{"product_id":"the-things-that-matter-most","title":"The Things That Matter Most","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e'Gabbie Stroud is a teacher whose classroom has expanded to embrace an entire nation. First in non-fiction and now in moving, powerful fiction, Stroud educates us all about the tender, excruciating burden on the hearts of teachers today.' - Annabel Crabb\u003c\/b\u003e\n\n\u003cb\u003e'Lionel Merrick stumbled into my heart like a kid late for class, then the whole book swept in after him ... gut-wrenching and important.' - Trent Dalton, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eBoy Swallows Universe\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe staff of St Margaret's Primary School are hanging by a thread. There's serious litigation pending, the school is due for registration, and a powerful parent named Janet Bellevue has a lot to say about everything. As teachers they're trying to remain professional, as people they're unravelling fast.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThere's Tyson, first year out of uni and nervous as hell, Derek the Assistant Principal who's dropped the ball on administration, Bev from the office who's confronting a serious diagnosis, and Sally-Ann who's desperate for a child of her own.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThank goodness for kids like Lionel Merrick. Lionel is the student who steals your heart and makes the whole teaching gig worthwhile: he's cheerful, likeable, helpful - and devoted to his little sister Lacey. But Lionel has a secret of his own. As his future slides from vulnerable to dangerous, will someone from St Margaret's realise before it's too late?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs secrets threaten to be exposed and working demands increase, each staff member struggles to recall the things that matter most.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cb\u003eA moving and compelling novel about teachers and their students by the acclaimed author of the bestselling books \u003ci\u003eTeacher\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eDear Parents\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/b\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'A real page-turner and heartbreaker, it will leave you aching with appreciation for the work good teachers do.' - \u003cb\u003eAlice Pung, author of \u003ci\u003eOne Hundred Days\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eLaurinda\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Gabbie Stroud has written a powerful novel that captures the raw, the real, the heart-wrenching and the absolute beauty of teaching in a community ... I couldn't put it down. Stroud captures the raw and real truth of the life-changing challenges of teaching in today's test-focused, document-driven schooling system.' - Maggie Dent, author, educator and parenting \u0026amp; resilience specialist\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'In this emotionally charged debut, Gabbie Stroud gives us characters we care about, instantly drawing us into the school community of a tough farming town. We feel the pain of these characters as they each face their own challenges and they're unable to focus on what matters most. This heart-wrenching story made me laugh and it made me cry. Poignant and compelling. A riveting, thought-provoking debut.' - \u003cb\u003ePetronella McGovern, author of \u003ci\u003eSix Minutes\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Liars\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'A bittersweet love song to those who educate and care for our children, \u003ci\u003eThe Things That Matter Most\u003c\/i\u003e is a profoundly moving novel. Brimming with love and heartache and anger and hope, this is a raw and passionate work, its characters so vividly and tenderly drawn, I keep wondering how they are and hoping that life is good to them.' - Suzanne Leal, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Teacher's Secret\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'A rollicking ride through the gamut of emotions - laughter, sorrow, rage, outrage, joy. \u003ci\u003eThe Things that Matter Most\u003c\/i\u003e lifts the lid on social injustice and the unreasonable demands we make of teachers while we abdicate responsibility ourselves.' - Joanna Jenkins, author of \u003ci\u003eHow to Kill a Client\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'An unflinching and deeply moving account of the complex tapestry of human lives woven into and around a school community.' - Brendan James Murray, author of \u003ci\u003eThe School\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Allen \u0026 Unwin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45707330060524,"sku":"9781760879839","price":28.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9781760879839.jpg?v=1725898839","url":"https:\/\/bookhero.pro\/products\/the-things-that-matter-most","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}