After two days of extensive training at a writersWA workshop and thoughts of giving up only once, my new book trailer for Ned Kelly and the Green Sash is finished. Well actually, the real one was finally commenced and completed on the flight from New York to Tokyo - all that time, everyone asleep, bad food, no internet = Perfect.

Please click here to view: Ned Kelly and the Green Sash

The best part of learning this art was the company kept.
With my wonderful peers, we all came away with immaculate trailers.
Please also check out their trailers: Robyn Mundy’s, Meg McKinlay’s, AJ Betts’s, Lara Morgan’s, Amanda Curtin, Chris Nixon’s and Dianne Wolfers.

Yee haw!
Here’s a book trailer Laura Melmed created of our new book now on youtube: Click me.

Here’s the blurb:
Welcome to Texas—home of cowboys, cattle, and NASA—where “Friendship” is the motto folks live by. Remember the Alamo, where a brave Army fought against Santa Anna; visit Big Bend National Park and try to spot a Bear; and go to the Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame to discover the women who Conquered the Old West. Celebrate Texas in this alphabetical tour from Laura Krauss Melmed and Frané Lessac, the bestselling duo who brought us Capital! Washington D.C. from A to Z and New York, New York! The Big Apple from A to Z.

With a treasure trove of facts and bright, bold art, this rootin’-tootin’, rip-roarin’ tribute to the Lone Star State will have readers shouting “Yee-haw!”

Very exciting news…of the 42 international books honored on this list, Simpson and His Donkey (The Donkey of Gallipoli) AND We Are All Born Free were selected.

USBBY’s

Outstanding International Books list offers tales that speak to every student

Talk about an international effort. Some of the world’s best children’s book artists got together to help Amnesty International celebrate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ 60th anniversary in We Are All Born Free, one of the 42 titles recommended by the fourth annual United States Board on Books for Young People’s (USBBY) Outstanding International Books committee. This and other titles on our list offer young people the best of children’s literature from faraway places—books that introduce them to outstanding authors and illustrators from other countries, help them see the world from other points of view, and provide another perspective or address a topic that may be missing from children’s books in the United States.

Our committee is pleased to present this year’s choices with the hope that these books will be used by young people, and those who work with them, to explore our diverse world. Information about the Outstanding International Books project can be found at www.usbby.org.

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL. We Are All Born Free: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Pictures. illus. Frances Lincoln. Tr $19.95. ISBN 978-1-84507-650-4. U.K.
Gr 3-5–In this oversize book, published to coincide with the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, each of the 30 articles of the Declaration has been simplified for young readers and illustrated by an internationally renowned artist. Photographs of and brief biographical information about the illustrators are included.

GREENWOOD, Mark. The Donkey of Gallipoli: A True Story of Courage in World War I. illus. by Frané Lessac. Candlewick. RTE $16.99. ISBN 978-0-7636-3913-6. Australia.
Gr 3-5–When England declares war on Germany, Jack, who immigrated to Australia in search of adventure, enlists and takes part in the invasion of Turkey’s Gallipoli Peninsula. In the 24 days before he’s killed, Jack carries more than 300 wounded men off the battlefield on a donkey. Poignant gouache illustrations highlight this story of heroism.

Dianne Wolfer came up from Albany and stayed over for a PJ party.
She’s meeting her publishers this morning about her exquisite new book Lighthouse Girl due out in early March. Here’s the blurb:
It’s 1914. Fay can shoot a rabbit and make a mean nettle stew. She understands Morse code and the semaphoric alphabet. She knows where penguins nest and when humpback whales migrate. But until she starts writing to a soldier named Charlie, she’s never known friendship – and she’s never had a friend to lose.
Based on the true story of Faye Howe, this gentle tale brings to life the hardships of those left at home during the war — waiting, wondering, hoping. Drawing on fascinating archival material, and interweaving fact with fiction, award-winning author Dianne Wolfer deftly recreates this period in Australian history from the perspective of a young girl.

Last night: Music wafted up our road and we discovered that the Survival Day 2009 concert was held a mere 100 yards from our house - a national celebration of Aboriginal music, performance, visual art and culture. An exciting alternative to the official Australia Day event’s although we also indulged in prawns on the barbie doll at David and Lindsay Lloyd’s house with stunning views over the Swan River for the annual Sky show.

Bought the most beautiful pure canvas. Painting an Achibald. I did the Maths. I have a 3% chance of getting in.

The galleys for The Green Sash also arrived.  The ball is now in my court.

And for those of us who need to buy holiday presents, buy a book, this book.