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I'm looking forward to going on a tramping trip in NZ. This magazine had an interesting article on caffeine and boosting energy levels

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It's an accepted fact that all students need exposure to certain academic disciplines--algebra, world history, chemistry, and probably a Shakespeare play or two. Unfortunately, computer science has not yet risen to must-have status. Given society's reliance on technology in almost every aspect of modern life, author-educators Kevin Brookhouser and Ria Megnin find the lack of programming education in schools shocking.

Code in Every Class explains why computer science is critical to your students' future success and shows you how to take tech education into your own hands. JVW

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Sequel novel following The Rosie Project
Don Tillman is an Australian genetics professor who probably has Asperger’s Syndrome, though this is never stated explicitly. In The Rosie Project, a romantic comedy, he met and married Rosie Jarman, a PhD candidate at a Melbourne university. The Rosie Effect is set in New York City, where Don and Rosie have moved – Don to take up an associate professor position at Columbia University and Rosie to undertake a Doctor of Medicine degree while she concurrently completes a PhD in psychology. Early in the story, Rosie becomes pregnant, and Don’s philandering mentor, Gene, who has left his wife Claudia, comes to live with them. The book follows Don’s attempts to prepare for parenthood and to support Rosie in her own preparation, drawing on science and the unreliable advice of his friends. Don’s unconventional approach alienates Rosie and eventually leads to the breakdown of the marriage. Don pursues Rosie and persuades her to return. jVW

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The Language of Flowers is the debut novel of American author Vanessa Diffenbaugh. The novel follows the fraught life of a Victoria Jones, who by the age of 18, had lived in 32 foster homes, and becomes a flower arranger. JVW

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This book is the most important novel Jodi Picoult has ever written. Frank and uncomfortably introspective.

The protagonist, Ruth Jefferson, has been a labor and delivery nurse for more than 20 years. She’s a widow — her husband was killed while serving in Afghanistan — and her son, Edison, is an honor student. She’s also an African American living in a very white area of Connecticut and is the only black staff member in the maternity ward of the hospital where she works.

To survive in that white world, Ruth has convinced herself that race doesn’t matter. “I treat people the way I want to be treated,” she says, “based on their individual merits as human beings, not on their skin tone.” So when white supremacists Turk and Brittany Bauer refuse to allow Ruth to care for their newborn and the hospital acquiesces, she is shocked. JVW

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Part 3 in a trilogy.
In 2015, two years after the events that take place in China Rich Girlfriend, Nick and Rachel Young (née Chu) are happily married and living their life in New York. Nick is informed by his mother Eleanor that his grandmother, Su Yi, has had a heart attack, and that he must come home to reconcile with her before she dies. While Nick wants to make up with his grandmother out of guilt for having shut her out of his life for marrying Rachel (as Su Yi was opposed to the marriage), his mother wants him to make amends so that he will be re-introduced into the will and inherit Tyersall Park, Su Yi's home. The extended Shang-Young clan has descended upon Tyersall Park to say their last goodbyes with the hopes of getting into Su Yi's good graces and inherit part of her fortune. JVW

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Part 2 in the trilogy.
Kevin Kwan, bestselling author of Crazy Rich Asians, is back with a wickedly funny new novel of social climbing, secret emails, art-world scandal, lovesick billionaires, and the outrageous story of what happens when Rachel Chu, engaged to marry Asia's most eligible bachelor, discovers her birth father. JVW

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When Rachel Chu agrees to spend the summer in Singapore with her boyfriend, Nicholas Young, she envisions a humble family home, long drives to explore the island, and quality time with the man she might one day marry. What she doesn't know is that Nick's family home happens to look like a palace, that she'll ride in more private planes than cars, and that with one of Asia's most eligible bachelors on her arm, Rachel might as well have a target on her back.
Part 1 of a trilogy. JVW

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Spanning generations, Bridge of Clay is an Australia family saga, worlds apart from his first novel The Book Thief. This book revolves around the Dunbar boys, who are a gaggle of bruised and battered brothers, raising themselves in the wake of tragedy. Their mother is dead, their father has fled. The most understated yet remarkable of them is Clay – Clay the son, Clay the brother, Clay the romantic, Clay the secret, and Clay the builder of bridges.

His style is writing is something that takes a while to get used to - and made me quite impatient at times - but Zusak makes contrasts between beauty and brutality, art and violence, and life and death right throughout the book. He offers an incredible portrait of family and loss, with three uniquely devastating romances woven into the plot of this vibrant adventure story.

So much happens in this book, it has many different elements. The writing style can be distracting but at its core, this is a novel about the strange and wonderful ways in which things that are broken are made whole again.
Kim R

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"Any Ordinary day"

The day that turns a life upside down usually starts like any other, but what happens the day after? Dual Walkley Award-winner Leigh Sales investigates how ordinary people endure the unthinkable.

As a journalist, Leigh Sales often encounters people experiencing the worst moments of their lives in the full glare of the media. But one particular string of bad news stories – and a terrifying brush with her own mortality – sent her looking for answers about how vulnerable each of us is to a life-changing event. What are our chances of actually experiencing one? What do we fear most and why? And when the worst does happen, what comes next?

In this wise and layered book, Leigh talks intimately with people who’ve faced the unimaginable, from terrorism to natural disaster to simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Expecting broken lives, she instead finds strength, hope, even humour. Leigh brilliantly condenses the cutting-edge research on the way the human brain processes fear and grief, and poses the questions we too often ignore out of awkwardness. Along the way, she offers an unguarded account of her own challenges and what she’s learned about coping with life’s unexpected blows.

Warm, candid and empathetic, this book is about what happens when ordinary people, on ordinary days, are forced to suddenly find the resilience most of us don’t know we have.

Everybody should read this book or listen to then podcast - it will change your view of the world - Nigel

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I was introduced to Murakami via his memoir, ‘What I Talk About When I Talk About Running’, then read his first 2 short stories, ‘Hear the Wind Sing’ and ‘Pinball 1973’ - both featuring the unnamed narrator and his friend, The Rat.
A Wild Sheep Chase is Murakami’s first novel and acts as somewhat of a third book of ‘The Rat’ trilogy - although not officially.
The genre is fantasy, detective, mythology and mystery all intertwined to produce what seems to be classic Murakami.
Great characters and an unusual plot left me thinking about it for weeks.
Next is his 2nd novel, ‘Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World’.

Adam Watson

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The New York Times Bestseller - this novel poses fundamental questions about fate, mortality, life and the ways we choose to live. It follows the lives of four children who are each told a prophecy about their life. The novel explores how each child moves into adulthood and the psychological impact the prophecy has on the way they live their lives.  The novel raises questions of humanism verses determinism. Deb G

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An engaging study of Habits - why we do what we do in life and business.
Right from the start I found the text engaging and could see parrallels with  my own life experiences. The books takes you on a journey of discovery of how our minds unconsciously control our actions and providing powerful insight into how it is possible to break poor habits.
On reflection it reinforces the importance of structure and routine in the classroom. Tanya D

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Thinking, Fast and Slow - Daniel Kahneman

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Thinking, Fast and Slow - Daniel Kahneman

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Nobel Prize winner Daniel Kahneman outlines his lifetime of research in cognitive psychology and explains the biases and heuristics which underpin human thought, often leading to unbelievable but very common errors in reasoning. Ryan G.

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Set in Naples - this narrative explores complex relationships amidst a changing world. I loved the setting because I've been to Naples and I also loved the style of writing - which was rich and challenging! Rose G

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This is so cleverly written - a mixture of imagery and nostalgia mixed in with a graphic storyline. This book definitely made me very appreciative of my own life - the story of two boys living in the 80's, QLD, amongst drugs and poverty and violence - a story of love and survival, and of spirit. LOVED THIS ONE! I am going to use some of the passages with my classes they are so beautifully constructed. Rose G

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Harper's third book and another crime fiction set in an Australian landscape. I love that Harper writes her stories in rural Australian settings, bringing to life places we may have forgotten or maybe even not considered before. The plot is gripping and I didn't pick the ending which is GREAT - read this one in one sitting! Easy to read and totally enjoyable. Rose G

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This was a very powerful life recount and what I loved most about this was the fact Nadia spends the bulk of the book talking about her life, culture and heritage - as this was what was taken from her! Beautifully written, with moments of true sadness - the reality of ISIS is exposed and her call for justice clearly heralded. Absolutely worth the read. Rose G

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Not sure if you have seen the youtube video where Kristian makes a video for his wife's 35th birthday? If not here is the link  Well.. he also had written a book (i use past tense as unfortunately Kristian lost his battle with Cancer). This book is about love, life, family and his fight . Makes me hug my children that little bit tighter now, and say I love you more to the ones i love. A beautiful story - a legacy and an inspiration!
Roxy

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Liane Moriarty

An easy page turner, by an Australian Author (Big Little Lies TV show). This book follows a women who has woken up from amnesia and is trying to piece her life back together. Throughout the process it makes her wonder about what REALLY matters.
Something for all us to think about!
One of my favourite authors! Great Read!
Roxy :)

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This story follows the life of Count Alexander Rostov in post-revolutionary Russia, in the 20th century. Sentenced to house arrest in the ritzy Metropol Hotel in Moscow, it tells of the people he meets there and life he forges. It is a very easy read, enjoyable and witty. You can’t help but like Alexander as he faces life as an ordinary Russian citizen, in theory stripped of his aristocratic luxuries, even if he still lives in the attic of a 5 star hotel.
Happy reading! 😀 Marianne Castor

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I have always wanted to meet this bloke. I wanted to know more about where he came from and where he got his inspiration. Somehow motivation is something within. A gift. A little too much detail on particular matches. Hard to put down though. LR

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A delightful beach read. A true story about a troubled young man who finds hope and purpose when a cat called Bob finds him. Inspiring and full of hope. LR

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1965 living in a country town with racial tensions that reach boiling point. Then the Freedom rides come through town. An interesting time and a rivetting read LR