Cecily Paterson

Ava’s been training hard for an awesome athletics season, and is looking forward to celebrating her 12th birthday. Life’s great—and Chloe the dog is having puppies! Even if Mum gets annoyed at Ava’s lack of organisation, Ava can always rely on her best friend Josie and her sister Maddie to pick up after her. But when the pandemic hits, everything’s cancelled. There’s no school, no birthday, no athletics, no toilet paper and definitely no Josie to rely on. When a puppy goes missing, it’s Ava’s fault. Can she mend her irresponsible ways in time? The Ava Show is a contemporary work with humour and lessons, teaching middle fiction readers how they can be more considerate and getting them to think about what responsibilities they should be taking care of. Set during the Coronavirus Pandemic, this book explores the affects lockdown and the virus had on this particular family.

Lola is always in the middle on the netball court. She knows how to keep the team working together. But netball is not the only situation Lola is always stuck in the middle of-what with her parents fighting all the time and not to mention her best friends hating each other. When her netball team looks like they might be in the State Finals, Lola steps up as captain. But she's got bigger problems of her own when the doctor says that she might have to stop playing netball all together. Lola feels like she's losing from all sides. Can she ever stand up for herself? Or will she always be stuck in the middle?

Maddie tries to be nice to everyone. Even weird, chicken-obsessed Tahlia. BUT she'd way prefer to hang out with the cool K-girls at school. The only problem is that they don't seem interested in her, at least not until Year 6 camp. That's when Maddie has a decision to make: how far will she go to be popular? Will she be able to live with the guilt when she finally has everything she's been hoping for? Follow Maddie's hilarious antics with chickens, secrets and undies in the latest adventure at Kangaroo Valley Public School.

Abby Smart is planning to have the most awesome year ever. She's the leader of the Smart Girls Club and after winning the talent quest, her dream to be a musical singer looks like it might come true. And then Stella turns up, fluttering her mascara eyelashes. She's way too cool for little old Kangaroo Valley. Worst of all, she's making Abby's friends like ridiculous things such as makeup and new music! Abby's plans to have a great year are being turned into dog food. Will Abby follow her friends, or follow her dreams? Because she can't have both. After all, Smart Girls don't wear mascara!

What do you do when your dream for a 'happy family' isn't working out? Where do you go when no one can help your child? When Cecily Paterson's son was diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD), Cecily's life was thrown into chaos. Daily life became a daily struggle and everything she'd ever thought about love seemed to be turned upside down. In the end, she'd have to learn to trust God, learn to love, and do just as much learning and growing as her beautiful little boy._____________________________________After her son's ASD diagnosis, Cecily went looking for a book that would give her not only practical help, but also emotional support and spiritual solace. She never found it, so she wrote it. Read Love Tears & Autism if you have a child with a disability, or if your friend or family member lives with autism. Or just read it if you like a good real-life story where God's grace shines through. Love Tears & Autism won third prize in the 2012 Australian Christian Book of the Year (ACBOY) awards. This second edition includes updated and revised resources and a 'Where are we now' chapter.