Reading Scrolls
My reading rhythm drifts with the seasons — I loosely aim for a book a month, though some months curl up like a sleepy wombat while others scatter stories at my feet like confetti. This page is my ever‑growing archive of books I’ve wandered through, beginning with the ones I can remember from 2025. I’ll keep adding to it as new titles sidle up, tap me on the shoulder, and join the ritual — all while the kookaburras on the Hills Hoist clothesline exchange their happy little gossip strips about the local feathers.
Currently Reading, Overview to come...
Scrublands - Chris Hammer - 2018
This is a second read but reserving my thoughts until I have completed.
2026 Reads
Billy B Brown - The Bully Buster - Sally Rippin - 2012
My Thoughts
It is interesting to me that the most popular children's books sold at my local QBD bookstore are the ones I have here. I chose this one because it is aimed at older children, something I may wish to delve into at some stage in the future and I was interested to see what children were reaching for. A far cry from The Famous Five by Enid Blyton that I grew up with that is for sure. I like the moral of the story though.
Gorgeous and delightful and funny!
Diary of a Wombat - Jackie French (author) and Bruce Whatley (illustrator) - 2002
My Thoughts
You know what? This one is staying on my coffee table! I absolutely LOVED this book and oh my goodness, talk about laughing out loud when reading! There is a very good reason why this little book has won so many awards.
Gorgeous and delightful and funny!
Dear Zoo - Rod Campbell - 1982
My Thoughts
Dear Zoo is an engaging interactive story with little popups - and I loved it. I think the idea of having pop ups is fabulous and a brilliant way to engage children. I love the start bold colours and simple diagrams. Lots to learn from this one.
Gorgeous, simple, colourful and interactive - what more could you want?
Where is the Green Sheep - Mem Fox (author) and Judy Horacek (illustrator) - 2004
My Thoughts
I love the way this book is thought-provoking for children and the hardiness of the book. Quite a contrast to Possum Magic, but just as engaging.
This one I bought because it was popular. So glad it is amongst my collection!
Possum Magic - Mem Fox (author) and Julie Vivas (illustrator) - 1983
My Thoughts
Possum Magic is a lovely story with gorgeous illustrations. I wanted to see what larger children's book looked like in today's market and see how the text was spaced, where illustrations were placed and how. I flicked through several popular books on the shelves at the bookstore and this one came home with me. I have one of my nephews visiting me soon and this will end up with his soon-to-be-three daughter for sure.
Possum Magic found its way into my shopping bag and I am so glad it came home with me.
Cutters End - Margaret Hickey - 2021
A style twin in some ways, suggested for me to read
My Thoughts
Cutters End has a strong sense of place — the heat, the isolation, the outback atmosphere are vivid and immersive. Margaret Hickey clearly understands small‑town dynamics and the way old secrets linger in the dust.
As a reader who loves complex mysteries, I found myself predicting the culprit early on, so the suspense didn’t hold me as tightly as I’d hoped. There were moments toward the end where I felt a little disoriented about character locations and motivations, which may simply reflect the way I was reading it at the time.
That said, Margaret Hickey’s strength in capturing rural Australia shines through, and readers who enjoy character‑driven crime with a strong sense of landscape will find plenty to appreciate here.
2025 Reads
The Dry - Jane Harper (2016)
A style twin, not a story twin — read late 2025, just after my own manuscript was done.
This was the last novel I read in 2025. It was recommended to me because of the manuscript I’d just completed — apparently, our writing styles share a rhythm. Not our stories, mind you, but the way we shape them.
And that’s the thing: if you’re writing in a particular genre, read within it. See who’s out there, what they’re doing, how they’re doing it, and what you do differently. It’s not about imitation — it’s about orientation. This book helped me reflect on my own style by seeing it echoed in someone else’s.
The Chamber - John Grisham (1994)
An old-time favourite to re-read from time to time.
This was a re-read, and I have to say — Grisham’s books have survived some serious cullings from my bookshelves over the decades. I couldn’t tell you how many times I’ve read and re-read his novels. I remember hanging out for this one to hit the shelves in the bookshop, because that’s how you bought books back then — you waited, you wandered in, you hoped it had arrived.
It’s probably been close to ten years since I last read The Chamber, and yet I devoured it like it was the first time. I’m sure I held my breath in all the same places, raced through the same passages when the suspense got too much to bear. Some stories just know how to grip you, no matter how many times you return.
Ship of Magic - Robin Hobb - 1998
A ship with a mind of it's own, selecting those who understood her to sail her.
I was given this book to read two or three years ago, and quite frankly, it took me a while to pick it up and run with it. But once I settled into it, I found myself looking forward to my reading time — cutting other chores short just so I could start a little earlier and squeeze in an extra chapter or two each day.
What a wonderful imagination and storyteller Robin Hobb is. I especially enjoyed her scene descriptions; you can slip into the world so easily, walking beside the characters as if you’ve always belonged there. It’s one of those stories that wraps around you and refuses to let go.
Daughter of the Forest - Juliet Marillier (1999)
A beautiful story, written beautifully - thank you Juliet Marrilier
This was the first of many Juliet Marillier novels I’ve read, and what an extraordinary talent she is. She has a rare gift for breathing life into her stories — the kind of writing that feels like stepping through a doorway into another world. I’m quite certain that if I ever had the good fortune to meet her in person, I’d be completely star‑struck. That doesn’t happen often, even though I’ve met my fair share of well‑known people over the years.
I even wrote to her once. I just had to tell her how much her beautiful novels meant to me.
The first series I read was the Sevenwaters Trilogy — which, of course, grew well beyond three books and is now known as the Sevenwaters Novels. I will never stop being grateful to my friend CP, who knew I’d love them and bought me this very book all those years ago.
This is a re‑read, and honestly, if anyone ever told me I had even half of Juliet’s talent, I’d be the happiest author alive. Many of us have brilliant stories inside us, but very few can write them with the grace, depth, and beauty that Juliet Marillier does.
First King of Shannara - Terry Brooks - 1996
I admit: I first heard of the Shannara series through the television adaptation. I watched it after a full Tolkien binge and enjoyed it so much that I decided to jump online and buy just one book to test the waters. This was that book. I hadn’t read it before, and now I’ll definitely be going back for the next one.
I was hooked from beginning to end. I loved the storytelling style, and most of all, Terry Brooks’ imagination. It’s a different kind of magic to the worlds I’ve been wandering lately, but it swept me up all the same.
A classic fantasy adventure that hooked me from the first page.
The Story Grid: What Good Editors Know - Shawn Coyne (2015)
Snapped mid‑ritual, just after draft 99 — the book that proved I wasn’t just making it all up for nothing.
I read this one around January 2025, right after completing the ninety‑ninth draft of my first novel. It turned out to be exactly what I needed. The book confirmed that my intuitive writing was already doing many of the things a solid novel requires, and it also pointed out a few places where I could strengthen the work — priceless insights at the perfect time.
The terminology felt like a foreign language at first (and honestly, some of those academic labels still tie my tongue in knots), but the framework helped me make sense of what I’d been doing instinctively. If you’re looking for a comprehensive guide to story structure and editorial thinking, this one might help you too.