The Minnow by Diana Sweeney follows a teenage girl named Tom in the aftermath of devastating floods that killed her family. Pregnant and grieving, Tom takes refuge with her friend Jonah, who also lost his parents in the floods. Through lyrical prose, the story explores Tom's struggle to rebuild her life and find her identity as she heals from grief with the support of those around her, including her spirited grandmother and teacher. Magical realism elements are used to depict Tom's dreamlike state of mind as she copes with loss and transitions to adulthood.

1. Leonie Jordan
& Bernadette
Lennon,
Auburn Library
CBCA BOOK OF
THE YEAR 2015:
OLDER READERS

2. THE INCREDIBLE ADVENTURES OF
CINNAMON GIRL,
MELISSA KEIL, HARDIE GRANT EGMONT
Plot
 Inspired by the 2012 Mayan calendar anxiety
Alba loves her life just as it is: living behind the
bakery, drawing comics and watching bad TV with her
friends.
The only problems are Daniel, a childhood friend she
thought long gone who has unexpectedly reappeared.
And Grady, the boy who has been her best friend
forever and has suddenly gone off the rails. Also, the
world might be ending – which is proving to be
awkward. As Doomsday enthusiasts flock to idyllic
Eden Valley, Alba’s life is thrown into chaos.
Style
 Bildungsroman/coming of age novel
 Loveable, quirky, easy-to-read, whimsical, sweet,
delightful, exuberant –a feel good teen romance
 Distinctive adolescent identity created through
vernacular language, intertextuality and pop
culture references
 Skilful evocation of subcultures – comic geek-girl,
rockabilly chic etc

3. Themes
 Growing up/change
 Identity and its construction
 Discovery of self and the world
 Place – city vs country
 Friendship and love
 Grieving
Read Alikes
Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares, David Levithan; Lily Wilkinson; Fiona Wood;
Reluctant Hallelujah, Gabrielle Williams; Nick Hornby
Further Resources
 http://melissakeil.com/
 Teachers Notes available at:
http://www.hardiegrant.com.au/egmont/resources/teachers -resources/other-
fiction
THE INCREDIBLE ADVENTURES OF
CINNAMON GIRL,
MELISSA KEIL, HARDIE GRANT EGMONT

4. Plot
Kat Jones is woken by an Intruder looming over her bed.
She's saved by Edwina – the neighbour Kat believes
betrayed her dying mother.
Her dad issues an ultimatum. Either spend nights next door,
or accept another intruder in her life – Hercules, the world's
ugliest guard dog. But the prowler isn't finished with Kat. To
stop him, she needs the help of Edwina and Al, her new
friend from the dog park . . . and what Kat learns could
mend fences – or break her fragile family apart forever.
Style
 First person narrative voice – limited perspective,
unreliable narrator
 Tense/suspenseful , fast-paced style – a page turner
 Flashbacks/non-chronological structure
 Engaging to a teen audience
 Vernacular/colloquial language used to create humour
and character eg.“walk on floordrobe”
 Motifs and symbolism eg. intrusion
 Fairytale allusions
INTRUDER,
CHRISTINE BONGERS, RANDOM HOUSE

5. INTRUDER,
CHRISTINE BONGERS, RANDOM HOUSE
Themes
 Grief/death/cancer
 Courage, strength & resilience – facing fears/overcoming trauma
 Responsibility
 Change and growth/forgiveness,
 Families
 Secrecy and concealment
 Conflict
 Danger and vulnerability vs safety
 Perceptions vs reality
 Lines/boundaries/fences
Read-Alikes
 Sue Lawson; Karen Tayleur; Cath Crowley; Vicky Wakefield, Margo Lanagan; Liar,
Justine Larbalestier; We Were Liars, E. Lockhart; Stolen, Lucy Christopher; Mice,
Gordon Reece
Resources
 Christine Bongers’ website: http://www.christinebongers.com/
 Random House teachers’ resources:
http://www.randomhouse.com.au/content/teachers/intruder.pdf

6. Yolnu – Aboriginal; Napaki - non-Aboriginal
Characters
 Rosie - main character. Non-Aboriginal living with her
mum in Kirrpala
 Nona - her Indigenous sister. Moves away when the
girls are 9.
 Selena and Anya - Rosie's non-Aboriginal friends at
school.
 Nick - Selena brother and Rosie's boyfriend.
 Rosie’s parents.
.
NONA & ME,
CLAIRE ATKINS, BLACK INC. BOOKS

7. Plot and style
 Warm, first person narrative
 Flashbacks
 Thought-provoking
 Includes Aboriginal words but they are introduced slowly
Rosie lives in Yirrkala, an Aboriginal community in the NT. Her family has been
adopted by an Aboriginal family and are accepted into the community. She sees Nona
as her sister and Rosie is immersed in Aboriginal culture. Nona moves away when the
girls are 9. Rosie goes to school in Nhulunbuy, the town, where her friends are non -
Aboriginal. She lives between both cultures - juxtaposition. Nona's return in year 10
creates waves and Rosie is forced to face her friends' racism. In the background is the
2007 intervention
Themes
Friendship
 Rosie & Nona and Rosie & Selena.
Family
 Rosie’s parents are divorced and she lives with her mum. Her dad rings every
Wednesday and she talks to him about everything, rather than her mum. A visit to
her Dad reveals he has been keeping things from her.
NONA & ME,
CLAIRE ATKINS, BLACK INC. BOOKS

8. Racism
 Us and them mentality - Aborigines on handouts, don't look after property, drinkers.
 Rosie's class mates sing another one bites the dust when an Aboriginal teenager
dies.
Aboriginal culture
 Very strong sense of kin. Looking after each other. Flashbacks - trips to the bush,
gathering food. Funeral rituals - more like a period of mourning than a funeral.
Strengths
 Strong characters with personal growth
 Educational: A friend said, you know about Aboriginal culture but this gives you a
sense, better understanding
 Identity/belonging – link to syllabus
How to use it
 Triptych
 Debate on 2007 intervention
NONA & ME,
CLAIRE ATKINS, BLACK INC. BOOKS

9. Characters
 Hannah – coping with the death of her sister, Katie
 Hannah’s parents
 Charlotte – Hannah’s old primary school friend
 Tara and Amy – Charlotte’s new friends who bully
Hannah
 Josh – a new student who takes an interest in Hannah
 Anne – the school counsellor
Plot and style
 First person narrative
 Touching and provokes empathy
 Flashbacks
Hannah’s sister was killed in a car accident and her father
was badly injured. Prior to that, Hannah was being bullied
at school, after that, she became untouchable – just left
alone i.e. the protected. The court case surrounding the
accident is approaching and Hannah is sent to the school
counsellor, especially as she has blocked out the accident
and needs to give evidence. A new student becomes
friends with Hannah and brings her out of her shell.
THE PROTECTED,
CLAIRE ZORN, UQP

10. Themes
Family
 Especially the relationship between Katie and Hannah, Hannah’s mum is withdrawn
and the relationships between her parents is strained.
Friendship
 Charlotte ignored Tara’s and Amy’s first malice against Hannah but she secretly
provided assistance on another two occasions.
Guilt and grieving
 Hannah’s peers after the accident, her father blames himself for the accident,
Hannah feels responsible.
Strengths
 Likeable protagonist
 Real problems
How to use it
 Discussion on bullying
THE PROTECTED,
CLAIRE ZORN, UQP

11. ARE YOU SEEING ME?,
DARREN GROTH, RANDOM HOUSE
Plot
 Inspired by Groth’s own twins, one of whom is on the
Austism Spectrum Disorder.
One year after the death of their father, nineteen -year-
old twins Justine and Perry are seeking to create a final
perfect memory on a road trip in Canada. For Perry, who
is about to move into an assisted care facility, it is a
glorious celebration of his favourite things: mythical sea
monsters, Jackie Chan movies and earthquakes. For
Justine, it's a chance to adjust to the loss of Perry, see
who she is without her boyfriend and offer their mother
the chance to atone for past wrongs.
Style
 Dual narrators create empathy
 Thoughtful, considered narrative style – a more
“mature” voice
 Funny and tender
 Dreams, visions, letters, lists, diary entries and text
messages add stylistic variety
 Highly descriptive, metaphorical language with
extensive use of motifs and symbolism
 Intertextuality develops themes and character eg.
Robinson Crusoe, Jane Austen, Jackie Chan, Moby Dick

12. ARE YOU SEEING ME?,
DARREN GROTH, RANDOM HOUSE
Themes
 Independence/autonomy
 Responsibility & sacrifice
 Love, care and empathy
 Grief/bereavement/cancer
 Journeys & discovery
 Relationships: romantic, sibling, parent
child
 Growth and change
 Fear & Anxiety
 Communication
 Stereotypes
 Disability
Read Alikes
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Mark Haddon; Wonder, R. J. Palaccio; Extremely Loud
and Incredibly Close, Jonathon Safran Foer; Looking for Mondrian, Nadia Wheatley; Films: Accidents
Happen and Look Both Ways
Further Resources
Curriculum aligned teachers’ resources and book club notes available at:
http://www.randomhouse.com.au/content/teachers/areyouseeingme.pdf

13. THE MINNOW,
DIANA SWEENEY, TEXT
Plot (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPTLjTDzgGk)
 In the wake of devastating floods that have taken her
family, Tom, whose real name is Holly, tries to rebuild
her life. Pregnant by a man old enough to be her
father, she takes refuge with a loyal friend, Jonah,
who has also lost his parents. Tom struggles to heal
her grief and find her own voice and place, aided by
those around her: her spirited grandmother, her
teacher, the ghosts of her family, and the minnow,
the tiny creature growing inside her.
Style
 Lyrical, poised, luminous prose, with an earthiness to
it
 Intense, dreamlike, surreal and immersive with
elements of magical realism and gothic undertones
 Precocious, humorous first person narrative voice
creates poignancy
 Mood and style are instrumental in revealing
character – even more so than action and plot
 Distinctly Australian in setting and tone
 Mature, sophisticated text suitable for upper teens
and adults
 Has literary, rather than popular appeal

14. THE MINNOW,
DIANA SWEENEY, TEXT
Themes
 Discovery and understanding
 Life and death/grieving and bereavement
 Change/moving on from the past/starting again/hope
 Family
 Relationships and friendship
 Responsibility, protection and betrayal
 Childhood and adulthood
 Identity
 Language
 Disasters and their social/personal impact
 Country town/communities
Read Alikes:
 Under Milkwood, Dylan Thomas; I Capture the Castle, Dodie Smith; Jasper Jones, Craig
Silvey; This is Shyness, Leanne Hall; Margo Lanagan; Melina Marchetta’s “Finnikin
novels”; Meg Rosoff.
Further Resources
 Curriculum aligned teachers notes available at
https://www.textpublishing.com.au/lists/titles-with-australian-curriculum-teaching-notes