four stars | Lost in a Good Book

Flubby is NOT a Good Pet (#1) by J. E. Morris

09 Jan 2026 Leave a comment

by Amy in 4 Stars, The Picture Book Corner Tags: children's picture book, flubby, four stars, j. e. morris, picture book

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 I have tracked down more Flubby’s and this one doesn’t disappoint (unlike Flubby’s abilities).

What I love about this book is we just rag on Flubby for the entire book but it is still so sweet and I love it. The illustrations are simple but convey so much meaning and we get a lot of Flubby’s personality through them. I love that poor Flubby is being compared to other pets and isn’t gaining any points, but I also love that by the end we accept Flubby despite no discerning skills.

The illustrations are simple but there isn’t a lot to illustrate in terms of story. We see Kami and we see Flubby, that’s all we need for a sweet and funny story.

You can purchase Flubby is NOT a Good Pet via the following

QBD | Dymocks | Booktopia

Blackwell’s | Angus & Robertson

Amazon | Amazon Aust

The Chalice of the Gods (#6) by Rick Riordan

27 Dec 2025 Leave a comment

by Amy in 4 Stars, Audiobook, Young Adult Tags: four stars, jesse bernstein, percy jackson, percy jackson and the olympians, rick riordan

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.

Unfortunately, the gods aren’t quite done with him yet. Poseidon breaks the bad news that if Percy expects to get into New Rome University, he will have to fulfill three quests in order to earn the necessary three letters of recommendation from Mount Olympus.

The first task is to help Ganymede, Zeus’s cupbearer, retrieve his golden goblet before it falls into the wrong hands. You see, one sip from it can turn a mortal into a god, and Zeus would not be pleased with that result. Can Percy and his friends Grover and Annabeth find the precious cup in time? And if they do, will they be able to resist its special power?

The timelines of the Percy Jackson novels is often one I need to consult a chart for because while they can be their own series, there is a chronology to them where you can slot them into one another and have some sense of time.

This new book fits in between the events of Percy Jackson and the Olympians, but before Trials of Apollo. While we know the end result if you’ve read Trials of Apollo, it is still a good read and a nice chance to revisit the original trio and see a different less dire side to this real and mythic world mix.

Being the start of a new series it is connected to at least two other novels, but Riordan has written it well enough that it can also be your very first introduction to the Percy Jackson world. There’s a lot missing, but you don’t need a full series back read before diving into this new one which could be a plus for latecomers.

Percy needs three letters of recommendation from gods to get him into New Rome University so this is the point of this new series. I enjoyed the story and this unique aspect. The balance of the myth and the realities of life playing off one another was fun. The mission the trio are sent on was interesting, it’s always nice to bring in some minor gods while still skirting around with appearances from the main lot.

It’s interesting because while it is a full length novel, it somehow feels like a short story, a little extra addition to join onto the main series and not its own fresh piece. Riordan has stated this is able to be read as a standalone so that might be why, but even so the plot is simple and feels like a fast read, despite the almost 300 pages and seven hours to listen. Not to mention it ends on an unfinished mission so not much to stand alone there. It might be the simplicity of the plot, which doesn’t take away the enjoyment, but it is a different approach to a Percy Jackson book.

Percy, Annabeth, and Grover are great as always, their mini missions bringing back the feeling of the early Lightning Thief days, but being older, wiser, and with more experience behind them. The mission in question is a lot more low stakes than saving the world, but the simplicity of it is often where a lot of the fun and chaos lies. Instead of world ending catastrophe, there’s favours and grudges to work through, not to mention temperamental minor gods you don’t want on your bad side.

It was a joy to revisit this world again, as much as I love and miss the wider group of demigods I’ve come to know and love, it was good to have the original three back again.

You can purchase The Chalice of the Gods via the following

QBD | Dymocks | Booktopia

Wordery | Blackwell’s | Angus & Robertson

Fishpond | Amazon | Amazon Aust | Audible

The Constant Rabbit by Jasper Fforde

18 Dec 2025 1 Comment

by Amy in 4 Stars, Audiobook, Fantasy Tags: andrew wincott, Audiobook, fiction, four stars, jasper fforde, speculative fiction

Published: 2 July 2020 (print)/2 July 2020 (audio)
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton /Hodder & Stoughton
Pages: 307/12 hrs and 27 mins
Narrator: Andrew Wincott
Format: Audiobook
Genre: Fantasy
★ ★ ★ ★ – 4.5 Stars

Peter Knox lives quietly in one of those small country villages that’s up for the Village Garden of the Year award. Until Doc and Constance Rabbit move in next door, upsetting the locals (many of them members of governing political party United Kingdom Against Rabbit Population), complicating Peter’s job as a Rabbit Spotter, and forcing him to take a stand, moving from unconscious leporiphobe to active supporter of the UK’s amiable and peaceful population of anthropomorphised rabbits.

Jasper Fforde has a fantastic way of creating alternate timelines/universes where it feels so real yet there’s always something slightly off. In Thursday Next it was the Crimean war and airships, and technology to bring back extinct creatures, in The Constant Rabbit there is the unexplained event that anthropomorphised rabbits and a few other creatures. But it happened so long ago, and has been so ingrained in society it’s its now normal.

Having an older narrator was great because being old enough to know about the before times, while having life experience behind him with the new world order worked to give a well-rounded story. There are people who know no different, and those who remember before. And the snippets of information about the years before add another element of this creative world Fforde has built.

Peter was a great character, he was perfectly suited because he was very middle of the road and accepting, but at the same time had a few opinions but still needed to be pushed into a cause. Being surrounded by such a variety of other types of people (and rabbits) was a great way to see that a regular person can make a difference without being presented to us from the beginning as The Hero.

I loved the subtle yet not subtle dig at UKIP and the characters based on certain UK politicians with their xenophobic and racists views. It felt real within the universe Fforde has created, yet mimicked their real world idiotic views. Fforde keeps it in world beautifully but still manages to pointedly state despite their loudness, they are wrong and in the minority.

One thing I adore about Fford’e writing is he’s great at giving you glimpses of future events in the story without telling you any spoilers. They are intriguing enough that you know something happens but not when why or how, and often not even if it will happen in the current book or is just there for story context. But this time we know it’s going to happen in story and it’s those little clues at future events actually makes the waiting more enjoyable because with a type story like this, anything is possible and could happen at any time.

One key highlight was the narrator was fantastic! Wincott had an absolute perfect style of reading this book that I adored from the second I started. I loved the tone used to tell the story, I can’t think how to describe it but it was perfect for this type of narrative. I don’t think it’s entirely down to the writing either (heaven knows I’ve heard some rubbish audio from brilliant texts) because while the tone and writing style of the story was fabulous, it matched perfectly with Wincott’s voice.

The mystical concept of anthropomorphised rabbits and the way society has adapted in such a short period of time was fascinating. There is so little else that is different from our world that having them coexist and the societal rules around that in terms of legislation and polite society was fascinating to read. Fforde always comes up with clever concepts but the execution and the well thought out world building and ground work he lays to have it all make sense is astounding.

There is personal drama, animal politics, and the magical realism we love from these kinds of novels. The tiny details are as important as the bigger ideas and as per usual they are interwoven and threaded together, circled back to and have more impact than you think in pure Fforde creativity.

Honestly, I have to say it again, if you can get this as an audio please do, Wincott smashed it out of the park and I enjoyed the brilliant style in which he read it as much as the story itself.

You can purchase The Constant Rabbit via the following

QBD | Dymocks | Booktopia

Wordery | Blackwell’s | Angus & Robertson

Fishpond | Amazon | Amazon Aust | Audible

Perfect on Paper by Sophie Gonzales

10 Dec 2025 Leave a comment

by Amy in 4 Stars, Audiobook, Aussie YA Challenge, Australian Women Writers, LGBTQIA, Young Adult Tags: #AussieYAChallenge, Audiobook, aussie, aussie books, Aussie YA Challenge, australian women writers challenge, barrie kreinik, contemporary young adult, four stars, loveozya, sophie gonzales, young adult

Published: 9 March 2021 (print)/11 March 2021 (audio)
Publisher: Wednesday Books/Hodder Children’s Books
Pages: 352/8 hrs and 58 mins
Narrator: Barrie Kreinik
Format: Audiobook
Genre: Contemporary Young Adult
★ ★ ★ ★ – 4 Stars

Her advice, spot on. Her love life, way off.

Darcy Phillips:
• Can give you the solution to any of your relationship woes—for a fee.
• Uses her power for good. Most of the time.
• Really cannot stand Alexander Brougham.
• Has maybe not the best judgement when it comes to her best friend, Brooke…who is in love with someone else.
• Does not appreciate being blackmailed.

However, when Brougham catches her in the act of collecting letters from locker 89—out of which she’s been running her questionably legal, anonymous relationship advice service—that’s exactly what happens. In exchange for keeping her secret, Darcy begrudgingly agrees to become his personal dating coach—at a generous hourly rate, at least. The goal? To help him win his ex-girlfriend back.

Darcy has a good reason to keep her identity secret. If word gets out that she’s behind the locker, some things she’s not proud of will come to light, and there’s a good chance Brooke will never speak to her again.

Okay, so all she has to do is help an entitled, bratty, (annoyingly hot) guy win over a girl who’s already fallen for him once? What could go wrong?

One thing I’ve discovered is I enjoy books set in US high schools if they are written by an Australian. I picked this up for my #AussieYAChallenge but was incredibly confused with the American narrator. But it ended up ok because it’s a good story and does have decent Australian representation in it.

The US school system is a baffling thing anyway but I liked that it didn’t feel so engrained in the school. We get story outside of school a lot which helped balance it. I also enjoyed how even though it followed the US style YA story of having these school wide social media/student organised systems in the form of Darcy’s advice business, it wasn’t weird and unsettling. It was something I had seen with One of Us is Lying, and a few others – a public forum, app, or secrets blog that ruled the school, caused drama, or blackmailed people. This is more like Dear Wendy which technically was university and more public, but the premise was the same: a write in advice service.

The secret locker business was interesting, and the way Darcy explains it was set up is reasonable, as is the eventually outcome of the whole endeavour. Darcy has an interest in helping people and makes sure she does her research and isn’t doing it for gossip or nefarious purposes. But like all things, it’s the invested interest and biases than can get you into trouble.

The hired for advice thing was well played out, and I liked how the relationship between Brougham and Darcy evolved. The blurb is slightly misleading, but from Darcy’s perspective it is not entirely untrue. While there is drama I enjoyed the personal nature of it and it never felt unrealistic. The often overdone, overreaction unreality was missing and it was refreshing to see.

I enjoyed the queer aspect where the bisexual representation was handled well, as well as the exploration of other issues in the school club discussions. It isn’t a side plot per se, Gonzales interweaves everything to be connected somehow, but it’s another aspect of Darcy’s character and it’s a great way to show her growth as well as tie it into the conflicts of the story.

Even with the US setting Gonzales brought the Aussie writing style that made it feel natural. With this also came the benefit of having an Australian character that didn’t sound like a painful stereotype or an American in disguise. Brougham got to actually be a full character and not a background voice of cliché phrases. Gonzales does sneak in a few slang words and some unspoken things which any good Aussie could pick up on, and while it felt a little like a nod to the Aussie reader or a brief education, it still felt ok and within the narrative. I never felt like we stopped the story to have a wedged in “Australian moment”, instead it was a fun meeting of cultures.

Kreinik is a good narrator and the voice of Darcy suited her well. There was no bad Aussie accent either which was so good and a nice change. Overall I was pleasantly surprised considering I was a little reluctant going in.

You can purchase Perfect on Paper via the following

QBD | Dymocks | Booktopia

Wordery | Blackwell’s | Angus & Robertson

Fishpond | Amazon | Amazon Aust | Audible

Room for More by Michelle Kadarusman

14 Nov 2025 Leave a comment

by Amy in 4 Stars, Australian Women Writers, The Picture Book Corner Tags: aussie books, australian women writers challenge, children's picture book, four stars, maggie zeng, michelle kadarusman, picture books

Published: 14 June 2022
Publisher: Pajama Press
Illustrator: Maggie Zeng
Pages: 32
Format: Picture Book
★ ★ ★ ★ – 4 Stars

Two wombats, two wallabies, a koala, and a tiger snake humorously squeeze into one burrow—and reveal important truths about environmental disasters and the importance of welcoming refugees.

When afire sweeps through the Australian bush, wombats Dig and Scratch are glad to have a cool, damp burrow to keep them safe. But Dig notices that other animals are not so lucky. When Dig invites a wallaby mother and her joey to shelter with them, Scratch grumbles. When Dig beckons to a koala, Scratch complains. And when Dig welcomes in a tiger snake, Scratch is fit to be tied—but Dig is sure there’s always room for more. And when the rains come to douse the fire and bring a new threat of flooding, a crowd of creatures may turn out to be just what the wombats need.

Inspired by stories of animals sheltering in wombat burrows when her homeland of Australia experienced devastating fires, award-winning author Michelle Kadarusman gets young readers up close and personal with Australian wildlife. Illustrator Maggie Zeng brings the creatures to life with a generous dose of personality as they squeeze together in the burrow and work together aboveground. Extensive back matter includes information about wildfires, a glossary of animals, and age-appropriate context about environmental disasters and the work that is being done—including a renewal of Indigenous land practices—to prevent them.

Unlike the other book which covered this topic, which was sweet but fell a smidge short because it came from a USA perspective, this one is more natural and keeps the animals in their native environments. It also comes from someone who knows what this country goes through with bushfires.

I liked that Scratch and Dig covered two perspectives: one to help, and one to be wary of room and danger. It doesn’t idolise the risks involved but it also helps show that while these are factors, it is still the right thing to do.

The illustrations are gorgeous. The subdued but earthy and natural tones really make this story feel like it’s set in the bushland, especially with the red orange glow of the impending bushfire. Zeng’s art style is full of emotion but still keeps the animals animals. The details on the landscape is subtle but beautifully detailed too. The natural setting really helps bring home what these fires were like and how it impacted on the environment.

The story is one of the many that came out of the Black Summer bushfires and it’s still really hard to read about all these years later. But stories like this give a little light in the tragedy that the previous actions of some animals could help save lives. The authors note acknowledges these burrows may not have been active at the time, but it’s a little light of joy to think there was a wombat or two who tolerated sharing their space.

You can purchase Room for More via the following

QBD | Dymocks | Blackwell’s

Fishpond | Amazon | Amazon Aust