Kathryn's Inbox

Kristy, Claudia, Stacey, Mary Anne, Dawn, Mallory, Jessi. If these names mean anything to you, then at some point during your childhood you probably read at least one (if not several or all,) Babysitters Club books. If you're really sharp, you will have also just noticed that I listed the characters in the order in which their first book of the series was released. If you're a true fan, you'll probably notice that I left Abby off the list. And you probably don't care. All of the characters had their set personalities. Kristy was the tomboy, Claudia was the artsy underachiever, Stacey was the cool New Yorker, Mary Anne was the shy one, Mallory was the awkward kid who dreamed of better things, and Jessi was a dancer with a big heart. And then there was Dawn. Of the seven core characters (sorry Abby,) Dawn was probably the greatest enigma. Dawn's role in the BSC as the 'alternate officer' because unlike the other four members she didn't hav...

NOWHERESVILLE, AUSTRALIA--Peta Palmer, a self proclaimed keyboard warrior decided to back down from an argument on facebook earlier this week and concede that, "sometimes people have different opinions." "It was a first for me," Peta told our reporter. "Usually when I see a random stranger post an opinion on facebook, I feel the urge to tell them that they are wrong and then post a whole lot of links to prove my point, but today, I decided that it was okay for someone to have a different opinion to me. I mean maybe in her part of the world, potato fritters really are called potato cakes or something ..."

Happy Friday. I'll just leave this here ...

Blue Dog is a charming story of a boy and his dog set in the Pilbara. Eleven year old Mick has been sent to live with his Granpa following the sudden death of his father and his mother's subsequent breakdown. Set sometime in the late 1960s (or possibly the early 1970s) this short children's novel tells the story of how Mick adjusts to life in the outback and how he rescues a puppy, Blue, after a cyclone and the pair form a strong bond. Over the next two years, Mick has enjoys many adventures in the outback with Blue and whilst riding his motorcycle, taming a horse and a crush on his teacher which has surprising consequences when he finally decides to battle his 'rival' for her affections.  This one was an enjoyable tale that I found myself reading in small, one-chapter-a-night doses and found myself feeling quite sad when I finally finished this slim volume--more than a week after I started it.  Blue Dog is a prequel to Red Dog, (which explains the beloved...

In Australia, Bill Oddie is best known as a comedian, actor and songwriter who found fame through the hilarious BBC television series The Goodies  (a series that was repeated many, many times in Australia, but was never repeated on television in the UK until a few years ago.) In the UK, however, Bill Oddie is deservedly well known for his other career was a twitcher, or bird watcher, and has hosted numerous television series about bird watching and nature. Now in his seventies, Bill Oddie's latest work of non-fiction is Unplucked , a collection of essays, magazine articles and blogs that all focus on his work as a twitcher, as well as offering the odd hint of autobiography.  A laid back and interesting read, some of the articles are quite amusing (such as the one about the tiger,) many others explain various tidbits about birdwatching in a way that is both interesting and accessible to readers like myself who don't know all that much about the native birds of Great Bri...

On select Sundays I will be reviewing some of the old Apple Paperback titles from my childhood. These titles were published, or republished by Scholastic during the 1980s & 1990s and were written and set in the United States. In Australia, these books were typically only available from libraries or could be ordered through catalogues that were distributed through primary schools, though some popular series found their way into various bookshops. Most of these titles are now long out of print or have been updated and republished for later generations ... Initially, when I decided to write these reviews, I made the decision to skip The Babysitters Club series, as it has been mentioned on this blog before, and also because there are already many, many reviews and nostalgia posts on each of the books around the web. However, I decided to make an exception for this one. Mallory Hates Boys (and Gym) is surprisingly well, if not well written, then certainly well intentioned for a...

The Forever Girl is a slow and detailed account of unrequited love that begins in early childhood and continues to flourish through adulthood. Clover is a young woman who grew up on Cayman Island. At a young age, she develops a crush on James, a boy from her neighbourhood. Initially the pair are friends, but Clover finds herself devastated when James pulls away and becomes friends with another boy instead. Somehow, Clover's feelings for James continue to develop and grow, and through their early adulthood she follows him right around the globe, always secretly wishing and hoping that something might develop ... It's difficult to know how I felt about this one. Certainly, the ending felt very sudden. A little more insight into James--insight that did not come from Clover's perspective--would have been helpful I think. Still, the sense of place and location within the novel was quite pleasing and allowed me to travel the globe from the comfort of my armchair.  Re...