The long-awaited companion novel to the Costa and Carnegie-shortlisted Bone Talk. A compelling, vivid story of one Filipino girl's journey to understanding herself and her place in the world. The year is 1904. Luki has lived a tribal life in the mountains of the Philippines. Now she's growing up, she is expected to become a wife and a mother, but Luki isn't ready to give up her dream to become a warrior. When her tribe are offered a journey to America to be part of the St. Louis World's Fair, Luki is eager to escape the constraints of life in her mountain village. But as she travels overseas, she will discover that the land of opportunity does not share its possibilities equally... Candy Gourlay explores the utterly relatable challenges of finding yourself and staying true to your heart, in a beautifully unique story. Steeped in Filipino tradition, the novel is alive with cultural richness and an immersive story of adventure, love and self-belief. Written with lyricism, immediacy and authenticity, the powerful notes of Wild Song ring clear and true.
Candy Gourlay Book order
Candy Gourlay transitioned from journalism, where she covered dictatorships, to a literary career focusing on distinct challenges. Her background in reporting on global power structures informs her unique approach to storytelling. She crafts narratives that explore compelling themes and characters with a distinctive voice.






- 2023
- 2022
Mike Falls Up
- 96 pages
- 4 hours of reading
Mike is enjoying a lazy afternoon in the Chocolate Hills when the ground beneath him cracks open and his dog Bowow jumps into the hole. There's no time to waste - Mike jumps in after him, and falls into the most topsy-turvy of adventures!
- 2020
True life stories of the most amazing people EVER!
- 2020
Ferdinand Magellan (the First Names Series)
- 160 pages
- 6 hours of reading
Meet the first explorer who went around the worldBefore he led the first expedition to circumnavigate the Earth, Ferdinand Magellan (1480–1521) was a Portuguese sailor known for his incredible navigation skills. After years of sailing, he was chosen to lead a crew to circle the globe—a trip that no other ship had ever completed. Though Magellan died in combat in the Philippines before he could finish the voyage, his ship went on to complete the first circumnavigation of the world, and he is still known as one of the greatest explorers. However, as historians today note, many of the places that Magellan “discovered” already had people living there, and his fame is rooted in colonialism. Ferdinand Magellan tackles the legacy—both good and bad—of this famous explorer. First Names is a highly illustrated middle-grade biography series that puts readers on a first-name basis with the most extraordinary people in history and of today!
- 2018
Is it a Mermaid?
- 32 pages
- 2 hours of reading
As seen on Milkshake TV, this warm-hearted, sun-drenched story is about kindness and friendship - with a touch of magic
- 2018
Bone Talk
- 272 pages
- 10 hours of reading
"More than a hundred years ago, a boy named Samkad thinks he knows everything about the world. He knows the mountains he lives in. He knows his people. He knows his blood enemy, the Mangili. And he wants to become a man, to be given his own shield, spear, and axe to fight with. His best friend Luki wants all the same things--but she is a girl, and no girl has ever become a warrior"--Publisher's description.
- 2015
Shine
- 304 pages
- 11 hours of reading
So Rosa must live hidden away in an isolated house with its back to the rest of the world, with only the internet for a social life. The islanders believe this is the way to summon ghosts, and Rosa wants her mother back. As Rosa's social life blossoms, how will she seize the freedom to be who she really is?
- 2014
Animal Tricksters retells three folk tales about animal tricksters. Hare has an impossible task to do. Monkey faces twenty crocodiles to get the sweetest mangoes in the world. Coyote wants to save the rabbits from becoming Lion's lunch. Can they succeed?TreeTops Myths and Legends are a fascinating selection of the best traditional stories.
- 2012
Be careful what you wish for . She wishes she could play on the school basketball team, she wishes for her own bedroom, but most of all she wishes that her long lost half brother, Bernardo, could come and live in London, where he belongs.