Safe travels ‘What on Earth Institute of Wonder’ I hope there’s a tonne of eyes to greet you. A tonne of tiny hands to hold you. And a tonne of hearts to love you. 

It gives me such a great thrill to imagine kids in China reading my books. They absolutely loved Dr Boogaloo and Vincent will arrive there soon.

In the wise words of brilliant children’s writer Frank Cottrell-Boyce (as written on my office ( shed) wall….)

How exciting to stumble across such news. Apparently in November last year, Dr Boogaloo and The Girl Who Lost Her Laughter was a winner in the 2021 Shenzhen Reading Month ‘Top Ten Children’s Books of the Year’. Shenzhen Reading month is a large literary festival. Shenzhen is also home to the largest bookshop in the world. I am SO thrilled Dr Boogaloo has been awarded such an honour. It’s lovely to imagine kids in China enjoying a bit of Boogaloo. There’s also more exciting news to come about Dr Boogaloo but I’m not allowed to tell yet, so stay tuned…..

You can read all about the top ten books here….

Can You Kidnap an Elephant? Read our Q&A with Lisa Nicol, Author of The What on Earth Institute of Wonder

The What On Earth Institute of Wonder comes out 31 August. I’m excited and nervous all at once…..

One elephant, one kakapo, one unlicensed teenage driver, one boy waiting for the world to end and a twelve-year-old girl with a very special gift.

Sal has always had an affinity with animals – especially the lost kind. But when two rare and endangered creatures appear out of nowhere, life takes a detour into strange and uncharted territory.

Join Sal, Bartholomew and Roy on a mind-boggling expedition into the secrets of the Animal Kingdom with only an invisible map of the human heart to guide them. (Unless, of course, you count the talking parrot.) What on Earth could possibly go wrong…?

Ah….I’ll let you in on a secret. A lot!

I’m so excited and nervous that The What on Earth Institute of Wonder is coming out on the 31st of August.  If you adore animals and don’t mind a laugh, I reckon you’re going to love it. Well I hope you are. And there’s plenty of that in there too. Hope.

Stay tuned over the coming months for some sneak peaks and stories behind the story…

What a great cover!

That suit! That smile! NEVER seen a grander Vincent than Lachie! And a Florence too with her emerald green musical shoes and a baby elephant by her side.

Brilliant costumes Sophie and Lachie. You take my breath away!

(There’s a rumour you have ideas for new rooms. Can’t wait to hear them!) Thank you SO much for letting me share.

That’s it! Entries are now closed for the Grand Drawing Competition. Thank you to everyone who entered! The winner will be announced very shortly (Monday 27th July)  and pocket dog despatched as soon as possible. All entries will also be displayed on the website.  I can’t wait to show you the spectacular imaginations and talents of everyone who entered. Stay tuned!

It’s on!

A competition to design some new rooms for The Grandest Hotel on Earth!

Here’s what you need to do. Think up an idea for a new room. Draw it. Write a few lines telling me all about the room. And then email it to me: lisa@lisanicol.com.au

Entries close 15 July 2020. Due to that old corona virus, the deadline for entries is being extended until 22 JULY.  (There’s a lot of uncertainty when schools will be back and some teachers have requested a little more time)

All drawings will be displayed in a gallery on the website. And the winner of the BEST NEW ROOM drawing will receive their VERY OWN POCKET DOG!! ( It will not be living I’m afraid. It will be stuffed. But it WILL fit in your pocket!!). The winner will be announced on Friday the 17th of July. 

If you need a refresher of what rooms already exist at The Grand, you’ll need to reread Chapter 6!

Can’t WAIT to see all your drawings and ideas for rooms! Happy imagining everyone!