Edel Wignell – January 6 2019

January 1895 – AB ‘Banjo’ Paterson wrote ‘Waltzing Matilda’

Edel is a freelance writer, compiler and journalist. She wrote part-time for 10 years then full-time for adults and children since 1979: short stories, articles, verse, novels, scripts and non-fiction. Edel grew up on a sheep farm in northern Victoria, becoming interested in animals, birds, nature and the environment at an early age. Her books for younger readers include Big Eyes, Scary Voice (illustrated by Carl Pearce), The Magic Horse (illustrated by Claire de Zoete and Heath Gray) and Bilby Secrets (illustrated by Mark Jackson) which was short-listed for the Eve Pownall Award in the 2012 CBCA Awards. Edel has written more than 100 books for children, and her writing for adults has been published in journals, newspapers, collections and on the internet, as well as being read on radio.

Christina’s Matilda – Illustrated by Elizabeth Botté
Interactive Publications (IP Kidz), 2011; ISBN 9781921479878
10+ years – historical picture-story
Waltzing Matilda! Waltzing Matilda!
Who’ll come a-waltzing Matilda with me?
Everyone knows the words, and many people know that the Australian poet ‘Banjo’ Paterson wrote them in 1895. But few know the origin of the melody, provided by Christina Macpherson – a tune she had heard played by a band at the Warrnambool Races in 1894.

Long Live Us! – Illustrated by Peter Allert
Interactive Publications (IP Kidz), 2011; ISBN 9781921479465
7-10 years
A fractured folk tale about the exploits of a Greedy Troll. A Greedy Troll lives in a cave under a bridge. Hungry, he plans to trap anyone who tries to pass. The Three Bears arrive first and, after some discussion the Greedy Troll allows them to go. More and more folk tale characters arrive and the Greedy Troll gets hungrier and hungrier….