Get to Know Jane Godwin

'Jane Godwin understands what it is to be a child or young person, what matters to them at different ages and stages. Importantly, she values these concerns, treats them with due respect and creates stories in which her book people mature and blossom through the overcoming of self-doubt and their fear of the new and unknown. Good lessons for adults there, too.' 

- Living Arts Canberra

Meet Jane!

Jane Godwin is a highly acclaimed author of over forty books for children, across all styles and ages. Her work is published internationally and she has received many commendations, including the Queensland Premier's Award, the Aurealis Award and the Animal Welfare Award, and shortlistings in the CBC Book of the Year Awards, the Prime Minister’s Literary Award, the New South Wales State Literary Award, the YABBA Awards, the Speech Pathology Awards, The Family Award for Children’s Books, and the Australian Book Industry Awards. What a list!

Jane spends as much time as she can working with young people in schools and communities, running various literature and writing programs, making books and encouraging students in their own creative ventures.  

Jane lives in Melbourne with her family.  Most of her waking hours are dedicated to pursuing quality and enriching reading and writing experiences for young people, whether it’s as a writer, a publisher or a speaker/facilitator in schools.

Jane's Books

From Jane:

'I’m interested in the time of life when we’re leaving childhood behind, and the way in which we begin navigating adult life... [a] liminal point between childhood and adolescence. There is a grieving for the loss of your own childhood, of who you used to be and who you are now. Another aspect of this time is that it's often when you first start to question the adults around you, to judge them as the flawed human beings that they are...'

Learn more about some of Jane's novels below, in her own words!

Look Me in the Eye

What do we have once trust is gone?

Bella and Connie are best friends. They’ve made it through Covid lockdowns together and have  just started high school.

But now Connie’s older cousin Mish has moved into the area. Mish is unpredictable, sometimes unfriendly, and Bella doesn’t trust her. No one seems to trust Mish, least of all her father, who tracks her with his phone 24/7. He says it’s to protect her, but the more he tracks her, the more risks Mish takes.

And it’s only a matter of time before Connie and Bella get caught up in Mish’s lies . . .

A dramatic and compelling story about freedom, control and whether we have a right to know everything about the people close to us.

A Walk in the Dark

A couple of years ago, I read an article in the New York Times about the Dutch tradition of ‘the dropping’.  Children, usually pre-teen, are literally dropped in a forest in the middle of the night and they have to find their way home. It’s a team building exercise that is designed to build resilience, independence and ability to negotiate challenges that a walk in the dark presents!

As soon as I read this article, I thought it was a great starting-off point for a story...Australian forests have been associated with lost children. As a child, I loved Frederick McCubbin’s painting ‘Lost’. I think I write about loss a lot because to me, the end of childhood, which is the age of the characters I write about, embodies both growth and loss.

When Rain Turns to Snow 

When Rain Turns to Snow is a contemporary coming-of-age story about a thirteen-year-old boy on the run with a baby, and a girl he’s destined to meet. It’s about fate, families, friendship and the perils of social media. About discovering who you really are, about working out how and where you fit in to your family, and with your friendship group. It’s also a story about the way we use social media, about online bullying and call-out culture and the terrible damage it can do, and it’s also a story about Bruce Springsteen.

You’ll have to read the book to see where Bruce fits in...

As Happy As Here

The story is set in a hospital ward. I first started thinking about it several years ago when my son broke his collar bone, had surgery and was confined to his apartment, looking out on the world. I wanted to write a story about someone who was quite trapped – in her body, in the hospital, and in the timidity of the world she lived in, by the expectations of those around her.

There are three main characters – Evie, Lucy and Jemma.  They’re three very different girls from different walks of life, and they would never have met if they hadn’t found themselves sharing this hospital ward in Melbourne.  Their room looks over a park (based on the Epworth Freemasons in Melbourne, which looks over the Fitzroy Gardens), and they witness something odd happening in the laneway and park beyond.  Together they investigate what they see, and they end up getting involved in trying to solve what they think is a crime.  Through this, they bond and each of their lives changes in a profound way.

Looking for books for younger readers? Check out Jane's Q&A for The Isabelle Stories Volume 1 and 2!

For Teachers

We have Teacher Resources for all of Jane's wonderful books - click the links below to download them to use with your class.

Look Me in the Eye Teacher Resources

A Walk in the Dark Teacher Resources

When Rain Turns to Snow Teacher Resources

As Happy as Here Teacher Resources

Learn even more about Jane and all her books on her website here!