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The Ink Bridge

A remarkable and gripping story about one refugee boy on a desperate journey from Afghanistan, and the Australian boy who befriends him.

Each step becomes a heartbeat and I feel the distance between Omed and me closing. I remember when I first met him - when he had showed me what bravery meant. How he had stood up for what he believed. In the end that had been his undoing.


Omed's and Hector's beautifully told and compelling journeys will grip hold of your heart and not let go.

This deceptively slim volume accomplishes no mean feat: working as a young-adult novel that tackles weighty political issues while delivering all the action and suspense an easily distracted teen reader could ask for. It's a forked narrative that brings together two radically different worlds.
John Bailey (The Age)

           Download Teacher's Notes

Winner: Queensland Literary Awards, 2012

Winner: Fellowship of Australian Writers National Literary Awards, Barbara Ramsden Award, 2012

Commended: Fellowship of Australian Writers National Literary Awards, Christina Stead Award, 2012

Honour book: CBCA Book of the Year Awards, Older Readers Category, 2013


Shortlisted: NSW Premier's Literary Awards, 2013

Shortlisted: West Australian Premier's Book Awards, Young Adults, 2012

Shortlisted: Adelaide Festival Awards for Literature, Young Adult Fiction, 2014

Book chat

Here, Neil talks about his motivation and inspiration for writing the novel.

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