Kathryn's Inbox

By 1995 the Baby-Sitters Little Sister books, a spin-off from the Baby-Sitters Club had become such a hit in their own right that it too developed its own spin-off. And it is a real winner. The Kids in Ms Coleman's Class focuses on the second grade class at Stoneybrook Academy and fleshes out some of the beloved characters and events from the Little Sister series. Book One, Teacher's Pet opens at the start of a new school year. Nancy Dawes is nervous about starting second grade. She doesn't really know any of the other kids who have been assigned into Ms Coleman's class. Worse still, her best friend Karen Brewer who lives next door (well, when she's at the Little House) and she is only in first grade. Nancy's morning doesn't get off to the greatest of starts. All of the other kids are mean or seem to already have friends. And the teacher wants to have a day when the students bring their pets to school. (It's not realistic, but it's an Ann M Martin n

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When I discovered that Pusheen, the cute feline star of many, many webcomics had her own book, I just had to read it. Featuring Pusheen and her feline family (Storm, Pip, Sunflower and Biscuit,) and, of course a certain sloth, this volume is cuteness overload. It follows the same four frame format of the webcomics, each one designed to inspire a giggle or an aww.  This was an enjoyable enough read. It's fun and suitable for all ages--in fact while it's not marketed specifically to children, I think kids will have more fun than some adults with this one. I did find that it worked best just to read a few of the comics at a time, as it felt a bit too sweet and overdone at times.  Fun and friendly, an ideal read for fans of Pusheen.

Consent Laid Bare is important reading. It is also not terribly comfortable reading as it takes a look at the politics of sexual consent. How is it in a supposedly enlightened era that consent is such a difficult topic?  Contos argues that despite women having achieved equality in so many ways, when it comes to sexuality we are still subjected to an outdated social model, where men's pleasure is considered more important than a woman's humanity. She looks at how women's sexuality has been co-opted by the porn industry and the problems that come with that--especially when teenage boys are accessing porn and assuming that any violent or degrading acts depicted are pleasurable.  As I said at the start of my review, this is not comfortable reading. Many things are uncomfortable, though the points raised are relevant. And while I might not agree with everything the author says (and nor do I have to,) I think she raises an important issue. The chapter at the end, titled Dear Boy

Green Dot is a book about a young woman reaching that time, that point in her mid-twenties, when she starts to feel insecure about her choices and her place in the world. And then comes along Arthur an older man and suddenly, she finds herself attracted to the ordinariness and security that his life brings. The only catch is that Arthur is married and taking advantage of her, and even Hera herself knows that this so-called romance is doomed to fail. And yet, she cannot give him up, and finds herself trying to change so that he will love her. This was a sadly relatable story of insecurity, infatuation and false promises. This would definitely make for an excellent cautionary tale for young women. Madeline Grey's depiction of Arthur's manipulations are spot on, in particular the way he never tells the whole truth. That said, I did not get as much out of this book as I had hoped--for me, it was the wrong book at the wrong time. I found myself infuriated with the main character on

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I have been enjoying the Mr Men/Little Miss series for grown ups so much that even though I do not have children, I couldn't resist borrowing this particular volume when I found at at my local library. Full of the series trademark savage humour this volume turns its attention towards Little Miss Busy, who is, in fact, quite busy looking after her three children and being made to feel like an imperfect mother at every turn, whether it is through making costumes for school, her mother-in-law (none other than Little Miss Splendid,) or the annoyingly goody-goody and annoyingly perfect mother of twins, Little Miss Sunshine. Eventually thanks to some good advice and the discovery that others may not be doing quite as well as they pretend to be, Little Miss Busy finds a solution to her problems. This was fun, funny and relatable on one very surprising level. The Little Miss Sunshine subplot almost perfectly mirrors a family (which included identical twins) that I knew for a time during my

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The top selling Baby-Sitters Little Sister graphix series is back with another excellent adaption. This time Katy Farina turns her attention to one of the classic titles of the series, Karen's Sleepover. And Little Sister fans know what that means. We meet the graphic novel version of Pamela Harding, who becomes a big part of the original Little Sister series and the eventual spin-off The Kids in Miss Coleman's Class. (I wonder if they will ever get a graphic novel adaption?) This one begins with Karen realising that she has never had a sleepover with her friends, though her beloved older stepsister Kristy has them at the 'Big House' with her friends. Karen decides to rectify this important matter. Fortunately her father and stepmother agree to this and Karen soon starts making plans, including mailing out invitations. What could possibly go wrong? Two things. First, everyone receives their invitations except for Karen's neighbour and bestie, Nancy. This leads to

Bleak, powerful and strangely beautiful Small Things Like These is a story of cruelty and, ultimately, hope. Set in 1985 in a small town in Ireland that is almost totally controlled by the local arm of the Catholic Church it tells the story of Bill Furlong, a man whose life could have taken a very different path when his mother found herself unmarried and pregnant. Thanks to the kindness of her employer, she was able to keep and raise her son--an unusual circumstance in their small town, where unmarried pregnant girls and women were cast out of their families and sent away. When Furlong (as he is known in the novel) now an adult with a wife, daughters and a respectable job comes across the harsh realities that fall upon pregnant teenagers in Ireland, with many sent away to work in homes for unmarried mothers where they are treated cruelly, and in particular, the ill-treatment of one girl who is roughly the same age as his daughters, he decides to do something about it.  This was a ble

Gritty and raw, Invisible Boys is a grim reminder that not every YA LGBTQIA+ book can be like Heartstopper and leave the reader with warm fuzzies. This is a book that is literally for the titular Invisible Boys, the ones that are hidden due to the stigma that would follow them in the small and rough communities where they live. Charlie, Hammer and Zeke are three seemingly different boys living in a rough small town in Western Australia. Zeke is shy, intelligent and very sensitive, the near constant target of Hammer, the town's star footballer whose popularity rests on his sporting prowess and his near constant bullying of others which, as is often the case in hyper-masculine communities mistaken for manliness. But the two have more in common than they think--both are attracted to men and, possibly, each other. Meanwhile, an incident with a predatory married man has left musician Charlie not only outed before he is ready but wrongfully shouldering the blame. (Umm, who was the much

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I had so much fun reading the delightfully savage Little Miss Shy Goes Online Dating that when I saw another book in this grown up series of Mr Men/Litte Miss books available at my local library that I knew I just had to borrow it. This one works on a similar premise. It's just like a Mr Men/Little Miss book, except that the concept is a bit more adult and the humour a bit more savage. In this instalment the reader discovers one of the original Mr Men characters, Mr Greedy, realising that he needs to go on a diet (again). This time around he is lamenting his middle aged spread, whilst secretly thinking that the diets that the other Mr Men characters are on are rather silly. (Of course, it helps that the diets are rather silly and that Mr Muddle is making a complete arse of himself posting gym pics, but I digress ...) Anyway, Mr Greedy starts finding health food around the house and starts suspecting that his wife may be having an affair, which leads him to go on a series of ridicu

Edouard Louis, author of the play Who Killed My Father  shares with the reader a part of his life story in Change. Not quite a memoir, not quite fiction, it tells the story of a boy growing up in a poor city in France where he is often bullied and ridiculed and accused of being gay--something that is completely socially unacceptable in a rough and tumble town where men are expected to present extreme versions of masculinity. Change begins with a surprising offer to attend a school in a nearby town where he can be a part of the artistic programme. There, he makes friends, including a deep friendship with Elena, but it is also the beginning of an all-consuming desire to change everything about himself, from his name (Eddy to Edouard) to eventually climbing all the way to the top university in France, being the partner of wealthy men and betraying not just his family, but Elena and her mother along the way.  It is not common for people to change class, or at least not at the extreme level

Everyone has a slightly different interpretation of Andy Warhol. Whether it is his work as an artist, writer, photographer or filmmaker or of the man himself. Something of an enigma, he can mean different things to different people. Nothing Special offers Nicole Flattery's interpretation of Warhol, who she has spend a considerable amount of time and effort researching. It tells a fictionalised account of one of the young typists who finds themselves working at the Factory, typing Andy Warhol's novel a.  Seventeen year old Mae is not a real person but she may as well be, given the level of research done by the author. It opens with her well into adulthood, and tells us of a life lived where she is free, but not someone extraordinary, like the many people who graced the Factory in the 1960s. We learn how she got the job at the Factory, after being ostracised by her peers at school and after a visit to a somewhat dubious doctor. At the Factory, she finds a kinship of sorts with a

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We can fix climate change. That is the point of this accessible and easy to read guide to climate change. Beloved Australian scientist and media personality Dr Karl steers clear of alarmist headlines as he explains the science behind climate change and what we can do about it.  This was an interesting read. One of the best things about it is that it remains wholly accessible, while explaining the facts behind climate change and most importantly--what can be done about it. Dr Karl steers clear of politics and keeps things factual. He also explains it in a way that readers like me--I was never a star in my high school science classes--can understand and relate to. I also very appreciated the sense of hope and the explanations of what can be done, rather than it all being doom and gloom, as climate change is a topic that can so often be very depressing. At just over 150 pages this one is short, accessible and a very necessary read. Highly recommended.

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I'll tell you a secret. I love the Mr Men and Little Miss series of books. Well, not that I read them all the time or anything like that, but I do have some great memories of reading them when I was a kid, and if I was to see one on the coffee table I'd probably pick it up, smile and get a great nostalgia hit. Over the years, the brand has done a few things to give grown up fans that exact hit from merchandise that plays on the character's names/personalities (think a mug with Little Miss Sunshine or a t-shirt with Mr Messy,) and mash ups, like the Doctor Men series, which reimagined the first thirteen Doctors from Doctor Who as Mr Men/Little Miss characters, with the title of Doctor, of course. Anyway, on a recent trip to my local library, I was thrilled to discover that the creators have come up with a series of savage and slightly satirical novels for grown ups. As Little Miss Shy is one of my favourite characters, I couldn't resist borrowing a copy of Little Mis

Until recently I had no idea that Australian comedy duo Lano & Woodley had written a novel. It turns out that Housemeeting was originally published by Penguin Books Australia in 1996, a year or so before the first series of the brilliant The Adventures of Lano & Woodley television programme aired on the ABC. (A second series aired in 1999. You can find some clips on YouTube and Facebook, like this one here .) Anyway, Housemeeting runs on a similar premise to the television series, with Colin and Frank sharing a flat in inner-suburban Melbourne. Except that there is one problem. The arrogant and egotistical Colin wants the innocent and lovably stupid Frank out of "his" house. And Frank does not, under any circumstances want to leave ... This was a fun and entertaining read. It's not too heavy, with the bulk of the novel written in a format similar to a play or a tv script, with a few prose bits in between and some amusing illustrations by Frank Woodley. The chara

Islands is a story of a family that is fragmented and in distress. Weaving between time and eras and characters it tells the story of how fifteen year old Anna disappears one night, never to be seen again, the mystery of her disappearance never to be resolved. How did it happen? Why? These are the questions that each character asks as they blame themselves and each other for the loss of Anna. After all, things have never been quite right for the family. According to John's mother, he and Helen were never a perfect match. John could never properly get over the fact that Helen cheated on him and left. Their daughter, June, considers Helen to be selfish, holding her mother totally responsible for her parent's divorce and for Anna's disappearance. And Helen ... well, Helen just wants to be loved.  This is a novel that I found to be sad, well written and testimony to the fact that there is always more than one side to a story or situation. Readers focused looking for answers ab

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There is no denying it. Triple J's Hottest 100 is an Australian institution. We all know it, many of us love it and generations of Australian's associate it not just with music but a kind of kinship and community. For me, personally, which songs make up Triple J's Hottest 100 each year has more importance than the highest selling singles of that year. Shoulda Been Higher details the history of the Hottest 100 and is a definitive account of sorts of what is, essentially, the most important music countdown in Australia. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one from cover to cover. Tom W Clarke gives a definitive history, adds a little bit of humour (even the title--a phrase that will be instantly recognisable with its association to the Hottest 100,) made me smile. Clarke gives a few of his own opinions and while I didn't necessarily agree with everything I did find it entertaining. It's also great just to see the countdown getting the recognition it deserves as a part

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The second graphic novel in the reimagined Sweet Valley Twins series takes its focus from goody-goody twin Elizabeth to the devilish and fundamentally flawed Jessica. This time around, we see a vulnerable side to the younger Wakefield twin. After all, it's not so easy having such a perfect sister. Especially when this is the one occasion when Jessica deserves the spotlight. The twins are taking ballet lessons. Jessica loves ballet and works harder than anyone else in the class. Coupled with a natural flair for ballet, she should be living the dream, right? Nope. It is her sister Elizabeth who gets all of the praise and recognition from their teacher, who barely even notices Jessica no matter how hard she works. The premise is interesting enough, though like all Sweet Valley tales this one is flawed--it particular the retconned ending. (In the original, the teacher paid Jessica little attention because she mistakenly believed that she was not serious about ballet. This one pans out