Ashleigh Barton – författare

A wise and beautifully written middle-grade novel about finding answers to the big questions in life from popular children''s author Ashleigh Barton.

Ester Star is a germophobe and hypochondriac and she''s convinced she''s going to die. To prepare for her imminent and inevitable demise, Ester keeps a list of all the questions she hopes to have answered in the afterlife - things she knows she''ll never have the answers to during her lifetime. What really happened to the dinosaurs? Just how big is the universe? Are ghosts real? She''s up to eighty-nine questions and counting.

When Ester''s usual after-school sitters announce they are moving away, her mum comes up with an alternative arrangement that turns her world upside down. Every day after school, Ester is to spend her afternoons with Mum at work. At a hospice. Terrified of all the things she might catch at a hospice, Ester is anxious every second she''s there.

But soon she meets Joan, an elderly lady who used to be in the circus. Joan tells Ester she doesn''t believe in the afterlife, but she does have one question she''ll regret never having answered while she''s alive. Why did her sister disappear all those years ago, after they had been so close growing up in the circus together?With the help of Peter, another kid who spends his afternoons at the hospice, and her new next-door neighbour, a tech whizz named Mackenzie, Ester sets out to have Joan''s question answered.

Will Ester realise there''s more to life than worrying about dying?

A CBCA NOTABLE EARLY CHILDHOOD BOOK OF THE YEAR 2025James loves two things more than anything in the world: dinosaurs and miniatures. So when his class goes on an excursion to a museum and James finds a miniature dinosaur in the gift shop, he can''t help himself: he steals the dinosaur. But as the day continues, James''s guilt grows. And so does the dinosaur!The only thing that can cure James''s guilt - and shrink the dinosaur back to its proper size - is doing the right thing.A warm-hearted cautionary tale for sticky fingers everywhere.

A fun rhyming picture book with bright and engaging illustrations that teaches children about animals who look similar, but have unique differences, from acclaimed author Ashleigh Barton and illustrator Amandine ThomasWhen a hedgehog and an echidna meet and realise they have many similarities, they take a look at other animal pairs around the world who look the same but aren''t: crocodiles and alligators, llamas and alpacas, rabbits and hares, and more. Join Echidna and Hedgehog as they meet animals who look similar to one another - and learn to tell the difference between them! Written by popular children''s author Ashleigh Barton, with vibrant and expressive watercolour illustrations by Amandine Thomas.

Did you know that a bolt of lightning is five times hotter than the Sun? Or that slugs have four noses? How about that humans share 50 per cent of our DNA with bananas? Freddie Spector, the world''s greatest fact collector, knows all these things and so much more.Freddie Spector loves collecting facts - about anything and everything. His latest obsession is space. It''s all he talks about: stars, planets, galaxies, astronauts, space travel - and, of course UFOs and extraterrestrials. Freddie writes all his facts on sticky notes that his mum and big sister, Henrietta, keep finding in weird places - like in their sock drawers or their sandwiches.But whenever Freddie collects facts on a topic, his very active imagination always gets involved too. And, after noticing some very suspicious goings-on, Freddie realises it''s up to him to discover the answer to a burning question: could aliens have landed in his neighbourhood?Fast-paced and funny, this series is all about an everyday eight-year-old boy whose love of facts and extraordinary imagination come together with unexpected and hilarious results.

Did you know that lawnmower racing is a sport? Or that cranberries bounce? How about that Gentoo penguins can bodysurf?Freddie Spector loves collecting facts - about anything and everything. At the moment he''s obsessed with facts about sport. It''s all he talks about: weird sports, Olympic sports, extreme sports, athletes and sporting history. He writes all his facts on sticky notes that his mum and big sister, Henrietta, keep finding in weird places - like in a cup of coffee or the shower. But whenever Freddie collects facts on a topic, his very active imagination always gets involved too. And, when the medals for the school sports carnival go missing and the carnival is about to be cancelled, Freddie realises it''s up to him to solve the mystery and save the day.Fast-paced and humorous, this series is all about an everyday eight-year-old boy whose love of facts and extraordinary imagination come together with unexpected and hilarious results.''Witty and delightful . . . Certain to capture the hearts of young readers with its charming protagonist and engaging storyline . . . A perfect blend of humour, adventure and life lessons'' READPLUS

A beautiful and deeply moving story about friendship, family, hope and the power of the ocean, for middle-grade readers who love a mystery, from popular children''s author Ashleigh Barton.Beatrice Glass - Bea - lives in a tiny fishing village that''s sleepy all year until the summertime, when the tourists flock in and most of the locals leave. But summer is also when Bea''s favourite person in the entire world, her fun and hilarious uncle, Byron, comes to stay.On their last day together the previous summer, Byron had given Bea an intriguing antique book containing a map of Somewhere, a mysterious island off the coast, and promised that next summer they''d sail to Somewhere together for their best adventure yet.That was last year. Now summer has arrived, but Byron hasn''t. And now it looks like he never will.Are the book and Byron''s disappearance linked? Byron has left some clues for Bea - a scavenger hunt of sorts designed to bring her and her new friend, Arabella, together and give Bea one last magical summer. Could Somewhere hold the key to both Bea''s and Arabella''s future?A story of lost and found, of friendship, family, hope and the power of the ocean, for middle-grade readers who love a mystery.''Emotionally and structurally satisfying, its evocative, elegiac tone balanced by tidy prose that keeps the story grounded . . . It also conjures vibes of older classics such as Lucy M. Boston''s Green Knowe series'' BOOKS+PUBLISHING