'There's someone in the school. Someone who's not supposed to be there. This person is walking towards the classroom. They're holding something in their hands. Something terrifying.'Sam lives with his mum, dad and four brothers in a small farming town. At his school, there are three main factions: the rich kids, the mid-grounders and the farm kids who live on the outskirts. Sam is a comfortable mid-grounder and life is pretty good. He works as a lifeguard at the local surf club, is saving to buy his first car, he's training with his friends for the Ironman challenge, and on Sunday afternoons he and his family take care packages to their less fortunate neighbours. Then, five years since they last spoke, Emily Burrow climbs back into Sam's life and everything changes.Emily's life is very different to Sam's – her absent father has returned and her mum struggles with her mental health. Sam does his best to be there for Emily when he wasn't for so long,...

Reminiscently capturing the warm and raw voices of Charlie Kelmeckis from The Perks of Being a Wallflower and Clay Jensen from Thirteen Reasons Why, I Had Such Friends is an important story about self-discovery, grief and finding your voice.When Charlie Parker, the most popular boy in school, dies it affects everyone who knew him. Everyone, that is, except for Hamish Day, the boy with only one friend, who lives on a cabbage farm.After the tragic car accident leaves his school in grief, Hamish finds himself pulled into the lives of the people left behind. He tries his best to thread them back together again, even though he is pretty sure he's the least qualified person for the job. As new friendships chip away at his quiet façade, Hamish is forced to face the traumas of his own past, as well as the person he is becoming.Set in rural Australia, I Had Such Friends is a powerful Australian YA debut that deals with the...