The First Year Audiobook By Matt Goodfellow cover art

The First Year

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Nate's 11 and has just finished primary school. After a challenging final year, life is looking up. His brother has recovered from a life-threatening heart condition, he's got the love of his mum, brothers and Auntie San, and he's off to secondary school with his two best mates.

But while he's making new friends and avoiding the fists of Turner, his old nemesis, and struggling to come to terms with a strict new teacher and a sense of isolation from his brothers, a sudden surprise appearance in Nate's life threatens to throw him completely off course. And The Beast – the anger he tries so hard to control – reappears. Will Nate find a way to keep himself and his family together?

©2025 Matt Goodfellow (P)2025 Bolinda Publishing Growing Up & Facts of Life Heartfelt

Critic reviews

'This is so beautiful. Even better than The Final Year if that is possible. Cried buckets towards the end. The sibling's relationship is perfection.' (Dawn Woods, The School Librarian (SLA))
'The seeming simplicity of the text belies the complexity of emotion and experience which the story explores. The power and poignancy in places is breath taking, making Nate's continued story ever bit as engaging as it was in The Final Year.' (Through the Bookshelf)
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