It’s 1998 and Clara and her parents are staying at the Mount Buffalo Chalet for the centenary celebrations.
It couldn’t be more different from their last visit—there were four of them then and they were a family. Now they are three separate people, orbiting around each other while trying to navigate their overwhelming grief.
Without her twin brother, Clara doesn't really know who she is. Then she meets Alice, a girl who lives within the fern-filled valleys below Mount Buffalo. Surprisingly, Clara discovers she is Guide Alice, a rebel of her time, an adventurous non-conformist who spent much of her life boldly leading people along rugged trails between granite tors and misty mountain peaks.
When Clara and Alice come face-to-face with danger on the mountain, Clara must rediscover the courage she has always had and become the girl she was always meant to be...
This historical fiction time-slip adventure is set at Mount Buffalo and surrounds and is inspired by and features Guide Alice Manfield. Bringing in themes of early feminism and issues such as neurodiversity, bullying, never being a bystander, managing grief and finding your courage, this engaging middle grade time-slip story draws on the true history of Mount Buffalo and the incredible role the Manfield family—and Guide Alice in particular—played in the preservation of the National Park and the development of tourism in the Mount Buffalo region.
Guide Alice was a mountain guide, conservationist and early feminist. She was a rebel of her time. The book was inspired by her and the magnificent Mount Buffalo and its romantic Chalet. The narrative combines a fictional story with real people, places and events, including the impact of the Depression of the late 1890s.
About The Author
Dr Helen Edwards is an Adelaide-based children’s author and freelance writer who loves to weave stories of nature, magic and history. Her debut middle-grade novel — The Rebels of Mount Buffalo — is an historical fiction time-slip set at Mount Buffalo, featuring Guide Alice Manfield. It is being published in October 2023, by the award-winning Riveted Press, an imprint of Yellow Brick Books.
Helen has a PhD in Psychology and a long background working in mental health. She writes stories that reduce stereotypes and increase understanding of diversity, including characters who live with chronic illness, mental illness, and/or who are neurodivergent. She has had type 1 diabetes since 1979, and Anxiety and ADHD, both diagnosed in adulthood, and is interested in writing stories that reflect our Australian environment, culture, and history.
Helen has been blogging since 2001, after founding an award-winning online counselling service for people with diabetes, which she ran for 16 years. During this time, she secured more than $1.6 million in grants and funding. Over 100,000 people follow her across social media, where her platforms support the Australian literary community with book reviews, author features and other relevant bookish content, and inspire action for people and planet, with kindness and hope, focusing on our children's future.
She has won a number of awards, including being a South Australian State Finalist for Australian of the Year, winner of the ZestFest writing competition and bronze winner in the AusMum awards for her blog. As a freelance writer, she has written for numerous print and digital magazines, journals and websites. She recently had a story published in the School Magazine – Tiny Tarni Turtle.
Helen is an experienced speaker and has presented talks and workshops locally and internationally during her time working in diabetes and mental health. She has recently presented two different online workshops for the Australian Society of Authors and has a new workshop on Becoming a Resilient Writer, with the Bold Authors website. She has produced an online workshop for Writers’ SA about writing diverse characters.
Helen is a member of Writers’ Vic, Writers’ SA, Women’s Society of Writers Victoria, ASA, CBCA and SCBWI. She is part of the Author Pen Pals initiative and matched with two rural schools in Victoria. She is an Ambassador for Australia Reads. She has completed six middle-grade manuscripts and three picture book manuscripts, some of which are currently on submission.
Helen is passionate about inspiring action for our beautiful, fragile planet and nature features in all of her books. She finds history fascinating and uncovers stories that may have been forgotten, or hidden, and brings them into the light. She also believes that fantastical things can happen and sees magic in the everyday. If you're looking for a children's author who speaks from the heart, who laughs loud and loves deep, who is passionate about people and planet, and who understands we come in a glorious rainbow of human beings, Helen is your person.
See more about Helen at her website www.helenedwardswrites.com and follow her across social media @drhelenedwardswrites
