Booklists

When the Kingdom of Winter was conquered, its citizens were enslaved and left without magic or a monarch. Eight survivors are their only hope. Meira, orphaned during Winter's defeat, is training to be a warrior, and is desperately in love with Mather, her best friend and future king. She would do anything to help her kingdom rise to power again. When an ancient locket that can restore Winter's magic is discovered, Meira desperately wants to find it. But, in a world of evil magic and dangerous politics, the mission doesn't go as planned. Usually read by Years 9, 10 or above.

Any three titles read from this series can be included as official Challenge books; up to five more titles can be included as your personal choice books. To see the individual book titles and their PRC ID numbers, go to the Series lists on the Booklists page, on the website. Or, you can search for a series name or the individual titles by using the Search function on the top left hand corner of the screen.

With Angra trying to break through her mental defences, Meira desperately needs to learn to control her own magic. Mather will do anything to save his queen. He needs to find Meira, and, finally, tell her how he really feels. Ceridwen will do anything to save her people. Angra had her brother killed, stole her kingdom, and made her a prisoner. As Angra unleashes the Decay on the world, Meira, Mather and Ceridwen must bring the kingdoms of Primoria together, or lose everything. Final book in the trilogy. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

The Winterians are free and Meira just wants her people to be safe. When Primoria's lost and powerful chasm of magic is unearthed, Theron sees this find as an opportunity. But, Meira fears the danger that so much magic poses. When the king sends them on a mission to discover the chasm's secrets, Meira plans to garner support to keep the chasm shut, even if it means clashing with Theron. As the web of power and deception pulls tighter, Meira begins to wonder if she should be fighting not just for Winter but for the world. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

Macy Cashmere lives with her mother, but her mother doesn't really know how to be a proper, caring parent. Her school has classified her as "disturbed" and she is in a special class due to her behaviours and her learning difficulties. Macy has only one good friend, Alma, but she has offended her. Macy will do anything to win Alma's affection again. Macy's brother has been taken by Child Protection Services and if Macy is to avoid the same fate, her mother needs to shape up and get a real job. Macy's world is fraught with danger and all she wants is to belong. Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

As the fragile truce between the Traction Cities and the Green Storm crumbles, Theo and Wren are reunited in the ruins of London but they cannot tell for how long. Hester is missing, presumed dead. In a violent and complex world, power, corruption and betrayal are a way of life. The abandoned and far-flung are making strange alliances but there is no guarantee that anyone will survive. Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

Tom and Hester are at peace in side-lined Anchorage, unlike their daughter, Wren, who unwittingly betrays them and is kidnapped by submariner pirates. Tom and Hester must try to rescue her, not knowing that Doctor Oenone Zero has restored the Stalker Shrike. As a result of Wren's actions, the whole world is about to be torn apart. A world that is already violent and cruel is about to become worse. Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

An engrossing, gripping tale about a mobile London city that devours towns. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

Any three titles read from this series can be included as official Challenge books; up to five more titles can be included as your personal choice books. To see the individual book titles and their PRC ID numbers, go to the Series lists on the Booklists page, on the website. Or, you can search for a series name or the individual titles by using the Search function on the top left hand corner of the screen.

The disfigured, bitter Hester and gentle Tom, whom she has come to trust since their first meeting in the doomed London, escape to a safe haven in the northern ice wastelands. They set up home in Anchorage, a place that doesn't travel. Hester has an ungovernable temper and great jealousy of Freya's crush on Tom. When loyalty is all that will save them, Hester's betrayal has far-reaching consequences. Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

A thrilling sci-fi in which Noah, and sixty-four members of his class are trapped in a computer simulation called Project Nemesis. There are no rules, except survival. The desperate survivors form into groups as the world rapidly descends into chaos and violence. Min and Noah, former friends, are now adversaries in the most deadly of games, where the consequences are more real than any of them know. Usually read by students in Year 9, 10 and above.

Unbeknownst to them both, Min and Noah share a terrible secret. Each year, on their birthday, they are murdered by a man in dark sunglasses and a black suit. This has happened every birthday since their tenth. No one will believe them. After all, they're always found safe and sound without injury of any kind. Now, with the world in the path of a killer asteroid, will they be able to put aside their differences and solve the mystery of their own murders before something even more terrible happens? Usually read by students in Year 9, 10 and above.

A self-help book for teenage girls providing advice about coping with bullying, alcohol, drug use, depression and sexual relations. Some coarse language used by girls to describe their feelings. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

Most Australians know that climate change is real, but many don't know what to do about it and feel powerless. In Fight For Planet A, Reucassel shows it isn't as scary as we think, and we can make a difference to help protect the world for future generations. Learn how to reduce your carbon footprint, with practical day-to-day changes. Usually read by students in years 9, 10, or above.

Kids Like Us is the delightful, heartwarming story of Martin, a teenager on the autism spectrum, who falls for Gilberte-Alice, a 'normal' French girl. While spending summer in the French countryside with his mother, Martin mistakes Gilberte for a character in a novel he is obsessed with - Marcel Proust's masterpiece In Search of Lost Time. He gradually realises she is not Gilberte, the fantasy girl, but a real person named Alice. Falling in love, in all its unpredictability, teaches Martin that he can in fact connect, and can get out of his bubble. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

Will's brother was shot last night. This morning, he steps onto the elevator, on his way to get revenge. But as the elevator doors open on each floor on the way down to the lobby, ghosts from his past join him. What will he decide to do when he gets to the end of his journey? A powerful verse novel, Long Way Down deals with gun violence and the impact of a cycle of generational trauma. It is usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

Will's brother was shot last night. This morning, he steps onto the elevator, on his way to get revenge. But as the elevator doors open on each floor on the way down to the lobby, ghosts from his past join him. What will he decide to do when he gets to the end of his journey? This graphic novel version of Reynold's Long Way Down deals with gun violence and the impact of a cycle of generational trauma. It is usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

Set in a family home in New York, the book acts as something like a diary describing the monotony and helplessness of being confined in a small space, and the absurdity of being held captive by a TV which never seems to turn off. This is a work of hope, but one requiring the reader's willingness to engage in adventurous and dramatic collage and spare story telling. Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

WE ARE ALL STORIES, IN THE END... Fifteen tales of ancient wonder and mystery, passed down through generations of Time Lords. Dark, beautiful and twisted, these stories are filled with nightmarish terrors and heroic triumphs, from across all of time and space. Usually read by students in year 9, 10 and above.

Issues of racism, love and family grief will appeal to more mature readers. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

The Book That Made Me is a celebration of the books that influenced some of the most acclaimed authors from Australia and the world. A perfect collection of personal stories from fantastic authors such as Markus Zusak, Jaclyn Moriarty, Shaun Tan, Mal Peet, Ambelin Kwaymullina, Simon French, Fiona Wood, Simmone Howell, Bernard Beckett, Ursula Dubosarsky, Rachael Craw, Sue Lawson, Felicity Castagna, Benjamin Law, Cath Crowley, Kate Constable, James Roy, Alison Croggon, Will Kostakis and Randa Abdel-Fattah. What stories inspired them, and made them who they are today? Read this book and find out! Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

A fragile peace. An apocryphal warning. Chaos waiting in the heart of the storm. With his dying words, H - Jacob's final connection to his grandfather Abe's secret life - entrusts Jacob with a mission: Deliver newly contacted peculiar Noor Pradesh to an operative known only as V. Noor is being hunted. She is the subject of an ancient prophecy, one that foretells a looming apocalypse. Save Noor, save the future of all peculiardom. But with only a few bewildering clues to follow, time is running out. With enemies behind him and the unknown ahead, Jacob Portman's story continues as he takes a brave leap forward into The Conference of the Birds, the newest installment of the beloved, #1 bestselling Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children series. Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

The last thing Jacob Portman saw before the world went dark was a terrible, familiar face. Suddenly, he and Noor are back in the place where everything began - his grandfather's house. Jacob doesn't know how they escaped from V's loop to find themselves in Florida. But he does know one thing for certain: Caul has returned. After a narrow getaway from a blood-thirsty hollow, Jacob and Noor reunite with Miss Peregrine and the peculiar children in Devil's Acre. The Acre is being plagued by desolations - weather fronts of ash and blood and bone - a terrible portent of Caul's amassing army. Jacob and his friends will face deadly enemies and race through history's most dangerous loops in this thrilling page-turner, the final adventure in the beloved Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children series. Usually read by students in years 9, 10, or above.

September 3, 1940. Ten peculiar children flee an army of deadly monsters. And only one person can help them - but she's trapped in the body of a bird. The extraordinary journey that began in Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children continues as Jacob Portman and his newfound friends journey to London, the peculiar capital of the world. There, they hope to find a cure for their beloved headmistress, Miss Peregrine. But in this war-torn city, hideous surprises lurk around every corner. And before Jacob can deliver the peculiar children to safety, he must make an important decision about his love for Emma Bloom. Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

The Library of Souls is the thrilling conclusion to the Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children series. Jacob, who has discovered a new ability, Emma Bloom a girl with a powerful gift of fire and Addison MacHenry, a dog who can find lost children are battling to follow the trail of their friends and beloved Miss Peregrine. They will journey to Devil's Acre, the worst slum of Victorian England times, where the future of all Peculiar Children will be decided. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 & above.

Having defeated the monstrous threat that nearly destroyed the peculiar world, Jacob Portman is back where his story began, in Florida. Except now Miss Peregrine, Emma, and their peculiar friends are with him, and doing their best to blend in. But carefree days of beach visits and normalling lessons are soon interrupted by a discovery - a subterranean bunker that belonged to Jacob's grandfather, Abe. Clues to Abe's double-life as a peculiar operative start to emerge, secrets long hidden in plain sight. And Jacob begins to learn about the dangerous legacy he has inherited - truths that were part of him long before he walked into Miss Peregrine's time loop. Now, the stakes are higher than ever as Jacob and his friends are thrust into the untamed landscape of American peculiardom - a world with few ymbrynes, or rules - that none of them understand. Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

An horrific family tragedy sets sixteen year old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, and a strange collection of very curious photographs, it becomes clear that the children who once lived here were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. One of them was his grandfather. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

Any three titles read from this series can be included as official Challenge books; up to five more titles can be included as your personal choice books. To see the individual book titles and their PRC ID numbers, go to the Series lists on the Booklists page, on the website. Or, you can search for a series name or the individual titles by using the Search function on the top left hand corner of the screen.

Before Miss Peregrine gave them a home, the story of peculiars was written in the Tales. Wealthy cannibals who dine on the discarded limbs of peculiars. A fork-tongued princess. The origins of the first ymbryne. These are but a few of the truly brilliant stories in Tales of the Peculiar - known to hide information about the peculiar world - first introduced by Ransom Riggs in his Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children series. Riggs now invites you to share his secrets of peculiar history, with a collection of original stories, as collected and annotated by Millard Nullings, ward of Miss Peregrine and scholar of all things peculiar. Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

A collection of narratives retelling Aboriginal traditions are written by a non-Aboriginal poet who was made a member of Aboriginal language groups in two Australian states. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

Drita, an Albanian, and Zoran, a Serb, become friends but this is Kosovo, and Serb-Albanian tension is rising. They find their families are now enemies and they are forced to meet in secret. They are about to begin a fight for their lives. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 and above.

What happens when you've saved the world and now you have to go back to being an ordinary person? What happens if saving the world has left you with significant trauma and you find ordinary life hard to live? What happens if 15 years after saving the world the evil reappears and you are called upon once more to be the hero? Can you do it all again? Are you strong enough? Are you sane enough? Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

Within this masterful collection, each setting is more strange and wonderful than the last, brimming with new technologies. Yet for all of the advances in these futuristic lands, the people must still confront deeply human problems. In these six short stories, Veronica Roth reaches into the unknown and draws forth something startlingly familiar and profoundly beautiful. Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

Simon Snow might be the worst Chosen One ever, at least according to his roommate, Baz. And Baz might be evil and a vampire, but he could also be right. Most of the time, Simon can't make his wand work, he mostly can't find his mentor, and there's a magic-eating monster causing mayhem. Baz would be loving it, except he hasn't even bothered to come back to school for the final year. Carry On is a ghost story, a love story and a mystery. You think you've read this book before, but you haven't. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

Eleanor is new in town. And she stands out instead of fitting in, with her mismatched clothes, her wild red hair and her chaotic home life. The day she sits in the seat next to Park on the bus, impossibly cool Park, she starts to learn what it means to fall in love. Set over the course of one school year, Eleanor and Park fall in love thanks to late-night conversations and a stack of mix tapes. They have nothing and everything to lose. They are more real than any other character you will ever meet. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

The story is supposed to be over. Simon Snow did everything he was supposed to do. He beat the villain. He won the war. He even fell in love. Now comes the good part, right? Now comes the happily ever after... So why can't Simon Snow get off the couch? What he needs, according to his best friend, is a change of scenery. He just needs to see himself in a new light... That's how Simon and Penny and Baz end up in a vintage convertible, tearing across the American West. They find trouble, of course. (Dragons, vampires, skunk-headed things with shotguns.) And they get lost. They get so lost, they start to wonder whether they ever knew where they were headed in the first place... Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

The bushfire season of 2019 and 2020 was the most catastrophic on record and the loss of lives, homes, property, habitat and wildlife were unprecedented. ABC journalists were present during these crises and reported information and updates on the growing fires. They gathered the many stories which can help those in the future understand what happened with the hope that lessons can be learned. Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

Jen returns to Ardilla, a well-loved, old holiday home, and struggles to understand the changing relationships between families and friends. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

What if there was a secret organisation of the leading medical experts that allowed young medical students to carry human experiments out - on themselves? This is the premise of this psychological thriller. Miri is a gifted 17 year old medical student who is willing to test her theories on herself. But, who really is in control? What is Miri up against, and what has she got to loose? Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

The sixties are in full swing and, for sixteen year old Kathy, it's all about miniskirts, the Beatles and her fab new boots. But, the world is rapidly changing, her brother is fighting in the Vietnam War and her best friend is protesting against it. When the chance comes to dance with an entertainment troop in Vietnam, Kathy slips on her boots and leaves her convent school. She soon finds the reality of war is no song and dance. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

Fifteen year old Megan has not spoken aloud since the accidental death of her friend, Hana. There are things locked inside her head that she cannot, must not, let out. She is targeted by the school bullies but, when Jasmine arrives, Megan finds an unexpected ally. Megan and Jasmine's closeness brings unexpected feelings to the fore and relationships become tense. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

Meet the Outhwaite children. There's teenage Else, the violinist who abandons her violin. There's nature-loving Clancy. There's the inseparable twins, Oscar-and-Finn, Finn-and-Oscar. And then there is Sibbi, the baby of the family. They all live contentedly squabbling in a cottage surrounded by trees and possums...until a letter arrives to say they have inherited the old family home in London. Outhwaite House is full of old shadows and new possibilities. The boys quickly find their feet in London, and Else is hoping to reinvent herself. But Sibbi is misbehaving, growing thinner and paler by the day, and she won't stop talking about the mysterious endsister. Meanwhile Almost Annie and Hardly Alice, the resident ghosts, are tied to the house for reasons they have long forgotten, watching the world around them change, but never leaving. The one thing they all agree on - the living and the dead - is never, ever to open the attic door...Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.