Welcome to Riverbend Standing Orders for August 2021.
We are delighted to bring to you a great selection of titles.
Kind Regards, Pauline and Trish
Picture Books
Backyard Birdies – Andy Geppert (4+ field guide to animals, humour, Australian birds, jokes, map)
Little One – Jane Godwin; illus Gabriel Evans (4+ resilience, lost toy, security, separation anxiety, love, Teacher Notes)
Frankie and the Fossil – Jess McGeachin (4+ dinosaurs, museums, friendship, connection, adventure, humour, Activity Pack, Book Trailer)
My Beautiful Voice – Joseph Coelho; illus. Allison Colpoys (4+ teaching, role modelling, kindness, shyness, confidence, poetry, overcoming fears)
Primary Fiction
Devils in Danger – Samantha Wheeler (8+ endangered animals, Tasmanian Devils, survival, adventure, action, courage, hope, Teacher’s Notes)
The Elephant in the Room – Holly Goldberg Sloan (8+ friendship, kindness, determination, hope, treatment of animals in captivity, loss, neuro-divergent character, connection, grief, loss, immigration)
The Good Times of Pelican Rise: Save the Joeys – Samone Amba (9+ friendship. after-school care club, growing up, social activism, wildlife and environmental conservation, trust, responsibility, community awareness, bushfires, wild Australian animals, Teacher’s Notes
The Travelling Bookshop: Mim and the Baffling Bully (#1 The Travelling Bookshop) – Katrina Nannestad; illus. Cheryl Orsini (7+ friendship, humour, resilience, identity and belonging, Teacher’s Notes)
Middle School Fiction
A Different Sort of Normal – Abigail Balfe (10+ autism, journal writing, difference, acceptance, humour, guide to growing up, autobiographical, illustrated)
Exit Through the Gift Shop – Maryam Master (11+ contemporary, terminal cancer, humour, bullying, family, friendships, blended families, travel, belonging, acceptance of death, identity, Teaching Notes)
Half My Luck – Samera Kamaleddine (12+ humour, identity, blended ethnicity, family, belonging, resilience, friendship, caught between two cultures, some mature references, Teaching Guide)
Storm Horse – Jane Elson (10+ dyslexia, team work, mystery Horse, famous horse Seabiscuit, group of children who don’t fit in, courage to overcome obstacles, contemporary and historical poverty, stories of The Great Depression)
Secondary Fiction
Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry – Joya Goffney (15+contemporary, diversity, family, secrets, identity, coming of age, blackmailing, feminist, romance, some sexual references, friendships, racism, some strong language, road tripping)
Sugar Town Queens – Malla Nunn (15+ contemporary, South African setting, diversity, identity, family, relationships, friendships, coming of age, romance, feminism, racism, economic inequality, social justice, drug addiction, LGBT, grief and loss, some violence and strong language, death and dying Teacher Notes)
The Monster of Her Age – Danielle Binks (14+ cinematic references, pop culture, LGBTQI character, family relationships, grief, forgiveness, acceptance, facing fears, childhood trauma, horror movie genre)
Tim Te Maro and the Subterranean Heartsick Blues (suitable for 15+) New Zealand setting, LGBT, alternate contemporary, magical boarding schools, identity, family, romance, enemies-to-lovers, friendship, implied sexual content, humour, low angst, mystery, curses, quests, Ampersand Winner)
Adult Fiction
Breathe – Joyce Carol Oates
Empires – Nick Earles
Primary Fiction (Boys Only Pack)
Devils in Danger – Samantha Wheeler (8+ endangered animals, Tasmanian Devils, survival, adventure, action, courage, hope, Teacher’s Notes)
Ground Zero – Alan Gratz (10+ war stories, September 11, 2001, Afghanistan, dual narrative, action, destruction, connection of past and present.
Monster Hunting for Beginners – Ian Mark (8+ adventure, friendship, monsters, humour, teamwork)
The Elephant in the Room – Holly Goldberg Sloan (8+ friendship, kindness, determination, hope, treatment of animals in captivity, loss, neuro-divergent character, connection, grief, loss, immigration)
Middle School Fiction (Boys Only Pack)
Storm Horse – Jane Elson (10+ dyslexia, team work, mystery Horse, famous horse Seabiscuit, group of children who don’t fit in, courage to overcome obstacles, contemporary and historical poverty, stories of The Great Depression)
The King of Jam Sandwiches – Eric Walters (10+ mental illness, self-reliance, foster care, poverty, coming of age, winner of 2020 Canadian Governor General’s Literary Prize)
The Thaumagician’s Revenge (#2 The Rise of the Remarkables) – Gareth Ward (11+ 2nd in series, steampunk in England, magic, action, friendship, power and control)
Wolf’s Howl – A.L Tait (11+ fantasy, adventure, medieval-inspired setting, friendships, continuing series, secrets, politics, quests, feminism, suspense)
Secondary School Fiction (Boys Only Pack)
Coastwatcher – David Hill (12+ World War II, Solomon Islands, radio operators, Operation Pacific, war themes, mateship, bravery, Teacher’s Notes)
Let’s Go Swimming on Doomsday – Natalie C. Anderson (14+ Somali militia group, kidnapping, child soldiers, undercover, spying, theft, greed, redemption, family loyalty, war brutality and violence, for mature readers)
Strange Exit – Parker Peevyhouse (13+ speculative fiction, post-apocalypse, nuclear event, passengers orbiting Earth, computer simulation, virtual reality,
Tim Te Maro and the Subterranean Heartsick Blues (suitable for 15+) New Zealand setting, LGBT, alternate contemporary, magical boarding schools, identity, family, romance, enemies-to-lovers, friendship, implied sexual content, humour, low angst, mystery, curses, quests, Ampersand Winner)
Riverbend Standing Orders 