An evocative and compelling story about one boy living through the 2014 drought in Henan, China. WINNER: Educational Publishing Awards 2019 Shaozhen has no intention of staying in his remote Henan village and becoming another poor farmer: he'll finish school, and then, hopefully, work in a factory in one of the major cities, just like his father. But when Shaozhen returns home for the summer holidays, imagining days filled with nothing but playing basketball with his friends, he's in for a shock. The worst drought in over sixty years threatens the crops that the entire village relies on for income. As the water situation becomes dire, Shaozhen realises he must come up with a plan. But will it be enough to save his family and friends and secure the future of his village?

A gripping and personal story about one girl's experience of the 2011 Christchurch earthquake and its aftermath. WINNER: Educational Publishing Awards 2019 Lyla has just started her second year of high school when a magnitude 6.3 earthquake shakes Christchurch to pieces. Devastation is everywhere. While her police officer mother and trauma nurse father respond to the disaster, Lyla puts on a brave face, opening their home to neighbours and leading the community clean-up. But soon she discovers that it's not only familiar buildings and landscapes that have vanished - it's friends and acquaintances too. As the earth keeps shaking day after day, can Lyla find a way to cope with her new reality?

An authentic novel about growing up in an Asian immigrant family with a mother who is suffering from a debilitating mental illness. Anna Chiu has her hands full. When she's not looking after her brother and sister or helping out at her father's restaurant, she's taking care of her mother, whose debilitating mental illness keeps her in bed most days. Her father's new delivery boy, Rory, is a welcome distraction and even though she knows that things aren't right at home, she's starting to feel like she could be a normal teen.But when her mother finally gets out of bed, things go from bad to worse. And as her mother's condition worsens, Anna and her family question everything they understand about themselves and each other.The Surprising Power of a Good Dumpling is a heart-wrenching, true-to-life exploration through the often neglected crevices of culture, mental illness, and family. Its strong themes are balanced by a beautiful romance making it a feel-good, yet important read.

A gripping story of one child's experience of the civil war in Syria. Zafir has a comfortable life in Homs, Syria, until his father, a doctor, is arrested for helping a protester who was campaigning for revolution. While his mother heads to Damascus to try to find out where his father is being held, Zafir stays with his grandmother - until her house is bombed. With his father in prison, his mother absent, his grandmother ill and not a friend left in the city, Zafir must stay with his Uncle Ghazi. But that too becomes dangerous as the city becomes more and more besieged. Will Zafir survive long enough to be reunited with his parents?

An engaging and suspenseful story about one girl surviving Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines in 2013. WINNER: Educational Publishing Awards 2019 Angel's family has seen many typhoons. For generations the violent storms have passed across the central Philippines around November, bringing with them drenching rains and strong winds. Lately they seem to be stronger, more destructive, but Angel's family and their neighbours know how to batten down - it's part of their way of life. But when a super typhoon comes to Tacloban, will Angel be able to withstand the greatest challenge of all?

This book offers an account of how ‘ancestors’ instructions’ were used and abused in the Song period. It digs deeply into abundant resources to tease apart the complex and versatile relationship between the meaning and the truth of the Song discourse of ancestors’ instructions.

An engaging and suspenseful novel about one girl's experience of the terrifying Tasmanian bushfires. They huddle low, nostrils burning from the smoke. A wave of despair flows over Tye. Nothing will survive this firestorm. The bush and everything she loves will be lost. It's the summer holidays, and Tye is staying at her grandparents' lodge at Chancy's Point in Tasmania's beautiful Central Highlands. But her plans for fun with best friend Lily and working on her pencil pine conservation project are thwarted as fire threatens the community and the bush she loves - and when Tye discovers Bailey, a runaway boy hiding out, she is torn between secretly helping him and her loyalty to her grandparents. As the fire comes closer and evacuation warnings abound, Tye is caught up in the battle of her life. Will she and Bailey survive? What will happen to her beloved pencil pines and the wildlife at risk? Can she and her close-knit community make a difference in a world threatened by climate change?

A powerful and moving story about one boy caught up in the Japanese earthquake and tsunami of 2011. WINNER: Educational Publishing Awards 2019 When the tsunami strikes the Japanese coastal town of Omori-wan, the effects are utterly devastating. Three years later, much of what happened on that day is still a mystery. As Hotaka sets about convincing local performers to appear at the town's upcoming Memorial Concert, he finds himself increasingly haunted by memories of his best friend Takeshi. When strong willed Sakura initiates a controversial anti-seawall movement, there is danger at every turn for Hotaka and his friends. As the town and its people struggle to rebuild their lives, can Hotaka help Omori-wan look to the future - and let go of his past?

Born in the Year of the Snake, May Tang is like flowing water-when she should have more fire. A dreamer, she will never be sensible and obedient like her elder sister Jie Jie or clever like her brother Peter, studying in Australia. But her parents are worried by rumoured events in China, and May finds herself on her way to a new life in Australia. It is so different that May wonders if she will ever be able to love this new country.