Olive is a bit different – she looks different and she lives a bit differently to the rest of her class-mates. Olive has one friend, Mathilda, until one day Mathilda chums up with the most popular girl in the class and Olive is left on her own. That is when Pip, Olive’s twin, turns up. Pip is everything that Olive is not: outspoken rather than shy, spontaneous rather than reserved. When Olive mentions their father, Pip comes up with a plan for the two of them to find him.
This is a slightly unusual story with readers left to make up their own minds as to who Pip really is. It would suit thoughtful readers of 11 or 12. ( )

This engaging narrative takes place in suburban Australia, following the unusual Olive Garnaut, who is just entering Year Seven in school. Olive has wide set eyes, pale skin, and white-blonde hair; the girls at school aren’t always very nice. Olive’s mother, Mog, is a rather successful career woman and is rarely at home. This leaves Olive with a lot of responsibilities. She has her own credit card for groceries, and her own mobile phone, which her best friend, Mathilda absolutely adores. Things are mostly fine, but when suddenly Mathilda allies herself with the school Queen Bee, Olive finds herself out of place. It is fortunate that this is when her twin sister, Pip, appears. And Pip is everything Olive is not. Where Olive is polite and shy, Pip is brash and outspoken. Where Olive is reserved, Pip is spontaneous. So when Olive mentions their long-lost father, WilliamPetersMustardseed, it is Pip that insists they embark on a journey to find him. Funny, sweet, devastating, and wicked, Pip: The Story of Olive is a book with characters that are so alive, you soon feel that they are your oldest friends. Sprinkling a modern Australian landscape with bits of magic realism, Kim Kane’s first book will enchant you from page one. ( )