1. Courage
2. Culture
3. Family relationships
4. Friendship
5. Health
6. Identity
7. Mental health
8. Music
9. Parent and child
10. Racism
11. Relationship to place
12. Schools
13. Singing
14. Sports

There is trouble from start. Phoebe’s non-Indigenous mother, a busy event manager, and her father, an Aboriginal man and university lecturer, have split up. Phoebe is 17-years-old experiencing the angst and tribulations of a new school, discovering boyfriends and coping with her split family including her alcoholic mother. We quickly sympathise with Phoebe as we experience her every failure and accomplishment. With her mum and dad separated, she divides her time between dad and his girlfriend and her mum. Every day brings a new trial as her alcoholic mum fails Phoebe day after day. Phoebe makes excuses for her mum until several crises compound the situation. An underlying challenge for Phoebe is her determination that others must show respect for Aboriginal heritage.

Phoebe’s story is so well told that readers will experience her mental anguish, including settling into the Rudolph Steiner school with its unfamiliar philosophy, making new friends and possible boyfriends. There is a lot for the reader to experience here with a relentless litany of perhaps unfamiliar experiences including alcoholics’ support groups, physical and mental abuse and trials and failures when facing difficult experiences. Still, readers will feel rapport with Phoebe and cheer her on. The ending is realistic with no easy solution but there is a way forward. The book concludes with resource links to Lifeline, Kids Helpline and Al-Anon Family Groups Australia

The author, Dr Jared Thomas, is a Nukunu person of the Southern Flinders Ranges. He is a William and Margaret Geary Research Fellow, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Material Culture and Art at the South Australian Museum and the University of South Australia, and an Indigenous Literacy Foundation ambassador. ‘My Spare Heart’ is the recipient of many awards including Highly Commended: Best Young Adult, Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards, 2023; longlisted: Best Designed Young Adult Cover, Australian Book Design Awards, 2023, shortlisted: Griffith University Young Adult Book Award, Queensland Literary Awards, 2023.

1. SBS NITV Radio ‘My Spare Heart — new book by First Nations Jared Thomas’. Interview length is 19:36 https://www.sbs.com.au/language/nitv-radio/en/podcast-episode/my-spare-heart-new-book-by-first-nations-storyteller-jared-thomas/8r05xm0fe
2. Loveozya interview with Jared Thomas about ‘My Spare Heart’ https://loveozya.com.au/loveozya-qa-with-jared-thomas-about-my-spare-heart/
3. Issuu 92.4 ‘A Conversation with Dr Jared Thomas’ https://issuu.com/adelaideuniversityunion/docs/issue_91.4/s/25944908
4. Booked Out Speakers Agency Q&A with Jared Thomas https://bookedout.com.au/find-a-speaker/author/jared-thomas/
5. Five Senses Education 24 May 2024 ‘Jared Thomas My Spare Heart’ https://www.fivesenseseducation.com.au/blog/post/my-spare-heart-by-jared-thomas-review-for-teachers?srsltid=AfmBOoq2SN4NhJXLi6WdiBFhpxPB5PoKP7d75dn1aantrDksYkMWcKNK
6. ReadPlus 20 June 2022 review by Helen Eddy of ‘My Spare Heart’ https://www.readplus.com.au/reviews/my-spare-heart
7. Noveltea Corner 31 May 2022 review by Stef of ‘My Spare Heart’ https://novelteacorner.com/2022/05/31/my-spare-heart-by-jared-thomas/
8. Scholastic Teaching Notes https://resource.scholastic.com.au/ResourceFiles/100100661_103545.pdf