A Geelong author is shining a positive light on disability ahead of International Day of People with Disability.
Kristine Fitzgerald’s new children’s book, The Harrie Taylor Mysteries, follows a young girl in a wheelchair who loves solving mysteries with her best friend Ben.
Ms Fitzgerald said she found limited children’s books focused on a character with a disability when she was browsing bookshops, which inspired her to write the new story.
“I want to get some positive information and impressions out there about disability. Harrie’s in a wheelchair, but she’s really feisty and she’s really fired up, and it doesn’t hold her back,” she said.
“If I can make a small contribution to helping kids feel a bit better about themselves and build self-esteem, that’s what I would love to do.”
With International Day of People with Disability on this Sunday, December 3, Ms Fitzgerald said her goal was to encourage positivity and show that “there’s light at the end of the tunnel”.
“My wish is that children can read about Harrie and learn from her strength. Everyone struggles with something. It might be sickness, learning difficulties or even family breakdown,” she said.
“All kids have hardships too, but it doesn’t matter as we can still take the good things and good times and enjoy them and still be amazing.”
The combined stories The Missing Bracelet and The Lolly Shop Graffiti make up the first book in the Harrie Taylor Mysteries series, and Ms Fitzgerald said she hoped to publish another book next year.
“I’m hoping to publish more books in this series. In fact, I have already written the next book and I plan to publish it early next year,” she said.
