authors

Freaky Futures Giveaway

/ zackids / 1 Comment

I love YA science fiction!  You’ll probably be able to tell that by reading my reviews.  Some of my favourite stories are set far in the future, on other planets or deep in space. One of my favourite science fiction series is The Maze Runner Trilogy by James Dashner (which I think is even better than Hunger Games).

Thanks to Scholastic New Zealand I have 2 YA science fiction book packs to give away, including a copy of The Maze Runner and The Scorch Trials by James Dashner and Six Days by Philip Webb.

All you have to do to get in the draw is enter your details in the form below.  Competition closes Wednesday 30 May (New Zealand only).

← Back

Thank you for your response. ✨

Picture Book Nook: The Hueys in The New Jumper by Oliver Jeffers

/ zackids / Leave a comment

Oliver Jeffers is one of those illustrators whose work is instantly recognisable.  He has a really unique style that’s quite sparse but very effective.  I fell in love with Oliver’s illustrations when I first picked up The Book Eating Boy, which is one of my favourites along with The Great Paper Chase.  Oliver’s latest book is The Hueys in The New Jumper, the first in a new series which is sure to be a hit.

The thing about the Hueys was that they were all the same.  They looked the same, thought the same, and did the same things, until the day that Rupert knitted a new jumper.  At first, everyone thinks Rupert is silly and he stands out like a sore thumb.  Then some of the other Hueys start knitting their own jumpers, and they all start to look the same again.  How will Rupert stand out?

The Hueys in The New Jumper is a quirky picture book about how cool it is to be different.  Rupert shows children that it’s OK to be different (and you might even start a new trend at the same time).  The book itself is quite different from a lot of other picture books, because there is very little detail or colour in the illustrations.  I love that Oliver can make such simple characters show so much emotion (he shows happiness, shock, anger and embarrassment with a few quick strokes of his pencil).  The Hueys are characters that children and adults will love and I look forward to seeing what they get up to next.

Oliver has been in NZ recently for the Auckland Writers and Readers Festival and an event in Wellington.  I’m really looking forward to hearing Oliver talk at the Children’s Book Council of Australia Conference in Adelaide this week, and I’ll be queuing up with everyone else to get my books signed.

Mulit Storied – 2012 Children’s Book Council of Australia Conference

/ zackids / 1 Comment

On Wednesday I’m off to the 2012 Children’s Book Council of Australia Conference in Adelaide.  I’ve been to the last two conferences in Sydney and Melbourne and they’re incredibly interesting and so much fun.

This year the conference starts on Thursday 17th May with the welcome reception, including an introduction by Australian Children’s Laureate Alison Lester, a book launch, and an opportunity to view an exhibition of South Australian illustrators.  The main part of the conference starts on Friday morning and concludes on Saturday afternoon.

There are some really interesting authors and illustrators speaking, including international guests Oliver Jeffers and Eoin Colfer, as well as some great Australian authors such as Michael Gerard Bauer, Mem Fox and Isobelle Carmody.  I’ve got my copies of their books packed in my suitcase to get signed and I’ll hopefully get a couple signed to give away here on the blog.  I’m really looking forward to interviewing Michael Gerard Bauer, an author whose books I love.

My suitcase and backpack are sure to be loaded with books on the way home.

Books with bite from Scholastic NZ

/ zackids / Leave a comment

Scholastic NZ has just released two great books for younger readers with some real bite – Fishing Fame by Melanie Drewery and Dinosaur Rescue: Spino-rottysaurus by Kyle Mewburn.

Fishing Fame by Melanie Drewery, illustrated by John Bennett

Mark and Dan are desperate to get their names onto the fishing fame board.  But when they start breaking the rules they catch much more than they bargained for.

Fishing Fame is a short, illustrated chapter book perfect for boys.  Kids will love the crazy antics that Mark and Dan get up to and will want to keep reading to find out how they get out of their awkward situation.  John Bennett’s illustrations break up the text into small chunks for easy reading, and the cover will appeal to boys.

 

Dinosaur Rescue: Spino-rottysaurus by Kyle Mewburn and Donovan Bixley

How do you stop a rampaging sinosaurus from eating the last dracorex?  Arg has to get help fast or he’ll be extinct too!  A spino-rotty-trocious Stone Age adventure that’ll make your teeth tremble.

Kyle Mewburn and Donovan Bixley are back with their 5th Dinosaur Rescue book.  This series just keeps getting better and better (not to mention more disgusting!).  In this book you can learn why prehistoric insects didn’t make good pets, how to train your giant dragonfly, how to hunt with Arg’s dad, and some interesting facts about dinosaurs.  Get this book for your children and they’ll be rolling around on the floor laughing (or possibly looking very green).  They’re perfect for fans of Captain Underpants. 

Scholastic NZ are publishing some really good books for early readers (7-9 years), like those mentioned above.  Check out Diary of a Pukeko by Sally Sutton and Do Not Push by Kyle Mewburn.  These books are the short, with lots of adventure and laughs, so they’re perfect for this age group.

The Phoenix Files: Fallout by Chris Morphew

/ zackids / 3 Comments

Chris Morphew’s Phoenix Files is one of my favourite series.  I got in to them last year before Chris came to New Zealand for the Storylines Family Day in Christchurch last year, and I was hooked from the first page of Arrival.  They’ve got the perfect mix of action, suspense, mystery and science fiction that make them hard to put down.  Fallout is the fifth book (in the six book series) and has just been released in Australia and New Zealand.  Chris doesn’t waste any time getting straight back into the action and rocketing you along to the end of the world.

The Shackleton Building has been turned into a concentration camp, and the last free people in Phoenix have been forced into hiding. Unless Jordan and the others can figure out where the Co-operative is keeping Tobias, everything they’ve fought for will be for nothing.

As Peter spins further out of control, can Jordan find a way to save Luke’s life, or is history doomed to repeat itself?

With only weeks left until Tabitha is released, Phoenix’s biggest secrets are still yet to be revealed.

And the clock is still ticking.

There are 14 days until the end of the world.

To tell you much about the story would only spoil it for everyone, but I will say this – Fallout is the best book in the series so far.  It’s action-packed, explosive and there are shocks galore.  Chris answers a lot of those burning questions you’ve had about Phoenix right from the start and leaves you on the edge of your seat at the very end.  We haven’t seen much of Shackleton in the last couple of books but he comes back in all his sadistic glory in Fallout.  He’s the best villain since Mayor Prentice in Patrick Ness’ Chaos Walking Trilogy.  He’s one of those guys you just want to punch in the face because he makes you so angry.  I’ve read the last 3 books one after another and I wish I could just keep reading and find out how it all ends, but I’ll have to wait until 2013 for Doomsday.

5 out of 5 stars

Interview with Phoenix Files author Chris Morphew

/ zackids / Leave a comment

Chris Morphew is the author of the action-packed Phoenix Files series, about a group of teenagers who have 100 days to stop the world from ending, and he’s also one of the authors who write the Zac Power series (under the name H I Larry)  .  I got the chance to ask Chris a few questions when he came to Christchurch last year.

What is it like to be one of the authors of the Zac Power series?

It’s pretty cool! Whenever I visit a school and ask how many kids have read a Zac Power book, I’m always amazed at how many hands go up!

What’s your favourite Zac Power gadget?

I think Zac’s Turbo Boots in Volcanic Panic are pretty awesome. Jetpack shoes powerful enough to blast someone out of a volcano? That sounds pretty good to me!

Zac Power books written by Chris Morphew

What inspired you to write your action-packed Phoenix Files series?

This might sound a bit morbid, but one of the biggest things I want to do with The Phoenix Files is tell a story about hardship and suffering. I want to be really honest about the darkness and brokenness of the world. But I don’t want to stop there. I want to suggest that the darkness and the brokenness isn’t all there is, and that maybe there’s a bigger story being told that makes the bad parts worthwhile in the end.

In The Phoenix Files Luke, Peter and Jordan learn that there is only 100 days until the end of the world. What would you do if you knew you only had 100 days left to live?

I would pray a lot. And then maybe see if I could find a super-powered homeless man to tell me what was really going on.

What was the book you loved most as a child?

That’s a tough one! There are so many!
Fiction: The Narnia series, Animorphs, Where the Wild Things Are…
Non-fiction: The Bible and books about dinosaurs.

Who is your favourite author/children’s author?

It’s a toss-up between C.S. Lewis and J.K. Rowling.

Why did you want to be a writer?

Because I love telling stories! I think fictional stories have incredible power to help us understand the real world in new ways.

What’s the best thing and worst thing about being a writer?

The best thing is having the opportunity to explore interesting ideas. The worst thing is usually my next deadline. I write pretty slowly, and sometimes it’s hard to keep up!

What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

Write about things that matter. If you care about your story, then other people are far more likely to care about it too.

The fifth book in The Phoenix Files, Fallout, is out now.  If you haven’t read this amazing series, grab a copy of the first book, Arrival.

Make way for The 13th Horseman

/ zackids / Leave a comment

One of my favourite authors, Barry Hutchison, has a new book coming out in NZ later this month (Friday 18th May to be precise) called The 13th Horseman and it’s absolutely hilarious.  Here’s the blurb:

Drake is surprised to find three horsemen of the apocalypse playing snakes and ladders in his garden shed. He’s even more surprised when they insist that he is one of them. They’re missing a Horseman, having gone through several Deaths and they think that Drake is the boy for the job. At first he’s reluctant to usher in Armageddon but does being in charge of Armageddon have to spell the end of the world?

I’m really excited about this book so I’m holding a special NZ launch for The 13th Horseman at the Shirley Library in Christchurch on Friday 25 May, at 4pm.  Barry will be joining us (virtually from the UK) to talk about his book.  We’ll have giveaways as well as drinks and snacks fit for a Horseman of the Apocalypse.  For those of you who can’t be there I’ll also be doing a virtual launch here on My Best Friends Are Books, with a chance to win a copy of The 13th Horseman.

While you’re waiting for the book to arrive in NZ you should check out the short story that Barry wrote, featuring the Horsemen of the Apocalypse, called The Missing Remote of the Apocalypse.  You can read it for FREE on Barry’s website.  I highly recommend it (I had tears running down my face from laughing so hard while reading it)!

Interview with Cat Patrick, author of Forgotten and Revived

/ zackids / Leave a comment

Cat Patrick is the author of two of my favourite books, Forgotten and Revived (which you can win here on my blog).  Cat’s stories are really original and I always wonder where she gets her ideas.  I asked her if she could answer some of my burning questions about her books and her writing so here are her wonderful answers.

  • Forgotten and Revived are two of the most original young adult books I’ve read.  What inspired you to write these stories?

I really believe that inspiration is everywhere. In the case of Forgotten, it was in my kitchen when I was a new, sleep-deprived mom, and I forgot what I was doing in the middle of an activity. I never remembered, but my brain wandered and landed on the book idea.

With Revived, inspiration came in the form of a news story about a drug that could potentially jolt stroke patients back to normal, read at a time when a family friend’s death from cancer was also on my mind.

  • In Forgotten, London can see what will happen in the future, but she can’t remember her past.  How did you keep track of London’s story while writing?

I kept memory timeline, and every time I’d sit down to write, I’d also read back a few chapters to make sure I was *forgetting* the right information.

 

  • If you had to live the life of one of your characters who would you choose, London or Daisy?

I think I’d choose Daisy’s life. So much of us is our past—bad or good, it helps shape us. It would be incredibly difficult not to feel lost in London’s life.

  • One of the things I like the most about your stories is that the male characters are normal and relatable.  Are Luke and Matt based on guys you know?

Luke and Matt are guys I wish I’d known in high school. Sometimes when I read back, I get glimmers of recognition, but ultimately they’re fictional.

  • Relationships play an important role in your books.  Matt in particular is quite caring and loyal in his relationship with his sister and with Daisy.  Do you know before you start writing how these relationships will evolve or does this happen as you write?

It happens as I write. I’m not an outliner. I don’t start books in any sort of organized fashion. Basically, I get the idea, obsess about the main characters’ names, then start typing. The characters take me where they want to go. In the case of Matt, I’m happy that he turned out to be such a good guy.

  • Each time Daisy is revived she has to move to a different city.  If you could relocate to any city in the world what would it be?

Oh goodness, that’s a long list. If I have to pick one, I’d say London. I spent two days there once. I fell in love and desperately want to go back.

  • I love your Australian book covers for both Forgotten and Revived because they stand out and look really appealing.  Which editions have your favourite covers and why?

My Australian publisher, Hardie Grant Egmont, has indeed done an amazing job with my covers. Not only are they lovely on their own, but they work well together. For Forgotten, I really love the covers from Australia, UK, Sweden and France. For Revived, the US, UK and Australia covers are amazing.

   

  • What movies/books/music inspire your writing?

I tend to listen to alternative rock—it lets my mind wander to the right place to get inspired. I’ve gotten a lot of ideas while either walking or driving while listening to music. Some of my favorite bands are Arcade Fire, Airborne Toxic Event, Radiohead, Muse, Florence & The Machine, Coldplay and Snow Patrol. And like seemingly everyone in the world, I’ve got Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used to Know” on infinite loop in my brain right now.

As for books, honestly every great read inspires me to be a better writer.

  • Your third book, The Originals is due out in 2013.  Are you able to tell me a little about the story?

Sure! The Originals is about three identical clones living as one person in order to hide from their past. They split each day, with one going to school in the morning, one attending class and cheer practice in the afternoon and one handling night classes, an afterschool job and other evening commitments. Like Forgotten and Revived, the story offers a mixture of romance and mystery, but it is also an exploration of what it means to be an individual as part of a very unique family dynamic.

Thank you again for the opportunity!

You can follow Cat on her website (http://www.catpatrick.com/), on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/cat.patrick.7) and on Twitter (@seecatwrite).

My Most Anticipated May New Releases

/ zackids / 1 Comment

Insurgent by Veronica Roth

Tris has survived a brutal attack on her former home and family. But she has paid a terrible price. Wracked by grief and guilt, she becomes ever more reckless as she struggles to accept her new future.
Yet if Tris wants to uncover the truth about her world, she must be stronger than ever … because more shocking choices and sacrifices lie ahead.

 

Starters by Lissa Price

16-year-old Callie lost her parents when the ‘genocide spore’ wiped out everyone except those who were vaccinated first – the very young and very old. She and her little brother must go on the run, living as squatters, fighting off unclaimed renegades who would kill for a cookie. Hope comes in the form of the Body Bank run by a mysterious figure, known only as The Old Man. The Body Bank allows teenagers to rent out their bodies to ‘Enders’ – the elderly members of society – who want to be young again. But Callie discovers that her renter intends to do more than party in her body. She intends to commit murder…

 

The Phoenix Files: Fallout by Chris Morphew

The Shackleton Building has been turned into a concentration camp, and the last free people in Phoenix have been forced into hiding. Unless Jordan and the others can figure out where the Co-operative is keeping Tobias, everything they’ve fought for will be for nothing.

As Peter spins further out of control, can Jordan find a way to save Luke’s life, or is history doomed to repeat itself?

With only weeks left until Tabitha is released, Phoenix’s biggest secrets are still yet to be revealed.

And the clock is still ticking.

There are 35 days until the end of the world.

 

Dragonkeeper Book 4: Blood Brothers

The year is 325. The powerful Han Dynasty is a distant memory and tribes of barbarian soldiers fight over what was once the Empire. It is a dangerous time. Kai is 465 years old – a teenager in dragon years. He is searching for the person predestined to be his dragonkeeper. Kai’s search has led him to a Buddhist novice named Tao. But Tao is certain he is not the one; he has no interest in caring for a difficult dragon. He believes his path lies in another direction. But Tao must learn to listen to the voice within himself and that no journey ever reveals its true purpose until it is over.

 

10 Futures by Michael Pryor

Sam and Tara. Best friends in a future when artificial intelligence organises our lives, and micropets are the latest craze. Best friends when rationing means cold showers and no internet. Best friends when genetic matching makes asking a girl on a date a minefield of epic proportions.

But will they still be best friends in a future when plague wipes out most of humanity? Or a future when the Inquisitor asks Sam to choose one betrayal over another?

Michael Pryor, one of Australia’s best authors of speculative fiction, imagines what our next 100 years might be like. Utopia or dystopia? Miracle or catastrophe? Whatever might happen, it’s just around the corner. Which future will be yours?

Revived by Cat Patrick

/ zackids / 1 Comment

One of the things that excites me the most as a reader is finding new authors, especially ones that blow you away with their originality.  Cat Patrick is an exciting new author I discovered last year when I read her debut YA book, Forgotten (read my review here).  Forgotten is one of those books that sticks in your mind long after you’ve read it because it’s totally original and stands out.  Cat’s latest book, Revived, is just as amazing as Forgotten and hooked me in from the blurb.

Daisy has died five times.

She’s a test subject for a government super-drug called Revive, which brings people back from the dead.

Each time she is revived, Daisy has to move cities and change her identity to avoid suspicion.  Daisy has always got a thrill out of cheating death, but her latest move has come with unexpected complications: a new best friend, and a very cute crush.

As Daisy’s attachment to her new home grows, she discovers secrets that could tear her world apart.  And the more she learns, the more she feels like a pawn in a sinister game.

When the stakes are life and death, someone’s going to get hurt.

I had high hopes for Revived after loving Forgotten and it totally lived up to them, and more.  It’s difficult to try and put Cat’s books into a category or genre because they’re mostly a real-life story, but with a touch of science fiction thrown in.  Daisy first died in a bus crash when she was four, after which she got taken into the Revived program and now lives with two agents who pretend to be her parents.  Her and the other ‘bus kids’ have to undergo regular testing to make sure they are healthy and to ensure the drug is doing its job.

I thought that the background and structure of the organisation behind Revive that Cat created was really clever.  At the top there’s God who makes all the decisions and is in charge, then there are the agents who work for God called Disciples, and at the bottom are the Converts, those ‘bus kids’ who are part of the program and are given Revive to bring them back to life.  God thinks that he can do whatever he want and that nobody will stop him, which raises some interesting ethical questions in the story.

Another thing that I really liked in Revived, and also in Forgotten, is that Cat creates relatable male characters that aren’t douche-bags.  You won’t find any love triangles with moody, mysterious guys in Cat’s books.  The love interest in Revived is Matt, a normal, average guy who is friendly and loyal.  The relationship between Daisy and Matt progresses naturally throughout the story and they have their share of ups and downs.  There isn’t smoldering passion because there isn’t the need for it in the story and it would seem wrong between Cat’s characters.  Any teenagers who want to know what love feels like should read Cat’s books.

There’s something in Revived for everyone – mystery, suspense, romance and a touch of science fiction.  Get your hands on Revived and discover the amazing writing of Cat Patrick.

5 out of 5 stars