Search results for ""Old Barn Books""

The final part of a series which started with 'A Different Dog', followed by 'A Different Boy', published by Old Barn Books in August 2018. 'A Different Land' continues to explore themes of family and displacement as our narrator seeks to find a home. Told with Paul Jennings empathy and gentle humour - and there is bound to be a twist in the tale!

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A coming of age story, a love story, an earthquake story and a story of finding your way back from grief.Eddy Smallbone (orphan) is grappling with identity, love, loss and religion. It''s two years since he blew up his school life and the earthquakes felled his city. Home life is maddening. His pet-minding job is expanding in peculiar directions. And now the past and the future have come calling in unexpected form. As Eddy navigates his way through the Christchurch suburbs to Christmas, juggling competing responsibilities and an increasingly noisy interior world, he moves closer and closer to an overdue personal reckoning.Eddy, Eddy is a richly layered novel, written with humour and pathos: a love story, peopled with flawed and comical characters, both human and animal; and a story of grief, the way its punch may leave you floundering - and how others can help you find your way back.

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In the dark days of war, a group of soldiers far from home come across an orphaned bear cub. They adopt him and hide him in their tents, feeding him with their rations - until he is too big to ignore! When they are told he cannot travel with them, they grant him an officer's commission. Private Wojtek finds himself helping to carry armaments at the fierce Battle of Monte Cassino. After the war, unable to return to their homeland, the band of soldiers arrive in Edinburgh, Scotland. Peter, Wojtek's substitute parent, has no idea where his own family, forced out of their home, can be. There is a happy ending, however, as Peter is reunited with his family in Scotland - and Wojtek finds a new home in Edinburgh zoo. A statue of Wojtek stands in Princes Street Gardens in Edinburgh in memory of the brave bear and his fellow soldiers.

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From the multi award-winning Australian author of How to Bee and The Dog Runner, another original and heartfelt middle-grade fiction adventure, exploring themes of loyalty, resilience, courage and the environment. Neoma and Jag and their small community are 'living gentle lives' on high ground surrounded by the risen sea that has caused widespread devastation. When strangers from the Valley of the Sun arrive unannounced, the friends find themselves drawn into a web of secrecy and lies that endangers their whole way of life. Soon, daring, loyal Neoma must set off on a solo mission across the risen sea, determined to rescue her best friend and find the truth that will save her village.

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The child narrator of A Different Dog can't speak - we assume it is from a disability or a reaction to a trauma in his past. He is teased by the other kids and is a loner. On a cold winter's day, when everyone is participating in a fun run on the mountain, our narrator finds himself alone at the scene of a car accident where the driver has died. But there is a little dog in the car... What follows is a moving story of survival and redemption (and somehow humour in the midst of all that), all told in a 96-page novella.

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A non-fiction picture book. How do animals sleep? Some alone, some in packs, some upside-down, some in the daytime...Kate Prendergast takes a close look at the sleeping habits of a wide range of animals, birds and fish. Includes meerkats, bats, horses and dogs - and who knew that fish slept with their eyes open? A first information book, illustrated with beautiful close-ups of the animals featured, the book ends with a question - do animals dream? and four pages of curious animal facts.

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Over 200 original photographs illustrate more than 100 vintage cameras and images taken using them. Runs through over 150 years of photographic history, with an explanation of photographic terms and techniques and advice on buying, restoring and using vintage cameras and lenses. Ellwand's enthusiasm and personal experience of over 30 years of darkroom and digital photography makes this a treasure trove of knowledge and a visual delight.

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Winner, Book of the Year in both Young Adult and General Fiction categories in the author's native New Zealand. A warm, surprising, witty and intelligent novel you will fall in love with. Frankie Parsons is twelve going on old man, an apparently sensible, talented boy with a drumbeat of worrying questions steadily gaining volume in his head:Are the smoke alarm batteries flat?Does the cat, and therefore the rest of the family, have worms?Will bird flu strike and ruin life as we know it?Is the Kidney-shaped spot on his chest actually a galloping cancer?Only Ma takes seriously his catalogue of persistent queries. But it is Ma who is the cause of the most worrying question of all, the one that Frankie can never bring himself to ask. Then the new girl arrives at school and has questions of her own: relentless, unavoidable questions. So begins the unraveling of Frankie Parsons''s carefully controlled world.A perfectly

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A family mix-up means Louie has to tag along with his engineer father and his team as they head for a routine job in the farthest flung and most neglected province of the Federation. A massive earthquake, with ensuing tsunami, devastates the entire isolated coastal region, laying bare the other-worldly manner in which the silent and strange Endlanders deal with life, death and the hinterlands of memory and loss. Their curious and unsettling ways raise ghosts for Louie, who has recently lost his own brother. This modern fable – part ghost-story, part coming-of-age novel and part astute social and family observation – explores the ways in which grief can affect not only individuals, but communities at large.

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Honour Book, Australian Children’s Book Council Book of the Year 2023. The Raven’s Song alternates between the stories of Phoenix, who lives in a near-future world impacted by climate change and a devastating pandemic; and Shelby, one hundred years in the future in a post-pandemic, post-pollution, post-city world where each community is exactly three hundred and fifty people sustainably subsisting on seven hundred hectares. The story of a world that is beginning to fall apart, and a chance to see it all put back together, The Raven’s Song is a vision of hope for the future, seen through the eyes of the young people who will fight for it.

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A beautiful, heartfelt picture book about being there for one another from award-winning creators Glenda Millard and Stephen Michael King. I am the small green pea, you are the tender pod, hold me...A mother and baby, a boy and a dog run for their lives. A polar bear, too, has come adrift. When will they find land? Who will welcome them in? In all the wide world we each need a safe place to call home. Words sing over the pictures in this evocative story: a beautiful lullaby about what we can be for each other.

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Squirrel drops a precious hazelnut and the snowfall buries it. The woodland animals and birds come and go, but no-one finds the nut - and in the spring a little tree sprouts in its place. A beautiful, collectible, pop-up with a simple, charming text, illustrating the passing of the seasons in a woodland landscape. Stunning, graphic artwork in a limited colour palette and superb paper engineering make this a collectible for children and adults alike.

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From Apple to Zip, via Mailbox and Village, this beautiful pop-up book offers a fresh take on the alphabet. Simple and stylish, ABC Pop-Up is an elegant choice for anyone who appreciates artful design, as well as the perfect alphabet learning tool for little hands.

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Madeline Finn has a brand new puppy and lots of responsibilities. She has to walk Star, and feed him, and make sure he has a safe place to sleep. But, she learns, the most important thing is love. So when Madeline Finn visits an animal shelter, she has lots of questions about the dogs who live there. Do they get to play outside? Do they get to sleep under blankets? Does anyone read to them? Does anyone tell them they love them? Madeline Finn is determined to help the shelter dogs. But can she find a way to make each one of them feel special? With the help of some friends and a few good books, she just may discover that even small people can make a big difference.

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Honour Book, Australian Children’s Book Council Book of the Year 2023. The Raven’s Song alternates between the stories of Phoenix, who lives in a near-future world impacted by climate change and a devastating pandemic; and Shelby, one hundred years in the future in a post-pandemic, post-pollution, post-city world where each community is exactly three hundred and fifty people sustainably subsisting on seven hundred hectares. The story of a world that is beginning to fall apart, and a chance to see it all put back together, The Raven’s Song is a vision of hope for the future, seen through the eyes of the young people who will fight for it.

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'The ship was a towering fortress looming over the pier. Anton stared enviously at the emigrants lining up in front of the wide gangplank. Heading off on a voyage to a land of peace and plenty. Leaving the land of broken buildings and crushed hopes behind. Looking forward to sunshine and steaks. How he wished that he was one of the lucky ones.' Loosely based on Paul Jennings' journey to Australia as a 'ten pound Pom', the story of Anton, who escapes from an orphanage and successfully stows away on a boat headed for the land of 'sunshine and steaks' has a timeless reality of its own. It is a tale of loss, guilt, mistaken identity and taking risks but also surprisingly heartwarming and heartbreaking. Perfect for reluctant readers in upper primary and lower secondary, it speaks of loss, migration, reslience and courage. Beautifully illustrated by Geoff Kelly.

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What's that knocking sound coming from the wardrobe? Every night, it makes Dora and her toy friends afraid to go to bed and every morning they are grumpy through lack of sleep. Eventually, they summon up the courage to face their fear together and open the wardrobe door... what falls out provides a humorous and reassuring story for all children who imagine monsters in the darkness. With a sympathetically drawn cast of characters, debut author-illustrator Bryony taps into a childhood fear and converts it into a tale of mutual support. Gently funny, 'The Wardrobe Monster' is a perfect bedtime read.

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This sequel to Dassu's award-winning debut, Boy, Everywhere, finds Ali and Sami living their dream, playing football for the school team and hanging out in their friend Mark's new luxury pool. But money goes missing and racism rears its ugly head when their friend Aadam is accused of the theft. Can the boys prove Aadam's innocence, keep their friendship – and help fight Aadam’s threatened deportation? Can Ali navigate his emotions and stay focused now his dad is back on the scene and his half-brother has joined his school? A powerful story about friendship, being an ally and finding your place in the world.

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A bee flies in the window of the high-rise flat where she lives and a little girl is frightened. She traps the bee and then wonders what to do. This beautiful wordless picture book traces the growing friendship between girl and bee and introduces small children to the ecology of the natural world. Highlighting the plight of the disappearing bumble bee, it shows how some simple actions can help restore beauty and balance in our environment. With a list of bee-friendly seeds to plant and ways to protect bees at home.

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Set in a future Australia in a time when there are no bees and children are employed to scramble through the fruit trees with feather wands, like the pear farmers of Hanyuan in China do today. Peony wants to be a bee, a hand pollinator. She's light, fast, and even though she's a year too young, she's going to be the best bee the farm has ever seen...except when you're only 9, it's hard to get everyone around you to go along with your plan. A beautiful and fierce novel for middle grade readers, 'How to Bee' explores an all-too-possible dystopian social landscape with an intensely compelling and original voice.

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A moving story of family, love and loss from one of Australia's greatest storytellers. Emily loves the bush and the native animals on her family's reforested property, particularly the beautiful rainbow lorikeets that nest in one of the tallest trees. But then her father is diagnosed with a terminal illness, and Emily's world enters a tailspin. Her twin brother, Alex, refuses to accept the truth. His coping mechanism is to build elaborate additions to his treehouse in the superstitious belief that it will avert disaster – leaving Emily to deal with harsh reality on her own. When Alex secretly adopts a feral kitten, going against everything that's important to Emily, the siblings' emotions reach boiling point – with potentially dangerous consequences for them all.

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Sami and Ali dream of playing for the school football team. They practise in the park every day and work hard on their skills. But acing the trials is the last of the boys' worries when they're made to feel they don't belong on the team because of the colour of their skin. Ali just wants to tackle the ball on the pitch. Now he's being forced to tackle the racism in his team too. But how can he, when he's told it's 'just banter'? From the award-winning author of 'Boy, Everywhere', a powerful story of friendship and booting out racism

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This debut middle-grade novel chronicles the harrowing journey taken by Sami and his family from privilege to poverty, across countries and continents, from a comfortable life in Damascus, via a smuggler's den in Turkey, to a prison in Manchester. A story of survival, of family, of bravery ... In a world where we are told to see refugees as the ‘other’, this story will remind readers that ‘they’ are also ‘us'.

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Madeline Finn does not like to read. Not books. Not magazines. Not even the menu on the ice cream van. Fortunately, Madeline meets Bonnie, a library dog. Reading aloud to Bonnie isn't so bad. When Madeline Finn gets stuck, Bonnie doesn't mind. As it turns out, it's fun to read when you're not afraid of making mistakes. Bonnie teaches Madeline Finn that it's Okay to go slow, to keep trying, and to get support from a friend. A beautiful, reassuring, story for all those struggling to read. Perfect accompaniment for the 'reading dogs' programmes used by many schools and libraries. Money from the sales of the book will be donated to UK-based Pets As Therapy charity.

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Alison Jay's vivid interpretation of the complete, unabridged, text of Lewis Carroll's classic story features glowing full-colour illustrations on almost every page. A perfect gift book edition of this timeless fantastical tale.

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A thrilling, multi award-winning, teen ghost story, from a First Nations Australian author, drawing on the culture and beliefs of her close-knit community. Stacey and Laney are twins and mirror images of each other but as different as the sun and the moon. Stacey wants to go places, do things and be someone different while Laney just wants to skip school and sneak out of the house to meet her boyfriend Troy. When Laney doesn’t come home one night, the town assumes she’s just doing her normal run-off but Stacey’s gut tells her different. Stacey knows her twin isn’t dead – she just doesn’t know where she is; she can see her in her dreams but doesn’t know if she is real or imagined. Holding onto the words her Nan taught her is one thing but listening to those around you is another – who will Stacey trust? As the town starts to believe that Laney is missing for good, can she find her twin in time? ‘Part coming-of-age story, part “Romeo and Juliet” romance, part speculative fiction, part Aboriginal spiritual revelation, part mystery – this is a story that is mature on many levels.’ ReadPlus

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A family mix-up means Louie has to tag along with his engineer father and his team as they head for a routine job in the farthest flung and most neglected province of the Federation. A massive earthquake, with ensuing tsunami, devastates the entire isolated coastal region, laying bare the other-worldly manner in which the silent and strange Endlanders deal with life, death and the hinterlands of memory and loss. Their curious and unsettling ways raise ghosts for Louie, who has recently lost his own brother. This modern fable – part ghost-story, part coming-of-age novel and part astute social and family observation – explores the ways in which grief can affect not only individuals, but communities at large.

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Charlie is an anxious dachshund who worries that something terrible might happen if he doesn't keep to his daily rituals. After he is called upon to help rescue a friend and in the rush muddles everything, Charlie discovers that he doesn't have to be ruled by his habits and that change can have really positive outcomes. Terry Milne was inspired to create Charlie after watching a young child struggling with to cope with anxiety by using rituals. This book addresses the issue in a light-hearted and reassuring way. Whether or not you are anxious, the story of Charlie is bound to capture your heart!

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How can tomorrow ever be as good as today? Afraid of tomorrow, a little boy puts all his scientific knowledge to use in an attempt to turn back time and stay in the wonderful past. Luckily, his grandfather discovers him exploring the wormholes in the garden, trying to find a way back - and by showing him the photos of some of his wonderful past experiences, reassures the boy that there is plenty to look forward to and that every day gives the chance for a new adventure. Nominated for the CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal 2018.

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After losing her mum in an accident, Sass is sent to live with her uncle in England. Far from her native Brooklyn, the rocky shores and crumbling castles of Cornwall seem like the perfect place to hide her grief. And when she stumbles across a silver horse in a sunlit meadow Sass feels a surprising sense of peace...only to have it broken by a boy. Arrogant and distrustful, the horse's trainer, Alex, doesn't approve of the trespassing American. Yet after a few chance meetings, he begins to feel a connection to the curious girl with the sad eyes, and offers to teach her to ride. Sass never expected to feel anything again - least of all love - but the lessons reveal a far different Alex, and soon their friendship turns into something more. But Alex has a secret - a bombshell about his family that could shatter Sass's trust...and force him to abandon the one girl who made him believe in himself.

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Shortlisted for the CILIP Carnegie Medal 2017 and recommended by Amnesty as a top book for young adults. “..a challenging yet life-affirming book that gives its young characters a powerful and original voice” – Amnesty “Surprising, lyrical and beautiful, this book speaks of hope in the darkest of times, and of love in its many forms” - Liz Flanagan Alice is fifteen, with hair as red as fire and skin as pale as bone, but something inside her is broken. She has a brain injury, the result of an assault. Manny was once a child soldier. He is sixteen and has lost all his family. When Manny first sees Alice, she is sitting on the rusty roof of her river house, looking like a carving on an old-fashioned ship, sailing through the stars. He has a poem in his pocket, and he knows the words by heart. And he is sure that girl has written them. When Manny and Alice meet, they find the beginnings of love and healing.

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Skip's an outsider. He's never fitted in. So he takes to the streets. Life there may be hard, but it's better than the one he's left behind, especially when he teams up with homeless veteran Billy. Then come the bombs which bring little Max and Tia, the sad teenage dancer with a tiny baby, into Skip and Billy's world. Scavenging for food, living on love and imagination - how long can Skip's fragile new family hold out as war grips the city? A moving tale of hope and survival, set in a bleak, war-torn world.

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