PERHAPS A GIFT VOUCHER FOR MUM?: MOTHER'S DAY
ABBEY'S BOOKSELLER PICK ----- Six teenagers are hanging out one afternoon at the local shopping centre. They don't know each other, but when a sort of tremor occurs, they suddenly find that they are the only occupants and come together to try and work out what happened. They also discover a very young toddler… As days go by, they are in a strange stasis, where they can see the outside world and yet not interact with it. The shopping centre provides absolutely everything they need in the way of food, drink and shelter, as well as unlimited supplies of consumer goods - the sort of paradise they all had dreamed of. But is it? As time passes, they form friendships, examine their actions and come to a hard-won understanding about their place in the world. An intriguing and thought-provoking premise wrapped up in a gripping and well written story. Ages 13+ Lindy
Tegan Bennett Daylight is a writer, teacher and critic. Her books include the Stella Award shortlisted Six Bedrooms and the novels Safety and Bombora. She lives in the Blue Mountains with her husband and two children.
ABBEY'S BOOKSELLER PICK ----- Six teenagers are hanging out one afternoon at the local shopping centre. They don't know each other, but when a sort of tremor occurs, they suddenly find that they are the only occupants and come together to try and work out what happened. They also discover a very young toddler… As days go by, they are in a strange stasis, where they can see the outside world and yet not interact with it. The shopping centre provides absolutely everything they need in the way of food, drink and shelter, as well as unlimited supplies of consumer goods - the sort of paradise they all had dreamed of. But is it? As time passes, they form friendships, examine their actions and come to a hard-won understanding about their place in the world. An intriguing and thought-provoking premise wrapped up in a gripping and well written story. Ages 13+ Lindy
‘Returning to the beauty of friendships before Messenger, Snapchat and Instagram, the novel shows how an unlikely group of individuals can transform into a group of tight-knit friends. Think of this as a modern Australian take on Lord of the Flies and The Breakfast Club.’ * <I><B>Readings</B></I> * ‘Essentially a survival story, the book is reminiscent of Brendan Ritchie’s Carousel, but more a reimagining of William Golding’s Lord of the Flies. Instead of conflict and power, Royals provides an optimistic alternative in which trust and acceptance are the genuine foundations to living together harmoniously.’ * <I><B>Books + Publishing</B></I> * ‘A real page-turner of a book, full of vivid characters, intrigue and genuine warmth. The setting is so realistically unsettling, and the teenagers so likeable, that I was hooked from the beginning.’ -- <B>Alice Pung, author of <I>One Hundred Days</I> and <I>Laurinda</I></B> ‘If Stephen King did The Breakfast Club it might turn out a bit like Royals. The creepily atmospheric premise sucks you in, but you’ll stick around for the lovable group of Aussie teenagers. A page-turning romp with a serious message at its core that absolutely should not be started unless you’re prepared to stay up all night finding out what happens next!’ -- <B>Kate Emery, author of <I>The Not-So-Chosen One</I></B> 'This glorious fever dream of a novel with its cast of diverse characters who we grow to love, explores the limits of consumerism alongside the possibilities of human connection, all the while keeping readers on the edge of their seats.’ -- <B>Erin Gough, author of <I>Amelia Westlake Was Never Here</I></B>
