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A Glasshouse of Stars

Winner of the CBCA Book of the Year Younger Readers 2022
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( 761 ratings, 156 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
A Glasshouse of Stars by Shirley Marr is a poignant children's novel that follows Meixing Lim as she navigates her new life in a mysterious house filled with unexpected magic. As she struggles with the challenges of fitting into a new place, the house becomes a refuge, revealing secrets and offering solace. Through Meixing's journey, it's a story about friendship, identity, and finding one's voice in a foreign world.
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Format: Paperback / softback
$1900
Elsewhere:
$2100
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This enchanting story may appeal to you if you enjoy tales of resilience and imagination intertwined with multicultural experiences. It beautifully weaves together a heartfelt narrative about belonging, friendship, and personal growth, often resonating with those who appreciate stories exploring the immigrant experience through a child's eyes.

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A Glasshouse of Stars

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Winner of the Children's Book Council of Australia Book of the Year - Younger Readers 2022

An exquisite, heartbreakingly beautiful gem of a novel for anyone who loved Wonder, Lenny's Book of Everything, A Monster Calls or When You Reach Me.

New Starts, New Worlds
Meixing Lim and her family have arrived at the New House in the New Land. Everything is vast and unknown to Meixing - including the house she names Big Scary. She is embarrassed by her second-hand shoes, has trouble understanding the language at school, and is finding it hard to make friends.

Finding Solace in Imagination
Meixing's only solace is a glasshouse in the garden, which inexplicably holds the sun and the moon and the secrets of her memory and imagination.

Learning Courage and Resilience
When her fragile universe is rocked by tragedy, it will take all of Meixing's bravery to find her place of belonging in this new world.

'Heart-twisting and hopeful, bursting with big feelings and gentle magic.' – Jessica Townsend, NYT bestselling author

'Poignant and beautifully told.' – Melina Marchetta

'An exceptionally beautiful and lyrical debut.' – The Bookseller

'Has the power to bring adults back to childhood.' – Vanessa Elle, Glam Adelaide

'A tender, touching narrative.' – Kirkus Reviews

'Highly recommended for thoughtful readers in middle to upper primary.' – Books and Publishing

'Endearing, raw, and highlights the realities of change in an intimate way.' – Better Reading

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781760899547

Publisher: Penguin Random House Australia

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 04 May 2021

Country: Australia

Imprint: Puffin

Audience: Children

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 20.0mm

Width: 130.0mm

Height: 197.0mm

Weight: 251g

Pages: 288

About the Author

Shirley Marr is a first-generation Chinese Australian living in Perth and an author of young adult and children's fiction, including YA novels Fury and Preloved, and children's novels Little Jiang, A Glasshouse of Stars, All Four Quarters of the Moon and Countdown to Yesterday. She describes herself as having a Western mind and an Eastern heart. She likes to write in the space in the middle where they both collide, basing her stories on her own personal experiences of migration and growing up in Australia, along with the folk and fairy tales from her mother. Arriving in mainland Australia from Christmas Island as a seven-year-old in the 1980s and experiencing the good, the bad and the wonder that comes with culture shock, Shirley has been in love with reading and writing from that early age. Shirley is a universe full of stars and stories and hopes to share the many other novels that she has inside her.

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