Academic non-fiction

Throughout my career I have published extensively in my area of scholarship, including 18 books. There is a list of books remaining in print here and a full list of publications, including articles can be found on Google Scholar or on ResearchGate 

I have written on Family Group Conferencing, children’s rights and the development of responsive child welfare systems across international settings.

My textbooks have also been widely adopted, Social Work Context and Practice (Oxford University Press 2017), is now in its 4th edition. Similarly, Social Work Theory and Practice, (Cambridge University Press 2019) is now in its 3rd edition.

My two most recent academic books, Strategic Leadership in Social Work Education (Springer 2019) and Service Navigation (Macmillan International 2020) explore the ways in which professional systems can be more responsive to the challenges of 21st century practice.

Fiction

Currently I am looking to engage publishers for my two novels...

Coinciding in Time
Molly and Tom had visited the National Library in Wellington many times. In fact, it was one of Tom’s favourite places. But one Saturday morning their lives changed unexpectedly when an incident in the library threatened the very essence of their relationship. Coinciding in Time is a novel about trust, infidelity and forgiveness, and the ways in which human misunderstandings and unarticulated feelings impact on lives far beyond single events.

The Legacies of Kate Lindemann
Kate Lindemann is a Shakespearean scholar at the University of Melbourne whose life is turned upside down when the police tell her that her partner of fifteen years has committed suicide.

Children’s storybooks

In 2020 I joined up with Jenny Lee, artist and wonderful children’s book illustrator, to develop the Our Backyard children’s storybook series. We know that developing a sense of place is important to a child’s growing sense of belonging and identity. Generally children are eager to learn about their environment and through their experiences they come to know that they have connections to the physical world - that they are a part of, and share, a wider cultural life. Through our books we want to build children’s connections to Aotearoa - whether they live in New Zealand or not - we want them to remember Aotearoa’s stories, and to encourage a sense of adventure in years to come.

In 2021 we completed a six-book South Island series based on adventures in Akaroa, Punakaiki, Rakiura Stewart Island, the Waitaki valley to Dunedin, Golden Bay, and a train trip to Picton . You can read about and purchase them at the Our Backyard Store