All Reviews

For full list of reviews of "The Golden Day" click here  Read more...
March 2, 2017.

"eine seltene Kostbarkeit" (a rare jewel)  Read more...
Schreibfeder.de, January 1, 2013.

"Ein schönes Buch." (A beautiful book.)  Read more...
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung , July 13, 2012.

A thought-provoking and quietly beautiful novel...  Read more...
Viewpoint, October 8, 2011.

5 stars: The Golden Day grips you from the first page and never lets go.  Read more...
Bookseller+Publisher, March 1, 2011.

A celebration of wild abandon...suffused with a richness of symbolism and imagery.  Read more...
Ruby Rainbow Reviews, October 9, 2012.

Magical tale of imagination and freedom.   Read more...
Aussie Reviews , February 22, 2012.

The Carousel is a stirring story, enchanting and passionate ... Highly recommended.  Read more...
Magpies, November 5, 2011.

A fun-filled guide to language and grammar could inspire a new generation of writers.  Read more...
Sydney Morning Herald, June 26, 2010.

Like an old friend, the charming Word Spy is back once more to extend our knowledge of written and spoken English and entertain us with the fascinating peculiarities of our language.  Read more...
Magpies, May 1, 2010.

An exceptional book of the very highest quality, regardless of genre...  Read more...
Australian Bookseller and Publisher, April 10, 2010.

A deliciously spine-tingling story about an unknown and unreal terror.  Read more...
The Guardian (UK), May 1, 2010.

A toe-tapping rhyming text and cartoon illustrations of personality-rich but uncute animals combine in this Chicken Little variant from Australia.  Read more...
The Horn Book, September 1, 2009.

This forest flourishes in the geography of children's books, because after the rabbits meet their realistic neighbor, a fox, they also meet a monkey, a cat, a pig, an elephant, a tiger and a bat. So it's sort of Noah's Ark on the run.  Read more...
Hartford Courant, August 30, 2009.

A terrific story...rhymes worthy of Dr. Seuss  Read more...
Los Angeles Times, August 23, 2009.

This talented Australian duo builds the suspense to just the right pitch...  Read more...
US Publishers Weekly, July 20, 2009.

Based on a cumulative folktale, this lively story reassures readers that things are not always as scary as they may seem and is guaranteed to see many multiple readings. 'Again!'   Read more...
Kirkus (STARRED REVIEW), July 9, 2009.

A surefire storytime hit...Creative art, a story that bobs and sways with its own internal rhythm, and that hard-to-define spark that makes a title a readaloud whiz. What more could you possibly want out of a picture book?  Read more...
US School Library Journal, June 22, 2009.

Fresh, funny verse.  Read more...
Adelaide Advertiser, March 15, 2009.

A wonderful children's picture book, with lively illustrations and an upbeat story, and it would be perfect for children still slightly too young to read alone, but getting the age when they want to start trying.   Read more...
Manly Daily, March 6, 2009.

This book for the very young (three and up) is perfect for reading out loud. Hilarious, original and energetic...  Read more...
Sunday Age, March 1, 2009.

The Terrible PLOP is an engaging story which parents and teachers are sure to enjoy sharing with pre-schoolers. Candace Cappe  Read more...
Australian Bookseller, March 1, 2009.

Interview: Children's author URSULA DUBOSARSKY worked with ANDREW JOYNER - the illustrator for her latest picture book, The Terrible Plop - at an artists' retreat in Bundanon, near Nowra.  Read more...
Illawarra Mercury, August 30, 2008.

The Word Snoop is a breezy and informative resource for lovers of the English language.  Read more...
Junior Library Guild, August 1, 2009.

I love "The Word Snoop." It's a funny yet scholarly look at the mysterious ways English has evolved.  Read more...
The Sacramento Bee, July 27, 2009.

"The Word Snoop" will appeal to avid readers, writers and those of a curious mind in any age group.  Read more...
Deseret News, July 11, 2009.

Fascinating facts about words and the English language abound in this giddy Australian import, narrated by the exuberant Word Snoop ...  Read more...
Kirkus, June 15, 2009.

The clever approach grants insight into the complexity and beauty of communication and the inherent power of language.   Read more...
Publishers Weekly, June 7, 2009.

Click here to read Ursula's interview on ABC radio's Lingua Franca.  Read more...
June 15, 2008.

Click here to read Ursula's interview on ABC radio's Lingua Franca.  Read more...
June 15, 2009.

The Word Spy is a marvellous exploration of the nuances and richness of English and will make a valuable addition to any child's library.   Read more...
The Age, March 29, 2008.

The book reveals a fascinating world that is open to everyone.  Read more...
The Age, March 22, 2008.

A magic carpet ride through 4000 years of language development, from the earliest form of writing, the wedge-shaped cuneiform tradition of ancient Iraq to the 20th century invention of the internet.  Read more...
Sydney Morning Herald, March 21, 2008.

Highly entertaining and accessible for little readers.   Read more...
Sunday Telegraph, March 9, 2008.

Dubosarsky's friendly authorial voice, playful tone, amusing puzzles and emphasis on empowering the reader make the English language as engaging a topic as it could possibly be for primary and middle school readers.  Read more...
Magpies, February 27, 2008.

It captures the imagination ... if you want to encourage someone to read a book, it would be a great present.   Read more...
The Courier Mail, November 7, 2000.

[A] treasure for the bookshelf where you store those works reserved for times when only a work of humane and 'satisfying' magic will do.  Read more...
Viewpoint, November 1, 2000.

Dubosarsky is a writer who respects the importance of play and adventure in the life of a child and The Game of the Goose is a book of exceptional beauty.  Read more...
The Sunday Age, September 3, 2000.

This story with its symbolism, unsettling, unexpected narrative twists cuts across the current vogue for stories of clever wizardry, magic and clear cut good and evil, to something much more challenging, intangible and questioning.   Read more...
Viewpoint, September 1, 2000.

"Ursula Dubosarsky’s work has, at its heart, that quality belonging to only the greatest writers for children..."  Read more...
October 15, 2012.

This mesmerizing novel sets the fears and joys of childhood against a particular social reality in prose that is intriguing, amusing, and disconcerting to the reader. Dubosarsky is a writer who ought to be better known outside her native country.  Read more...
1001 Children's Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up , January 1, 2009.

Ursula talking to high school students about The Red Shoe and classroom activities.  Read more...
National Reading Day Podcast, September 1, 2008.

In lucid, poetic prose Dubosarsky explores the deep feeling and acute but partial perceptions of children struggling with a world under threat. Utterly luminous.  Read more...
The Toronto Star, July 22, 2007.

This memorable, luminous work is a vital addition to the growing constellation of recent Cold War novels and a stellar read on its own.  Read more...
The Horn Book Magazine, May 1, 2007.

Dubosarsky proves masterful in conjuring and connecting images.  Read more...
Publisher's Weekly, March 26, 2007.

Subtly yet powerfully asserted.  Read more...
The Australian, December 9, 2006.

She is a flawless writer whose mastery of storytelling leaves me breathless.  Read more...
Best Book Choices of the Year, December 1, 2006.

Dubosarsky is a fine writer ... I too grew up in this area and I was overcome with the writer's beautiful recreation of my own world in this lovely part of Sydney.  Read more...
Viewpoint, June 1, 2006.

She's a highly literary writer but she has the genius of being able to write on an utterly plain and simple level. So that's one of the best books I've read in a long time.  Read more...
Radio New Zealand's Saturday Morning with Kim Hill, May 8, 2006.

Fans of Dubosarsky's work will follow her anywhere - down any rabbit hole, not matter how dark or strange - because they trust her outstanding talent as a storyteller. In her hands, the journey is always worth taking.   Read more...
The Age, May 7, 2006.

The writing is so original and vivid that the reader is drawn right into Matilda's world.   Read more...
Magpies, May 1, 2006.

Breathtaking.   Read more...
Junior Bookseller and Publisher, March 1, 2006.

Her characters seethe with life and vitality, inviting the reader into a world which makes the familiar seem marvellous.   Read more...
The Canberra Times, March 1, 2006.

I recommend the book to everyone in this chamber. It is an excellent read and is very amusing, but also poignant and touching at the same time.  Read more...
Hansard, Parliament of Victoria, January 1, 2006.

A thoughtful and poetic account of family life.   Read more...
The Sydney Morning Herald, August 13, 2005.

Subtly backgrounded by the events of 9/11, gently haunted by Elias's Holocaust memories and informed by the children's Jewish education, Theodora's Gift talks of death and destiny...  Read more...
The Adelaide Advertiser, June 18, 2005.

A beautiful book for its quietness, for the elegiac stillness which harmonises perfectly with its emotional clarity.   Read more...
The Canberra Times, May 14, 2005.

The design is energetic, with a naive intensity that perceptively captures a child's world.  Read more...
The Independent, July 21, 2006.

The remarkably expressive crayon drawings are rich with narrative detail.   Read more...
The Guardian, July 8, 2006.

A wonderfully imaginative story.   Read more...
The Guardian, June 17, 2006.

The book is a genuine charmer, not least in the way the illustrations take the basic ideas of the text, and depict them large and colourfully.   Read more...
Sunday Age, October 23, 2005.

Like the best picture books, this will delight littlies and adults alike.   Read more...
South East Advertiser, October 19, 2005.

Ursula Dubosarsky's cunning imagination and David Mackintosh's lively, character-driven drawings engage until the final lingering question: What would Rex get up to if you took him home?   Read more...
The Australian, September 24, 2005.

Feature on 'Rex' at Ferncourt Primary School.  Read more...
Sydney Morning Herald, September 19, 2005.

The book is hilarious and real, intelligent and exciting, with a cast of colourful characters. Highly recommended for children and adults who like to laugh. 5 stars.  Read more...
Good Reading Magazine, May 1, 2005.

In a word: cheeky.  Read more...
Weekend, August 7, 2004.

Significantly presented against the backdrop of A Midsummer Night's Dream Claudie's chatty account of the case, with its helpfully extended vocabulary, thrums with the mischievous joy of Dubosarsky's writing at its best.  Read more...
Gleebooks Gleaner, August 1, 2004.

"un libro molto bello" (...a very beautiful book)  Read more...
August 29, 2011.

A gripping psychological thriller...a beautifully paced novel.  Read more...
The Age, September 6, 2004.

...enriching, uplifting and deeply satisfying.  Read more...
The Canberra Times, September 20, 2003.

Dubosarsky brilliantly evokes the often-shadowy place of childhood but at the core is an intriguing story that will have younger readers asking questions that adults won't be able to answer.  Read more...
The Age, July 12, 2003.

Dubosarsky has written an intriguing work, exploring childhood play, the links between lived events and the world of the mind and the distortions of grief.  Read more...
The Big Issue, June 1, 2003.

Dubosarsky has written a masterful work - a haunting lament for all those lost souls... and for those they leave behind.  Read more...
Magpies, May 1, 2003.

The conjunction of the pathos of lost children with the powerlessness of the young touches the heart...  Read more...
Australian Bookseller and Publisher, May 1, 2003.

The source of much pleasure and laughter, delighting readers young and old with their cleverness, zany humour and the odd poignant moment...They are also perfect books for reading aloud - plenty of scope for silly voices - and also good for classroom discussions.  Read more...
Good Reading, January 1, 2003.

Thank goodness for Ursula Dubosarsky and Mitch Vane, whose The Two Gorillas is at once simple and sophisticated, playful and direct, child-centred and appealing to adults, funny and insightful...To be read again and again.  Read more...
Australian Review of Books, November 1, 2000.

Gentle and reassuring, steady and satisfying, Honey and Bear reveals to the often struggling reader that the process is worthwhile with enjoyment and pleasure being the result.  Read more...
Magpies, September 1, 1998.

Critics and book publicists use words like quirky, witty and eccentric to describe her distinctive voice, but her new book proves that she is also one of the funniest writers around.   Read more...
Australian Book Review, September 1, 1999.

Black Sails, White Sails is a writerly voyage into new territory...  Read more...
Viewpoint, July 1, 1997.

...a sophisticated piece of work that is deceptively simple...[it] would appeal to any age...  Read more...
Sunday Age, April 6, 1997.

All of Dubosarsky's books are threaded through with humour, a humour as distinctive as the characters she creates, cutting through the mundane to a sharper truth.  Read more...
Australian Book Review, March 1, 1997.

Ursula Dubosarsky is a stylish writer who appeals to sophisticated ten-year-olds and over.  Read more...
The Times (UK), July 1, 1996.

In the best traditions of comedy, Dubosarsky pushes every situation and every character to extremes, and the reader goes along happily.  Read more...
Australian Book Review, May 1, 1996.

There are many layers in this richly satisfying and humorous book by an author which deserves wider recognition.  Read more...
The Literary Review (UK), September 1, 1998.

...warm and deeply endearing; I love this remarkable, life-enhancing book.  Read more...
The Sydney Morning Herald, August 10, 1996.

Dubosarsky [writes] with warmth and subtlety.  Read more...
The Sydney Morning Herald, May 6, 1995.

[Grandfather Elias'] story sent tears down my cheeks.  Read more...
South Australian Book Review, May 1, 1995.

Dubosarsky has a Chekhovian deftness in dealing with tragedy.  Read more...
The Sydney Morning Herald, August 12, 1995.

...a wonderful piece of writing that improves on every reading.  Read more...
May 20, 1995.

...a rare and enviable skill.  Read more...
The Economist (UK), November 1, 1994.

...with its lightness and wit, this is a comedy of some depth.  Read more...
The Observer (UK), January 1, 1994.

Dubosarsky's writing conveys a powerful clarity in a work destined to fall into the canon of classic Australian works for children.  Read more...
Magpies, January 1, 1993.

...imaginative, humorous, endearing...  Read more...
School Library Journal (USA), January 1, 1993.

Perfectly balanced to keep readers of ten and upwards turning the pages.  Read more...
The Times (UK), July 25, 1998.

...a fresh, distinctive talent...this is a haunting and beautifully plotted ghost story.  Read more...
Australian Bookseller and Publisher, August 1, 1991.

This is a well-written and most endearing book which (for a change) does justice to the mental sophistication of 12-year olds.  Read more...
Sydney Morning Herald, January 12, 1991.

[Julia's] love for her father and her grandmother, her humorous reflections on life, and the author's very skillful writing, make High Hopes a most entertaining read.  Read more...
Voice of Youth Advocates (USA), January 1, 1991.

A breezy novel with realistic underpinnings that will please fans of contemporary fiction.  Read more...
Horn Book (USA), January 1, 1991.

Maisie and the Pinny Gig, by Ursula Dubosarsky and Robert Landers is an entrancingly illustrated fantasy about a primary school child and the handsome "pinny gig" ("Lovely and fluffy and brown and white with whiskers") that she meets in her dreams.  Read more...
Adelaide Advertiser, November 1, 1989.