Find out what happens when you learn to let down your guard, be yourself, and open up to friendship in this encouraging tale about a boy and a school full of ogres and dragons.

It’s Edward’s first day of knight school and he’s scared of what’s to come. He puts on his armor and prepares for battle. After all, it’s sure to be terrifying with all those creatures about. Sure enough, he spends all day surrounded by scary ogres and fearsome dragons. Then, one of them offers him some of her lunch!

With this gesture of friendship, Edward is inspired to take a chance and remove his armor. He soon realizes that maybe things aren’t as bad as they first seemed and in fact, his armor was holding him back. As he learns to let his guard down, magic and fun await and Edward finds that the dragons and ogres he feared are actually just like him.

The Battle is a story that every child can relate to and teaches kids that perception and attitude are vitally important. If we let down our guard, put our fears aside, and allow ourselves to live in the moment, magic just might happen. Now available in paperback, this is the perfect companion for any child worried about starting school.

Ashling Kwok is a children’s author from Sydney. She is obsessed with children’s literature and loves immersing herself in a magical world where anything is possible. When she’s not working on her manuscripts, Ashling can be found scouring local bookstores in search of inspiration. She hopes to continue to write stories that take children on a journey and hopefully touch their hearts.

Cara King initially studied anthropology before moving across to multimedia and starting her own design business, Caratoons. As a designer and illustrator, she has produced images for T-shirt designs, books, cards and posters. She is the illustrator of five picture books, including: Mummy and Mumma Get Married (2015), Scaredy Book (2018; with EK Books), The Box Cars (2019; with EK Books), and Brave-Bottomed Wombat (2020).