Dr Rudyard Turnstone and the Beach of Promises is an uplifting story about a remarkable bird, a blind boy and a curious Indigenous girl who form a special friendship on the beach of a small coastal town in South Australia.

Dr Rudyard, better known as Ruddy, is a migratory bird who takes readers on amazing adventures from Australia to the Arctic Circle and back. Ruddy is also a doctor – a flying doctor – not of medicines and potions, but a dispenser of hope and happiness based on knowledge passed on from generations of travelling turnstones.

Join Ruddy on his epic journeys along one of the world’s great flyways between the hemispheres, the East Asian Australasian Flyway. “I am going to take you on my rounds to introduce you to the most remarkable, unforgettable, inspiring, beautiful and enchanting patients.  But you must bring your imagination with you.”

Just as captivating is Ruddy’s relationship with the blind boy, Heysen, who loves to spend every spare hour in the company of birds, and Heysen’s growing friendship with the girl, Grace, who is dedicated to awakening the sleeping words of her ancestors, the Narungga people of Yorke Peninsula.

The book highlights the urgent need to conserve healthy natural ecosystems for the well-being of all people and creatures.

Cover painting: Allyson Parsons

Chapter Illustrations: Marie Parsons