Inspired by a windy autumn afternoon and two real little girls, The Perfect Leaf takes the simple joy of leaf-kicking and turns it into an extraordinary flight of the imagination.
Written and illustrated by the creator of the CBCA Notable Book The Poppy, and illustrator of the Ford Street titles Spark and Glitch, The Perfect Leaf is a glorious celebration of the power of invention, and of the joys of being a child.
The autumn theme promotes discussions of seasons, time and colours for early readers. The story focuses on the use of imagination and cooperation in play. The themes of the story can be extended into outside play, and text-to-self and other literacy associations.
Silent pages promote inferential reading and discussion: “What do you think is happening here? What might the girls be saying to each other?” The search for hidden creatures promotes discussion and extension of the story for younger readers.

Andrew Plant
Based in Melbourne, Andrew has presented writing and illustrating workshops in schools and libraries from Alice Springs to Beijing and France.
Andrew also paints murals, and designs and builds theatre sets for schools and amateur theatre groups. But his great love is creating picture books, either as author and illustrator, or teaming up with another author to bring their stories to visual life.
Andrew has just completed his eigth picture book with Ford Street, his fourth as author/illustrator – Stardiving.