Booklists

Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can't wait. In just a few weeks she'll have the operation that will turn her from a repellent ugly into a stunning pretty. And as a pretty, she'll be catapulted into a high-tech paradise where her only job is to have fun. But Tally's new friend Shay isn't sure she wants to become a pretty. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world-- and it isn't very pretty. The authorities offer Tally a choice: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. Tally's choice will change her world forever... Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

Any three titles read from this series can be included as official Challenge books; up to five more titles can be included as your personal choice books. To see the individual book titles and their PRC ID numbers, go to the Series lists on the Booklists page, on the website. Or, you can search for a series name or the individual titles by using the Search function on the top left hand corner of the screen.

Robert Hoge was born with a giant tumor on his forehead, severly distorted facial features, and legs that were twisted and useless. His mother was so horrified she initially refused to look at her son, let alone bring him home. But home he went, to a life that was, against all odds, filled with joy, optimism, and general boyhood naughtiness. Ugly is Robert's account of his life, from his birth to the arrival of his own daughter. It's a story of an extraordinary person living an ordinary life, which given the incredible hardships he had to overcome, is possibly his greatest achievement of all. Usually read by students in year 9, 10 and above.

Eighteen-year-old Julianne De Marchi is different. As in - she has an electrical undercurrent beneath her skin that stings and surges like a live wire. She can use it-to spark a fire, maybe even end a life - but she doesn't understand what it is. And she can barely control it, especially when she's anxious. Ryan Walsh was on track for a stellar football career when his knee blew out. Now he's a soldier - part of an experimental privatised military unit that has identified Jules De Marchi as a threat. Is it because of the weird undercurrent she's tried so hard to hide? Or because of her mother Angie's history as an activist against bio-engineering and big business? It's no coincidence that Ryan and Jules are in the same place at the same time - he's under orders to follow her, after all. But then an explosive attack on a city building by an unknown enemy throws them together in the most violent and unexpected way. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

It's 1965, and an old Tattersalls barrel starts rolling marbles to randomly conscript young Australian men to fight in the war in Vietnam. Melbourne housewife Jean McLean is outraged, as are her artist friends Clif and Marlene Pugh, who live in the country with their wombat, Hooper. Determined to wreck the system, Jean forms the Save Our Sons movement's Victorian branch, and she and her supporters take to the streets to protest. Meanwhile, in the small country town of Katunga, Bill Cantwell joins the Australian Army, and in Saigon, young Mai Ho is writing letters to South Vietnamese soldiers from her school desk. And when Hooper's call-up papers arrive, he mysteriously goes underground... Usually read by students in years 9, 10, or above.

Mia and Jules are desperate to warn their home planet about the impending invasion from the Undying. They escape the Undying's ancient spacecraft, crash land back on Earth managing to avoid being killed, only to find that no one will believe them about the alien threat in orbit. When they realise that no one is going to take them seriously, they must take things into their own hands. All they need to do is escape the powerful International Alliance, avoid being killed by aliens, prevent a horrific plague, while racing across Europe to save the people they love...no pressure. Mature themes, Usually read by students in Year 9, 10 and above.

When Earth intercepts a message from a long-extinct alien race, it seems like the solution the planet has been waiting for. For Jules Addison the discovery of an alien culture offers unprecedented opportunity for study... as long as scavengers like Amelia Radcliffe don't loot everything first. Mia and Jules' different reasons for smuggling themselves onto Gaia put them immediately at odds, but after escaping a dangerous confrontation with other scavvers, they form a fragile alliance. In order to penetrate the Undying temple and reach the tech and information hidden within, the two must decode the ancient race's secrets and survive their traps. But the more they learn about the Undying, the more their presence in the temple seems to be part of a grand design that could spell the end of the human race...Usually read by students in years 9, 10 and above.

Virginia has fallen out of love with her boyfriend, Froggy, and her brother has been arrested for a crime that the whole family thought was behind them. Virginia is struggling to cope with all this, but then she meets Sebastian. They decide not to talk about anything personal, just to hang out for the summer having fun. But soon they discover that they can't run from the truth forever. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

Unnecessary Drama is a funny and romantic coming-of-age story set in a student share house in Melbourne. The story focuses on Brooke's initial experiences living out of home while starting her first year of university. Rule-oriented and organised, Brooke is ready for anything, until she discovers her second housemate is really her friend-turned-enemy from high school, Jesse. She vows to ignore him. However, dealing with anxieties, mishaps and the unexpected complications of life might make this promise harder to keep than she thought. Usually read by students in years 9, 10, or above.

Fifteen year old Megan has not spoken aloud since the accidental death of her friend, Hana. There are things locked inside her head that she cannot, must not, let out. She is targeted by the school bullies but, when Jasmine arrives, Megan finds an unexpected ally. Megan and Jasmine's closeness brings unexpected feelings to the fore and relationships become tense. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

Thanks to Connor, Lev, and Risa - and their high-profile revolt at Happy Jack Harvest Camp - people can no longer turn a blind eye to unwinding. Ridding society of troublesome teens while simultaneously providing much-needed organs for transplanting might be convenient, but its morality has finally been brought into question. However, unwinding has become big business, and there are powerful political and corporate interests that want to see it not only continue, but also expand to the unwinding of prisoners and the impoverished. Cam is made entirely out of the parts of other unwinds; he is a teen who does not technically exist. A futuristic Frankenstein, Cam struggles to find identity and meaning and wonders if a rewound being can have a soul. And when the actions of a sadistic bounty hunter cause Cam's fate to become inextricably bound with the fates of Connor, Risa, and Lev, he will have to question humanity itself. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.

Connor, Risa and Lev are running for their lives. Unwinding: the process by which a child is both terminated and yet kept alive. Unwinding is now a common, and accepted, practice in society. Connor's parents want to be rid of him because he's a troublemaker. Risa has no parents and is being unwound to cut orphanage costs. Lev's unwinding has been planned since his birth as part of his family's strict religion. Brought together by chance, and kept together by desperation, these unlikely companions make a harrowing cross-country journey, knowing their lives hang in the balance. If they can survive until their 18th birthday, they can't be harmed - but when every piece of them, from their hands to their hearts, is wanted by a world gone mad, eighteen seems far, far away. Usually read by students in Years 9, 10 or above.