as it in their combination that makes this book so wonderful. I loved all the characters and their foibles and their inner strength. I think maybe Mick was my favourite but then Cameron was gorgeous or Laura ... Once again, impossible to pick.

Cinnamon Rain

Cinnamon Rain by Emma Cameron (Walker Books)

PB RRP $22.95

ISBN 978-1-921720-45-1

Reviewed by Anastasia Gonis

Three young people experiencing chaos in their lives, how they deal with it and the journey they take is the basis of this extraordinary, moving and well –written verse novel. The story takes place over nearly three years which allows the reader to view the three characters’ lives, the choices they made, and the outcome of those choices.

It opens with Luke’s point of view. Through his voice we learn about the other two main characters, David, known as Bongo, and Casey, the girl they both love. There are other peripheral characters that also have meaningful roles but it’s these three that are the pivotal part of the novel.

The story opens up in the trio’s daily school routine where the characters are introduced and quite a bit of information about them and their lives filters in. It then moves seamlessly to incorporate their private lives and the issues that cause the dilemmas they are dealing with. Here the reader is swathed in layers of tantalising preparatory information about the three which sets up the entire book.

Luke is an intelligent boy who is trying to find his way in the world, just as the others are. But he feels there is an essential element missing from his relationship with his parents that leaves a space inside him. He admits ‘if I didn’t know better, I’d think I was adopted’. He is kind-hearted and compassionate, with an interest in helping others. He’s searching for a fulfilling role in life.

Bongo is a troubled soul. His stepfather bashes him and his mother is always in rehab but never healed. The social services have removed his little brother Dylan, and placed him in foster care. Bongo turns to drugs temporarily to escape his mother’s futile attempts to repair her life and therefore theirs. She walks out and it’s not until Bongo leaves his abusive home that he is able to make optimistic decisions about his life, all the while considering how to maintain a relationship with Dylan who is later adopted and seems to be slipping further and further from his life.

Casey is controlled by her father. Both she and her mother are overpowered by his domineering nature. Casey has always felt unwanted. She was the reason her parents married. ’I am their mistake’.  Her existence has always been a fierce contention between Casey and her father. She submits to his controlling decisions just to keep the peace. But she has a place in her head that he can’t influence or control. She too, finally finds the courage to leave home.

After Luke’s chapter, there are two other overlapping stages of the story by Bongo and Casey. We see what has become of them over that particular space of time, how they have evolved, matured and changed through their independence, and the results of their decisions.

The impact of how powerful this novel is because of its verse form, becomes clear right from the beginning. Emma Cameron has trimmed all the excesses off in this book and has kept only what is absolutely necessary to showcase the characters, their personalities, actions and lives, producing pages of sharp, precise and flawless prose.