Books about religious exploration somehow fascinate me, so much so that I went ahead to request Leap of Faith from the public library's repository. Older books that are out of print or for which there are only a copy left are usually pulled from the shelves and kept at the repository. Library users who wish to borrow these books need to pay a small fee to reserve them, so that they can pick them up from their nearest library. I must say, I'm glad I specifically requested this book.

Leap of Faith was entertaining, to say the least. Those who grew up in a church will take so many things for granted. Those who didn't though, will be extremely lost in a church. Abigail, who grew up in a family that didn't care much for religion, had no idea what the church stands for or who God is. Forced to attend a Catholic school in sixth grade, Abigail is also forced to take part in religious class and to attend school Mass every week. Needless to say, the first time she attends Mass, she has no idea what the expected conduct is, and asks countless questions, much to the chagrin of her teacher.

The characters have depth and continually grow throughout the book. Abigail clearly gains greater maturity, as does Chris, who becomes a very good friend to her. Aside from religion, drama also becomes an integral part in Abigail's life. While she has no real interest in it at the beginning, she eventually becomes very passionate about it, which shines right through the pages. Abigail is someone who even at the age of 13 has a strong outlook on life and is very self-assured. Once in a while that translates into stubbornness but who isn't stubborn as child, especially towards their parents?

Ultimately, Leap of Faith is a book that explores faith, beliefs and pursuing one's passion. It's the kind of book I wish I had discovered when it when it was first published and I was still 16. Nonetheless, I enjoyed it tremendously even today and would recommend it especially to younger readers.

This review is also available at dudettereads.com.

Earlier in January DeepBlue had an amazing week at the YoungBlue SummerSchool. We worked with young musicians from across the country at Trinity Lutheran College at the Gold Coast. Their performance “The rise of the Siribots” not only had incredible music and physical performance, but included electronic string improvisations and flashing iphones attached innovatively to violins and cellos! We couldn’t have done it without our sponsors Trinity Lutheran College and QUT, and a massive thank you to the Australian Society of Performing Arts Health Care & Skeletal Harmonics, Sally Thibault and Music Lab. And of course all the mums and dads out there supporting their young musicians!

SummerSchool at the beach

DeepBlue are very excited to announce our SummerSchool program will be hitting the Gold Coast in January 2013!

Held this year at Trinity Lutheran College's Ashmore Rd Campus, this five day creative learning adventure will run from the 7th - 11th of January 8:30am - 4:00pm.

Applications are open for string and rock/electronic students going into grade 5 at school and above.

DeepBlue’s new show India Stories premieres at Woodford on 27th and 28th December. It’s about our time in India and tells the stories of the young musicians of Dharavi, Mumbai’s largest slum where this creative collaboration began.

Also come to our New Year’s Eve gig for some of DeepBlue’s favourite party tunes.

Check out DeepBlue’s Facebook page to see photos of our 2013 tour of Delhi, Ahmedabad and Mumbai. The tour, which was a great mix of concerts and workshops, was kindly supported by QUT and DFAT.

We thought we should show you some of our inspiration for our India Stories show at Woodford Folk Festival this year!! In 2012 DeepBlue performed in Delhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad.

DeepBlue were invited to perform in OzFest (Which is the biggest Australian cultural festival ever staged in India) and supported by their sponsors Queensland University of Technology (QUT).

The tour involved a series of performances and workshops at BlueFROG venues across India, the National Institute of Design, Private and corporate shows and workshops at schools and with kids from the Dharvi Rocks program in the Mumbai slums.

We were so inspired by our trip that we have developed a festival show called "India Stories" which we will be premiering at Woodford Folk Festival with a sand artist from Mumbai called Siddhi Yadav. Visit the website. 

Earlier in January DeepBlue had an amazing week at the YoungBlue SummerSchool. We worked with young musicians from across the country at Trinity Lutheran College at the Gold Coast. Their performance “The rise of the Siribots” not only had incredible music and physical performance, but included electronic string improvisations and flashing iphones attached innovatively to violins and cellos! We couldn’t have done it without our sponsors Trinity Lutheran College and QUT, and a massive thank you to the Australian Society of Performing Arts Health Care & Skeletal Harmonics, Sally Thibault and Music Lab. And of course all the mums and dads out there supporting their young musicians!

SummerSchool at the beach

DeepBlue are very excited to announce our SummerSchool program will be hitting the Gold Coast in January 2013!

Held this year at Trinity Lutheran College's Ashmore Rd Campus, this five day creative learning adventure will run from the 7th - 11th of January 8:30am - 4:00pm.

Applications are open for string and rock/electronic students going into grade 5 at school and above.

Unlike the traditional orchestra, deepblue celebrates its people and their individual personalities, attitudes and skills. We believe that it’s crucial in any performance for the performers to communicate and connect with the audience and take the journey together.

DeepBlue people are passionate people who want to make a difference and want every member of the audience to have an unforgettable experience.

Hundreds of people and dozens of organizations from all over the world have contributed to the deepblue vision and it is this vast sea of ideas that the deepblue orchestra has been developed from. See it here.