Booklists

Sam, a teenager, lives on a farm with his mother and emotionally distant father, a horse trainer. Haunted by trauma and depression, struggling with school and disillusioned with his home life following the death of his older brother, Sam's life changes when he finds a wounded foal tangled in barbed wire in one of the paddocks at the edge of their property. In the course of rescuing and caring for the foal he becomes close with Julia, a troubled girl from the next property. Usually read by students in years 9, 10, or above. LISTEN ON BOOK BITES! You can listen to Robbie Coburn read the first chapter of this book on the PRC's Book bites podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or The Arts Unit website! Copy and paste this URL into your browser to start listening! https://artsunit.nsw.edu.au/listen-the-arts-unit/literature-and-language-arts/book-bites/9plus-book-list#the-foal-in-the-wire-robbie-coburn

Astrid is about to start her last year at high school. And her first. When her dad loses his job, Astrids homeschooling comes to an end. Until now, she has lived within the confines of a tightly controlled, contracted world where there's no room for anything, except following her fathers rules and pretending that everything is normal. As Astrid, and her mum, tentatively expand their world, they struggle to break free of their ingrained wariness and self-doubt. But with hope, new friends, and the strength of a promise, Astrid has a chance to find out what she wants, who she loves, and who she really is. Usually read by students in years 9, 10, or above. LISTEN ON BOOK BITES! You can listen to Ange Crawford read the first chapter of this book on the PRC's Book bites podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or The Arts Unit website! Copy and paste this URL into your browser to start listening! https://artsunit.nsw.edu.au/listen-the-arts-unit/literature-and-language-arts/book-bites/9plus-book-list#how-to-be-normal-ange-crawford

Gwen has spent the past several years manning the blacksmith's in place of her father, an open secret in the village in which she lives. A much more covert secret, however, is that she knows not only how to craft but also how to wield a sword, and an incognito stunt at the local jousting tournament manages to catch the eye of the wily Lady Isobelle. Isobelle has secret dreams too, but she's been promised in marriage to the winner of the whole stupid tournament, which means an end to any freedom or choices for her. Desperate to avoid this fate, when she connects the newcomer knight to the female smithy she saw earlier that day, she begins to hatch a scheme ... Petty knights. Backstabbing noblemen. A prison breakout. Cheesecake on a stick. One particularly large and angry dragon. Will our ladies survive the night? And can our knight save the day? Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 and above. LISTEN ON BOOK BITES! You can listen to Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner read the first chapter of this book on the PRC's Book bites podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or The Arts Unit website! Copy and paste this URL into your browser to start listening! https://artsunit.nsw.edu.au/listen-the-arts-unit/literature-and-language-arts/book-bites/9plus-book-list#lady-s-knight-amie-kaufman-and-meagan-spooner

There's something dangerous in the air. It shimmers in the night, wrapped in the warm, humid breeze. I stand on the kerb outside my cousin's house waiting for my sister. Zillah has always been a good girl - nothing like her rebellious big sister Nik. After Nik has an accident that leaves her comatose, Zillah has to find a way to navigate life and high school in Cairns without Nik's guiding light. Determined to fit in, Zillah seeks out the secrets of her school's after-hours party scene and discovers Moondust - a sparkling elixir with magical properties. Could this have something to do with Nik's accident? To find out, she must plunge further into a world of moonlit parties and take out-of-character risks. As Zillah unravels what might be going on at Craigmont High, she forges friendships with other Island students and starts falling for a boy who might know more about Nik than he lets on. But Zillah is not entirely sure who she can trust. And she has no idea of the danger they're all in. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 and above. LISTEN ON BOOK BITES! You can listen to Jasmin McGaughey read the first chapter of this book on the PRC's Book bites podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or The Arts Unit website! Copy and paste this URL into your browser to start listening! https://artsunit.nsw.edu.au/listen-the-arts-unit/literature-and-language-arts/book-bites/9plus-book-list#moonlight-and-dust-jasmin-mcgaughey

Grace cares about two things: performing magic and her cantankerous grandmother. Magic gives Grace the chance to forget the hard things in her life. When her grandmother finds out she is dying Grace moves in to help. She must draw on all her magical abilities to not just survive but learn to thrive. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above. LISTEN ON BOOK BITES! You can listen to Barry Jonsberg read the first chapter of this book on the PRC's Book bites podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or The Arts Unit website! Copy and paste this URL into your browser to start listening! https://artsunit.nsw.edu.au/listen-the-arts-unit/literature-and-language-arts/book-bites/9plus-book-list#smoke-and-mirrors-barry-jonsberg

Summer. Winter. Autumn. Spring. As the year unfolds, AFL footy season starts and the dreams of six teenagers play out on and off the field. Elias. Team player. Running keeps him calm. Zac and Fletcher. Best mates. Top 5 Draft picks? Mason. Perfect practice with Dad makes perfect play. Dane. Great footballer. Terrible boyfriend. Beth. It's always been 'Dane and Beth'. What does 'just Beth' look like? Plans unravel and life bounces in unexpected directions. A brilliant YA novel about coming of age, and the love of the game with all its triumph, heartbreak and hope. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 and above. LISTEN ON BOOK BITES! You can listen to Jason Gent read the first chapter of this book on the PRC's Book bites podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or The Arts Unit website! Copy and paste this URL into your browser to start listening! https://artsunit.nsw.edu.au/listen-the-arts-unit/literature-and-language-arts/book-bites/9plus-book-list#this-season-s-draft-jason-gent

Page Whittaker has always been an outcast. She's too smart, too quiet, too weird. And after the deadly incident that destroyed her only friendship at her old school, she needs a fresh start. Agathion College is everything Page has ever wanted: a safe haven of wood-panelled halls and dusty books, on a remote Scottish moor. And for the first time in her life, she has a close group of friends. Cyrus, Ren, Gideon, Lacey and Oak help her feel at home at Agathion; the only problem is, they're all keeping secrets from her. Page doesn't know it yet, but her perfect new school has a crooked foundation, rooted in an ancient clandestine society with rumoured ties to demonic magic. Soon, Page will learn that not everyone at Agathion is who they say they are. Least of all, her friends. Agathion claims to teach its students history... but some histories are better left buried. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 and above. LISTEN ON BOOK BITES! You can listen to Lili Wilkinson read the first chapter of this book on the PRC's Book bites podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or The Arts Unit website! Copy and paste this URL into your browser to start listening! https://artsunit.nsw.edu.au/listen-the-arts-unit/literature-and-language-arts/book-bites/9plus-book-list#unhallowed-halls-lili-wilkinson

Harvey's dads are splitting up. It's been on the cards for a while, but it's still sudden. Woken-by-his-father-to-catch-a-red-eye sudden. Now he's restarting his life in a new city, living above a cafe with the extended Greek family he barely knows. Sotiris is a rising star. At seventeen, he's already achieved his dream of publishing a novel. When his career falters, a cute, wise-cracking bookseller named Jem upends his world. Harvey and Sotiris's stories converge on the same street in Darlinghurst, in this novel about how our dreams shape us, and what they cost us. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 and above. LISTEN ON BOOK BITES! You can listen to Will Kostakis read the first chapter of this book on the PRC's Book bites podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or The Arts Unit website! Copy and paste this URL into your browser to start listening! https://artsunit.nsw.edu.au/listen-the-arts-unit/literature-and-language-arts/book-bites/9plus-book-list#we-could-be-something-will-kostakis