11 Ruby Road: 1925

The second book in the 11 Ruby Road series set in the roaring 1920s – perfect period fiction for middle-grade readers and for fans of the Our Australian Girl series.

It is 1925 and Bert Mueller and his German-Australian family have moved from Ipswich to their new house at 11 Ruby Road. Bert’s father has been deported to Germany after the Great War, and with Dad still absent, Bert is unsure about moving away. But the city means opportunity and jobs for his mother and older siblings. And for the grown-ups , it also means fun – dressing up, going out, and all that jazz. Bert loves jazz too, but he’s too young for the clubs, and instead his time is spent at his new school where the kids play cricket, not music.

But with the help of a Gramophone, Bert has a solution. He will start his own jazz club, and 11 Ruby Road has the perfect spot to host it. But as prejudice about Bert and his German family start to affect their new life, Bert has to find a way to save his jazz club and his family.

Author Biography

Charlotte Barkla is a Brisbane-based writer who worked as a civil engineer and physics teacher before rediscovering her love for children’s literature. As well as writing for children, Charlotte writes feature articles for publications including the CSIRO’s Double Helix, Beanz magazine and Kookie magazine. She regularly visits schools for creative writing workshops, sharing her passion for science, creativity and stories with children of all ages. Charlotte’s books include All Bodies are Good Bodies (Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing, 2020), the Edie’s Experiments series (Penguin Random House, 2020) and From My Head to My Toes, What I Say Goes (Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing, 2022).

Charlotte’s books have been translated in multiple languages and short-listed for awards, and she has been the recipient of grants and mentorships for her fiction writing.