A little girl’s devastating loss, a grieving time and

someone with a healing touch – a loving touch.

A someone who reaches out to the little girl and,

little by little, mends the child, just as she

mends her favourite doll, Lucille.

J. R.Poulter

& SarahDavis

J. R. Pou

lter & Sarah

Davis

J.R.Poulter

& SarahDavis

A Lothian Children’s Book

Published in Australia and New Zealand in 2008by Hachette Livre Australia Pty LtdLevel 17, 207 Kent Street, Sydney NSW 2000Website: www.hachettechildrens.com.au

Text copyright © J. R. Poulter 2008Illustrations copyright © Sarah Davis 2008

This book is copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of private study, research, criticism or review permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be stored or reproduced by any process without prior written permission. Enquiries should be made to the publisher.

National Library of AustraliaCataloguing-in-Publication data:

Poulter, Jennifer, 1949-Mending Lucille. ISBN 9780734410337 (hbk.)

For primary school age. Grief--Juvenile fi ction. I. Davis, SarahII. Title.

A823.4

Designed by Pigs Might Fly ProductionsPrepress by Hell Colour AustraliaPrinted in XXXXXXX by XXXXXXX

J. R. Poulter was born in Sydney, educated at Southport, did an Arts degree and library qualifi cations,

worked in the State Library, as a book reviewer for Queensland Education, a research assistant and

associate lecturer at University of Queensland and, currently, as academic editor assisting international

postgraduates. Under J.R.McRae, she writes and illustrates poetry, reviews books, music and fi lm.

J.R. has published 8 other books, fi ction and teacher resources and stories and lives with

her family and pets in Queensland.

Sarah Davis was born in England in 1971. She moved to New Zealand when she was six and spent

most of her childhood wearing gumboots and falling into rivers. She has an Honours degree in

English literature from Canterbury University and a Diploma of Teaching from the Christchurch

College of Education. Sarah taught English, Art and Art History in secondary schools for several years

before deciding that being an illustrator would let her get covered in paint more often. She now

lives and works in Sydney with her mathematician partner and three children.

Mending Lucille is her fi rst picture book.

In memory of Judy with the red hair,

who lost her mother as a young girl. J.P.

For my family. S.D.

and roaring

It was my Mummy ... going.

A raging

and rolling in the sky like a storm …

I watch till the

big grey bird disappears.

Sometimes I still wake to

the sound and cry,

hoping she will come.

But she doesn’t.

All I have is Lucille, and Lucille is broken.

I asked Daddy to

fix Lucille.

He tried, but it

was no good.

I asked Daddy,

‘When will Mummy

come back?

She knows how to

mend Lucille.’

Daddy didn’t answer.

One day, Lucille and

I found a grey bird

under the rosebush.

It was hurt.

I asked Daddy

if I’d hurt the

grey bird.

He said, ‘It’s not

your fault,’

and looked out

the window a

long time.

Dad took it to the Noskis next door.

They put it in a cage. Mrs Noski used to look

after me sometimes, till her hip got bad.

Once we stopped at

a place where a girl said

Lucille was a dirty old doll.

I wouldn’t let Lucille go.

I cried.

When Daddy had to go back to work,

he took me and Lucille on the truck too.

I saw a lot of places I hadn’t seen before.

When I was lonely I hugged Lucille very tight.

Daddy didn’t talk about it anymore, but I hid

Lucille in the bunk behind the driver’s seat.Daddy said maybe it was time I

threw her out and got a nice new doll.

The waitress talked to me and

gave me icecream ‘on the house’.

We went there often after that.

I even showed her Lucille.

She asked could she have

her for company one time

while we ate our tea.

I told Daddy I liked Chrissie.

She’s the waitress.

Daddy said he did too.

One night we went to a

new place for tea.

I liked it.

When we were ready to go

she gave me back Lucille and she was

mended.

That was ages ago.

Then Chrissie made me a pretty dress

and a matching one for Lucille.

Chrissie had a pretty dress on too,

and lots of little flowers in her hair,

We walked behind her down a long carpet

to where Daddy was.and a white bird with

long tail feathers.

I stayed at the Noskis and we let

the grey bird out of the cage.

It was all better.

Chrissie and dad went away that weekend.

Chrissie lives with us now.

I looked up and Chrissie was there.

She picked Lucille up off the floor

and cuddled us to sleep.

I woke crying.

I couldn’t find Lucille.

I called ‘Mummy!’

Last night

there was a

roaring and

rolling in the air.

I thought of the plane and how

Mummy was gone.

I told Chrissie. We both cried.

This morning there were two grey

birds on the clothesline.

I love Chrissie.

She mended Lucille

just like Mummy.