Penguin Books Australia

In your house, people might eat with chopsticks, or knives and forks. Maybe you have spoons instead. You might eat with your fingers, or maybe you're not allowed to eat with your fingers (except biscuits, of course). In some countries biscuits are salty and soup is sweet.

I always wanted to discover the world beyond the back door and introduce the children of the world to each other: find out who they are, what games they play; what they eat and even how they eat it. Children in many different parts of the world talk differently, eat differently and play differently. Not all houses are the same, not even all the beds are the same. I wanted to share the special magic of us all being unique.

I've lived in lots of different countries and watched lots of different children playing together. They were having such fun. So I wrote Ellie and Tess and the Lost Letter for them, and for you.