Dorothy Parker famously (but probably not really) said, “I hate to write, but I love having written,” which is a sentiment I don’t largely understand or agree with in the broader …

Published: 26th December 2023 Publisher: Penguin Illustrator: J. E. Morris Pages: 32 Format: Picture Book ★   ★   ★  – 3.5 Stars Flubby, the cute but aloof cat, is not a fan of Valentine's Day! Kami wants to give Flubby a gift for Valentine's Day. But cats can't read cards, and flowers make Flubby sneeze! Can Kami find the perfect present for her pal? Once we get Flubby into the holidays the stories falter a little, but the sentiment is still there, as is Flubby’s Flubbyness. I love that Flubby doesn’t need any gifts, and like we see with the toys in previous books, Flubby is a cat of simple means.

I had to double check which anniversary I was up to because it feels high but thankfully I’m not quite that advanced just yet. But all the same, it has been a while. This is my 13th year and as I r…

Published: 24 September 2024 (print)/24 September 2024 (audio) Publisher: Puffin/Penguin Audio Pages: 332/8 hrs and 37 mins Narrator: Jesse Bernstein Format: Audiobook Genre: Young Adult ★   ★   ★   ★ – 4 Stars Percy Jackson, now a high school senior, needs three recommendation letters from the Greek gods in order to get into New Rome University. He earned his first one by retrieving Ganymede’s chalice. Now the goddess Hecate has offered Percy another “opportunity”—all he has to do is pet sit her mastiff, Hecuba, and her polecat, Gale, over Halloween week while she is away.

For the first time in forever I will be opening up my review submissions. I am tightening the guidelines and limiting the opening window but I miss getting great books to read, especially when I get to see those authors who reached out to me at the start go on to have a successful career. I will be opening my review submissions in February for a short period. I will not be accepting every one I get so be forewarned. But that’s why I am limiting the window because the inundation I got years ago isn’t sustainable to meet now with life, the universe, and everything taking up my time.

I had to double check which anniversary I was up to because it feels high but thankfully I’m not quite that advanced just yet. But all the same, it has been a while. This is my 13th year and as I r…

I had to double check which anniversary I was up to because it feels high but thankfully I’m not quite that advanced just yet. But all the same, it has been a while. This is my 13th year and as I reflect once again it’s amazing to think back on all those changes and experiences. Some cemented in my mind and could be a few years ago and not a decade past, others a blur of nothing from the last couple years. Weirdly, 13 feels like a nothing number. It’s not a nice round number like ten, or twelve where you get a decade or a dozen.

I am being very brave and mixing up my Book Bingo this year. I said last time I was going to go with interesting covers for one box but after seeing a fun prompt on someone else’s review I am going to try and do only covers. It will mean I might have to actually hunt some books down and not fall into the same lucky habits. I thought about doing a separate one in addition to my usual but where’s the fun in that? Challenge is a challenge and I am going to be brave.

Published: 23rd April 2019 Publisher: Penguin Illustrator: J. E. Morris Pages: 32 Format: Picture Book ★   ★   ★   ★  – 4.5 Stars Meet Flubby--the lovably lazy feline who prefers a purr-fectly laid-back lifestyle! Flubby is a big, sleepy cat who refuses to do the things that other pets do. He won't sing, catch, or even jump! But when a scary situation brings Flubby and his owner together, they realise they really do need each other--and that makes Flubby a good pet after all. After discovering Flubby will NOT Go to Sleep…

The #AussieYAChallenge is a challenge created by Amy at Lost in a Good Book as an attempt to read more Australian young adult novels. Doing a switcheroo for this month’s Long Lost Reviews because it seems my announcement for the 2026 #AussieYAChallenge has gotten out ahead of me so I’ll post my #LLR next week. Entering its third year my #AussieYAChallenge is something I have grown to love more and more. I love finding new Australian young adult books and finally making the effort to read books I have had lovingly on my shelf for honestly, like 10+ years at this point and should probably have read long ago.

Either my criteria for stars are getting harder, or I’m not coming across the fantastic books like I used to. I only had eleven five-star books in 2025: seven were a series reread, two were the last two books of another series, and the other two were a kids book and a YA. How is someone supposed to work with stats like that? I didn't even get five picture books! In light of that, I am taking a leaf out of my own book and picking books that had a lasting impact, five stars or not, or something that was near close to perfect but didn’t quite hit the mark.

I am undertaking a small but big endeavour this year and while I am older and wiser in terms of time and commitment, I am also coming into this year with oh so many years of blogging behind me that I am not ignoring the lessons of the past. I have dug, sculpted, and set fire to my little corner of the internet and I am content where I have ended up. Because of that, I am going to keep as much harmony as I can in what I plan to do.

Over the course of the two years I have done challenge I have read 24 Aussie YA books. Which is a pretty good bump considering my #LoveOzYA reading had dropped off in recent years. I am still blaming the minimal amount of Aussie YA in audio, but I also have two bookcases choccas with Aussie titles I could pick up at any time so it’s not entirely the fault of the publishing industry. I was worried I had maybe fallen by the wayside after my September update, but given the new titles on my final list I am pretty pleased with how I’ve ended up.

What I’ve enjoyed with my Book Bingo cards of late is reading whatever books through the year and come December seeing what I can put into my card, then trying to find something to read to fill in the final few boxes if there are any left. I think this time a few choices could be a bit stronger, and of course, one year this will backfire miserably, but for now we’re safe. With 150+ books at my disposal to choose from I only managed to not fill in two. But the year is not finished yet, I could maybe do it, but I think we’ll call it and aim better next year.

Published: 26 September 2023 (print)/26 September 2023 (audio) Publisher: Puffin/Penguin Audio Pages: 288/7 hrs and 5 mins Narrator: Jesse Bernstein Format: Audiobook Genre: Young Adult Fantasy ★   ★   ★   ★ – 4.5 Stars Percy Jackson, modern-day son of Poseidon, is just trying to get through high school. After saving the world multiple times by battling monsters, Titans, and giants, Percy is now settling in at Alternative High School in New York, where he hopes to finally have a normal senior year.