Reading and Writing: Year 9 Great Reads

You're the last of the werewolves. Don't fight it, son; conquer it. When the air is clear, sixteen year-old Drew Ferran can pick up the scent of a predator. When the moon breaks through the clouds, a terrifying fever grips him. And when a vicious beast invades his home, his gums begin to tear, his fingers become claws, and Drew transforms ...

'the greatest coach in Australian sports history . . . an extraordinary man' Matthew JohnsWayne Bennett is the greatest rugby league coach Australia has ever had. He has won seven premierships and is the greatest man manager the game has known. He is a living contradiction: a self-professed introvert who can hold an audience in the palm of his hand; an autocrat on a humanitarian mission to make good men of his young charges; a devoted husband (and father of the year) who left his wife after 42 years of marriage. Other coaches decry his tactics then attempt to imitate them. Players are desperate to work with him but are left feeling deceived when he cuts them loose. The media disparages him then lavishes him with praise. So who is the real Wayne Bennett? Celebrated sports journalist Andrew Webster has been on a mission to find out. For two years, he has interviewed family, close friends, sworn enemies, colleagues, coaches and players, as well as Bennett himself, and trawled through acres of print and recordings. Webster shows us a complex, brilliant and difficult man. We come to admire the good wolf of Bennett's nature - the genius who transforms young unformed players into titans of the game. And the bad wolf - the wrangler who plays the dark arts of football politics with obsessive determination. Expertly written and compulsively readable, Webster's account of Bennett is not unlike the man himself: controversial, combative, and impossible to ignore.

The Immortals of Rugby Union celebrates the greatest players to wear the green and gold for the Wallabies. It looks into the careers of the 15 individuals who have attained Immortal status and includes images and career statisti

Lance Franklin has held AFL fans in awe since his early days in the game -- regardless of club allegiance. From his start, picked at no. 5 in the 2004 draft by the Hawthorn Hawks, to his 1000th goal and the 2022 Grand Final with the Sydney Swans, this book relives the triumphs of an AFL icon. Featuring sports photography and action shots throughout, this book tells Buddy’s story in his own words with contributions from his teammates, fellow AFL players and coaches.

Twelve-year-old Atlas Wade has been trying to forget the memory of his mother by climbing mountains ever since she died three years ago. When his father signs them up for an expedition group hoping to be the first to ever summit the unconquerable Mount Everest, Atlas can't wait for the chance to prove himself to his father. But Atlas and another girl named Maddie are left behind, and it's up to them to undertake the dangerous journey up the mountain in hopes of finding survivors after an avalanche cuts them off from the climbing party. They must rely on their wits and each other before it's too late.

When teen social media influencer Anton Frazer stages a live-streamed, citywide game of Tag where the prize is to become one of his live-in personal assistants, his fans go wild. Outfitted with body cams, GPS trackers and pressure sensors to keep tally of who's disqualified, contestants are split into Chasers and Runners, then let loose into the night-covered urban jungle to hunt each other down. One of them will stop at nothing to be the victor at the end of this adrenaline and fear-fuelled night.

Summer, 1940. Nineteen-year-old Jakob Novis and his quirky younger sister Lizzie share a love of riddles and puzzles. And now they're living inside of one. The quarrelsome siblings find themselves amidst one of the greatest secrets of World War II--Britain's eccentric codebreaking factory at Bletchley Park. As Jakob joins Bletchley's top minds to crack the Nazi's Enigma cipher, fourteen-year-old Lizzie embarks on a mission to solve the mysterious disappearance of their mother. The Battle of Britain rages and Hitler's invasion creeps closer. And at the same time, baffling messages and codes arrive on their doorstep while a menacing inspector lurks outside the gates of the Bletchley mansion. Are the messages truly for them, or are they a trap? Could the riddles of Enigma and their mother's disappearance be somehow connected? Jakob and Lizzie must find a way to work together as they race to decipher clues which unravel a shocking puzzle that presents the ultimate challenge: How long must a secret be kept?

Angelo and his friends have faced some truly fearsome foes, from mind-controlling parasites to deadly monsters of the deep and giant spiders to vampire birds … but their adventures aren't over yet! Dread Wood High is suffering from an infestation of caterpillars. But these are no ordinary caterpillars. These creepy creatures grow into giant, mutant, killer moths with a taste for blood! They’ll stop at nothing until everything – and everyone – is destroyed. It’s Club Loser’s toughest battle to date. It’s all to play for … and everything is at stake.

Charlotte Sauvin has always seen the world differently. At home on 33 Place Brugmann, in the heart of Brussels, her father and her closest friends and neighbors - the Raphaels from the fourth floor, and Masha from the fifth - have ensured her secret is safe. But when the Nazis invade Belgium, and Masha and the Raphaels disappear, Charlotte must navigate her new world alone. Over the border and across the sea, in occupied Paris and battered Blitz London, Masha and the Raphaels are reinventing themselves - as refugees, nurses, soldiers, heroes. Though scattered far and wide, they dream of only one place, one home: 33 Place Brugmann.

Maddy is mute. Since the Incident she has barely spoken. And now she and her mother and brother are staying in a farmhouse on an old apricot orchard not far from town. It’s a chance to rest and recuperate – or a way to hide further away from the world. Alice is waiting. Since Birdy, her darling daughter, disappeared forty-five years ago, she has sat in her house waiting for her to come home. Alice says Maddy reminds her of Birdy, and Maddy feels a strange connection to the long-lost girl. In the quiet not-speaking and waiting, amid the clutter of the old woman’s house, Maddy and Alice slowly become friends. Until Maddy takes something that’s not hers. Birdy is a tender warm-hearted verse novel about the pain of loss and shame, the beauty of words, and the healing power of small acts of kindness.

Claverton Castle, 1940. Eagles and Spitfires fly in the skies of England as Lady Deanna, the aristocratic granddaughter of the Duke of Claverton, spends her days shovelling manure and her evenings in blue satin, attending dinner parties to gather intelligence from the many Nazi sympathisers among Britain's powerful upper classes. She is an excellent spy: the information she gleans may prove vital in the months ahead. But when she becomes enmeshed in the German plot to restore the Duke of Windsor to the throne of England and ensure an alliance with Hitler, she must feign cooperation and risk her life for the sake of her country. As war devastates Europe, 'Lady Dee' must solve other mysteries, too. Why do the three orphaned children she has taken into her home and grown to love refuse to reveal their identity? What reason can British Intelligence have to warn her away from Sam Murray, a decorated Australian pilot and the only man she feels she could ever marry? Is the wounded soldier who stumbles along the secret caves below her home truly the missing Duke of Claverton?

Reed Beckett’s little sister, Beatrice, has never been awakened by the smell of breakfast or a school-day alarm clock. Instead, she wakes to hospital beeps and poking doctors. And now, their mother has gone. With no job prospects on the horizon, Reed begins making and selling fake IDs so he and Bea can survive. But the problems keep piling up, from an angry landlord demanding rent to looming medical bills. As Reed expands his business, taking increasingly bigger risks, the potential consequences for Reed’s future, Bea’s health, and Reed’s budding friendship with his classmate Helena become graver. But what choice does he have?