Book picks similar to
When You Wake and Find Me Gone by Maureen McCarthy
young-adult
australian
contemporary
australia
Loving Richard Feynman
Penny Tangey - 2009
Catherine is a science-loving fifteen-year-old. Richard helped build the atom bomb. Catherine's just trying to survive school. When your life is falling apart around you, is talking to a dead physicist normal?
The Beginner's Guide to Living
Lia Hills - 2006
His father drifts and his old brother, Adam, stays away from home. Isolated and angry, Will begins to search for answers, using his Mum's old camera and any philosophy books he can get his hands on. Then he falls for a beautiful girl, and things get even more complicated. With his final exams looming, how will he get through the tangle of grief, philosophy, sex, and love?
Candy and the Broken Biscuits
Lauren Laverne - 2010
A sharp, comic teen series from uber-cool presenter Lauren Laverne.Misunderstood musical genius Candy Caine - age fifteen - knows she’s destined for a bigger life beyond her small-town existence. And now Mum is marrying The World’s Dullest Man™, it’s time to put plans into action and achieve world domination with her band, The Broken Biscuits. Oh - and find her real dad, who will most definitely be cool and, of course, will verify her own super specialness.With a battered old guitar and some supernatural assistance, can Candy get her life on track and her new band on the road to greatness? Candy Caine is the hilarious new creation of debut author Lauren Laverne - a writer who's been there, done that and customised the T-shirt.
The Things I Didn't Say
Kylie Fornasier - 2016
I've used up every dandelion wish since I was ten wishing for the power to speak whenever I want to. I'm starting to wonder if there are enough dandelions.After losing her best friend that night, Piper Rhodes changes schools, determined that her final year will be different. She will be different. Then she meets West: school captain, star soccer player, the boy everyone talks about. Despite her fear of losing everything all over again, Piper falls in love - and West with her - without Piper ever speaking one word to him. But will it last?
Head of the River
Pip Harry - 2014
Nine rowers, 2000 gruelling metres and one chance for glory in the ultimate team sport. Sit forward ... ROW. Tall, gifted and the offspring of Olympians, superstar siblings Leni and Cristian Popescu are set to row Harley Grammar to victory in the Head of the River. With six months until the big race, the twins can't lose. Or can they? When Cristian is seduced by the easy route of performance-enhancing drugs, and Leni is suffocated with self-doubt, their bright futures start to fade. Juggling family, high expectations, study, break-ups, new relationships and wild parties, the pressure starts to build. As the final moments tick down to the big race, who’ll make it to the start line? And who'll plummet from grace?
Are You Seeing Me?
Darren Groth - 2014
It's been a year since their dad lost his battle with cancer and Justine became the sole caregiver for her autistic brother, Perry. Now Perry has been accepted into an assisted-living residence in their hometown, Brisbane, Australia, but before he takes up residence, they're seeking to create the perfect memory. For Perry, the trip is a glorious celebration of some of his favorite things: Ogopogo, Jackie Chan movies, and earthquakes. For Justine, it's an opportunity to learn how to let go of Perry and of her boyfriend, Marc. Justine also wants to offer their mother the chance to atone for past wrongs. But the instability that has shaped their lives will not subside, and the seismic event that Perry forewarned threatens to reduce their worlds to rubble...
The Dead I Know
Scot Gardner - 2011
Death doesn’t scare him—his new job with a funeral director may even be his salvation. But if he doesn’t discover the truth about his hidden past soon, he may fall asleep one night and never wake up. In this dark and witty psychological drama about survival, Aaron finds that making peace with the dead may be easier than coming to terms with the living.
Old Magic
Marianne Curley - 2000
Something supernatural. Her instincts are proven correct a few minutes later when, bullied by his classmates, Jarrod unknowingly conjures up a freak thunderstorm "inside" their classroom.Jarrod doesn't believe in the paranormal. When Kate tries to convince him that he has extraordinary powers that need to be harnessed, he only puts up with her "hocus pocus" notions because he finds her captivating. However, the dangerous, uncontrolled strengthening of his gift finally convinces Jarrod that he must take Kate's theories seriously. Together, they embark on a remarkable journey -- one which will unravel the mystery that has haunted Jarrod's family for generations and pit the teens against immense forces in a battle to undo the past and reshape the future.
The Possibility of Now
Kim Culbertson - 2016
But despite years of overachieving at her elite school, Mara didn't plan on having a total meltdown during her calculus exam. Like a rip-up-the-test-and-walk-out kind of meltdown. And she didn't plan on a video of it going viral. And she definitely didn't plan on never wanting to show her face again.Mara knows she should go back, but suddenly she doesn't know why she's been overachieving all these years. Impulsively, she tells her mom she wants to go live with her estranged dad in Tahoe. Maybe in a place like Tahoe, where people go to get away from everyday life, and with a dad like Trick McHale, a ski bum avoiding the real world, Mara can figure things out.Only Tahoe is nothing like she thought. There are awesome new friends and hot boys and a chance to finally get to know Trick, but there is also still massive amounts of schoolwork. Can Mara stopping planning long enough to see the life that's happening right now?
Girl Saves Boy
Steph Bowe - 2010
Isn’t it enough having your very own terminal disease, without your mother dying? Or your father dating your Art teacher?No wonder Sacha Thomas ends up in the lake that Saturday evening…But the real question is: how does he end up in love with Jewel Valentine?With the help of quirky teenage prodigies Little Al and True Grisham, Sacha and Jewel have a crazy adventure, with a little lobster emancipation along the way.But Sacha’s running out of time, and Jewel has secrets of her own.Girl Saves Boy is a hugely talented debut novel, funny and sad, silly and wise. It’s a story of life, death, love… and garden gnomes.
Sugar Sugar
Carole Wilkinson - 2010
Jackie has left Australia with a psychedelic suitcase and a dream to become a world-famous fashion designer,She knows exactly where she's going and how she's going to get there.So how does a weekend in Paris send her spinning off-course?How does she end up somewhere she couldn't even find on a map?
After the Darkness
Honey Brown - 2012
One fateful day they take the winding coastal route home, and visit the Ocean View Gallery, perched on the cliff edge. It's not listed in any tourist pamphlet. The artist runs the gallery alone. There are no other visitors. Within the maze of rooms the lone couple begin to feel uneasy – and with good reason. Trudy and Bruce will be ripped from the safe, secure fabric of their life and will have their world turned upside down and shaken. Attacked, trapped and brutalised, they barely escape the gallery with their lives – only to find there's no real getting away.
The Waiting Sky
Lara Zielin - 2012
Seventeen-year-old Jane McAllister can't quite admit her mother's alcoholism is spiraling dangerously out of control until she drives drunk, nearly killing them and Jane's best friend. Jane has only one place to turn: her older brother Ethan, who left the problems at home years ago for college. A summer with him and his tornado-chasing buddies may just provide the time and space Jane needs to figure out her life and whether it still includes her mother. But she struggles with her anger at Ethan for leaving home and feels guilty--is she also abandoning her mom just when she needs Jane most? The carefree trip turned journey of self-discovery quickly becomes more than Jane bargained for, especially when the devilishly handsome Max steps into the picture.
Field Notes on Love
Jennifer E. Smith - 2019
One snag: the companion ticket is already booked under the name of his ex, Margaret Campbell. Nontransferable, no exceptions.Enter the new Margaret C. (Mae for short), an aspiring filmmaker with big dreams. After finding Hugo's spare ticket offer online, she's convinced it's the perfect opportunity to expand her horizons.When the two meet, the attraction is undeniable, and both find more than they bargained for. As Mae pushes Hugo to explore his dreams for his future, he'll encourage her to channel a new, vulnerable side of her art. But when life off the train threatens the bubble they've created for themselves, will they manage to keep their love on track?
The Best Night of Your (Pathetic) Life
Tara Altebrando - 2012
And Mary is determined to win.Mary lost her spot at Georgetown to self-professed "it" bully Jake Barbone, and she's not about to lose again. But everyone is racing for the finish line with complicated motives, and the team's all-night adventure becomes all-night drama as shifting alliances, flared tempers, and crushing crushes take over. As the items and points pile up, Mary and her team must reinvent their strategy--and themselves--in order to win.