November...AusReading Month

Due to my lack of a Y chromosome I am unable to participate in Movember, but there is something I WILL be celebrating this month.

I am very excited to be taking part in AusReading Month.  A great idea thought up over at Brona's Books. 

Brona is doing a great job over on her blog, getting everyone excited about Australian literature and she has kindly asked me to list my five favourite Aussie reads. 

As my reading (at least for this blog) focuses on children's and teen fiction, I am choosing my favourite 5 classic Australian novels for this age group.  It was a hard decision, with so many greats to choose from, but here they are :


Ash Road by Ivan Southall (first published 1966)
Bizarre as it may seem up until a few months ago, this Australian classic was only available from the USA. It's now been re-printed, so there's no excuse not to read it.


Tomorrow when the War Began (first published 1993)
20 Years old this year, I think that makes it a classic, and the fact that is one of the most popular books for young teens, I think it deserves a place here.
  
Taronga by Victor Kelleher (first published 1986)
This one is a bit of a sleeper, I hope that with a new edition out, everyone gets their hands on this book.  It just shows that dystopian teenage fiction has been around for years!

Playing Beatie Bow by Ruth Park (first published 1980)
Ruth Park is Australian fiction royalty, so no list could be without her. Fiction which features time travel and time slip are extremely popular today, so a visit to 1873 Sydney is bound to fascinate readers of today.

Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay (first published 1967)
Brona has already mentioned this one, but I am happy to include it too.  It is a creepy classic that is guaranteed to give you chills.

I will be re-reading each of these novels during November, and will see how they stand up to children's and teenage fiction of today, so make sure you come back to visit.