Alison Evans' Euphoria Kids

Alison Evans is the award winning author of Ida and Highway Bodies. They are a spectacular author of Australian YA and with so many high schoolers being home schooled at the moment, you could do worse than grabbing a copy of Alison’s catalogue. Especially the brilliant Euphoria Kids The story centres on Iris and Babs. They both go to the same school but they don’t know each other. In fact nobody really notices Babs, not since a witch cursed her and she periodically becomes invisible. Iris has friends but not the human kind. Iris grew from a seed in the garden and has always had more kinship with the fairies and dryads that live in the bush. Until one day when Babs appears to Iris on the Bus. As their friendship blossoms they meet the boy. The boy is new at school and is on a journey discovering who he is; including his name. With their friendship connecting them to the magic around them, Iris, Babs and the boy start to experience true companionship and happiness. That is until the fairies warn Iris that the witch who cursed Babs has returned to the forest... Euphoria Kids explores what it means to be young and queer and finding out about yourself. It delves into the loneliness of not being understood, but also the joys of meeting your people. It’s a wonderful story that blends the supernatural with the everyday and shows what real magic can look like in the world. It’s a pretty strange and scary time right now and I don’t mind saying that having a little magic injected into my world is often just what I need. It’s also a book that reminds us how powerful connection is. I don’t think many people could watch Iris, Babs and the boy build their friendship without wanting to look up an old mate and see what they're up to...