A story about growing up in the Australian bush in the 1930s
Edie dreams of being the champion runner at the inter-school sports. Perhaps then the other children will like her. But her hopes are dashed when the big day doesn’t go to plan. A few days later, there is a wild storm and a giant tree topples down, crashing into the little bush schoolhouse and trapping everyone inside.
Their teacher is injured. What can they do?
Only Edie is small enough to climb through the window and run for help. Can she brave the storm and be a true champion?
A warm-hearted story about family connections
A pearl button from Mama’s wedding glove starts Angelina’s yesterday collection. Soon everyone in her big multicultural family has a memory to share and a special keepsake to give her.
“What will you do with them?” asks Mama.
A school dress-up parade for Pioneers Day gives Angelina a wonderful idea of what to do with her yesterday things.
A story about letting go of limiting expectations and opening up to ‘can’ rather than ‘can’t.’
It’s been four years since the Dark Days when Chloe lost her mum to cancer. Nana’s been wonderful but it’s time their family had a mum person. Chloe is excited at the news that Dad is bringing home a special friend to meet the family. She might be just the mum person they need. But when they arrive, Chloe knows immediately that Fern is wrong for the job. She’s in a wheelchair so can’t skate to the shop, turn cartwheels on the lawn or race along the seashore. Chloe will have to be good at being bad to stop her joining their family.
The humorous plot turns the tables on toddler taming, with the protagonist totally flabbergasted by his parents’ bad behaviour. But the sinister Vish adds another dimension and the mystery totally drew me in. Strap yourself in for a funny, fast paced adventure, full of twists and turns and dripping with suspense. An easy-to-read junior novel, recommended for primary aged students.
Teena Raffa-Mulligan has explained the process of writing perfectly for young children and made it seem enticingly simple and exciting, inviting children to use their imaginations to embark on a writing adventure. I like that children can pick up this book and follow the instructions on their own. Each step is clearly explained with examples of questions writers ask themselves to move their stories along. It is also a useful tool for parents and teachers who wish to support children as writers, providing them with words to use and steps to follow.
[A] delicate and sensitive story that gives young readers a solid understanding of this higher being that is God, and without any kind of religious preaching. Raffa-Mulligan certainly leaves her young audience with a heart-warming sense that having belief, hope and trust, loving and being loved transcend above any unanswered questions, for family and caring for our planet and everyone and everything in it are most important of all.
This delightful story is full of humour and sentiment. Travelling amongst the Australian bushland with the main character Koala, the reader is taken on a journey packed full of fun and mishaps. Each page links to the main theme of friendship, but also includes instances of acceptance, caring and sharing with others. Good times, hard times are represented in Friends, which is an accurate reflection of life and a valuable lesson for young children to learn.
Teena Raffa-Mulligan is a master at creating fun and quirky chapter books for early readers and Ben Bumblefoot is no exception. [It] is a humorous early chapter book about friendship and finding your place. Young readers will both laugh with, and at, poor Ben in his quest.
Matthew’s top tip for aspiring authors: Write every day and get to know the landscape where your writing might be placed. Matthew Hooper is a writer, visual artist and teacher of creative writing who has worked as a novel assessor and mentor. He studied a BA in Fine Art at RMIT, then a Post Graduate … Continue reading Meet the Author: Matthew Hooper
Acquire the tools of writing. It’s a craft like anything else. Without craft you can’t produce writing that is smooth and consistent. And from those things comes your own style. -Stephen Downes Stephen Downes’s debut novel The Hands of Pianists was shortlisted for the 2022 Australian Prime Minister’s Literary Awards. Judges described it as ‘extraordinary’. … Continue reading Meet the Author – Stephen Downes
Lisa’s top tip for aspiring authors? Don’t be in such a hurry to get published that you send your work out too early. Let your story sit, begin a new project, get feedback from people whose opinions you trust, return to it with an analytical eye, then repeat. When you finally get a yes, it … Continue reading Meet the Author: Lisa Kenway
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