Alayna says that these were gobbled down within a few minutes of them being ready!             — Alayna Cole loves to write stories when she’s not studying for her Bachelor of Education/Bachelor of Arts.

Filling:

• 1 medium potato (peeled if preferred)
• 1 large carrot (peeled if preferred)
• 1/2 large onion
• 1 rashers shortcut bacon
• 3 cups mushrooms
• 1 tomato
• 1 tsp crushed garlic

• Pinch salt
• Pinch pepper
• 1 tsp paprika
• 2 tbls brown sugar

• 4 large eggs
• 2 tbls cream
• 2 tbls water
• 1/4 cup tasty cheese, grated
• 12 slices bread
• Vegetable oil for frying and greasing the pan

Preheat oven to 200°C.

Dice potato, carrot, onion, bacon, mushrooms and tomato. Fry in a small amount of oil with the garlic.

While this is cooking, remove the crusts from the bread. Rub a small amount of oil into each section of a muffin pan. Press the bread into each section, creating bread cups.

When filling is tender, add salt, pepper, paprika and brown sugar. Wait for the sugar to dissolve into caramel, then take off the heat. Spread filling evenly between each bread cup. Press down firmly to ensure it fits inside.

Whisk together eggs, cream and water in a bowl. Spread this mixture evenly between each bread cup. Take it slow. If it doesn’t all fit at first, wait a moment – the bread will absorb and suddenly you will have more space.

Sprinkle each cup with cheese.

Bake for 10-15min. Keep an eye on your quiches during those last few minutes because it doesn’t take long for bread to go from ‘I’ll just leave it a little longer’ to ‘whoops, I left it too long!’

Looking at the cover of The Museum of Intangible Things, you would assume right away that this book is perfect for the summer and that it completely revolves around friendship. And it does! But there is so much more going on in this book than the cover and the synopsis show.

The story follows two best friends, Hannah and Zoe. They couldn’t be any more different, but are still ultimate friends. While Hannah is sensible, trying to earn her college education through selling hot dogs, Zoe is spontaneous and wild.

Life is boring in their small hometown in New Jersey, and the two have always talked about going on a road trip together. But neither of them knew just what would happen on this seemingly harmless vacation: hiding and spending the night in IKEA, flashing cowboys on the highway, and wanting to see a real buffalo!

Hannah doesn’t expect what happens next, and she has no idea what to do…after all, Zoe is her best friend.

The Museum of Intangible Things was filled to the brim with emotions! When I picked this book up, I had no idea just what I was getting myself into. But Hannah and Zoe go through a true test of friendship.

Overall, I LOVED IT! But I don’t recommend reading it out in public with a full face of make-up on, unless you like looking like a raccoon with the mascara running down your cheeks. I would say to read this one at home!

Besides the two best friends, who I could really relate to, there was also a boy involved and a little romance. Going into this book, I was hoping for and even expecting some romance. But in the end I’m glad that this wasn’t the book’s main focus. I like that it truly revolved around these two girls!

The ending was heartbreaking, but OH SO GOOD! I recommend this book to anyone who needs a good cry.

For the last few years, I’ve been part of the Redlands Redlitzer short story competitions. My role has been a judge and editor of stories written by children, young adults, and adults. Due to council budget cuts, the Redlands Libraries are only able to run the children’s section (and Bennett’s Real Estate have been kind enough to purchase the Trophies) this year.

On the weekend, I worked with three young people on their stories and was amazed at their talent and imagination. It’s an event that I love being involved in, and an initiative that I wholeheartedly support. I wish more libraries followed this model of story selection, story development, and production of an anthology.

Many thanks to the wonderful library staff, including Jo-Anne Kidman and Jan Webb, as well as my colleague’s Louise Cusack and Angela Sunde. Here’s a picture of me, Lou, and Angela, with one of the highly recommended young writers, Parris Smith.

Punkyfish had some items that really caught our eye, so we though we’d share them with you. We think the name is pretty cool too! It’s hard to go past anything with butterflies on it. You can also find them on Facebook.

Sixteen-year-old Ren is a daredevil mobile racer who will risk everything to survive in the Ward, what remains of a water-logged Manhattan. To save her sister, who is suffering from a deadly illness thought to be caused by years of pollution, Ren accepts a secret mission from the government: to search for a freshwater source in the Ward, with the hope of it leading to a cure.

However, she never expects that her search will lead to dangerous encounters with a passionate young scientist; a web of deceit and lies; and an earth-shattering mystery that’s lurking deep beneath the water’s rippling surface.

Jordana Frankel’s ambitious debut novel and the first in a two-book series, The Ward is arresting, cinematic, and thrilling—perfect for fans of Scott Westerfeld or Ann Aguirre.

Hardcover, 465 pages

Published April 30th 2013 by Katherine Tegen Books

Just as Ren is about to get her chance to become a racer, the government issues a warning that no one may cross the line between The Ward and the rest of the city. The Ward division of the city is water-logged and people are dying from an illness; they are cut off in an effort to keep the illness from causing more damage in the city.

During her races, Ren tries to locate a secret fresh water source that is rumoured to be on The Ward’s side of the city. She works for the government, earning money to take care of herself and her sister. As if she doesn’t have enough on her plate, boy troubles soon arise.

Ren ends up in the race of a lifetime while her sister is on the brink of death and she is on the verge of locating the water source. Every time she thinks she close, something else comes up. It’s a constant struggle for her, and she must remain strong or lose everything.

As the story is based on racing, it is fast paced and with three different angles to the storyline all revolving around Ren, there is never any downtime. What I enjoyed most about the story was its unique plot. It was refreshing to read something a bit different. It made me think a lot about finding the water and what the consequences or benefits may be. It is very much a story of the government versus the people. Recommended.