Brydie Wright's Blog - Posts Tagged "books-on-tour"
30. Mar, 2018 The 'Poo Book Blog' Reviews Songlines for Books On Tour
The 'Poo Book' Blog is delighted to introduce Carolyn Denman and The Sentinels of Eden series as a part of her Books On Tour promotion.
The Book: Songlines, The Sentinels of Eden Book One
Author: Carolyn Denman
Published: Aug 2016 by Odyssey Books
Available to purchase Angus & Robertson
Paperback RRP AU$23.95
Follow Carolyn and her books on Facebook
For more information on blog tours at Books On Tour please visit www.justkidslit.com/books-on-tour.
The Intro: Welcome to the first stop on the Sentinels of Eden Series Books On Tour #BlogDash #Day1. The ‘Poo Book’ Blog is delighted to review Songlines, Book One of Carolyn Denman's young adult fantasy series, in advance of her latest release - Sympath (Book Three).
About the Author: Like many authors, Carolyn Denman comes to writing from a diverse background. Her major at University was science and she works as a mortgage-broker. She indulges her creativity by writing fantasy fiction for young adults and also manages to run a hobby farm, raise a family and feed 63 baby axolotls! They say if you want a job done right, give it to a busy person. Carolyn Denman proves this adage with The Sentinels of Eden, a skilfully written, speculative fiction series.
About the Book: In the debut novel of this original series, we are introduced to a world of mixed mythology and supernatural powers, juxtaposed with the everyday realities of teenage coming of age. Songlines seems at first, like any other teen angst drama, magnified by the pressures of graduating high school in a small country town. The story soon takes an interesting turn though, with a tense run-in between heroine Lainie's Aunt Lily, and mining company Kolsom. The corporate power begins exploratory sampling a little too close to Lainie's family's sheep farm, in the Victorian Wimmera region. This opens a pandora's box of family secrets including the revelation that Lainie is in fact a Sentinel of biblical Eden, and she is sworn to protect the hidden entrance to this mythological world, located in the heart of country Victoria.
Like any work of speculative fiction, the key to enjoyment is suspending your disbelief. Fantasy fans will take this as a given, but I must admit the question for me was why Eden? It's a Christian construct. Why not The Dreaming - an Indigenous Australian mythology? After all, Lainie and her best-friend Noah, have indigenous blood in their veins, and one of the senior Sentinels is a local Aboriginal elder. Still, I couldn't deny that with the legend of Eden, Denman has drawn on a familiar Western paradigm to which readers will relate. She has then infused it with the concept of songlines - the indigenous spirit of care-taking for sacred land.
Songlines is readable and relatable. It grounds a fantastical course of events in the realities of an Australian farming community, where livelihoods are hard come by and communities are small, providing a strong sense of belonging, yet also the tensions of feeling trapped. Add to this volatile mix, four teenagers with raging hormones, family skeletons and identity crises, and you've got all the ingredients of great YA drama.
Every teenager (and even some adult readers) will identify with those early turning points where we must make big decisions in life, love and career, knowing that we aren't really ready for it. Will we make the right decision? Will Lainie make the right decision? Learning she is of superhuman origin and that the fate of Eden's safety rests on her shoulders, is an intimidating realisation. This, coupled with the fact that her soulmate is her worst enemy and her long-dead mother might actually be a nymph living in Eden, you just have to feel for this girl and become invested in her story... and her fate.
Book One sets up the series beautifully and leaves the story on a suitable cliff-hanger. Will Lainie give into the temptations of Eden, or will she choose real-life and love over a fantasy world? I am definitely left intrigued to read Book Two - Sanguine - and excited to hear that Odyssey Books have backed this Australian novelist's work with the release of a third in the series - Sympath.
Recommended For: Songlines is promoted as YA Fantasy for readers 12 and over and from a reviewer's perspective, I wouldn't disagree, but I would elaborate with a comparison of a peer-title from the same publisher. Elizabeth Foster's 2017 novel Esme's Wish, is also speculative fiction. It's dosed with realism but whereas I would recommend it for late primary and early YA readers with it's friendship-focus, I would suggest The Sentinels of Eden series is for a high-school teen audience, with mature themes of emerging identity, coming of age, violence and sexual attraction.
Brydie Wright
The Book: Songlines, The Sentinels of Eden Book One
Author: Carolyn Denman
Published: Aug 2016 by Odyssey Books
Available to purchase Angus & Robertson
Paperback RRP AU$23.95
Follow Carolyn and her books on Facebook
For more information on blog tours at Books On Tour please visit www.justkidslit.com/books-on-tour.
The Intro: Welcome to the first stop on the Sentinels of Eden Series Books On Tour #BlogDash #Day1. The ‘Poo Book’ Blog is delighted to review Songlines, Book One of Carolyn Denman's young adult fantasy series, in advance of her latest release - Sympath (Book Three).
About the Author: Like many authors, Carolyn Denman comes to writing from a diverse background. Her major at University was science and she works as a mortgage-broker. She indulges her creativity by writing fantasy fiction for young adults and also manages to run a hobby farm, raise a family and feed 63 baby axolotls! They say if you want a job done right, give it to a busy person. Carolyn Denman proves this adage with The Sentinels of Eden, a skilfully written, speculative fiction series.
About the Book: In the debut novel of this original series, we are introduced to a world of mixed mythology and supernatural powers, juxtaposed with the everyday realities of teenage coming of age. Songlines seems at first, like any other teen angst drama, magnified by the pressures of graduating high school in a small country town. The story soon takes an interesting turn though, with a tense run-in between heroine Lainie's Aunt Lily, and mining company Kolsom. The corporate power begins exploratory sampling a little too close to Lainie's family's sheep farm, in the Victorian Wimmera region. This opens a pandora's box of family secrets including the revelation that Lainie is in fact a Sentinel of biblical Eden, and she is sworn to protect the hidden entrance to this mythological world, located in the heart of country Victoria.
Like any work of speculative fiction, the key to enjoyment is suspending your disbelief. Fantasy fans will take this as a given, but I must admit the question for me was why Eden? It's a Christian construct. Why not The Dreaming - an Indigenous Australian mythology? After all, Lainie and her best-friend Noah, have indigenous blood in their veins, and one of the senior Sentinels is a local Aboriginal elder. Still, I couldn't deny that with the legend of Eden, Denman has drawn on a familiar Western paradigm to which readers will relate. She has then infused it with the concept of songlines - the indigenous spirit of care-taking for sacred land.
Songlines is readable and relatable. It grounds a fantastical course of events in the realities of an Australian farming community, where livelihoods are hard come by and communities are small, providing a strong sense of belonging, yet also the tensions of feeling trapped. Add to this volatile mix, four teenagers with raging hormones, family skeletons and identity crises, and you've got all the ingredients of great YA drama.
Every teenager (and even some adult readers) will identify with those early turning points where we must make big decisions in life, love and career, knowing that we aren't really ready for it. Will we make the right decision? Will Lainie make the right decision? Learning she is of superhuman origin and that the fate of Eden's safety rests on her shoulders, is an intimidating realisation. This, coupled with the fact that her soulmate is her worst enemy and her long-dead mother might actually be a nymph living in Eden, you just have to feel for this girl and become invested in her story... and her fate.
Book One sets up the series beautifully and leaves the story on a suitable cliff-hanger. Will Lainie give into the temptations of Eden, or will she choose real-life and love over a fantasy world? I am definitely left intrigued to read Book Two - Sanguine - and excited to hear that Odyssey Books have backed this Australian novelist's work with the release of a third in the series - Sympath.
Recommended For: Songlines is promoted as YA Fantasy for readers 12 and over and from a reviewer's perspective, I wouldn't disagree, but I would elaborate with a comparison of a peer-title from the same publisher. Elizabeth Foster's 2017 novel Esme's Wish, is also speculative fiction. It's dosed with realism but whereas I would recommend it for late primary and early YA readers with it's friendship-focus, I would suggest The Sentinels of Eden series is for a high-school teen audience, with mature themes of emerging identity, coming of age, violence and sexual attraction.
Brydie Wright
The 'Poo Book' Blog Reviews Cloud Conductor for Books On Tour
The Book: Cloud Conductor (picture book)
Author: Kellie Byrnes
Illustrator: Ann-Marie Finn
Published: May 2018 by Wombat Books
The Intro: Welcome to the second stop on the Cloud Conductor #BlogDash for Books on Tour. The ‘Poo Book Blog' is delighted to review this very special picture book, the debut publication for Author and Freelance Writer, Kellie Byrnes.
About the Author: Kellie Byrnes is an exciting new talent in the Australian children’s book landscape. Cloud Conductor is her debut picture book, with another title on the way (Yes! No) in 2019. Byrnes can often be found daydreaming about books, whether penning her next manuscript, or reviewing for the JustKidLit blog. She immerses herself in creativity, whether it be via movies, plays and musicals, or travelling as widely as possible. One to watch!
About the Book: Cloud Conductor took me right back to that magical time in my childhood, when I used to lay on my trampoline, seemingly for hours, gazing at the clouds. I imagined all kinds of shapes and figures in the ever-moving, white, billowy masses. I think the author’s mission was accomplished right then and there. This poignant picture book aims to encourage its readers to be cloud conductors, or purveyors of the imagination, and it achieves this in spades. It relies for its resonance, on the universal premise that we can all make out images in the clouds, whether or not we choose to indulge in this pastime.
Cloud Conductor tells the story of Frankie, a little girl whose active life is affected by an illness, from which she spends most of the book convalescing. The narrative takes us through the seasons of Frankie’s recovery, and her determination not to succumb to melancholy. Like many children searching for escapism, she turns to the world of her imagination. The clouds are the conduit by which she soars and roars through the brightest and darkest of her days. Her interminable spirit provides a gift to her fellow patients - other sick children who can escape their reality, even if just for a little while, by gazing at the clouds.
The sombre palette of the cover bodes a sensitive, or even sad story within, but the reader is soon taken through the full colour spectrum by versatile illustrator Ann-Marie Finn (of Lulu and Eric Finds A Way-fame). Finn conveys the beauty and power of cloudy skies, throughout the seasons. Byrnes’ simple, yet beautifully-crafted text, combines perfectly with Finn’s mixed-media artistic techniques, to contrast the often-confined world of Frankie’s reality, with the boundless world of her adventures in the clouds. Favourite illustrations for me, included the etching of the powerful lion ROARING in the clouds, and the photo realism within the hand-drawing of ‘cloud children’ playing at the beach.
Recommended For: As we read together, my five-year-old (with his own ‘wandering mind’), was both captivated by Frankie’s big imaginings, yet also drawn into the sadness of her real-world experience. My comprehension test for him was, What’s happening with the girl in the story? He replied, She’s sick. This, combined with the fact he kept still and didn’t wriggle once during the reading, indicates to me that the book passes the test for its intended audience. It also aces the impress-the-adult-reader test, with its sensitive themes and clever demonstration of creativity.
Cloud Conductor is recommended for ages 5 to 8, and though we try to avoid talking about gender, I felt this was a book that would appeal equally to boys and girl. It taps into that part of EVERYONE’s psyche, that is fascinated with the clouds. Who doesn't love the idea that we can escape our troubles, if we only just yield to the world of our imagination? This is a perfect book for reading to early primary age, yet also pitched wonderfully to children who enjoy the pleasure of reading picture books to themselves. I can only imagine the comfort a book like this would provide, to a child experiencing illness, or perhaps bullying. If we refuse to stop dreaming, we can find the inner strength to overcome almost anything.
Author: Kellie Byrnes
Illustrator: Ann-Marie Finn
Published: May 2018 by Wombat Books
The Intro: Welcome to the second stop on the Cloud Conductor #BlogDash for Books on Tour. The ‘Poo Book Blog' is delighted to review this very special picture book, the debut publication for Author and Freelance Writer, Kellie Byrnes.
About the Author: Kellie Byrnes is an exciting new talent in the Australian children’s book landscape. Cloud Conductor is her debut picture book, with another title on the way (Yes! No) in 2019. Byrnes can often be found daydreaming about books, whether penning her next manuscript, or reviewing for the JustKidLit blog. She immerses herself in creativity, whether it be via movies, plays and musicals, or travelling as widely as possible. One to watch!
About the Book: Cloud Conductor took me right back to that magical time in my childhood, when I used to lay on my trampoline, seemingly for hours, gazing at the clouds. I imagined all kinds of shapes and figures in the ever-moving, white, billowy masses. I think the author’s mission was accomplished right then and there. This poignant picture book aims to encourage its readers to be cloud conductors, or purveyors of the imagination, and it achieves this in spades. It relies for its resonance, on the universal premise that we can all make out images in the clouds, whether or not we choose to indulge in this pastime.
Cloud Conductor tells the story of Frankie, a little girl whose active life is affected by an illness, from which she spends most of the book convalescing. The narrative takes us through the seasons of Frankie’s recovery, and her determination not to succumb to melancholy. Like many children searching for escapism, she turns to the world of her imagination. The clouds are the conduit by which she soars and roars through the brightest and darkest of her days. Her interminable spirit provides a gift to her fellow patients - other sick children who can escape their reality, even if just for a little while, by gazing at the clouds.
The sombre palette of the cover bodes a sensitive, or even sad story within, but the reader is soon taken through the full colour spectrum by versatile illustrator Ann-Marie Finn (of Lulu and Eric Finds A Way-fame). Finn conveys the beauty and power of cloudy skies, throughout the seasons. Byrnes’ simple, yet beautifully-crafted text, combines perfectly with Finn’s mixed-media artistic techniques, to contrast the often-confined world of Frankie’s reality, with the boundless world of her adventures in the clouds. Favourite illustrations for me, included the etching of the powerful lion ROARING in the clouds, and the photo realism within the hand-drawing of ‘cloud children’ playing at the beach.
Recommended For: As we read together, my five-year-old (with his own ‘wandering mind’), was both captivated by Frankie’s big imaginings, yet also drawn into the sadness of her real-world experience. My comprehension test for him was, What’s happening with the girl in the story? He replied, She’s sick. This, combined with the fact he kept still and didn’t wriggle once during the reading, indicates to me that the book passes the test for its intended audience. It also aces the impress-the-adult-reader test, with its sensitive themes and clever demonstration of creativity.
Cloud Conductor is recommended for ages 5 to 8, and though we try to avoid talking about gender, I felt this was a book that would appeal equally to boys and girl. It taps into that part of EVERYONE’s psyche, that is fascinated with the clouds. Who doesn't love the idea that we can escape our troubles, if we only just yield to the world of our imagination? This is a perfect book for reading to early primary age, yet also pitched wonderfully to children who enjoy the pleasure of reading picture books to themselves. I can only imagine the comfort a book like this would provide, to a child experiencing illness, or perhaps bullying. If we refuse to stop dreaming, we can find the inner strength to overcome almost anything.
