The Latest in Kids Books

Our Castle By the Sea | Lucy Strange | $16.99 | Chicken House |

Pet has grown up in a lighthouse on an English clifftop with her family, and her life so far has been filled with storms, secret tunnels and enchanting stories of sea monsters. Now Pet is 12 years old, England is at war, and her half German mother has been accused of espionage. Pet feels it is up to her to clear her mother’s name and reveal the true spy in their midst... This is a gripping wartime adventure guaranteed to thrill fans of The War That Saved My Life, as well as anyone who — like me — has always dreamt of living in a lighthouse. Ages 10+

Secret Runners of New York | Matthew Reilly | $16.99 | Pan Macmillan |

In this dystopian thriller, the line between rich and poor is the line between life and death. Skye and her twin brother Red move to New York City, where there are rumours of a global apocalypse growing. This doesn’t stop the young elite from partying, but everything changes when Skye joins an exclusive gang called ‘The Secret Runners of New York’. This group has access to a secret portal to the future, and what Skye finds there is horrifying. Ages 12+

Write a short creative piece in any format — fiction, non-fiction, poetry, comics — of around 800 words which engages with the theme Heroes and Villains. The competition is open to children aged 8-14.

The winners will be published in the next Better Read Kids Anthology of Writing. Prizes will be awarded at a special launch event in June, including a $100 Better Read Than Dead voucher for first place and a $50 voucher for the runner up.

Email entries to kids@betterread.com.au by April 26 with the subject line ‘Kids Writing Competition’​

Heroes and villains: whose side are you on?

Super Sidekicks 1: No Adults Allowed | Gavin Aung Than | $9.99 | Puffin |

Being a sidekick isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be, so a bunch of sidekicks form a team and decide to become full-time heroes! But before they do, they need to prove their worth to the adults… A fun, out-of-this-world debut novel (and the first in a new series!) that will have kids aged 6+ hooting with laughter and dreaming about what they could do with superpowers.

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