In The Doll Box, Isla explores her family's history through her mother's captivating stories of courageous women. With each tale, she finds inspiration, realizing that the strength of her ancestors lives within her too.

Deborah Kelly grew up in rural New Zealand, has lived and travelled in the UK and Japan, and now lives in Australia.
While being the primary carer for her children (and providing for the additional needs of one of them) Deborah has written picture books, junior fiction and middle grade fiction as well as poetry and material for the educational market. She is passionate about literacy and enjoys visiting schools, libraries and festival events to share her books with children. Her titles include the Ruby Wishfinger series (Wombat Books) and Dugong Magic (Hachette Australia). Deborah is currently studying for a Bachelor of Speech Pathology with a special interest in literacy.