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John Marsden John Marsden i(A27364 works by)
Born: Established: 1950 Melbourne, Victoria, ;
Gender: Male
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Works By

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1 y separately published work icon Take Risks John Marsden , Sydney : Pan Macmillan Australia , 2021 22941026 2021 single work autobiography

'Life is a thrilling adventure.

'Our children get only rare glimpses of the possibilities.

'To roam, to dare, to fail ... these are the rights of children.

'John Marsden, the award-winning, bestselling author of the Tomorrow series, has spent his life educating kids and teenagers. He is passionate about the need to prepare them in all ways for the demands of adulthood.

'As the founder and principal of two schools - Candlebark and Alice Miller - John has put his theories to the test and seen the empowering results of his methods.

'Take Risks is the compelling memoir of a revered author and educator, and a forthright discussion on teaching, parenting and society as a whole.' (Publication summary)

1 3 y separately published work icon The Art of Growing Up John Marsden , Sydney : Pan Macmillan Australia , 2019 16879106 2019 multi chapter work essay

'From the award-winning and bestselling author of the Tomorrow series.

'When I hear parents say 'I want my children to enjoy their childhood; there'll be time when they're older to learn about those things', I hear the voices of those who are scared of the vastness of the universe. These adults have a view of childhood as some kind of discrete interval, rather than just a few years from the continuum of life. How fortunate that the spirit, courage and curiosity of many young people remain largely undefeated by such adults.

'John Marsden has spent his adult life engaging with young minds - through both his award-winning, internationally bestselling young adult fiction and his work as one of Australia's most esteemed and experienced educators. As the founder and principal of two schools, John is at the coalface of education and daily witness to the inevitable and yet still mysterious process of growing up.

'Now, in this astonishing, insightful and hugely ambitious manifesto, John pulls together all he has learned from over thirty years' experience working with and writing for young people. He shares his insights into everything - from the role of schools and the importance of education, to problem parents and problem children, and the conundrum of what it means to grow up and be 'happy' in the 21st century.' (Publication summary)

1 Creatures of Havoc John Marsden , 2015 single work column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 22-23 August 2015; (p. 8-9) The Saturday Age , 22-23 August 2015; (p. 8)
1 9 y separately published work icon South of Darkness John Marsden , Sydney : Pan Macmillan Australia , 2014 7949044 2014 single work novel historical fiction young adult

'My name, then, is Barnaby Fletch. To the best of my knowledge I have no middle name and cannot say of whom I am the son, or of whom my father's father's father was the son. Alas, my origins are shrouded in mystery.

'Thirteen-year-old Barnaby Fletch is a bag-and-bones orphan in London in the late 1700s.

'Barnaby lives on his wits and ill-gotten gains, on streets seething with the press of the throng and shadowed by sinister figures. Life is a precarious business.

'When he hears of a paradise on the other side of the world - a place called Botany Bay - he decides to commit a crime and get himself transported to a new life, a better life.

'To succeed, he must survive the trials of Newgate Prison, the stinking hull of a prison ship and the unknown terrors of a journey across the world.

'And Botany Bay is far from the paradise Barnaby has imagined. When his past and present suddenly collide, he is soon fleeing for his life - once again.

'A riveting story of courage, hope and extraordinary adventure.' (Publication summary)

1 From Cool School John Marsden , 2014 extract children's fiction (Cool School : You Make it Happen)
— Appears in: Stories for Nine Year Olds 2014; (p. 1-12)
1 8 y separately published work icon The Year My Life Broke John Marsden , Sydney : Pan Macmillan Australia , 2013 6691480 2013 single work children's fiction children's

'You move into the most boring street in the most boring town in Australia. Tarrawagga is a hole. Its only ambition is to be a crater, and it has every chance of getting there. The last thing you expect is to have action all around you, dangerous strangers in the backyard, and bullets flying past your ears. At your new school, everyone thinks you're the biggest loser in Grade 6. Little do they know. When they realise the truth, teachers and students alike are in for the shock of their lives. '(Publisher's blurb)

1 Leave to Flee Bad Parents John Marsden , 2013 single work column
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 25-26 May 2013; (p. 28-29)
'John Marsden celebrates an author who redefined children's literature.'
1 Introduction John Marsden , 2013 essay
— Appears in: They Found a Cave 2013;
2 1 y separately published work icon Lost and Found Shaun Tan , John Marsden , Shaun Tan (illustrator), New York (City) : Arthur A. Levine Books , 2011 Z1764283 2011 selected work picture book These three short stories focus on loss and despair to explore how we lose and find what matters most to us: a girl finds a bright spot in a dark world, a boy leads a strange, lost being home, and a group of peaceful creatures loses its home to cruel invaders.
1 Write of Passage John Marsden , 2010 single work column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 21-22 August 2010; (p. 6-7)
1 Raising the Blah John Marsden , 2010 single work column
— Appears in: The Age , 6 February 2010; (p. 17) The Sydney Morning Herald , 6-7 February 2010; (p. 9)
1 On Turning 21... John Marsden , 2009 single work autobiography
— Appears in: The Words We Found : The Best Writing from 21 Years of Voiceworks Magazine 2009; (p. 26-27)
1 13 y separately published work icon Home and Away John Marsden , Matt Ottley (illustrator), Melbourne : Lothian , 2008 Z1531267 2008 single work picture book children's Mum is a rehab counselor for people with alcohol problems. Grandma Raynor lives next door. Dad is a driver for Elgas. Then there's me, fifteen, into a lot of different stuff. Music, surfing, animals, tennis, swimming, computer games. And my sister, Claire, and brother Toby. We're a typical Australian family. Barbeques, footy, gardening, school, Holden Commodores. Then one day things change. April 26, Dad burns the toast, yells at Toby, thanks me for cleaning the cab of the truck, kisses Mum and Toby, then he's gone. April 27, the war starts. May 21, the city's in ruins, blackouts nearly all the time, food is hard to find. September 13, Dad's heard news of a boat. We might get out of here yet. September 28, it is just after dawn. A boat from their Navy has found us. We waved and cried and cheered. But then, slowly, we realised they were shouting at us, telling us to go away. September 30, we are in a huge prison, with razor wire all around us. The government says there's no room for us. The Prime Minister says that if they let us out into the community it'll just encourage other illegal immigrants. The Deputy Prime Minister says we're not genuine refugees. The Minister for Immigration says we should have gone through the proper procedures and applied to come here the prescribed way. Apparently there was a queue or a waiting list or something, and we were meant to find an Immigration Office and put our names down to be considered. I guess they're right. I feel terrible about the trouble we've caused them. (Source: Backcover)
1 1 Hamlet: Messiah or Naughty Boy John Marsden , 2008 single work column
— Appears in: The Age , 5 July 2008; (p. 17)
2 16 y separately published work icon Hamlet : A Novel John Marsden , Melbourne : Text Publishing , 2008 Z1514013 2008 single work novel young adult

'Hamlet's father has just died. By the time they've filled in the grave his mother has remarried. Hamlet suspects foul play, and it's troubling his spirit. Or maybe he was always troubled. Ophelia is in love with him. His best friend Horatio can't work him out. Then, on a cold, still night, Hamlet meets the ghost of his father...' (Publisher's blurb)

1 Brand New Chapter of Boy's Own Life Story John Marsden , 2008 single work column
— Appears in: The Sun-Herald , 20 April 2008; (p. 51)
John Marsden's thoughts range across his role as a judge for the inaugural Prime Minister's Literary Prize to his work as a writer of children's books and his life as a teacher.
1 The Currency Is Comedy John Marsden , 2008 single work prose
— Appears in: True Blue? : On Being Australian 2008; (p. 209)
2 10 y separately published work icon Circle of Flight John Marsden , Sydney : Pan Macmillan Australia , 2006 Z1325239 2006 single work novel young adult

It is a time of profound change for Ellie Linton. Enemies are everywhere. Some come crawling over the hills, others drive in and knock on the front door. Sometimes her friends are there and sometimes they are not. Ellie fights every inch of the way. But when courage and imagination are not enough, when she is trapped and helpless, Ellie must face the end of life as she knows it, standing alone, sustained only by her own strength. (Source: Trove)

4 5 y separately published work icon Incurable John Marsden , Sydney : Macmillan , 2005 Z1225518 2005 single work novel young adult Ellie has struggled to put the war behind her and lead a normal life. Although what's normal about your parents having been murdered; trying to run a farm and go to school; and bringing up a young boy who's hiding terrible secrets about his past? (Source: Singapore National Library)
1 Daydream Believer John Marsden , 2005 single work column
— Appears in: The Age , 22 August 2005; (p. 16)
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