The Wobbly Bike
Winner of the 2025 CBCA Book of the Year Award, Early Childhood
$13.60
- Paperback
32 pages
- Release Date
1 July 2026
Summary
The wonderful wobbles of learning to ride a bike, set amidst the vibrant colour and culture of Australia’s “top end”.
How do you fix a wobbly bike? Could it be the tyres, the terrain, or maybe it might be a new rider? A joyful, multi-layered story, celebrating the unique culture of Australia’s urban “top end”, the precious roles of grandparents in families, the fact that kindness and encouragement, combined with practice, are the key to success, bound together with ge…
Book Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781761601774 |
|---|---|
| ISBN-10: | 1761601776 |
| Author: | Darren McCallum, Craig Smith |
| Publisher: | Walker Books Australia |
| Imprint: | Walker Books Australia |
| Format: | Paperback |
| Number of Pages: | 32 |
| Release Date: | 1 July 2026 |
| Weight: | 174g |
| Dimensions: | 7mm x 230mm x 269mm |
| Audience Age: | 4-8 |
Critics Review
Master illustrator Craig Smith captures the fear and exhilaration of conquering one’s first ‘uncontrollable’ bicycle… A wonderful first book by Darren McCallum. * Trevor Cairney *
Darren McCallum
Darren McCallum is a father of two young girls who, with wife Melissa, live in the Northern Territory. He is a tradesman with a love of nature, stand-up comedy, and poetry. The seed for this story was planted by Darren’s daughter Summer, who referred to her bike as ‘the wobbly bike’ when her training wheels were removed. There are many layers to this story that are very close to Darren’s heart: the importance of inclusion in our society; the precious roles of grandparents in families; the fact that kindness and encouragement, combined with practice, are the key to success; and humour, because laughter is always the best medicine.
Craig Smith was raised in country South Australia, later training in Adelaide at the South Australian School of Art. In an illustration career spanning over 45 years, he has illustrated many books. The 1970s and 80s were a time of upheaval in many spheres of Australian life and exciting growth in the cultural industries. Then, and now, Craig has embraced the opportunities to illustrate stories on many themes in an identifiably Australian way. One compelling theme facing Australians now is caring for the environment we all live in and share. This story and illustrations were initially workshopped in Darwin, thus enabling the fabulous multicultural mix of that city to be brought forward.
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