A heart-warming story of longing - and belonging - from the award-winning creators of One Day

A mouse who has only ever lived in his little house in a field contemplates the great migrations that other creatures make – geese flying home for the summer, arctic terns from one pole to the other, wildebeest moving over two countries, humans searching for sun in the winter. With a fear of missing out, mouse feels like he must embark on a journey of his own, only to find that his purpose and importance is right where he is.

Details

ISBN13: 9781760659783
Format: Hardback
Number of Pages: 40
Edition:
Publication Date: 01 Jun 2026
Publisher: Walker Books Australia
Publication City, Country: Newtown, Australia
Dimensions (cm): 27.9(H)x23.7(L)430
Weight (gm): 430

Author Biography

Shirley Marr is the author of the award winning A Glasshouse of Stars, which won the CBCA Book of the Year for Younger Readers 2022. The book was also the winner of the Western Australian Premier’s Book Award Writing for Children, shortlisted for the Queensland Literary Awards and Readings Children’s Fiction Prize, and nominated for the Carnegie Medal. Shirley’s middle grade novel Countdown to Yesterday was published in 2024 (Penguin Random House Australia, Simon & Schuster US and Usborne UK). She is the author of One Day, illustrated by Michael Speechley.

Michael Speechley has been a graphic designer and high school art teacher in WA. His first picture book, The All New Must Have Orange 430 was shortlisted and awarded as an Honour Book in the Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Children’s Book of the Year Award in 2019, and was the winner of The Wilderness Society’s 2019 Environment Award for Children’s Literature, Picture Books. His second book, The Gift, was published in September 2019. It was a Notable Book in the 2020 CBCA Book of the Year Awards, and was shortlisted for the 2019 Western Australian Premier’s Book Awards. Michael is the illustrator of One Day, written by Shirley Marr.

Reviews

In Where the Heart is, Shirley Marr crafts a wistful picture book for readers aged 3 to 6 that plays with the familiar idea that home is where the heart is. Here "home" is something to be discovered rather than assumed, a theme revealed through the journey of Mouse. Marr's sensory text is punctuated with imagery of birds, the sun and the moon, while Speechley's autumnal palette and falling leaves evoke the plaintive atmosphere of the changing season. His use of curved lines and negative space subtly reflecting Mouse's emotional state. Where the Heart is captures the feeling of being left behind while gently affirming the comfort and sanctuary of home. -- Joy Lawn * Books + Publishing *