sallymurphy.com.au

Sally Murphy, Australian author

An Unboxing: The Riding Gallery

by

I’m soooooo excited. Waiting for me, on my return from a month long trip to France, England and Singapore, was a box. And inside that box was author copies!  So pleased to be holding The Riding Gallery in my hands for the first time, and can’t wait to share it with the world from July.  You can see the unboxing video, and hear a little about the book,  here:

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Sally Murphy (@sallymurphyauthor)


Out in July, you can preorder your copy at your local brick and mortar bookstore (support these if you can), or online.

Poetry Friday: Bonjour!

by

Bonjour! As I write this I am in France, though by the time you read it I will have landed in London.

How lucky am I?

I am here in Europe as part of my six months Academic Study Leave (also known as a sabbatical)  from my role at Curtin University. Although some days it feels like a holiday, I have been working:

First, I attended the Child and the Book Conference in Rouen where I presented a paper about juvenilia, and listened to  many other wonderful speakers talk about children’s books, and creativity and so much more.  I also made new friends from around the world.

Then, after a few days in Paris where, among other things, I went to the top floor of the Eiffel Tower, I headed south to a small village near Carcassonne, where I stayed in a French farmhouse for a writing retreat, curated and hosted by The French House Party and guided by amazing tutor, poet and all round nice person, Anne Caldwell. We wrote, talked, walked, were fed (so much wonderful food) and laughed. And, as with the conference,  I made new friends from around the world.

I have two notebooks overflowing with notes, drafts and ideas from these two events, and still two weeks of travel left. In the meantime, a poem. If you have never been to France before you might be surprised at my obsession with cheese over these past weeks. I’ve always liked cheese, but when you are in a country where cheese (good cheese!) is part of every meal, it can become a bit of a focus. In fact, at one meal I skipped the main course and happily ate bread and cheese because it was just so good.

So, in the midst of a session where I was writing some pretty heavy stuff, I found myself pausing to jot down a little ditty about my obsession.

Simple Pleasures

Stinky stilton

bonkers blue-vein

holey-moley swiss.

Oozy camembert

crumbling cheddar

easy-cheesy bliss!

(Sally Murphy, 2024)

Oddly, for all my obsession, I do not have a single photo of cheese amongst the seventy billion I have taken on my trip. So, instead, here is one of the poppy field next to the farm house taken at sunset one evening.

Here’s to cheese, and travel, and learning new things and meeting new people. And, of ceruse, here’s to poetry! Patricia is hosting Poetry Friday today, and you can see the Round Up on her blog.

What I Read in April, 2024

by

It’s May 1, and so time for an update on my reading last month. I finished 11 books in April, with, as is my wont, a mixed bag, although there was a delightful amount of poetry. Here is what I got through.

Books for Children

  1. Shape Me a Rhyme: Nature's Forms in PoetryShape Me a Rhyme: Nature’s Forms in Poetry, by Jane Yolen with photographs by Jason Stemple (Wordsong, 2007).  This is not the first collection I’ve read from this mother/son pairing and, like the others I’ve read, I adored the combination of stunning nature photography by Stemple and poetry by Yolen. This one focusses on the shapes found in nature.
  2. Beetle SoupBeetle Soup, edited by Robin Morrow, illustrated by Stephen Michael King (Scholastic, 1996). I picked this up in a second hand bookshop in Adelaide last year, forgetting that it was actually rereleased later under another title (And the Roo Jumped over the Moon) which I already owned, and reviewed when it was released in 2004. But that isn’t a problem, as it’s an excellent anthology of stories and poems for children and I enjoyed rereading it, not for the first time.
  3. In and Out the WindowIn and Out the Window, by Jane Yolen, illustrated by Cathrin Peterslund (Philomel, 2024). More poetry, more Jane Yolen, whose poetry I adore. This is her largest single collection of poetry, and a treasure to own, filled with poetry for children on themes including home, school, sport, pets and more.
  4. The Sideways Orbit of Evie HartThe Sideways Orbit of Evie Hart, by Samera Kamaleddine (Harper Collins, 2023). Shortlisted in the Younger Readers category of the CBCA Book of the Year Awards, this is a heartfelt story about anxiety, family and friendship.

Books for Young Adults

    1. Scar TownScar Town, by Tristan Bancks (Puffin Books, 2023). One of the books recently shortlisted for the CBCA Book of the Year, which made me realise I  hadn’t yet read it. Mystery and action, as Will and his friends explore a house which has emerged from the receding waters of  a failing dam, and find a stash of cash and human bones in the walls.
    2. The Quiet and the LoudThe Quiet and the Loud, by Helena Fox (Pan, 2023). Another shortlisted title, and I am glad I sought it out. George is dealing with a lot – problems with her best friend, Tess, fear about the climate emergency which sees smoke smothering the city, and pressure from her estranged father to visit before he dies. But int he midst of this there is also the presence of Calliope, the girl who literally cartwheels into her life.
    3. Finding Baba Yaga: A Short Novel in VerseFinding Baba Yaga: A Short Novel in Verse, by Jane Yolen (Tor, 2018). As you might know, I adore verse novels, so was delighted to come across this one by one of my favourite poets for young people. This is a modern day reimagining of the Baba Yaga story, blending the story of Natasha, who is on the run from a controlling father and is taken in by Baba Yaga.
    4. Those GirlsThose Girls, by Pamela Rushby (Walker Books, 2024). An excellent book from one of the best writers of historical fiction for this age group. The focus is on the work of the Women’s Land Army, women and girls who volunteered during World War !! to work on famrs and in agricultural industries to ensure that food production continued, and to make a vital contribution to the war effort.
    5. Let's Never Speak of This AgainLet’s Never Speak of This Again, by Megan Williams (Text, 2023). Continuing my reading of the CBCA Shortlist, this debut novel explores friendship, family and loyalty, with dashes of humour and lots of poignant moments.

 

 

Books for Adults

  1. ButterButter, by Asako Yuzuki, translated by Polly Barton (4th Estate, 2024). I chose this one on a whim, because the title , and matching butter-yellow cover caught my eye, and found it absorbing. It’s about a series of murders, cooking, food, and, most importantly, women.
  2. The Bordeaux Bookclub, by Gillian Harvey (Boldwood, 2024). It seemed appropriate to read this book on a flight to France – and I read the whole thing on the flight. The story of a mixed group of English-speakers who come together to form a  book club, and end up supporting each other through their various tough times.

This brings my total for the year so far to 46. What have you been reading?

It’s a Birthday, or two, or three…

by

Happy day to you! I’m especially happy because it is the birthday of not one, not two, but three of my books, still in print and celebrating that fact.

First up, Pearl Verses the World (Walker Books, 2009) turns an amazing FIFTEEN years old. Hard to believe she’s a teenager, and wonderful that she is still in print and available at a good bookstore near you, or online.

Pearl Verses the World

Secondly, Looking Up (Fremantle Press, 2017) turns seven today and, again, is still in print and available wherever you buy good books, including online.
Looking Up

And last, but never least, Worse Things (Walker Books, 2020) turns four years old today and, again, is still in print and available to purchase.

Worse Things

If you are not in the publishing industry you may not know this, but lots of books only stay in print for a few years, because there are so many wonderful new books coming out every year (every day!). So, I am super proud that this trio all remain available for new readers to enjoy.

Happy book birthdays, my babies. And, while I’m at it, the most special birthday today is a human one. Happy birthday to my beautiful mum, far more special to me than all my books combined. What an auspicious day.

Bushfire and some big thank yous

by

How wonderful are teachers? And how awesome are young readers when they come together in a reading community lead by those teachers?

This display, at the brand new library at Clyde Primary in Victoria,  is the result of a term’s work reading Bushfire, and diving deeply into the story, the events it portrays, and the topic of natural disasters.

When teacher Nikki Elston  emailed to ask if the students could write to me, I said yes, but when I received those letters I was blown away by the enthusiasm of the students and their thoughtful questions and responses.

This is the kind of thing that makes an author’s heart sing – knowing that their book, in the hands of passionate educators, can really make a difference.

Thanks Nikki,  thanks to your colleagues and, of course, a massive thank you tot he year six students who wrote to me. I will treasure those letters for a very long time.

At the Park

by

I just love it when one of my poems makes its mark on the world, so I was really excited this morning to see that a previously unpublished poem, At the Park, had been made (with my permission)  into this video:

This excellent project came about through my Poetry Friday friend Jone, who teaches a children’s literature class and asked fellow poets for poems her students could choose from to make videos. You can read Jone’s explanation of the project, and link to other examples here.

Enjoy – I am!

sallymurphy.com.au