Long Live Us‪!‬

Once upon a time, in a cave under a bridge, there lived a Greedy Troll – and he was hungry! How long would he have to wait for his next meal?

Soon he hears trip-trap, trip-trap, trip-trap, and hurries out. He discovers the Three Bears, who are on a quest to capture Goldilocks and bring her to justice. They persuade the Greedy Troll to wait for their return.

Then more fairytale Goodies arrive, all chasing Baddies and planning to bring them back for punishment. Waiting, imagining a feast, the Greedy Troll gets hungrier and hungrier.

Clever traps, lucky escapes and unwelcome surprises combine in this fascinating fractured fairytale.

Edel Wignell's grandmother was a storyteller. As a kid, Edel loved hearing folk tales. Now she likes sharing them in collections, such as Tying the Knot: folk tales of love and marriage from around the world. She also writes plays based on folk tales - especially Asian folk tales. Her latest collection is The White Elephant: Drama Based on Asian Folk Tales.

Edel thinks it's fun to fracture folk tales and gather some of the pieces to create surprising stories, such as Long Live Us! You can do this, too. If you would like to perform Long Live Us!, go to Edel's website: www.edelwignell.com.au and click on the link: 'Scripts'. Also by Edel is Christina's Matilda, a glimpse of history, illustrated by Elizabeth Botté.

Edel (the name rhymes with 'medal') is a freelance writer, compiler, journalist and poet. She writes for both children and adults, and has more than 90 published books.

Peter Allert has illustrated for most of his life using different materials to eventually find his own style. He has always wanted to create something and share it with other people, and the journey of creating and illustrating a children's book is the most fulfilling to him; he finds illustrations enhance a story and linger in a child's mind long after the reading.

Peter brings life and colour to his illustrations through the simplicity of watercolour pencils. He also experiments with different types of paper and is constantly amazed at the results that can be achieved. He is interested in exploring any subject, but his favourites are Australian animals, fantasy and science fiction.

Long Live Us! is Peter's first published picture book, and he looks forward to the journey of illustrating many more.