All That Impossible Space

All That Impossible Space is an excellent debut from a bright new voice in Australian young adult fiction that will appeal to fans of Ellie Marney and Fleur Ferris.

All That Impossible Space is an excellent debut from a bright new voice in Australian young adult fiction that will appeal to fans of Ellie Marney and Fleur Ferris.

An enthralling debut from a strong new voice on the scene.

An enthralling debut from a strong new voice on the scene.

If I'm being honest, I really didn't know what to expect going into this book. I had never really read any books that were based around crimes - especially not one that existed in real life, so I approached this book with an open mind, hoping that it would be a story that I'd want to keep reading. And you know what? It was. The Somerton Man, a man found on an Adelaide beach. Dead, with a cigarette in his mouth and no labels on his clothes. No one knew where he came from, and no one was able to figure it out either. Like many, Lara Laylor is intrigued by the Somerton Man when she's given the assignment by her new history teacher and soon gets herself caught up in the mystery. While the Somerton Man is at the centre of All That Impossible Space, the most astonishing thing that this book did, for me as a reader, was it's almost entirely accurate depiction of high school for a fifteen year old. It wasn't very long ago that I was a fifteen year old girl at an all girls school, and while Lara and I are entirely different in way more ways than one, I kept finding myself shocked and astounded as I went through this book, thinking finally, finally there's a book out there with a school environment that sounds familiar. All That Impossible Space is relatable, regardless of whether you have a Kate, Ashley or Jos in your life, and that was what had me gripping on to the book for dear life for hours on end. And of course, the book is much more than a girl researching her history assignment. All That Impossible Space tells a really, really important story about the relationships we have with our friends, and learning when to let go. The toxic relationship that exists between Lara and Ashley can be all to common in society, and it is so important that books like All That Impossible Space exist to highlight them. Lara's uncertainty in her friendship with Ashley, and the character development that stems from it is so moving. I couldn't help but finish the book with a sense of pride for her. -Like any good book, All That Impossible Space is filled with twists and turns, not just regarding the mystery of the Somerton Man, but also regarding the mystery that plagues Lara's real life...What happened to Mr Grant and why won't anyone tell her what's going on? It's a question that sits in the back of your mind for the entire book, the confusion getting louder and louder as Lara starts to uncover information about her teacher, So what did happened to Mr Grant? I won't spoil that for you. Overall, a really interesting read. All That Impossible Space was extremely different from any book I had read before, in a very good way. I would recommend these books to 13-16 year old readers who like crime, mystery and real life style, school set books. 4 stars!

The setting is Year 10 in a private girls' school in Melbourne. Lara and Ash have been best friends forever and are looking forward to the school highlight, the Year 10 musical with the boys from St John's. But this is Lara's story, and she is really only auditioning for Ash, Lara really prefers running. Enter a mysterious new history teacher, Mr Grant, whose project on real life mysteries becomes an obsession of Lara's as she delves into the perplexing death of the still unidentified 'Somerton Man' on an Adelaide beach in 1948. A new girl Kate arrives, and clicks with Lara. In addition to her new friendship she also has a growing romance with Jos from St John's. Will these new relationships throw a spanner in her forever subservient friendship with Ash? Lara deals with trying to find her place within her own family, with her friends, and in her potentially inappropriate relationship with Mr Grant. This is a wonderful debut novel, full of teen issues - toxic friendships, family, love and most importantly the discovery of your own identity. A great read that will be best appreciated by girls 14 and older.

This excellent debut novel, which raises interesting and believable relationship concerns affecting both teenagers and adults, is set in Melbourne but comes to a dramatic climax on Somerton Beach.