My first update of the year was looking a tad woeful for a while but then I found a few Aussie YA on audio which bumped my numbers a little at the last minute. In the end I did three audio, one ebook, and one physical so that was exciting. The books I read were pretty awesome, all unique, and had that wonderful Australian feel to them.
I’d forgotten how convenient it can be to have an ebook too. It’s really no less convenient to have an audio except you don’t need to worry about headphones or being able to hear the narrator if you’re in a loud area. Granted the reading ones took a long time, but it really helped me savour the story, and I looked forward to coming back to the story when I had a chance to keep reading.
One fun thing about this challenge is it’s making me try any Aussie YA that I come across because it fits my criteria. Which may not be the best approach, and the book still has to sound ok, but I am taking chances on stuff because is a #LoveOzYA title or the author is Australian. I definitely found some beautiful reads this way so far.
The list so far:
All I Ever Wanted by Vikki Wakefield
Wrong Answers Only by Tobias Madden
100 Remarkable Feats of Xander Maze by Clayton Zane Comber
Because of You by Pip Henry was a gorgeous story of a young girl experiencing homelessness and the school girl who volunteers at a shelter she visits.
Tin Heart is an emotional story about a transplant recipient who wants to show her thanks but risks crossing a dangerous barrier of the no contact rule from her donor family.
All I Ever Wanted follows Mim who is living in the suburbs with a criminal family and a need to escape.
Wrong Answers Only was one I’d looked forward to for months and I’m glad it paid off. A story of taking chances and being brave, about expectations and the battles against your body, your mind, and letting go.
100 Remarkable Feats of Xander Maze had a great voice and was another story about being brave, taking chances, and discovering how small decisions can change your whole life.
Like all books not every one of these were perfect, amazing, or to my exact taste, but I am still glad I read them. I got to see these stories of characters in different situations and experiences. This is what I love about Australian YA, we have these big bold stories, often in very short compact books that are about the teenage experience but aren’t confined to the playground or classroom dynamics.
I already have a few titles in my TBR list and I certainly have a massive stack of physical books piled up at home so I look forward to seeing what the next update brings.
I hope your own Aussie YA Challenge goals are going well and you have discovered some amazing reads yourself. Feel free to shout out in the comments some you have read so far, or even those you are looking forward to reading. If you’re interested in signing up it’s not to late, head over to my info page and declare your goal on social media, your website, or in the comments of this years post.
Hopeless romantic Isla has had a crush on introspective cartoonist Josh since their first year at the School of America in Paris. And after a chance encounter in Manhattan over the summer, romance might be closer than Isla imagined. But as they begin their senior year back in France, Isla and Josh are forced to confront the challenges every young couple must face, including family drama, uncertainty about their college futures, and the very real possibility of being apart. 
Lola Nolan is a budding costume designer, and for her, the more outrageous, sparkly, and fun the outfit, the better. And everything is pretty perfect in her life (right down to her hot rocker boyfriend) until the Bell twins, Calliope and Cricket, return to the neighborhood. When Cricket, a gifted inventor, steps out from his twin sister’s shadow and back into Lola’s life, she must finally reconcile a lifetime of feelings for the boy next door.
Princess Winter is admired for her grace, kindness and beauty, despite the scars on her face. She’s said to be even more breath-taking than her stepmother, Queen Levana…
Selby hates homework.
