Jacinta's desk 2024

July 2024

Jacinta is a member of our Youth and Children's Team. Jacinta has a special passion for our teen collections and knows all the good stuff. Here she will be sharing some of her favourites.

Play the game by Nova Weetman

Make up or break up by Kate Welshman

We’ve just had these fantastic books by Kate Welshman added to our collection! If you’re a fan of choose your own adventure stories, you’ll love Play the game and Make up or break up. These books let you decide which path the heroine of the story should take.

Play the game

By Nova Weetman

A contemporary pick-a-path series about life, first crushes and friendship, that lets the reader choose how the story goes! 

Edie Thomas is a natural at netball. She plays for fun – and to hang out with her sports-mad bestie, Tess. But when Edie makes the state team, it looks like netball will be taking centre stage. Until …

  • Edie drops out of the team when she scores a lead role in Romeo and Juliet opposite her long-time crush, Freddy. But will the school play be all that Edie dreams it will be? And will Tess ever forgive her for dumping netball?
  • Edie begins to resent netball taking over her entire life. Can a cute distraction, in the shape of footballer hottie Finn, rekindle her passion for sport? Or will she quit netball for good?

Follow your heart right to the end, or go back and choose all over again.

 

Make up or break up

By Kate Welshman

A contemporary pick-a-path series about life, first crushes and friendship, that lets the reader choose how the story goes! 

Ally has always let her bestie, Cat, take charge. Now they’re in high school, and it seems Cat will continue to get her way. Until …

  • Ally's invited to join an advanced Latin class. She loves Latin – and she likes James, her smart and gorgeous new classmate, too. But will Ally be able to keep up with the older kids? And how will Cat react to Ally doing her own thing?
  • Cat is determined both she and Ally will audition for the school musical. But Ally’s not a good singer, and being involved would mean spending time with her old crush, Tony – and she hasn't forgiven him for what happened last year. Can Ally face the music?

Follow your heart right to the end, or go back and choose all over again.

Request a copy via our catalogue

Two can play that game by Leanne Yong  

Two can play that game

By Leanne Yong

I’ve been loving exploring content by Australian authors and illustrators lately, and here is another fantastic example.

Sam Khoo has one goal in life: create cool indie games. She's willing to do anything to make her dream come true, even throw away a scholarship to university. All she needs is that super-rare ticket to a game design workshop and she can kickstart her career. So when Jaysen Chua, otherwise known as Jerky McJerkface, sneakily grabs the last ticket for himself, Sam is left with no choice. It's war. Knowing all too well how their Australian-Malaysian community works, she issues him an ultimatum: put the ticket on the line in a 1v1 competition of classic video games, or she'll broadcast his duplicity to everyone. Thank you, Asian Gossip Network. Meeting in neutral locations, away from the eyes and ears of nosy aunties and uncles, Sam and Jay connect despite themselves. It's a puzzle that Sam's not sure she wants to solve. But when her dream is under threat, will she discover that there is more than one way to win?

One song by A.J. Betts  

One song

By A.J. Betts

I’ve been loving exploring content by Australian authors and illustrators lately, and a fantastic new book by Australian author A.J. Betts, One Song.

If you love tuning into Triple J, voting in the hottest 100, and can’t wait to see who comes out on top of Triple J Unearthed this is the book for you!

Aspiring singer-songwriter Eva has one last chance to enter Triple J Unearthed High and break into the music industry.

But after three failed attempts, she needs some help.

Cue the band: perfectionist Eva, charismatic Cooper, easy-going Ant and moody Ruby. Plus fly-on-the-wall Mim, who’s filming them for her school Media project.

Five people who have nothing in common but music. One emotionally and creatively charged weekend.

Can they record the most important song of their lives?

Wrong answers only by Tobias Madden  

Wrong answers only

By Tobias Madden

We have been celebrating Australian authors and illustrators this month with the Juvenilia exhibition happening at Unley Civic Library, and Australiana themed Crafternoon youth sessions. There are so many incredible books by Australian authors, one recent release from Tobias Madden, author of Anything But Fine, is Wrong Answers Only.

If you like young adult fiction, queer fiction, and rom com style drama this is for you!

Marco's always done the right thing. But now it's time for wrong answers only. Marco should be at university, studying biomedicine. Instead, he's been sent to live on a cruise ship in the Mediterranean with his estranged uncle, all because of a 'blip' everyone else is convinced was a panic attack. (Which it most definitely was not.) And even though Marco's trip is supposed to provide answers - about himself, about his family - all he finds on board the Ocean Melody are more and more questions. But then his best friend CeCe proposes a new plan- for someone who has always done the right thing, in every possible way, it's time for Marco to get a few things wrong. And hooking up with a hot dancer from the ship is only the beginning . . .

The perfect guy doesn't exist by Sophie Gonzales  

The perfect guy doesn't exist

By Sophie Gonzales

If you like young adult fiction, enemies to lovers, queer fiction, and rom coms, The Perfect Guy Doesn’t Exist by Sophie Gonzales is the book for you. 

While Ivy has the house to herself for a week, she plans to binge-watch her favourite TV show and throw herself into her fanfiction writing. Until she wakes up to find the very handsome but very fictional main character in her bedroom.

Somehow, Ivy has brought Weston to life, and he’s convinced they are soulmates. But this dream-come-true crush quickly causes some very real problems. To get rid of him, Ivy must team up with her ex-best friend and sworn enemy, Mack. And with Mack back in her life, Ivy starts to wonder if her ‘perfect soulmate’ might have been someone else all along … 

Children of Ragnarok by Cinda Williams Chima  

Children of Ragnarok

By Cinda Williams Chima

The first book of a new young adult series The Runestone Saga, Children of Ragnarok by Cinda Williams Chima is a great read for mythology lovers. If you liked Spice Road, The Isles of the Gods, The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea, and anything from Percy Jackson author Rick Riordan this is for you.

Since Ragnarok -- the great war between the gods and the forces of chaos -- the human realm of the Midlands has become a desperate and dangerous place, bereft of magic. Sixteen-year-old Eiric Halvorsen is among the luckier ones -- his family has remained prosperous. But he stands to lose everything when he's wrongly convicted by a rigged jury of murdering his modir and stepfadir. 

Also at risk is Eiric's half-systir, Liv, who's under suspicion for her interest in seidr, or magic. Then a powerful jarl steps in: He will pay the blood price if Eiric will lead a mission to the fabled Temple at the Grove--the rich stronghold of the wyrdspinners, the last practitioners of sorcery. 

Spellsinger, musician, and runecaster Reginn Eiklund has spent her life performing at alehouses for the benefit of her master, Asger, a fire demon she is desperate to escape. After one performance that amazes even herself, two wyrdspinners in the audience make Reginn an irresistible offer: return with them to the Temple to be trained in seidr, forever free of Asger. 

Eiric's, Liv's, and Reginn's journeys converge in New Jotunheim, a paradise fuelled by magic and the site of the Temple. They soon realize that a great evil lurks beneath the dazzling surface and that old betrayals and long-held grudges may fuel another cataclysmic war. It will require every gift and weapon at their command to prevent it.

Cross my heart and never lie by Nora Dasnes  

Cross my heart and never lie

By Nora Dasnes

Cross My Heart and Never Lie perfectly captures the struggle of getting caught up between being a kid and being a teenager, and all the social pressure that comes with that. The main character Tuva is torn between her friends when they split themselves into two groups, girls that fall in love, and those that don’t.

This was a funny, relatable coming of age graphic novel that explores the tricky phase when you and your friends become interested in different things, start becoming more grown up, and sometimes also growing apart. It made me smile when I read it, definitely a new favourite comfort read.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who has felt torn between friendship groups, worried they’re not maturing fast enough, desperate to impress a new friend or a crush, and wishes things could always be as easy and fun as making forts and playing in the woods.

Check out the catalogue description for some insight into Cross My Heart And Never Lie, and place a hold.

Today, school felt really different from last year. Something felt strange while we waited in the hall, almost like everyone had heard a secret during the summer and now we were all standing there knowing something. Except me. I didn’t know what the secret was…

Seventh grade has split Tuva’s friendship group in two – those who fall in love, and those who don’t. Worst of all, Tuva’s best friends Linnea and Bao want her to choose a side!

But then new girl Mariam arrives, and somehow Tuva’s world changes all over again.

Request a copy via our catalogue

Archives of despair by Caleb Finn  

Archives of despair : ten scary stories to keep you up at night

By Caleb Finn

This week we have had a stack of Premier’s Reading Challenge books come into the library. While reading for fun is one of the best hobbies you can have, reading for a medal is a great motivator. The Premier’s Reading Challenge will introduce you to books you may never have considered otherwise.

One Mature (years 10-12) Premier’s Reading Challenge book that caught my eye is Archives of Despair: Ten Scary Stories to Keep You Up at Night by Caleb Finn.

If you love suspenseful, eerie, and spooky short stories this book is for you!

From the chilling mind of Caleb Finn comes his debut collection of ten stories to haunt your thoughts and fuel your darkest fears. You have been given access to secret files buried deep within the archives. Disturbing stories never meant for the light of day. Stories of evil grandparents and unsettling homework. A string of deaths, seemingly unrelated. Walls squirm, as if alive. A cursed wish comes true. Ordinary people behave oddly, even family and your closest friends... These stories share a common fate. All the children are met with tragedy. Coincidence? Or could these nightmares be connected by something more sinister than you dare to imagine? A dark and chilling mystery awaits. Find the answers, before he finds you.

Request a copy via our catalogue

Fake dates and mooncakes by Sher Lee  

Fake dates and mooncakes

By Sher Lee

Meet Dylan Tang: he juggles school and delivery runs for his aunt's struggling Chinese takeout in Brooklyn. Winning a mooncake competition could bring the publicity they need to stay afloat. Enter Theo Somers: charming, wealthy customer who convinces Dylan to be his fake date at a family wedding full of crazy rich drama. Their romance is supposed to be just for show... but soon Dylan's falling for Theo. For real. With the mooncake contest looming, Dylan can't risk being distracted by rich-people problems. Can he save his family's business and follow his heart -- or will he fail to do both?

From Jacinta: This one gives me all the wholesome romance vibes! Heartstopper meets Crazy Rich Asians all the way, and utilises all your favourite tropes.

Request a copy via our catalogue

 


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