Book Launch - Legend of the Lighthouse Moon by Dr Helen Edwards

Legend of the Lighthouse Moon is a dazzling tale of family, resilience, and the enduring magic of the sea. 

It’s the 1970s and on Kangaroo Island, Mona McKenna and her brother Albert live with their grandparents at Cape Willoughby Lighthouse. For five long years they have mourned their mother and longed for their missing father to return. Since being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes a year earlier, Mona has been increasingly acting in ways that make her hate herself. While she loves the rugged beauty of their isolated sanctuary—and dearly loves her grandparents—she yearns for her parents and finds her diabetes frightening and confusing. Mona finds solace in the treasures she collects along the island's shores. But when she encounters a mysterious sea lion pup, Neo, the world as she knows it is forever changed. The two siblings embark on a journey that leads them to uncover secrets hidden within their family's past. As they bond with Neo, Mona and Albert's quest for truth takes them deeper into the heart of Kangaroo Island. With the fate of their beloved lighthouse hanging in the balance, they must summon courage and resilience to protect their home and the endangered sea lions who call it their own. Rich with folklore and brimming with adventure, Legend of the Lighthouse Moon is a captivating tale of family, resilience, and the enduring magic of the sea. Join Mona on a journey of self-discovery where the whispers of the past guide her towards a future filled with hope, love, and legends brought to life.

Dr Helen Edwards is an Adelaide-based children’s author who weaves diverse stories of nature, magic and history. Helen’s debut middle-grade novel, The Rebels of Mount Buffalo was published in October 2023, by the award-winning Riveted Press. In Feb 2024, The Rebels of Mount Buffalo was longlisted in the inaugural DANZ Children’s Book Award for books which feature diversity in all forms. In June 2024, it was shortlisted in the Speech Pathology Australia Book of the Year Awards.

Helen has a PhD in Psychology and a background working in mental health. She writes stories that reduce stereotypes and increase understanding of diversity, including characters who live with chronic illness, mental illness, and/or who are neurodivergent. Helen has lived with type 1 diabetes since 1979. She also lives with anxiety and ADHD, both diagnosed in adulthood, as well as a number of other chronic conditions. Helen has been blogging since 2001, after founding an award-winning online counselling service for people with diabetes, which she ran for 16 years. Over 90,000 people follow her across social media, where her platforms share book reviews and inspire action for people and planet, with kindness and hope, focusing on our children's future.