The Spotlight has fallen on our team in Townsville this week
and they have some terrific reading suggestions!
The Pause by John Larkin: The Pause is an emotional, heartfelt and compelling story dealing with the sensitive issue of teenage suicide. It is about a 17 year old boy struggling with depression and anxiety, to the point where he can’t deal with it anymore and he makes the decision to end it all, or does he! You are taken on a journey of what would happen for each choice. The author has written this in such a way, that it makes you understand that life isn’t always that good and that you have to experience the bad to appreciate the good. – Jacqui (Store Manager)
Oryx & Crake by Margaret Atwood: Oryx & Crake is a post-apocalyptic dystopian not for the faint hearted. Margaret Atwood imagines a future where multinational companies and big pharmacy reign supreme. The reader follows “Snowman”, a man who is grappling with possibly being the last human being left alive after “the flood”. Wild, confronting and thought provoking, this is a must read for any post apocalypse fans. – Sara (2IC)
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness: What are you doing at 7 minutes past midnight? Up watching “Game of Thrones” still? 13 year old Conor isn’t, he is trying to escape the grasp of his local monster, the year tree, after a horrific nightmare. Conor’s mother has been diagnosed with terminal cancer and is regressing quickly. The monster seems to be spiralling out of control, but all he wants is to unravel the web of lies and hear the truth. The best young adult book, addressing a real life issue you will ever read. – Josh
NOS4R2 by Joe Hill: NOS46R2 is a unique novel, in which a self justified serial killer, Charlie Manx, uses an ancient Silver Rolls Royce Wraith, to keep himself young, by syphoning the life from young children. The unlikely heroine of the story is Vic McQueen. Vic has the uncanny ability to find lost items. Vic’s son goes missing and Manx his him. A brace your hands on the dashboard read, that has wonderful new concepts which enliven the vampire/horror genre. – Penny
The Duff by Kody Keplinger: The Duff was an engaging although predictable read. A 17 year old high school girl, Bianca Piper, has an insulting awaking when she learns that she is secretly known by her prettier and more popular friends, as the DUFF(Designated Ugly Fat Friend). Determined to change herself, Bianca enlists the aid of Wesley Rush, the most attractive and charming jock at Hamilton High. In order for Bianca to save her senior year from becoming an unbearable disaster, she must find the confidence to conquer an irresponsible, judgemental student who goes by the name of Madison, and remodel the school’s social order. The DUFF is a humourous read and is a very relatable high school issue. – Kirsty
Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion: Warm Bodies is an unexpectedly tender lover story between the presumed evil and innocent. Branching out from the down to earth zombie stereotypes, this plot is told through the eyes of ‘R’, a zombie who has personality, dreams and feelings for a human girl named Julie. Despite his decaying body and hunger for human brains, ‘R’ is determined to protect her and together they strive to save humanity. Isaac Marion has cleverly flipped perspective in a fun and realistic way that allows insight and sympathy towards a previously monstrous character. A beautiful and heart warming story that will keep you hooked until the last bite. – Melissa
