Book Launch - Belinda Murrell's The Forgotten Pearl

SCBWI's roving reporter, Lynda Calder reports on the booklaunch...

Belinda Murrell's The Forgotten Pearl

With Publisher Zoe Walton

In the lovely gardens of the NSW's Writers' Centre, Zoe Walton launches Belinda's new book.

Zoe Walton introduced Belinda Murrell and declared this book launch as a celebration of, not only The Forgotten Pearl, but Belinda herself.

Since this weekend is all about the collaboration between authors and publishers, Zoe wanted us to all know that Belinda is an author who is a dream to work with. She organises all her own school visits and book launches. There is a team of mothers that help her by cooking cupcakes for the events. Belinda also:

·         Has her own website

·         Is active in the Children's Book Council

·         Gives fantastic talks for kids: Belinda was video conferencing to three different schools, all at once, and they were watching her on a screen for an hour. Belinda was using an interactive white board and those children never fidgeted. They were all engaged, involved and entertained for the entire time.

It is important to remember that publishers and authors have the same goal: to get as many books as possible into the hands of young readers.

The Forgotten Pearl is a vital piece in Australian history as it takes place during the bombing of Darwin. It is filled with the resilience of Australians, their determination and generosity of spirit.

Belinda Murrell took to the microphone and was not only excited about the launch of The Forgotten Pearl but also the relaunch, in new jackets, of her Sun Sword Trilogy with covers by the same designer who worked on John Flanagan's Ranger's Apprentice Series.

The Forgotten Pearl is about 14 year old Poppy; a mischievous, fun-loving girl living in Darwin in the 1940's when Darwin was nothing more than an outpost and became a war zone. Her brother becomes a POW in Singapore and her family is evacuated to Sydney but the danger follows them there.

Belinda then read a section from The Forgotten Pearl: Soldiers march into her Darwin school with bayonets and rifles at the ready, round up all the Japanese children aged 5-12 years and take them away to become POWs. She knows one of the soldiers and one of the Japanese girls is Shinju, her friend, who was born in Darwin.