Rita's Revenge
2023 Winner
The ducks of Little Dismal are angry. A scruffy chicken called Clara has been telling lies about them. They need revenge.
Enter Rita - a duck with the soul of a poet. After an embarrassing talent night, Rita sees revenge on Clara as a chance to restore her reputation.
But Rita finds more than revenge on her mission. She uncovers a dastardly plan to chook-nap the clever chicken that will take them both a long way from home.
Luckily, it's Rita's unlikely friendship with a small human and the help of some street-smart birds that just might save the day and inspire an epic poem!
Judges' Comments
“Rita’s Revenge balances plot and humour perfectly – I adored it from start to finish!” – Abby Sheary
"I chose Rita’s Revenge because it contained humour on every single page, from ‘Mudday’ to ‘half past egg.’ I laughed on every page.” – Ian Wu
“Rita’s Revenge has an awesome mystery!” – Angus Jones
“This book is pure gold.” – Chloe Painter
"Rita’s Revenge has the craziest plot twist, every page has something new." – Anna-Marie Ayoub
Lian Tanner
Lian Tanner has worked as a teacher, a tourist bus driver, a freelance journalist, a juggler, an editor and a professional actor. She has been dynamited while scuba diving and arrested while busking. She once spent a week in the jungles of Papua New Guinea, searching for a Japanese soldier left over from the Second World War. It took her a while to realise that all this was preparation for becoming a writer. Nowadays Lian lives by the sea in southern Tasmania.