Swerve by Phillip Gwynne

Hugh is a 16 year old boy, he is one of the best young musicians in Australia and he is preparing for an audition at the prestigious Conservatorium. Hugh has a bright future. A future that has been decided by his parents, his teachers, by everybody, except himself. Hugh has a secret though, as much as he loves music, he loves cars and motor racing.When his newly discovered grandfather, Poppy, asks him to go on a road trip to Uluru in his 1970 Holden HT Monaro, Hugh decides, for once in his life, to do the unexpected.

This title has been shortlisted for Prime Minister's Literary Awards, Young Adult's Fiction, Queensland Premier's Literary Awards, Best Young Adult Book and Victorian Premier's Literary Awards, Prize for Young Adult Fiction on 2010.


Gwynne, Phillip. Swerve. Camberwell, Victoria :Penguin, 2009.

Rose by any other name by Maureen McCarthy

This novel was shortlisted for the Australian Book of the Year for Older Children,2007 and for the Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA)

Rose a 19 year old girl is facing a family conflict, her orderly and happy life is destroyed when her father leaves her mother for another woman. Rose and her sister’s try really hard to keep their mum from falling apart while coping with their own grief. McCarthy alternate between a present-day road trip taken by Rose and her mom and flashbacks from a year earlier detailing the shocking events that precipitate their trip. This book that will engage adult and young adults onto an emotional roller coaster, where readers won't know what's going to happen next. Receiving a starred review from booklist, McCarthy story is a juicy family melodrama set in an Australian landscape.

McCarthy, Maureen. Rose by any other name, East Melbourne, Victoria : Allen and Unwin , 2006.