AustLit

'A gentle and humorous fable about a tiny monster who causes enormous trouble in one village. The story pits the small village, with its stream and forest and fields, against human greed, carefully stirred into the minds of the hapless villagers by the attention-seeking Wanting Monster. The villagers realize that their emergent competitiveness and acquisitiveness has ruined the life and beauty of their village, just as the Wanting Monster, now expelled from the village, realizes the value of befriending.' (Publication summary)

'Then she saw that the old windmill straddled a hole. It was square and lined with wood, and fixed to one side was a wooden ladder whose first steps had almost rotted away. And from its depths came a chill breath of endless darkness.

'IN a small country town during one long, hot summer, the Bloom family begins to unravel. Secrets, old and new, are revealed—with devastating effect.

'Martha is straining against the confines of her life, lost in regret for what might have been. Her husband, Mike, is frustrated with his increasingly distant wife. And while teenagers Tilly and Ben are about to step out into the world, nine-year-old Ada is holding on to a childhood that will soon be lost to her.

'When Ada discovers an abandoned mineshaft beneath a rusting windmill, she is drawn to its darkness and danger. And when she witnesses a shocking and confusing event, the mine looms large in her mind—as events lead inexorably towards tragedy.

'The Last Summer of Ada Bloom is a beguiling story about the fragility of family relationships, about the secrets we keep and the power they hold to shape our lives.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Hello everybody, it's me. Henrietta the Great Go-Getter, and I'm having a big think. Right now I'm thinking I'd like a baby sister, so I can dress her up in different sorts of hats. But Mum says we'll have to wait and see. I'm terrible at waiting...Meanwhile, I'm an explorer of life, and that includes trees, bugs, animals and all mysteries. I'm going to school for the very first time, which means I might have to go as a spy so that I can have a secret peep inside.....When Henrietta sees Olive Higgie crying in the classroom, she goes on a rescue mission and finds that you only need one friend in a room full of strangers to feel perfectly happy...Henrietta's stories are full of funny thoughts and discoveries, and maybe the best are the ones that take a long time to come.' (Publication summary)

'Hello everybody, it's me, Henrietta P. Hoppenbeek the First (future Queen of the Wide Wide Long Cool Coast of the Lost Socks). I have a baby brother, two white mice, a chocolate-coloured dog, a woolly mammoth, and two long green socks with toes. My best friend is Olive Higgie and we've got an EMERGENCY DILEMMA to attend to. We absolutely have to find a home for the Rietta because it's lost and sad and its spots are fading.'..With an imagination like Henrietta's, adventures are closer than her front doorstep. Three books together in one! Henrietta there's no one better, Henrietta the great go-getter and Henrietta gets a letter.' (Publication summary)

'There’s a hill out the back of Joey’s house. Hardly anyone goes there—it’s not a beautiful place, just a covered-over old rubbish tip. But Joey likes it up there. It’s his hill—somewhere he likes to go to wonder about life. He longs to be the best at something, to be a famous astronaut, or mountain climber, to stand out.

'When Joey discovers a tree house in an old peppercorn tree on the hill, he is annoyed that someone has invaded his special place. But he is also curious about who the intruder could be. But making contact isn’t easy. The tree-house girl is wild and hostile and full of secrets—Joey needs to work out a way to win her over. And as he does, he finds a way to shine.

'Marsh and Me is a story about friendship and trust and learning to believe in yourself and what makes you special. Martine Murray’s beautifully rounded characters, with all their self-doubts, yearnings and wise insights, will delight readers young and old.'

'Molly has a strange life. Her mama collects herbs at dawn and makes potions, her father and brothers have gone away, and her house feels like a gyspy caravan.

'Molly doesn’t want to know anything about herbs and potions. She wishes she could be more like her best friend, Ellen, who has a normal family and a normal house. But she is also secretly interested in Pim, who is inquisitive and odd and a little bit frightening.

'When Molly’s mama makes a potion that has a wild and shocking effect, Molly and Pim look for a way to make things right, and Molly discovers the magic and value of her own unusual life.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'The third fabulous Henrietta story. When Henrietta sets a trap for 'something' under her bed, she finds a teeny tiny person with wings. It's Mabel May Hissop, a fairy with boyfriend trouble. With Mabel's special silver key and an invitation to the Big Bunch of Small Creatures Ball, Henrietta opens the door to a very sparkly adventure. ' (Publication summary)

'Hello everybody, it's me, Henrietta (future Queen of the Wide Wide Long Cool Coast of the Lost Socks), and my brother Albert, who dribbles and dribbles (but he can't help it), and my best friend Olive Higgie (who has been known to eat pickles). And we've got an EMERGENCY DILEMMA to attend to. We absolutely have to find a home for the Rietta because it's lost and its spots are fading. '(Publication summary)

'I'm Henrietta P. Hoppenbeek the First. I have a baby brother, two white mice, a chocolate-coloured dog, a woolly mammoth, two long green socks with toes, one pickle-eating best friend, a bathtub for sailing in, and definitely a huge HUGE amount of discoveries to discover... And if anyone tells you I make things up, you better believe it.

'Henrietta's books are full of funny thoughts and adventures. They're perfect for young children and anyone else with a curly imagination.

'Henrietta there's no one better

'Henrietta the great go-getter

'Henrietta gets a letter' (Publication summary)

'I'm not a bad person. I've simply come out of left field. I'm a stray and, anyway, whatever I am, I'm not it yet. I'm still becoming. In fact, I'd always believed that I was once a horse, because I loved to run down a hill. And Eddie was a fish. He was a swaggerer, if you know what I mean. Flimsy but loveable.

'Mannie is searching for the thing she doesn't yet know, but it's like a runaway kite pulling her heart forward. So she's leaving home. She's heading for the city with nothing but a long red dress, a strong hunch, and an unknown address in her pocket. As the day turns to night, Mannie makes a lot of discoveries and not exactly the ones she planned to make.

'With rare sensitivity, wisdom and humour, and a voice that's entirely her own, Martine Murray tells a bittersweet story about longing and losing and finding again.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.