Media Bites October 2023_

Little Ash: Sports Carnival! JASMIN MCGAUGHEY & JADE GOODWIN Australian tennis superstar Ash Barty teams up with Jasmin McGaughey and Jade Goodwin to bring young readers this fun and exciting new illustrated series about school, sport, friendship and family. Ash LOVES tennis. So when it’s the school sports carnival, Ash wishes she was playing tennis instead. Will Ash find her school spirit and help her team win the day?

Ruby Red Shoes Goes to Paris - 10th Anniversay Edition A special new edition to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the much-loved Ruby Red Shoes Goes to Paris. Ruby Red Shoes and her grandmother are on holiday in Paris! Ruby is fizzing with excitement; her smart red shoes are aflutter as she explores cafes and markets dotted along cobblestone streets. Ruby practises her French, eats buttered baguettes, and beetles around on a scooter with a special new friend who shows her the sights. It is a time she will treasure forever. KATE KNAPP

Little Ash: Puppy Playtime! JASMIN MCGAUGHEY & JADE GOODWIN Australian tennis superstar Ash Barty teams up with Jasmin McGaughey and Jade Goodwin to bring young readers this fun and exciting new illustrated series about school, sport, friendship and family. Ash is so excited to get a NEW PUPPY! He is full of energy and ready to play, but every game Ash chooses ends in disaster! Whatever will Ash do?

Every Exquisite Thing

LAURA STEVEN

Penny Paxton is the daughter of an icon. Her supermodel mother has legions of adoring fans around the world, and Penny is ready to begin her journey to international adoration, starting with

joining the elite Dorian Drama School. When Penny’s new mentor offers her an

opportunity she cannot refuse, to have a portrait painted by a mysterious artist who can grant immortal beauty to all his subjects, Penny happily follows in the footsteps of Dorian’s most glittering alumni, knowing that stardom is sure to soon be hers. But when her trusted mentor is found murdered, Penny realises she’s made a terrible mistake - a sinister someone is using the uncanny portraits to kill off the subjects one by one. As more perfectly beautiful students start to fall, Penny knows her time is running out . . .

Released: 04/10/22 BPB| 352pp AU $19.99 NZ $21.99 Imprint: HarperCollins

Released: 04/10/23 BPB | 64 pp AU $9.99 NZ $11.99 Imprint: HarperCollins

Released: 04/10/23 BPB | 64 pp AU $9.99 NZ $11.99 Imprint: HarperCollins

Released: 04/10/23 NSH | 48pp AU $24.99 NZ $26.99 Imprint: HarperCollins

The Boy Who Slept Through Christmas MATT LUCAS “Nearly as good as one of my books” David Walliams Leo LOVES Christmas.

The Memory Thief LAUREN MANSEY In the city of Craewick, memories reign. The power-obsessed ruler of the city, Madame, has cultivated a society in which memories are currency, citizens are divided by ability, and Gifted individuals can take memories from others through touch as they please. Seventeen-year-old Etta Lark is desperate to live outside of the corrupt culture, but she grapples with the guilt of an accident that has left her mother bedridden in the city’s asylum. When Madame threatens to put her mother up for auction, a Craewick practice in which a “criminal’s” memories are sold to the highest bidder before being killed, Etta will do whatever it takes to save her. Even if it means rejoining the Shadows, the rebel group she swore off in the wake of the accident years earlier. To rescue her mother, Etta must prove her allegiance to the Shadows by stealing a memorized map of the Maze, a formidable prison created by the bloodthirsty ruler of a neighboring Realm. Etta faces startling attacks, unexpected romance, and, above all, her own past as she uncovers a conspiracy that challenges everything she knew about herself and the world around her.

And this Christmas needs to be absolutely perfect, because it’s the first one without Mum. Only it all keeps going wrong! The fairylights are in a tangle, the tree’s wonky and the Christmas biscuits taste AWFUL. Soon Leo decides he’s had enough - he makes a heartfelt wish that it would all GO AWAY. Then Leo wakes up on Christmas morning - and it’s gone!! All of Christmas! But Leo isn’t going to let it get away that easily. With the help of his best friends, Prisha and Ivan, he sets out on a mission to undo his wish and get Christmas back. This is Home Alone meets The Christmas Carol in a hilarious adventure with a big dollop of festive magic. Funny, sensitive and emotional in all the best ways - this warm and seasonal family story touches ever so gently on childhood grief but is wrapped up in a chaotic and heartwarming adventure. Listen to over 20 original songs, written and recorded by Matt to accompany the story, bringing the joy of a musical to book form!

Released: 04/10/2023 NSP| 320pp AU $19.99 NZ $21.99 Imprint: HarperCollins

Released: 04/10/2023 BPB| 288pp AU $16.99 NZ $18.99 Imprint: HarperCollins

CHILDREN’S

CHILDREN’S