by Susan Barnes | 10 Dec 2022 | Book Reviews
The Boy Behind the Wall is set in Berlin in 1967 during the Cold War. The story begins with Harry witnessing the death of a young boy. He is shot by East German guards as he tries to scale the Wall which separates East and West Berlin. Harry has recently moved with...
by Susan Barnes | 22 Oct 2022 | Book Reviews
Fleur moves back to her hometown, Caldon, to find herself unexpectedly living next door to the charismatic Dan Bateman. Fleur is good friends with Dan’s sister, Clare, but neither Fleur nor Dan are in a good place to be starting a new relationship. Fleur is still...
by Susan Barnes | 17 Jun 2022 | Book Reviews
In his book, Brave in the making, Travis Barnes uses modern-day examples of people who faced challenges alongside Biblical characters who faced similar challenges. Travis encourages young people to become fearless disciples who live for Jesus and his cause. Each...
by Susan Barnes | 27 Jan 2022 | Book Reviews
A Ceiling Made of Eggshells is a historical fiction novel that begins in 1483 when Loma is a seven-year-old Jewish girl living in Spain. The story covers the next nine years until the king and queen of Spain expel all the Jews in 1492. Since we know of the expulsion...
by Susan Barnes | 18 Nov 2021 | Book Reviews
The Protected is the story of Hannah McCann who is in year 10 at a Catholic High School in Sydney. A year ago, her older sister, Katie, died in a car accident and her father was seriously injured. Since then, her mother has become seriously depressed. Hannah was also...
by Susan Barnes | 25 Feb 2021 | Book Reviews
The Light in the Lake is a well-written book set around fictitious Maple Lake in Vermont. Sarah Baughman does an excellent job of describing the lake and surrounds using the different seasons and weather to add to the context and mood of the story. The story begins...
by Susan Barnes | 21 Jan 2021 | Book Reviews
Ellie is a twelve-year-old girl with cerebral palsy. She uses a wheelchair for mobility and loves baking. She manoeuvres her wheelchair around the kitchen to cook biscuits, desserts and pies. Her father separated from her Mum when Ellie was a baby as he struggled to...
by Susan Barnes | 27 Aug 2020 | Book Reviews
After crashing her mother’s car, sixteen-year-old Clare is sent to Kamira Creek to complete her final years of high school. She boards with close friends of her deceased father and through this relationship, Clare learns more about the early death of her father. Clare...
