Saving Francesca

Before there was Eleanor and Park, there was Francesca and Will. A compelling story of romance, family, and friendship, with humor and heart, perfect for fans of If I Stay, The Spectacular Now, and Looking for Alaska. Francesca is stuck at St. Sebastian’s, a boys' school that pretends it's coed by giving the girls their own bathroom. Her only female companions are an ultra-feminist, a rumored slut, and an impossibly dorky accordion player. The boys are no better, from Thomas, who specializes in musical burping, to Will, the perpetually frowning, smug moron that Francesca can't seem to stop thinking about. Then there's Francesca's mother, who always thinks she knows what's best for Francesca—until she is suddenly stricken with acute depression, leaving Francesca lost, alone, and without an inkling of who she really is. Simultaneously humorous, poignant, and impossible to put down, this is the story of a girl who must summon the strength to save her family, her social life, and—hardest of all—herself. Melina Marchetta is the Printz-winning author of Jellicoe Road, as well as Looking for Alibrandi and Finnikin of the Rock.

Francesca is at the beginning of her second term in Year Eleven at an all boy's school that has just started accepting girls. She still misses her old friends, and, to make things worse, her mother has had a breakdown and can barely move from her bed. But Francesca had not counted on the fierce loyalty of her new friends, or falling in love, or finding that it's within her power to bring her family back together. A memorable and much-loved Australian classic told with humour, compassion and joy, from Melina Marchetta, the internationally bestselling and multi-award-winning author of Looking for Alibrandi.

Francesca is at the beginning of her second term in Year Eleven at an all boy's school that has just started accepting girls. She still misses her old friends, and, to make things worse, her mother has had a breakdown and can barely move from her bed. But Francesca had not counted on the fierce loyalty of her new friends, or falling in love, or finding that it's within her power to bring her family back together. From the bestselling, Multi-Award-Winning author of Looking for Alibrandi, comes a memorable story told with humour, compassion and joy.

Can you leave the past in another country? Francesca Maier knows little of her father's home country or her parents' life together before she was born. A summer in Berlin brings the past - and its secrets - alive. Adrift in a foreign city, she finds an unexpected friend in east Berliner Antonio - but what will he sacrifice to save her?

"More than a crime story; it's jam-packed with family drama and heartbreak. Highly recommended for suspense and mystery fans." --Library Journal In the wake of a devastating bombing, a father risks everything to find out who was responsible. When Bish Ortley, a recently suspended cop, receives word that a bus carrying his daughter has been bombed, he rushes to be by her side. A suspect has already been named--a 17-year-old girl who has since disappeared from the scene. The press has now revealed that she is the youngest member of one of London's most notorious families. Years earlier, they were implicated in an attack that left dozens dead. Has the girl decided to follow in their footsteps? To find her, Bish must earn the trust of her friends and family, including her infamous mother, now serving a life sentence in prison. But even as he delves into the deadly bus attack that claimed five lives, the ghosts of older crimes become impossible to ignore. A gripping fusion of literary suspense and family drama, TELL THE TRUTH, SHAME THE DEVIL is a fast-paced puzzle of a novel that will keep readers feverishly turning pages.

'You look the type to break your father's heart.' 'Yeah, but he broke mine first.' When Rosie Gennaro first meets Jimmy Hailler, she has walked away from life in Sydney, leaving behind the place on Dalhousie that her father, Seb, painstakingly rebuilt for his family but never saw completed. Two years later, Rosie returns to the house and living there is Martha, whom Seb Gennaro married less than a year after the death of Rosie's mother. Martha is struggling to fulfil Seb's dream, while Rosie is coming to terms with new responsibilities. And so begins a stand-off between two women who refuse to move out of the home they both lay claim to. As the battle lines are drawn, Jimmy Hailler re-enters Rosie's life. Having always watched other families from the perimeters, he's now grappling, heartbreakingly, with forming one of his own . . . An unforgettable story about losing love and finding love; about the interconnectedness of lives and the true nature of belonging, from one of our most acclaimed writers.

Longlisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award 2011 and shortlisted for the 2011 Prime Minister's Literary Award for Young Adult Fiction and NSW Premier's Literary Award Ethel Turner Prize for Young People's Literature Melina Marchetta's brilliant, heart-wrenching new novel takes up the story of the group of friends from her best-selling, much-loved book Saving Francesca - only this time it's five years later and Thomas Mackee is the one who needs saving. Thomas Mackee wants oblivion. Wants to forget parents who leave and friends he used to care about and a string of one-night stands, and favourite uncles being blown to smithereens on their way to work on the other side of the world. But when his flatmates turn him out of the house, Tom moves in with his single, pregnant aunt, Georgie. And starts working at the Union pub with his former friends. And winds up living with his grieving father again. And remembers how he abandoned Tara Finke two years ago, after his uncle's death. And in a year when everything's broken, Tom realises that his family and friends need him to help put the pieces back together as much as he needs them. 'Melina Marchetta is a god of the written word.' sassisamblog.com 'Elegantly crafted with a distinctly Australian voice.' Madison 'The characters are alive and vibrant on every page of this perfectly crafted story about families, relationships, love and forgiveness.' Good Reading 'For Marchetta fans, this follow-up book is like catching up with old friends down at the local; we know and love them, we've missed them and now they've returned, just like we've always known they would.' Alpha Reader Blogspot 'By no means a sequel, The Piper's Son is a stunning stand alone novel. But when you already know the characters, it adds a certain something to the experience. Having grown up with Melina Marchetta, it seems her characters have grown up with me too.' Fairfield Books on Station 'When you open the cover of a Melina Marchetta novel you have certain expectations. If you're a newbie, you expect to be blown away. If you've read her work before, you expect character depth, memorable dialogue and an intriguing family full of skeletons, battened down resentments and fierce love. The Piper's Son will meet both criteria with aplomb. pernicketysnark.com 'With all the emotion and family dramas we've come to expect from Ms Marchetta, The Piper's Son is another one of her sure-to-be-cult novels.' Dolly 'Outstanding fiction . . . ' The Sunday Age 'Marchetta is an outstanding writer.' Herald Sun 'The Piper's Son provides an interesting insight into contemporary urban life and its issues, with focus on the music scene.' The Courier Mail 'it's the type of book where the words morph, bottom out, and all of a sudden everyone and everything is three-dimensional. they hold substance. they hold the characters. and they're full. and they spiral out beautifully. heartbreakingly… so true. and so australian. and so real. and so family. beautiful to it's core. painfully so.' theuncommonnonsense/blogspot.com 'I cannot wait until our Year 8s are Year 12s so that I might share this novel with them. Rich with topics for discussion, it is worthy of becoming a class text, studied, debated, argued and appreciated. The Piper's Son has some of the loveliest, endearing and most authentic characters I have read in a long while. I love the Finch Mackees and their 'people'. I love them all. And more than anything, I want to BE one of them.' bookgryffin.globalteacher.org.au

SCIENCE IN PROGRESS - ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK! Junior science geniuses Augustine, Celeste and Oscar can't believe their luck when they're accepted into an elite and mysterious science academy summer camp run by the elusive Inventor Quark. From the moment they step inside the gates of Quark's Academy at the end of Molecule Drive, they know they're in for a week they'll never forget. But things at the academy are not quite what they seem, and the three quickly realise that they'll need to put their squabbles aside and their heads together if they're ever to get out of there alive... A page-turning adventure for readers aged eight to twelve, QUARK'S ACADEMY is bound to cause a hair-raising reaction! 'an engaging and entertaining debut for readers aged eight and up with an interest in STEM - or those who just love a well-paced adventure story with fantastical elements.' 4.5 stars - BOOKS + PUBLISHING