A heartfelt and universal story about friendship, loneliness and defying expectations, The Lonely Lunch Club sees Maddy Mara (the co-writing duo behind several smash-hit series, including Dragon Girls) team up with beloved illustrator Laura Stitzel, whose work you’ll recognise from The Big Backyard Plan and 100 School Days.

Benji plays footy every lunchtime, everyone knows that! Until one Monday, he goes to sit on the worst bench in school – except, it isn’t unoccupied! Mabel the spider lives there, and Alice eats lunch there too, just so Mabel isn’t lonely. Actually, there are quite a few kids who find their way to the Lonely Lunch Club, for all sorts of reasons. But Mabel’s rickety habitat is at risk of being demolished by anything stronger than a breeze, and then where will the Lonely Lunch Club meet? This charming story of friendship and teamwork is the debut title in the Your Next Read: Silver collection for readers aged 5–8.