Stars in their Eyes

In this debut graphic novel, pop culture-obsessed Maisie can't wait to get to her first Fancon. But being a queer, disabled teenager with chronic pain comes with challenges. Can Maisie make it through the day without falling over, falling in love or accidentally inspiring anyone?

Maisie has always dreamed of meeting her hero, Kara Bufano, an amputee actor who plays a kick-arse amputee character in her favourite show. Fancon is big and exciting and exhausting. Then she meets Ollie, a cute volunteer who she has a lot in common with. Could this be the start of something, or will her mum, who doesn't seem to know what boundaries are, embarrass her before she and Ollie have a chance?

About the Author

Jessica Walton (Author) Jessica Walton is a queer, disabled writer and teacher. She is the author of picture book Introducing Teddy (Bloomsbury 2016), as well as a range of short stories published in anthologies for kids and teens.

In 2017 Jess completed a Write-ability Fellowship with Writers Victoria focused on poetry about disability, cancer and pain. She is currently completing their Publishability Fellowship, which continues this work. She recently co-wrote an episode of Get Krack!n focused on disability, which aired on the ABC in February 2019 and is featured in the anthologies Meet Me At the Intersection (Fremantle Press 2019) and Growing Up Disabled in Australia (Black Inc Books 2020).

About the Illustrator

Aska is an energetic illustrator, storyteller and science communicator. She has illustrated nine books and is a regular contributor to The School Magazine and other children's publications. Aska believes visual literacy is one of the most important skills in today's world and she loves projects which explore new ways of communicating and presenting ideas with images.