The Things That Matter Most

'Gabbie Stroud is a teacher whose classroom has expanded to embrace an entire nation. First in non fiction and now in moving, powerful fiction, Stroud educates us all about the tender, excruciating burden on the hearts of teachers today.' - Annabel Crabb


'Lionel Merrick stumbled into my heart like a kid late for class, then the whole book swept in after him ... gut-wrenching and important.' -Trent Dalton, bestselling author of Boy Swallows Universe


The staff of St Margaret's Primary School are hanging by a thread. There's serious litigation pending, the school is due for registration, and a powerful parent named Janet Bellevue has a lot to say about everything. As teachers they're trying to remain professional, as people they're unravelling fast.

There's Tyson, first year out of uni and nervous as hell, Derek the Assistant Principal who's dropped the ball on administration, Bev from the office who's confronting a serious diagnosis, and Sally-Ann who's desperate for a child of her own.


Thank goodness for kids like Lionel Merrick. Lionel is the student who steals your heart and makes the whole teaching gig worthwhile: he's cheerful, likeable, helpful - and devoted to his little sister Lacey. But Lionel has a secret of his own. As his future slides from vulnerable to dangerous, will someone from St Margaret's realise before it's too late?


As secrets threaten to be exposed and working demands increase, each staff member struggles to recall the things that matter most.


A moving and compelling novel about teachers and their students by the acclaimed author of the bestselling books Teacher and Dear Parents.


'A real page-turner and heartbreaker, it will leave you aching with appreciation for the work good teachers do.' - Alice Pung, author of One Hundred Days and Laurinda


'Gabbie Stroud has written a powerful novel that captures the raw, the real, the heart wrenching and the absolute beauty of teaching in a community ... I couldn't put it down. Stroud captures the raw and real truth of the life changing challenges of teaching in today's test focused, document driven, schooling system.' -Maggie Dent, author, educator and parenting & resilience specialist


'In this emotionally charged debut, Gabbie Stroud gives us characters we care about, instantly drawing us into the school community of a tough farming town. We feel the pain of these characters as they each face their own challenges and they're unable to focus on what matters most. This heart-wrenching story made me laugh and it made me cry. Poignant and compelling. A riveting, thought-provoking debut.' - Petronella McGovern, author of Six Minutes and The Liars


'A bittersweet love song to those who educate and care for our children, The Things That Matter Most is a profoundly moving novel. Brimming with love and heartache and anger and hope, this is a raw and passionate work, its characters so vividly and tenderly drawn, I keep wondering how they are and hoping that life is good to them.' - Suzanne Leal, author of The Teacher's Secret


'A rollicking ride through the gamut of emotions - laughter, sorrow, rage, outrage, joy. The Things that Matter Most lifts the lid on social injustice and the unreasonable demands we make of teachers while we abdicate responsibility ourselves.' - Joanna Jenkins, author of How to Kill a Client


'An unflinching and deeply moving account of the complex tapestry of human lives woven into and around a school community.' - Brendan James Murray, author of The School

Long-listed for Best Debut Fiction 2024 (Australia)

'In this emotionally-charged debut, Gabbie Stroud gives us characters we care about, instantly drawing us into the school community of a tough farming town. We feel the pain of these characters as they each face their own challenges and they're unable to focus on what matters most. This heart-wrenching story made me laugh and it made me cry. Poignant and compelling. A riveting, thought-provoking debut.' - Petronella McGovern, author of Six Minutes and The Liars

'A bittersweet love song to those who educate and care for our children, The Things That Matter Most is a profoundly moving novel. Brimming with love and heartache and anger and hope, this is a raw and passionate work, its characters so vividly and tenderly drawn, I keep wondering how they are and hoping that life is good to them.' - Suzanne Leal, author of The Teacher's Secret


'A rollicking ride through the gamut of emotions - laughter, sorrow, rage, outrage, joy. The Things that Matter Most lifts the lid on social injustice and the unreasonable demands we make of teachers while we abdicate responsibility ourselves.' - Joanna Jenkins, author of How to Kill a Client


'Gabbie Stroud has written a powerful novel that captures the raw, the real, the heart wrenching and the absolute beauty of teaching in a community. Couldn't put it down. Gabbie's debut novel escalates her to stand among the best Australian authors who write about real, raw life in the landscape of a community around a school struggling with the unrealistic expectations of bureaucracy, instead of the genuine care of every, unique student. I am already looking forward to Gabbie's next novel given the quality of her debut novel. She captures the raw and real truth of the life changing challenges of teaching in today's test focused, document driven, schooling system.' - Maggie Dent, author, educator and Parenting & Resilience specialist


'The Things that Matter Most is an unflinching and deeply moving account of the complex tapestry of human lives woven into and around a school community. However, Gabbie Stroud's compassionate examination of an array of disparate characters elevates her novel to something more than a reflection on contemporary education; it is a comment on the weight carried by those who dedicate themselves to putting others first. We should all count ourselves fortunate that Stroud's willingness to educate continues through her writing.' - Brendan James Murray, author of The School


'Lionel Merrick stumbled into my heart like a kid late for class, then the whole book swept in after him. This is gut-wrenching and important real-world stuff inside a rattling story that feels like it was lived before it was written. As a reader, it felt as real as a cold sore and a soggy jam sandwich; as tough and raw as all the cruel fates awaiting all those kids who never deserve them. As a parent, it was a deeply welcome insight into the lives of those noble, flawed, terrified, brave and brilliant individuals who have chosen to devote their evidently harrowing and wondrous working lives to the education of the things that matter most to me, my kids.' - Trent Dalton, author of Boy Swallows Universe


'The Things that Matter Most is a real page-turner and heart-breaker, it will leave you aching with appreciation for the work good teachers do.' - Alice Pung, author of One Hundred Days and Laurinda

Gabbie Stroud is a freelance writer and novelist and recovering teacher. After years of juggling the demands of the primary classroom, she made the painful decision to leave the profession she had loved. In 2016, her critical commentary of
Australia's education system was published in Griffith Review's Edition 51 Fixing the System, which went on to be shortlisted for a Walkley Award. Gabbie's smash-hit memoir Teacher was shortlisted for Biography Book of the Year at the 2018 ABIA Awards and continues to contribute to the national dialogue on education. In 2020 her book, Dear Parents, offered a passionate call to arms for all parents. Gabbie's first novel, Young Adult fiction Measuring Up was published by Scribe in 2009. The Things That Matter Most is her debut fiction for adults. Gabbie lives on Yuin Nation on the far south coast of New South Wales with her totally awesome daughters, Olivia and Sophie.

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