Young Adult

Between Us

Between Us

  • Downloads：9533
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-09-09 11:20:57
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Clare Atkins
  • ISBN：1867583100
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle

Reviews

Nikki ，

This book had my heart hurting too much。

Emma ，

A sweet and poignant story。 Definitely an English teacher's book， with references to The Simple Gift， shifts in form and multiple perspectives。 Lots to talk about with a class！ A sweet and poignant story。 Definitely an English teacher's book， with references to The Simple Gift， shifts in form and multiple perspectives。 Lots to talk about with a class！ 。。。more

Sophia ，

3。5

Minji Kim ，

Made me think a lot。 I also want to check out other books of hers

Rachelf ，

A must read for sure。。。。

Thanh ，

read like 3/4 of it， trying to click with the story， but just didn't happen。 decided to read the last few pages and was kind of 。。 disappointed？ the author probably had some significant reason to have ended it the way she did， （which i didn't get a chance to find out because i dnf-ed it）， but the ending was not the happy ending i expected！ read like 3/4 of it， trying to click with the story， but just didn't happen。 decided to read the last few pages and was kind of 。。 disappointed？ the author probably had some significant reason to have ended it the way she did， （which i didn't get a chance to find out because i dnf-ed it）， but the ending was not the happy ending i expected！ 。。。more

Laura Tenfingers ，

This was so good， it was awful。 Left me devastated。 When I started this book I thought， it's YA， I know about the horrors of the detention centres， it's YA。 Well， I wasn't grown-up enough or informed enough to properly brace myself for this。 There were so many layers of meaning and experience。 Layers of immigration experiences and Australian experiences。 And the disastrous situation that are the detention centres。 And all of it heartbreaking and despairing。 It left me with a hole in my gut。 Defi This was so good， it was awful。 Left me devastated。 When I started this book I thought， it's YA， I know about the horrors of the detention centres， it's YA。 Well， I wasn't grown-up enough or informed enough to properly brace myself for this。 There were so many layers of meaning and experience。 Layers of immigration experiences and Australian experiences。 And the disastrous situation that are the detention centres。 And all of it heartbreaking and despairing。 It left me with a hole in my gut。 Definitely recommend。 。。。more

Amy Blythe ，

This was brilliant， and slightly broke me。 Fascinating， moving， beautiful。

Jo Morris ，

Between Us by Claire  Atkins  （ YA） A powerful story of the inhumane and cruel treatment of asylum seekers in this country。The novel gives an insight into the painful and traumatic experiences into asylum seekers: a toddler terrified of glow in the dark stars because it reminds him of the terrifying refugee boat trip。 People so deeply scared by the war torn countries they’ve let， only to be dehumanised  and subjected to further trauma here。A disturbing reminder of how people have the capacity to Between Us by Claire  Atkins  （ YA） A powerful story of the inhumane and cruel treatment of asylum seekers in this country。The novel gives an insight into the painful and traumatic experiences into asylum seekers: a toddler terrified of glow in the dark stars because it reminds him of the terrifying refugee boat trip。 People so deeply scared by the war torn countries they’ve let， only to be dehumanised  and subjected to further trauma here。A disturbing reminder of how people have the capacity to be so very cruel， to enjoy exerting control and power over others ， to believe the very worst of others， even those who these have been refugees。 Harsh judgement are made upon the most vulnerable of people， “they who can’t be trusted， and are so different from us "and it is no wonder at all that there are ‘ tears of devastations’ from the poor souls held there。 We are shown how given the very worst of people and environments （ the detention centre and staff）， good people can become the very worst  version of themselves。A shameful indictment on this country and all it should mean to be human， it sickens the soul。A powerful read， highly recommended。 。。。more

Trigger Warning Database ，

Trigger & Content Warnings:Racial slursSelf-harmDrug and alcohol abusePhysical assaultConfinement

Anna Davidson ，

A gorgeous YA novel that has been on my to read list for quite some time。 I really enjoyed the multiple perspectives， the poetry components and the touching teenage love story at the centre of the novel’s exploration of issue of refugees in Australian detention centres。

Montannah ，

The ending just killed me😭

Susannah Brown ，

Important Australian storytelling。 A beautiful and heartbreaking story of friendship between Anahita， an Iranian asylum seeker in onshore detention， and Jono， a troubled teen dealing with his own personal challenges。 Couldn't put it down！Young adult fiction。 Important Australian storytelling。 A beautiful and heartbreaking story of friendship between Anahita， an Iranian asylum seeker in onshore detention， and Jono， a troubled teen dealing with his own personal challenges。 Couldn't put it down！Young adult fiction。 。。。more

Emma Pei Ying ，

One of the best YA novels I've read in a long time。 Clare manages to put forward her ideas and meanings fluidly through the speech of the characters。 Very little description is given to the place， but so much is given through the views of the three main characters - you see， feel and hear everything from their POV。 Great and easy read。 Something I continuously recommend to my friends of all ages。 One of the best YA novels I've read in a long time。 Clare manages to put forward her ideas and meanings fluidly through the speech of the characters。 Very little description is given to the place， but so much is given through the views of the three main characters - you see， feel and hear everything from their POV。 Great and easy read。 Something I continuously recommend to my friends of all ages。 。。。more

Tien ，

Wow - my heart just hurts so bad。。。There are 3 perspectives and at times， some are told in verse and these are just the more powerful especially as they are usually in portrayal of pain; heartbreaks， loneliness， suffering， anything & everything！ They are Anahita （a teen girl in detention centre prison）， Jono （a teen boy with mixed parentage）， and Kenny （Jono's father， a Vietnamese immigrant， who works security at above mentioned facility）。 Each are carrying their own pain。 Each are， or aren't， m Wow - my heart just hurts so bad。。。There are 3 perspectives and at times， some are told in verse and these are just the more powerful especially as they are usually in portrayal of pain; heartbreaks， loneliness， suffering， anything & everything！ They are Anahita （a teen girl in detention centre prison）， Jono （a teen boy with mixed parentage）， and Kenny （Jono's father， a Vietnamese immigrant， who works security at above mentioned facility）。 Each are carrying their own pain。 Each are， or aren't， managing their pain。 Somehow， their paths crossed and an imaginary line that shouldn't even be there is crossed。 Will this destroy them or can they see their way through to a better place？This is a novel that there is no way I could have read in one sitting because it was just really painful。 And yet at the same time， I needed to get to the end just to know how it ends （I couldn't suppress my hope for a positive ending）。 Full kudos to the author because I really could feel the pain of everyone in this novel。 Let's just say it's a realistic ending so I'm sort of okay。 。。。more

Susan ，

The third book from The Children's Book Council of Australia 2019 shortlist for YA， Between Us shares the story of Anahita， a young Iranian asylum seeker who has arrived by boat and is now in detention。 Only allowed out of the barbed-wire surrounded Point Wickham Detention Centre to attend high school， she meets Jono， a Vietnamese-Australian kid who is struggling to come to terms with parents' divorce。 The two each have first-person POV chapters， as does Kenny， Jono's dad， who works as a detenti The third book from The Children's Book Council of Australia 2019 shortlist for YA， Between Us shares the story of Anahita， a young Iranian asylum seeker who has arrived by boat and is now in detention。 Only allowed out of the barbed-wire surrounded Point Wickham Detention Centre to attend high school， she meets Jono， a Vietnamese-Australian kid who is struggling to come to terms with parents' divorce。 The two each have first-person POV chapters， as does Kenny， Jono's dad， who works as a detention officer， meets Anahita tangentially， and has a key role in the events that unfold。 The story is intense and compelling。 。。。more

Anna Azarenko ，

Poor reading

Melanie Monaghan ，

I loved this book although the end was terribly sad。 A realistic， authentic story about asylum seekers。

Rosie ，

The world's a damn horrible place。 The world's a damn horrible place。 。。。more

Willale1 ，

this book was Awesome but i wish that Jono and Ana stayed together

Julie ，

"Between Us is the story of two teenagers - Jono and Anahita - falling in love for the first time。 There's just one thing standing between them: twenty kilometres of barbed wire fence。 Anahita lives in the Wickham Point Immigration Detention Centre， where asylum seekers are detained while they wait to be 'processed' by the Australian government。The book constantly moves from the perspective of Jono， Anahita and his dad， Kenny; although， this is not confusing。 Kenny works as a guard at the detent "Between Us is the story of two teenagers - Jono and Anahita - falling in love for the first time。 There's just one thing standing between them: twenty kilometres of barbed wire fence。 Anahita lives in the Wickham Point Immigration Detention Centre， where asylum seekers are detained while they wait to be 'processed' by the Australian government。The book constantly moves from the perspective of Jono， Anahita and his dad， Kenny; although， this is not confusing。 Kenny works as a guard at the detention centre and he foolishly says that Anahita should look out for his son。 When he realises that there is a blooming friendship， he tries to stop it and warns Jono that these people always want something （even though he was a Vietnamese boat person）。 Basically， there is a very dysfunctional relationship between Jono and his dad; although， his aunt is warm， cooks lovely meals and is supportive。 His mother and sister left home the year before。The two teenagers meet at Darwin High School。 Anahita travels from Wickham Point to school each day， passing through metal detectors， checkpoints and enduring multiple roll calls on the detention centre bus。 Jono has no idea about any of this。 All he knows is that there's a beautiful new girl with dark eyes， who keeps looking over in his direction 。。。 is it possible she likes him？Between Us is a playful and bittersweet novel about starting a new romance with someone whose life circumstances are miles from yours。 Music initially brings them together and Jono shares a lot of his music with Anahita on his iPod。 Jono is athletic， musical and self-assured。 He sees himself as 100% Australian， despite his Vietnamese heritage。 He's had girls keen on him before and hasn't been interested 。。。 but Anahita is different。 He doesn't know that she lives in a three by three metre room with her mother （heavily pregnant and depressed） and shares a bunk bed with her younger brother。 He doesn't know that she has to participate in activities to earn credits to buy a phone card to call him for half an hour。 Or that she's allocated an hour of internet time a day， with guards patrolling behind her to make sure she's only doing homework。 And she doesn't want to tell him either。 She wants to try to maintain the feeling of having something special， something secret， between them。 It's one area of her life in which she can pretend to be relatively normal 。。。 but for how long？During a riot， Anahita gets badly hurt by Kenny and after this， Anahita wants nothing to do with Jono。 Anahita and her family are also dispatched to Nauru。 https://avidreader。com。au/products/be。。。 。。。more

Cat Colwell ，

Amazing。 This was heartbreaking but also heartwarming。 I will be recommending this widely。

Judy Wollin ，

Ana lives in a refugee camp outside Darwin。 She catches a bus to the local high-school。 On her way out a guard suggests she say hi to Jonathan。 Jonathan writes poetry。 He lives at home with Mum ad Dad。 Ana attends the intensive English section of the school and attends some mainstream classes。 Jonathan is in Year 10。Ana is brave， strong and curious。 She seeks out Jonathan。 Jonathan notices the new girl with dark eyes and a scarf。Life in the refugee camp is harsh – jail-like。 Some guards are conf Ana lives in a refugee camp outside Darwin。 She catches a bus to the local high-school。 On her way out a guard suggests she say hi to Jonathan。 Jonathan writes poetry。 He lives at home with Mum ad Dad。 Ana attends the intensive English section of the school and attends some mainstream classes。 Jonathan is in Year 10。Ana is brave， strong and curious。 She seeks out Jonathan。 Jonathan notices the new girl with dark eyes and a scarf。Life in the refugee camp is harsh – jail-like。 Some guards are conflicted if they are friendly， they feel they’ll be taken advantage of – that’s the whisper。 Compassionate guards don’t last。 Kenny wants to be compassionate。 Kenny wants to keep his job。 Jonathan wants to get to know the new girl Ana。 She’s shy。 He’s nervous。 There are rules – whispered – not written about being friendly to people from ‘out there。’Ana is criticised by her friends for being friendly to a boy so different。 Not her religion。 Australian。 Is he trustworthy？ Will it lead to trouble？ Better to stay unnoticed。Jonathan is teased by his friends for having anything to do with Ana。 Jonathan realises that his father， a guard at the refugee camp， is one of the people making Ana’s life so tough。 They fight。How long with Ana and her family be in the refugee camp？ People vanish every day。 Visa not granted。 How do Ana and Jonathan navigate the complexities of their lives for friendship？I loved the easy flow of the story and the multiple voices。 The different perspectives of the issues addressed in the book adds depth and clarity。 A must read。Highly Recommended for 13+ 。。。more

Kesta Fleming ，

I concur with Fiona Wood’s comment on the front cover: ‘I want everyone to read this book right now。’，（particularly Australians）。 It’s an important one。

Neon ，

This book was so powerful and really had so much meaning on what people can go through when they do basically nothing wrong when they come to AustraliaEveryone must read this right now and really think about the message in this book

Peta ，

This was an excellent read。 I have been watching the series Statelss at the time of reading this novel about asylum seekers which gave it another dimension。 A great one for the kids to read

M ，

Handles a complex issues with sensitivity。 Definitely worth a read。

Linda Weeks ，

Set in an actual detention centre， Wickham Point （now closed）， ‘Between Us’ addresses the difficulties and misunderstandings which exist around many asylum seekers。 In his naivety， Jono occasionally upsets Ana with his insensitive comments and actions， but he does try。 Ana is caught between two worlds， with some freedoms at school that she has not experienced for a while， though her family’s refugee status is never far from her mind。Complete review at: https://crewsreviews。edublogs。org/202。。。 Set in an actual detention centre， Wickham Point （now closed）， ‘Between Us’ addresses the difficulties and misunderstandings which exist around many asylum seekers。 In his naivety， Jono occasionally upsets Ana with his insensitive comments and actions， but he does try。 Ana is caught between two worlds， with some freedoms at school that she has not experienced for a while， though her family’s refugee status is never far from her mind。Complete review at: https://crewsreviews。edublogs。org/202。。。 。。。more

Graeme Cash ，

Ana （Anahita） is a fifteen-year-old Iranian asylum seeker who attends high school in Darwin， Australia。 At the end of each school days she returns to Wickham Point Detention Centre， where she is being held with her three-year-old brother and pregnant mother。At school Ana meets Jono， a sixteen-year-old half Australian， half Vietnamese boy， whose father Kenny is a guard at the detention centre。 Kenny born in Vietnam， was sponsored out to Australia by his older sister， who was one of the first Viet Ana （Anahita） is a fifteen-year-old Iranian asylum seeker who attends high school in Darwin， Australia。 At the end of each school days she returns to Wickham Point Detention Centre， where she is being held with her three-year-old brother and pregnant mother。At school Ana meets Jono， a sixteen-year-old half Australian， half Vietnamese boy， whose father Kenny is a guard at the detention centre。 Kenny born in Vietnam， was sponsored out to Australia by his older sister， who was one of the first Vietnamese refugees to settle in Australia。Jono is struggling to find his place in the world after his mother walked out， his girlfriend dumped him， and his sister left for university。 The relationship with his father strained。Atkins similar to Jono had an Australian mother and a Vietnamese father， so grew up living between two cultures。The novel is told from the points of view of Ana， Jono and Kenny， each alternating chapters as narrator。 Jono’s opening chapters are written in verse， often with one word per line， until he meets Ana。 Kenny’s adult voice added a fresh perspective to what would otherwise have been a girl-boy narration。Between Us is an insightful and complex exploration of the refugee situation in Australia。 。。。more

Jan Miller ，

Young adult fiction but also a fantastic read for every age。 It explores the “illegal immigrant “ situation from so many angles but unfortunately doesn’t leave us with any positive feelings about the future of these people or Australia’s treatment of them。