Book Author & Illustrator Ruth Paul
Rights Available World excl. ANZ
When her grandfather Rex is hospitalised, 11-year-old Ruby retreats to the forest with her trusty dog sidekick and a weird old doll she wants to get rid of. Near the treehouse built by Rex, she discovers a kiwi burrow. And is that a white kiwi chick she sees?
Ruby and her friend Spider uncover a plot by the local vet to catch the white kiwi for an international smuggling ring. Together with a social misfit, who is both ex-convict and nature lover – and perhaps some mystical help from the local patupaiarehe – they manage to expose and catch the crooked vet.
+ Award-winning author Ruth Paul found inspiration for this story close to home – she lives on a rural property that is a home to kiwi and she is actively involved in the kiwi conservation programme.
+ This well-crafted, compelling story weaves two cultures in an intriguing mystery adventure, spiced with Kiwi banter and humour.
+ With trees that hold hands and friends that bridge cultures, the story takes us from deep inside a kiwi burrow to a town where families work together to protect a taonga of Tāne Mahuta – a precious white kiwi chick named Rākaunui, after the full moon.
+ Features themes of family relationships, friendship, conservation, mental health and the supernatural
About the Author
Ruth Paul is an award-winning author and illustrator, with titles Stomp!, Bad Dog Flash, Bye-Bye Grumpy Fly, My Dinosaur Dad, My Meerkat Mum and the popular Mini Whinny series among her Scholastic collection. Her books have been published in NZ, Australia, the UK, the US, Canada, China and Korea. Scholastic titles The King’s Bubbles and Lion Guards the Cake have both won best Picture Book at the NZ Children’s Book Awards. Now turning her hand to longer work, Ghost Kiwi is Ruth’s first middle-grade fiction.
Ruth lives on a rural property at Mākara, near Wellington, and found inspiration for this story close to home when wild kiwi were reintroduced to Te-Whanganui-a-Tara after 150 years’ absence. She now hears kiwi calling at night and is actively involved in conserving their population and environment.
Publisher
Scholastic New Zealand Ltd
Extent
176pp
Format
198 x 128 mm
Binding
Paperback
Category
Children’s
Genre
Junior Fiction
Age range
9+ years
Publication Date
July 2025
Rights Available:
World, excl. World excl. ANZ
Rights Agents:
World
Lynette Evans, Scholastic New Zealand Ltd
levans@scholastic.co.nz
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