The Painted Ponies

Matilda loves staying at Grandma Lucky's, riding Luna in the front paddock and playing with the painted ponies in their carved wooden wagon.

The gold palomino, the chestnut, the bay,
the pinto, the brown and the dappley grey.

One day, Lucky tells Matilda about when she was a little girl and the real ponies were her friends . . .

A big, beautiful story about friendship and freedom, from Australia's favorite picture book creator, Alison Lester.

Alison Lester became Australia's first Children's Book Laureate in 2012, a position she shared with Boori Monty Pryor. In 2016, she was awarded the Dromkeen Medal for her outstanding achievement in the creation of Australian children's and young adult literature, and in 2018 she became the first children's book creator to win the Melbourne Prize for Literature, for her outstanding contribution to Australian literature and cultural and intellectual life. In 2019, Alison was awarded an Australia Post Legends Award and featured on a stamp, as well as being the recipient of a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the 2019 Australia Day Honours List.