Detention

· Penguin Group Australia
5.0
1 review
Ebook
240
Pages
Eligible
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About this ebook

"Australian author Tristan Bancks has created a fictional but thoroughly researched, fast paced, suspenseful and ultimately hopeful story." - Better Reading
Sima and her family are pressed to the rough, cold ground among fifty others. They lie next to the tall fence designed to keep them in. The wires are cut one by one.

When they make their escape, a guard raises the alarm. Shouting, smoke bombs, people tackled to the ground. In the chaos Sima loses her parents.

Dad told her to run, so she does, hiding in a school and triggering a lockdown. A boy, Dan, finds her hiding in the toilet block.

What should he do? Help her? Dob her in? She's breaking the law, but is it right to lock kids up? And if he helps, should Sima trust him? Or run?

THIS MOMENT, THESE DECISIONS, WILL CHANGE THE COURSE OF THEIR LIVES.

*CBCA Book of the Year Awards - Notable Book 2020*
*NSW Premier's Literary Awards - Shortlisted 2020*
*ABIA Book of the Year for Older Children - Shortlisted 2020*
*YABBA Children's Choice Awards Fiction for Years 7-9 - Shortlisted 2020*
*Queensland Literary Awards Griffith University Children's Book Award - Shortlisted 2020*
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"A raw and authentic exploration of human connection ... gripping, insightful and compassionate." Megan Daley, Children's Books Daily

"This is a little book that packs a big punch!" Bronwyn Eley, Booktopia

"As a piece of literature, this is exceptional. As a narrative about the hearts and minds of Australians in 2019, it is a masterpiece." Others Magazine

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Also by Tristan Bancks:

Scar Town
Two Wolves
The Fall
Detention
Cop and Robber
Ginger Meggs
Nit Boy

Mac Slater 1: Coolhunter
Mac Slater 2: Imaginator

Tom Weekly 1: My Life and Other Stuff I Made Up
Tom Weekly 2: My Life and Other Stuff That Went Wrong
Tom Weekly 3: My Life and Other Massive Mistakes
Tom Weekly 4: My Life and Other Exploding Chickens
Tom Weekly 5: My Life and Other Weaponised Muffins
Tom Weekly 6: My Life and Other Failed Experiments

Ratings and reviews

5.0
1 review
Logan
September 26, 2025
had to read it for school
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About the author

Tristan Bancks tells stories for the page and screen. His books for kids and teens include Two Wolves, The Fall, Detention, Cop & Robber, Ginger Meggs, the Tom Weekly series and, most recently, Scar Town, a suspense-thriller that won the Children’s Book Council of Australia’s Book of the Year for Younger Readers. His other awards and shortlistings include a CBCA Honour Book, the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards and the YABBA children’s choice book awards. His next book for readers age 10+ is Raised By Wolves, out May 2026.
Tristan is an author-advocate for literacy non-profit Room to Read. He is currently working with producers to develop a number of his books for the stage and screen. He’s excited by the future of storytelling and inspiring others to create. You can find out more about Tristan’s books, play games, watch videos, join his Young Writer’s StorySchool and help him try to change the world here at tristanbancks.com

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