It’s an actual book. And it’s actually out. Just like the jasmine.
From today THE WHAT ON EARTH INSTITUTE OF WONDER is available in all good bookstores. It’s about a gang of friends who kidnap a rare African forest elephant. If I tell you any more than that, I might ruin the story but let’s just say kidnapping an elephant is not an easy thing to do even when it is the right thing to do. Which I’m not saying it is. There’s also a talking kakapo, an eight-and-a-half-year-old doomsday prepper, a villain with a fondness for wearing Peter Rabbit pyjamas and a lot of underage driving.
It’s a strange environment to be releasing a book but an even stranger time to live. As my mother always says ‘Just keep going!’
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.
Congratulations to everyone who entered The Grandest Competition to design a new room for The Grandest Hotel on Earth. I was overwhelmed by the brilliant ideas for rooms and judging was very nearly impossible! Rooms where you get your own loyal tiger, rooms that are bright stars, rooms where you write and enter your own story, an ‘almost endless room’. All entries will be exhibited on the website as soon as I can get them up! But for now, here are the winners!
WINNER AGE 10+
Ester’s Fruit Room – WINNER
Everything in the “Fruit Room” is actual edible fruit. The walls are watermelon and the floor is strawberry. There is a strawberry bed with pears holding it up. Next to the bed is a beside table which is a pineapple with an actual orange lamp (although it doesn’t work that well and is completely broken when the guest takes a bite out of it). There is an apple rug with a big bite in it from the previous guest. There is a comfortable big banana chair with a strawberry table next to it with an apple, orange, grapes, pineapple and a pear on it ready to be eaten. In the room is Vincent and his pocket dog Min.
WINNERS AGE 8+
GIRLS
Hayley’s Sleeping Panda Room – WINNER
This room has a sleeping panda to comfort you, panda giving you a dance party when you walk in, bamboo for your pandas. A deluxe TV to watch. Last but not least a bathroom with a bamboo towel to save the environment.
Rosie’s Mythical Creatures Room – WINNER
You share a room with amazing ,cute, friendly mythical creatures. There is a hammock to sleep on and before you go to bed you can play with them. Also you can play with them in the morning!
BOYS
Aiden’s Gravity Arcade Room – WINNER
A flying arcade
WINNER 7+
Harper’s Jinx Yourself Lucky Room – WINNER
In the Jinx Yourself Lucky Room it looks like a normal room but when you think negative the exact opposite happens.
Isla’s Underwater Room – RUNNER UP
This is the underwater room. The beds are seashells and Vincent is the one with the V on his blue shirt. There is also a Mermaid in the tank. A school of fish that are grey. One shark and dolphin staring at each other. A wrinkly blob fish which is floating in the water unhappily and 2 puffer fish. Finally, if you look closely you can see Vincent’s pocket dog Min!!!
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Lisa’s The Infinity Cartoon Room
How this room works is that when you walk into the room there will be a robot with a big screen where you search a film or draw your own world then when you press the button on the robot then your world will be a reality.
Elliot’s Animalia Room
This room has different biomes. The biomes are rainforest, desert, mountains, snowy, ocean and they all lead to the castle of Animalia. When you walk inside the room you will be in the first biome, the rainforest. There is a hut in each biome. You have to find this hut, in this hut there is a bed and a back door. You go through the hut’s backdoor and you will appear in the next biome. You have to go through all the biomes to get to the castle. Once you reach the castle of Animalia this is the last place you need to be. You get your own huge room with gold all over the place, you can’t remove any of the gold or you get teleported back to the beginning and have to start again. The castle of Animalia guards the kingdom. The king is an animal, he has the ability to turn into other animals and can control any other animals. He has a special crown with a magical gem stone and if you get this crown you rule Animalia for the time you are living in this room. The crown only works in the kingdom of Animalia.
Christian’s Gaming Room
Like Gaming? Yes? Then it’s the PERFECT room for you! Sit in the nicest couch ever & play on the TV.
Izzy’s Zootopia
As soon as you walk into this amazing animal paradise you will also notice that there is a wonderful leopard print bed cover with a beautiful soft pig rug under your feet then you will see a stunning wallpaper full of palm trees and so much more!
Joshua’s Season’s Room
A room where you can choose the season and weather in the room
Brooke’s The Come to Life Room
In this room you can pick a book and the characters come to life in your room like the 3 bears come in your room and goldilocks.
Arjun’s The Book Room
Once you enter this room you type a book on the type pad and the part of the story you would like to stay in. You can change the part of the story you want to stay in by going to the type pad and changing it. Also known as the “almost endless room”
Tom’s Skate Ramp Room
In the Skate Ramp Room you can skate the ramp whenever you want. It is not too steep but it is good and it still has a bed, a closet and a door.
Sean K’s Read Your Mind Room
In this room you’ll walk in and hear what the person that walks in with you is thinking. You can set it to read your mind or someone else’s.
Eadie’s Sleep Over Room
This is the sleepover room. It’s great for boys and girls included there is lollies and paper and pen. Also toilet and shower. Of course sleeping bags.
