New website and home for the blog!

Hello Friends,

Clementine Rose and I are really excited about our new website.  It's where you can find out lots of things about us and our best grownup friend Jacqueline Harvey and there's wallpaper and a name generator (so you can have your very own Alice-Miranda style name) and even party invitations and recipes.  Most exciting of all, you can sign up for the monthly newsletter which will have all sorts of fun things, including sneak peeks of new books, exclusive content you won't find anywhere else and this month there's a great competition to win a signed Alice-Miranda tote bag which is very handy for carrying all sorts of things like library books and sports gear! and you can't buy anywhere).

We love writing our blog too and it's now going to be part of the website - so you can decide whether you want to read blogs from me or Clementine Rose or Jacqueline Harvey or all three.  If you look on the picture below it shows you how to filter the blogs.

So, to keep up with everything please make sure that you head over to www.jacquelineharvey.com.au

This Sunday our best grownup friend Jacqueline Harvey will be at the Sydney Writers' Festival Family Day from 10am.  She'd love to see you and you can even have morning tea with her!

Next week we're all heading to Adelaide and Mt Gambier and a little town called Millicent so please check on the website for our events and hopefully we will see you there!

Lots of love,

Alice-Miranda (and Clementine Rose) xxxx

New Books, a book signing and upcoming events

Hello Friends,

I hope you've had a great week.  It's been a very exciting one for me and my best grownup friend Jacqueline Harvey.  Alice-Miranda in Paris has been shortlisted for two awards!  The Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIAs) and the REAL awards which act as the shortlist for the YABBAs, KOALA, COOL and KROC awards.  The ABIAs are voted on by people who work in the book industry like booksellers and publishers and the the REAL awards are voted by children just like you from Victoria, NSW, the ACT and the Northern Territory.  It's a huge honour to know that there are lots of people reading and enjoying my adventures.  You can ask your teachers and librarians how to cast your vote!

Jacqueline has been super busy finishing a new Clementine Rose story which is called Clementine Rose and the Famous Friend. It's the seventh of Clemmie's adventures and will be out in October this year. In the meantime we can show you the cover of the next book, Clementine Rose and the Treasure Box which will be out on the 1st of July.  I think it's so pretty.

Next Saturday, the 10th May Jacqueline Harvey is going to be signing books at Book Review at St Ives Village Shopping Centre from 11am.  You can come along and have your Clementine Rose and Alice-Miranda books signed - remember the latest Clementine adventure is Clementine Rose and the Seaside Escape and my latest adventure is Alice-Miranda in Japan.  Jacqueline will be there with bookmarks and posters, so come along and say hello.

There are lots more events coming soon.  On Sunday 25 May Jacqueline is appearing at the Family Day at the Sydney Writers' Festival.  You can come along and hear her speak and then have morning tea with her too.

Jacqueline is touring in South Australia from Monday 26 - Saturday 31 May and will post all the event details in the next week or so and after that she's appearing at the Abbotsleigh Literary Festival in Sydney which is open to all schools and individuals and you can book tickets here.

Anyway, have a lovely weekend.  If you're playing sport, have a great game!

Lots of love,
Alice-Miranda xxx

PS  I wanted to share with you one of my special friends, Piper who is showing off her huge collection of Alice-Miranda and Clementine Rose books.  And finally, I need to let you know that very soon (hopefully in the next couple of weeks), there is going to be a fantastic new Jacqueline Harvey website which will have special sections for me and for Clementine Rose as well with lots of games and fun activities for you to do.

BIG W Katoomba Book Signing Easter Saturday 1.00-2.30pm

Hello Friends,

Clementine Rose and I are really excited to be doing our first in store event with Big W on Easter Saturday.  A brand new store just opened yesterday in Katoomba and we're going to be there on Easter Saturday from 1.00-2.30pm along with our best grown up friend, Jacqueline Harvey. We love the Blue Mountains and fingers crossed that there will be lots of visitors over the Easter weekend as well as loads of locals out and about.  It's a great chance to stock up on some books for the school holidays and I think Big W might have a good supply of chocolate to go with them too!

Jacqueline Harvey will be signing books and giving a short talk at the beginning of the event.  I'm sure that she would be very happy to answer any questions you might have too.  Clemmie and I will be there for photos.

We can't wait to meet everyone!

Lots of love,
Alice-Miranda xx

World Book Day and Other Book News

Hello Friends,

I thought I'd tell you about World Book Day which was held on the 6th March this year.  It's not really celebrated in Australia but is a BIG DEAL in the United Kingdom.  I was so thrilled to receive photographs of girls and teachers who dressed up as me and Clementine Rose and Lavender too!  My first friend is Aoibheann. She's 7 years old and lives in Dublin. Her father told my best grown up friend, Jacqueline Harvey that she had planned on dressing as Alice Miranda on World Book Day for months.

Doesn't she look amazing.  Now you might wonder how you pronounce her name.  It's Irish and it's actually pronounced Ay-veen.  There are lots of other beautiful names in Irish which I find hard to work out how to pronounce until I get some help - like Siohban which is Sha-vorn or Aisling which is Ashling.  They're all beautiful names aren't they.

My other friends are from one of my favourite schools in England - The Royal Masonic School for Girls, Cadogan House.  Lavender is Mrs Drummond and her assistant Elaine is Clementine Rose and one of the beautiful girls is Alice-Miranda.  Don't they look amazing too.

The other exciting thing that happened on World Book Day is that my best grown up friend Jacqueline Harvey had recorded an interview with Hannah from the Book Show on Radio Europe back in November and it aired on World Book Day.  When she can figure out how to make the clip small enough she'll link it here!


 

Happy Publication Day to Clementine Rose and the Seaside Escape

Hello Friends,

Hope you're all having a fantastic time at school this term.  I can't believe it's almost Easter.  I'm so excited that my best grown up friend, Jacqueline Harvey has a new book out tomorrow.  It's called Clementine Rose and the Seaside Escape and it's a gorgeous adventure and guess what?  I was at the seaside too with Millie and Jacinta and we met Clementine Rose and her little piggy Lavender and her new friends Freddy and his big sister Della.  She's a bit of a handful.  I think she might give Alethea a run for her money but you'll have to read the story to find out what happens.

I hope you love it as much as I do.

Lots of love,
Alice-Miranda xx

Events in Melbourne and Brisbane this week and next

Hello Friends,

My best grown up friend Jacqueline Harvey and I will be doing lots of travelling over the next two weeks in Melbourne and Brisbane.  If you'd like to find out about the places we're going (and Clemmie too) please click on the link below.

It's been a really busy time with fun events at The Children's Bookshop in Beecroft and at Dymocks in Sydney and we are going to write about them soon and put up lots of lovely pictures too.

But first of all if you live in Melbourne and Brisbane and you're keen to meet us click on the link below for all the details.

Jacqueline Harvey Events Melbourne and Brisbane March 2014

Hope to see you very soon.

Lots of love,
Alice-Miranda xxx

Exciting event in Sydney - Dymocks George St Saturday 8 March

I am so thrilled to be visiting Dymocks in George Street on Saturday 8 March to celebrate the release of Alice-Miranda in Japan.  Come along and dress up - there will be prizes too!  This event is free but bookings are essential.

Upcoming events in February and March

Hello Friends,

I am so excited that my new adventure Alice-Miranda In Japan has just hit the shops.  To celebrate the release, my best grown up friend Jacqueline Harvey and I will be visiting bookshops around Sydney for several different events.  I will post more details and the beautiful flyers that go with them soon but for your diary now:

Friday 14 February from 3.30pm Novella Wahroonga
Saturday 15 February from 10.30am - midday Book Review St Ives at St Ives Village
Saturday 1 March 1-2pm a huge celebration of Alice-Miranda In Japan at The Children's Bookshop at Beecroft
Saturday 8 March 11-12 noon big dress up event at Dymocks George St Sydney

There will be lots more happening in March as Jacqueline is touring in Melbourne and Queensland as well as visiting the fabulous Somerset Festival on the Gold Coast. More details soon.

Somerset Celebration of Literature

Hope you're having a fantastic week at school.

Lots of love,
Alice-Miranda xxx

Alice-Miranda in Japan: High Tea at The Tea Salon by Georgia Cameron

Hello Friends,

I am so thrilled that my new book, Alice-Miranda In Japan is out in the shops in Australia.  During the school holidays we had three wonderful events to celebrate the release (some lucky children got to buy the books two weeks early) at a beautiful place called The Tea Salon in Sydney.  One of my good friends, Georgia Cameron, who is ten years old, wrote a fantastic recount of one of the high teas.  You can read it below.  A big thanks to Georgia for sending this to my best grown up friend Jacqueline Harvey (who also happens to be a friend of Georgia's too).

On 22 January 2014, there was a very special event to celebrate the launch of Alice Miranda in Japan at the Tea Salon at Westfield in the City. It was great fun and very busy.

We arrived early at the tea salon because my mum, my little sister Julia and me travelled into the city with Jacqueline (except that we call her Jacquie). There were lots and lots of people coming to get their photo taken with her and also buying the wonderful Alice-Miranda and Clementine-Rose books. Everyone really wanted Alice- Miranda in Japan! We were all queuing to get into the Tea Salon because there was such a big crowd but luckily we were the first one’s seated. We met some people called Melissa, Eugenie and Araminta and enjoyed chatting and eating scones with jam and cream, pink cupcakes, sushi and ribbon sandwiches. Julia ate 2 or 3 cupcakes!  It was so busy that Jacquie couldn’t even sit down or eat anything.

Jacquie gave a speech about Alice- Miranda in Japan as an introduction. She knows a lot about Japan because she went there with a school group and she’s been back with her husband Ian too. She also read the first chapter of Alice- Miranda in Japan but not anymore because authors don’t like giving away their stories. Jacquie asked if anybody had a question and a row of hands popped up very fast. These were some of the things people wanted to know.  Why did you become an author? When did you publish your first book? And do you have any kids? When people asked Jacquie that question she said she had a step daughter but she and Ian don’t have any children together but I think of Alice-Miranda and Clementine-Rose as her children.

 

At the end of the speech Jacquie signed some more books and then we all headed home. It was a fun time and I loved it and I hope that everyone else that was there enjoyed it to.

Georgia Cameron

Thanks for the great report Georgia,

Lots of love,

Alice-Miranda xxxx

There are some more lovely photos of the event below.

Welcome to Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale - Class Lists are up for 2014

Hello Friends,

I hope you've had a wonderful holiday.  I've just been to Japan and I can't wait for you to read all about it. I'm so glad to be heading back to school and there are lots of new friends joining us.  Thank you to everyone who sent their enrollment form in.  It was really tricky because so many of you wanted to have the same room mate and Miss Grimm suggested that Millie and I share again this year because we get on so well.  But the other girls are all lovely and the new girls are good at so many things - especially being friends.

There have been loads of wonderful suggestions for outings including: riding, shopping, swimming, trips to the beach and a fun park, sewing workshops, a visit to the fair (I'm sure that Miss Grimm will let us do that again this year but hopefully it won't be nearly as dramatic as last time), walks and a visit to a cafe for breakfast or hot chocolate.  Mrs Smith will be busy in the kitchen too making all those new recipes - she's very keen to try Tortellini Boscaiola, some seafood including salmon and of course she'll make lots of roast dinners (which she's very good at).

Brummel Bear is excited to meet all your softies with the cutest names ever - Hariette, Mustard, Peaches Primrose, Piggy, Carlos, Doggie, Fluffy and Framboise.  I think we should have a midnight feast softie picnic!

Lots of you are good at lots of things, but there was definitely a trend that many of you wanted to improve in Science and Maths.  I think Mr Plumpton will have to get busy with his experiments and I've heard that Professor Pluss might be coming over from Fayle to help with some extra Maths lessons.  Miss Reedy is always wonderful offering extra tuition for English too.  Remember when she helped me study for my test when I first arrived.  She was so helpful.

There might be a little bit of confusion with the class groups as some students said that they were going into that year but others didn't specify, so if you're in the wrong class, please let my best grown up friend Jacqueline Harvey know and she will make sure Miss Grimm changes you into the correct year.

It's not too late to get your form in.  Miss Grimm's expanding the school this year so there are still some spots available.

Welcome to Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale.  I can't wait to meet you!

Lots of love,
Alice-Miranda xx

Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale Academy for Proper Young Ladies Class Lists 2014
Surname	First Name	Class	Room Mate	House	Co-Curricular Activities
Signorelli	Phillipa	5	Ashima	Shakespeare	Piano, drama
Ayres	Brianna	7	Jacinta	Bronte	Riding
Bell	Maisy	3	Cara	Bronte	Art, drama, music (percussion)
Bloom	Madeline	7	Danika	Shakespeare	Choir, piano
Covich	Nadia	6	Susannah	Austen	Riding
Dare	Susannah	7	Nadia	Austen	Riding
Divall	Ashima	5	Phillipa	Austen	Choir
Headlington-Bear	Jacinta	7	Brianna	Dickens	Gymnastics, Choir
Hicks	Ivory	5	Molly	Dickens	Tennis
Highton-Smith-Kennington-Jones	Alice-Miranda	4	Millie	Bronte	Riding, choir, sailing
Hobbs	Araminta	4	Laura	Shakespeare	Drama
Mallyon	Georgie	8	Imogen Walton	Dickens	Riding
McLaughlin-McTavish-McNoughton-McGill	Millie	5	Alice-Miranda	Bronte	Riding, tennis, choir
O'Brien	Molly	5	Ivory	Shakespeare	Drama, riding
Radford	Caprice	6	Sloane	Austen	Everything
Rigby	Danika	7	Madeline	Bronte	Sailing, choir
Sharry	Cara	3	Maisy	Austen	Choir, piano, drama
Sykes	Sloane	6	Caprice	Shakespeare	Choir, piano, drama
Venn	Laura	4	Araminta	Bronte	Drama
Walton	Imogen	8	Georgie	Dickens	Riding

High Teas in January!

Hello Friends,

Happy New Year!  I can't believe that it's already 2014.  Doesn't time fly.  I'm really excited that my best grown up friend, Jacqueline Harvey will be heading back to The Tea Salon in Westfield Sydney, twice in January and something extra special is happening while she's there.  My new adventure, Alice-Miranda in Japan will be available - two weeks early!  It's sure to be a lovely morning with lots of yummy cakes and sandwiches. There's tea and coffee for the grownups and milkshakes and other delicious drinks for the children.  If you'd like to come along you need to get your parents to book - and do it soon because these things have a habit of selling out very quickly.

https://theteasalon.com.au/site/alice-miranda-childrens-high-tea/

Hope to see you soon.  Have a wonderful New Year with plenty of fun and mysteries and friendship and kindness.
Lots of love,
Alice-Miranda xxx