{"title":"Claire Zorn","description":"\u003cp\u003eClaire Zorn’s novels delve into the complexities of growing up, exploring themes of identity, resilience, and belonging. With a keen eye for emotional depth, her stories often navigate challenging family dynamics and personal growth, resonating deeply with both young adult and general fiction readers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFrom heartfelt coming-of-age tales to thought-provoking explorations of life’s uncertainties, Zorn’s writing combines accessible prose with rich characterisation. Her work invites readers to reflect on the hidden struggles beneath everyday experiences, making her books compelling for both children and adults seeking meaningful stories.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"the-protected-by-claire-zorn-9780702250194","title":"The Protected","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHannah's world is in pieces, and she doesn't need the school counsellor to tell her she has deep-seated psychological issues. With a seriously depressed mum, an injured dad, and a dead sister, who wouldn't have problems?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHannah should feel terrible, but for the first time in ages, she feels a glimmer of hope and isn't afraid anymore. Is it because the elusive Josh is taking an interest in her? Or does it run deeper than that?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn a family torn apart by grief and guilt, one girl's struggle to come to terms with years of torment shows just how long old wounds can take to heal.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Protected\u003c\/em\u003e by Claire Zorn explores these themes with depth and sensitivity.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46533579276524,"sku":"9780702250194","price":22.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/145923482438.jpg?v=1749391460"},{"product_id":"the-sky-so-heavy-by-claire-zorn-9780702249761","title":"The Sky So Heavy","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor Fin, it's just like any other day—racing for the school bus, bluffing his way through class, and trying to remain cool in front of the most sophisticated girl in his universe. Only it's not like any other day because, on the other side of the world, nuclear missiles are being detonated.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWhen Fin wakes up the next morning, it's dark, bitterly cold, and snow is falling. There's no internet, no phone, no TV, no power, and no parents. Nothing Fin's learnt in school could have prepared him for this.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWith his parents missing and dwindling food and water supplies, Fin and his younger brother, Max, must find a way to survive in a nuclear winter... all on their own. When things are at their most desperate, where can you go for help?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46533987696876,"sku":"9780702249761","price":24.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/141593482438.jpg?v=1749399110"},{"product_id":"one-would-think-the-deep-by-claire-zorn-9780702253942","title":"One Would Think the Deep","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSam stared at the picture of the boy about to be tipped off the edge of the world—the crushing weight of water about to pummel him. Sam knew that moment exactly, the disbelief that what was about to happen could even be possible. The intake of breath before the flood.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSam has always had things going on in his head that no one else understands, even his mum. And now she's dead, it's worse than ever. With nothing but his skateboard and a few belongings in a garbage bag, Sam goes to live with the strangers his mum cut ties with seven years ago—Aunty Lorraine and his cousins Shane and Minty. Despite the suspicion and hostility emanating from their fibro shack, Sam reverts to his childhood habit of following Minty around and is soon surfing with Minty to cut through the static fuzz in his head.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBut as the days slowly meld into one another, and ghosts from the past reappear, Sam has to make the ultimate decision—will he sink or will he swim?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eOne Would Think the Deep\u003c\/em\u003e is a compelling exploration of grief, identity, and the power of the sea to heal or harm.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46550327066860,"sku":"9780702253942","price":22.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/183403482438.jpg?v=1749973194"},{"product_id":"no-place-for-an-octopus-by-claire-zorn-9780702262609","title":"No Place for an Octopus","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDive into this sweet and sensory journey through one boy's imagination.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAfter discovering an octopus in the rock pools at the beach, a boy wonders about all the fun adventures they could share if he took the octopus home. From multi-award-winning author Claire Zorn comes this gentle tale of friendship and understanding.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46694330859756,"sku":"9780702262609","price":30.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/270073482438.jpg?v=1753572192"},{"product_id":"better-days-by-claire-zorn-9781922928078","title":"Better Days","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTwenty years ago, Grace only wanted to be with Trent—a boy with a guitar and a lot of promises. Her mother, Dorothy, wanted her daughter to fulfil her potential. In a fit of fury and heartbreak, Grace boards a plane to London where she builds a dazzling career in the music industry, marries Ed who would do anything for her, and has two children (one who might be a sociopath, but the other seems fine).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThat glamorous lifestyle is a distant memory as Grace drags her kids and a particularly irritating dachshund back to the Blue Mountains, where Dorothy is waiting with a roast and inevitable questions about why Ed is no longer in the—seemingly perfect—picture. On a McDonald's pitstop, Grace bumps into a ghost from the past... Trent.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eBetter Days\u003c\/em\u003e is a reflective, funny and acutely observed novel that blends coming of age story, backstage music industry satire, romance, and character-driven domestic drama. \u003cem\u003eThe Sydney Morning Herald\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eI loved this book. I inhaled it. Warm, familiar and mesmerising. I will think about \u003cem\u003eBetter Days\u003c\/em\u003e for many years to come. Zorn's writing is masterful, expanding our understanding of what it means to be a mother and what it means to be a daughter. I want more from her, immediately. If you're in a reading rut, this will pull you out of it.\u003c\/strong\u003e – Jessie Stephens, author of \u003cem\u003eSomething Bad is Going to Happen\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eClaire Zorn writes beautifully, crisply and with gentle wisdom and humour about how our past selves and loves are folded into the person we become.\u003c\/strong\u003e – Jaclyn Moriarty, author of \u003cem\u003eThe Impossible Secret of Lillian Velvet\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA thoroughly entertaining and absorbing read. Unflinching in its detail, yet compassionate in its telling. An expertly observed story of friendship, fortune, love, obligation, choice, consequence, possibility, and song.\u003c\/strong\u003e – Clare Bowditch, musician and author of \u003cem\u003eYour Own Kind of Girl\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eI was engrossed in \u003cem\u003eBetter Days\u003c\/em\u003e from the very beginning, absorbed in the vivid world and characters Claire Zorn has so artfully built. Zorn is a masterful storyteller, making it impossible not to fall into her pages and fight to stay there. This is a book built on the cliffhangers of a familiar life—an unresolved first love, a complicated marriage, and a family learning to understand each other. \u003cem\u003eBetter Days\u003c\/em\u003e is spellbinding, authentic and unforgettable.\u003c\/strong\u003e – Clare Stephens\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA gem of a novel that lingers in your mind, leaving you thinking about its characters and eager to return to their world. \u003cem\u003eBetter Days\u003c\/em\u003e sensitively delves into themes of identity in work, toxic relationships, postpartum depression, and the tension between the lives we imagine for ourselves and the realities we face. Through humorous writing and compelling dialogue, Zorn explores these subjects with nuance and empathy. Perfect for readers of Taylor Jenkins Reid, Genevieve Novak and Natalie Sue's \u003cem\u003eI Hope This Finds You Well.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e – \u003cem\u003eAustralian Bookseller \u0026amp; Publisher\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eI really enjoyed this ... if you're a fan of Taylor Jenkins Reid or Sally Rooney, highly recommend.\u003c\/strong\u003e – Shameless Bookclub, 4\/5 stars\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Allen \u0026 Unwin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46710966386924,"sku":"9781922928078","price":37.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/17691903482872.jpg?v=1754171432"},{"product_id":"when-we-are-invisible-by-claire-zorn-9780702263132","title":"When We Are Invisible","description":"The sequel to Claire Zorn's acclaimed debut The Sky So Heavy. A heart-stopping dystopian YA set in the Australian bush. \n\nInstinct has kept us alive so far. It's like a compass and I tune in to the needle often- trust\/don't trust, run\/stay . . . I can't read the needle right now. The warmth of the room is clouding my judgment.\n \nIn the midst of a nuclear winter, Lucy, Fin and Max flee the chaos of Sydney with blood on their clothes, a gun and handwritten directions to safety. When they reach Wattlewood, it seems like their struggle to survive might be over. There is food, warmth and adults in charge. So why can't Lucy shake the feeling they're still in danger?\n \nLucy's survived the apocalypse, but can she escape a more insidious threat?","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46996632928492,"sku":"9780702263132","price":24.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/0a409ee8ed161247e12897ef6798add2.jpg?v=1763148770"},{"product_id":"i-fell-in-a-hole-by-claire-zorn-9781760658014","title":"I Fell in a Hole","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA droll tale of a turtle who falls in a hole and has to get out – but how?\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThere was a hole.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eEverybody else walked around it.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eBut I \u003cstrong\u003efell in\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWhen a turtle falls in a hole, she doesn't want to talk about it. She hides in her shell and wonders how she'll ever get out. But with the help of some friends who've been in that pickle before, she learns that patience and support are what you need to get out of tricky situations.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Arotahi Agency","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47638460432620,"sku":"9781760658014","price":27.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9781760658014-i-fell-in-a-hole.jpg?v=1779070426"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.live\/collections\/claire-zorn.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}