{"title":"John van de Ruit","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eJohn van de Ruit\u003c\/strong\u003e crafts engaging stories that blend humour, heart, and the chaos of adolescence. His novels, centred around the unforgettable character Spud, offer a vivid portrayal of school life filled with wit, misadventure, and the awkwardness of growing up.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003ePerfect for fans of \u003cem\u003eYoung Adult\u003c\/em\u003e and contemporary fiction, these books explore themes of friendship, identity, and change with a light, comedic touch that resonates with readers of all ages.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"spud-by-john-van-de-ruit-9780141323565","title":"Spud","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMeet thirteen-year-old John \u003cem\u003eSpud\u003c\/em\u003e Milton as he takes his first hilarious steps towards manhood in this wickedly funny, yet heart-warming debut novel.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt's 1990. Apartheid is crumbling, Nelson Mandela has just been released from prison, and thirteen-year-old \u003cem\u003eSpud\u003c\/em\u003e Milton is about to start his first year at an elite boys-only boarding school. Cursed with embarrassingly dysfunctional parents, a nutty granny, and a dormitory full of strange characters, Spud has his hands full trying to adapt to his new home.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWith only his wits and his diary, he takes readers on a rowdy boarding school romp full of illegal midnight swims, catastrophic cricket matches, ghostbusting escapades, girls, and disastrous holidays.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSouth African comedian John van de Ruit invites the reader into the mind of a young boy whose eyes are being opened to love, friendship, and complete insanity!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Gardners Books Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47238416793836,"sku":"9780141323565","price":30.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780141323565.jpg?v=1770243182"},{"product_id":"spud-exit-pursued-by-a-bear-by-john-van-de-ruit-9780141348278","title":"Spud: Exit, Pursued by a Bear","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe final instalment of the hilariously funny life of young Spud Milton!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eDare I say it... for the first time in my life I feel like I'm on a bit of a roll.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSpud Milton is in his final year at boarding school. Now a prefect and on the cusp of adulthood, he thinks this may be his best year yet. But soon his life is as chaotic as ever as he wages a battle for his room, directs a play in which the actors refuse to learn their lines and (most terrifyingly of all) attempts to find a date for the matric dance.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFor the last time, armed once again with his wits and his diary, Spud invites us to share the agonies, the victories and the sheer absurdities of growing up.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Gardners Books Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47238420594924,"sku":"9780141348278","price":30.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/8284763482238.jpg?v=1769043840"},{"product_id":"spud-learning-to-fly-by-john-van-de-ruit-9780141336237","title":"Spud - Learning to Fly","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe third instalment in the hilariously funny life of young \u003cem\u003eSpud Milton\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWarning\u003c\/strong\u003e - may cause frequent bouts of hysterical laughter...!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eSpud Milton\u003c\/em\u003e (practically a man in most areas) is hoping for a smooth ride as he returns to boarding school as a senior. But instead, he finds his vindictive arch-enemy is back to taunt him and a garrulous new boy has taken residence in his dorm, along with the regular inmates and misfits he calls friends.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSpud's world has never felt more uncertain as he attempts to master Shakespeare, girls, religion and the meaning of life.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOnce again, armed only with his wits and his diary, Spud invites us on a hilarious journey deep into the sublime and ridiculous world of being a teenager.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Gardners Books Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47238421250284,"sku":"9780141336237","price":30.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/fe148e2f5093758283196f85dfffb7fb.jpg?v=1770635172"},{"product_id":"spud-the-madness-continues-by-john-van-de-ruit-9780141326818","title":"Spud - The Madness Continues","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eSpud - The Madness Continues\u003c\/em\u003e introduces us to Spud, who is nearly 15 and navigating his second year at boarding school. Though no longer the youngest or smallest in his dorm, Spud's year is fraught with challenges, including women troubles, misguided late-night adventures, and excruciating family visits.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDespite his dreams of a stage career lying in tatters after a disastrous house play production of \"Noah's Ark,\" Spud invites us to delve further into his mind. Armed only with his wits and his diary, he discovers that the long path to manhood is never easy, especially when the madness continues all around him.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Gardners Books Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47238426099948,"sku":"9780141326818","price":30.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/1557763e17abdfebd7640693c733fbe5.jpg?v=1770635165"},{"product_id":"spud-the-reunion-by-john-van-de-ruit-9781035079230","title":"Spud: The Reunion","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt is 2003 - ten years since Spud Milton's class of '93 matriculated and the boys went their separate ways. Despite their seemingly unbreakable bond, the Crazy Eight have not kept in touch. Or at least, not as far as Spud knows.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWhen he receives an invitation from the school to attend the ten-year reunion weekend, Spud is determined to avoid the event at all costs, but he hasn't reckoned with the bombardment of intrusive messages and threatening phone calls from his former dorm mates. No one is going to bend his arm, not this time; he is immune to peer pressure and wise to Rambo's devious manipulation techniques. Spud has moved on. And, anyway, he has enough to worry about on the home front.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAt twenty-eight, Spud is stuck in a one-third life crisis. Reflecting on a decade of spectacular non-achievement, at a point where he's coming to realise that his glittering stage career might have stalled before it's even begun, casts him into deep gloom. For the former scholarship kid, the prospect of once again having to measure up to his blue-blooded school friends - and be found wanting - has him riddled with anxiety.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eNot only that, Spud still doesn't have a serious girlfriend, which has seen him resort to a questionable international bath-sexting relationship with an old flame. Not to mention that circumstances have forced him to move back in with his parents and his senile grandmother, Wombat, whose walks never end where they began.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAfter a wildly unsuccessful fishing trip with his father, as well as a return to his old way of figuring things out - writing in his diary - to his own surprise, Spud finds his reunion resistance crumbling. Curiosity and courage win the day. It's just a weekend, after all... what could possibly go wrong?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFrom the bestselling author John van de Ruit, \u003cem\u003eSpud: The Reunion\u003c\/em\u003e revisits well-loved characters in this nostalgic reunion ten years after graduation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Macmillan Publishers New Zealand Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47550354948332,"sku":"9781035079230","price":51.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9781035079230-spud-the-reunion.jpg?v=1776802284"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.live\/collections\/john-van-de-ruit.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}