A video gamer, manga fangirl and YA writer, NANSI KUNZE is essentially a middle-aged teen. After a childhood spent moving around the UK and Australia with her musician parents, she spent several years teaching high school students how to mummify each other and doctors how to pronounce rude words (yes, really) before becoming a full-time author in 2008. In between writing books and screenplays, Nansi runs school workshops and upcycles old clothes into historical costumes. She lives on a bush property overlooking the Victorian Alps with her husband, their teenage son and a thriving community of wild wombats.
AWARDS
- Selected for the Adaptable Book to Screen Program, Queensland Writers Centre/Gold Coast Film Festival (Mishaps) 2021
- Shortlisted, Davitt Award for Best Young Adult Book (Dangerously Placed) 2012
- Winner, Fellowship of Australian writers Mary Grant Bruce Short Story Award for Children’s Literature 2004
- Second Prize, FAW Mary Grant Bruce Award for Children’s Literature 2003
- Winner, FAW Mary Grant Bruce Award for Children’s Literature 2002
PRAISE FOR BOOKS BY NANSI KUNZE
Make the Future! Sustainability series
Visually, the books are both modern and extremely colourful and fun. Students of all year levels will find the aesthetics engaging. I heartily recommend these resources to librarians, teachers and parents, and all who see – when they look into the eyes of a small person – how the most important gift we can give them is a safe and happy world to live in. (KATE GORDON, JUSTKIDLIT.COM)
Nansi Kunze shares practical activities anyone can incorporate into everyday life. This is a fantastic resource for classrooms and families wanting to live more sustainably. Enjoyable AND useful! (REBECCA NEWMAN, ALPHABETSOUP.NET.AU)
Mishaps
Mishaps is well written, uses the language of today’s teenagers and is very, very funny.(VIEWPOINT)
This fast paced, exciting read is any girl’s answer to a boring weekend! (GIRLFRIEND)
This book combines teenage dilemmas, humour and romance into one truly enjoyable book that once started I couldn’t put down until I’d read the very last page. (ILLAWARRA MERCURY)
There are many twists and turns in the plot, entertaining events and some realistic and convincing issues, delivered in a fast-paced, enjoyable read for teenagers. (READING TIME)
The themes of celebrity and cloning are explored and the concept of karma cleverly ties the plot together. Mishaps is an amusing read that combines all the right ingredients, romance, pop stars, school, friendship, humour and intrigue to be a winning read for teenage girls.(MAGPIES)
If Mishaps were a movie, it would be described as a ‘quirky Australian comedy’, but definitely one of a superior quality. (THE CANBERRA TIMES)
Mishaps is a great read for young adults as it contains many key ingredients to keep their interest – teen love triangles, spoilt celebrities, story tension and a speculative twist. Hilarious and entertaining with a refreshingly original presentation on a familiar theme, Mishaps is a thoroughly enjoyable read. Recommended. (BUZZ WORDS)
Dangerously Placed
It is all extremely entertaining with its mystery, excellent humour and technical wizardry. I found it hard to put down and would recommend it for teenagers, especially girls, who like a bit of adventure and mystery with their romance. It is the work experience we all wish we had! (MAGPIES)
A fast-paced novel that will have you guessing until the end. Nansi Kunze writes humour and suspense so effortlessly that you cannot walk away from the book without picking it up again. It’s a thrilling read that will entertain even the pickiest of readers as Kunze mixes the whodunit with wit and a hint of romance. (DANIELA PERINAC, WWW.READINGS.COM.AU)
The story is full of action as well as being about friendships, trust and looking after each other. The author knows teenagers very well as the language flows, and will resonate with her audience. Kunze also manages to create wonderful visual images with her choice of words so that the virtual world becomes real and vibrant. (JANE CAMPBELL, READING TIME)
A seriously fun, fast-paced, thrilling read … It’s a wonderful book. A five star book. (KATE GORDON, AUTHOR)
Complex but still entertaining, Nansi Kunze takes an old-fashioned plot and plugs it into a mainframe where Nancy Drew meets THE MATRIX, with entertaining results. (FRANCES ATKINSON, THE AGE)
Kill the Music
Fans of Meg Cabot, and previous works of Nansi Kunze, will enjoy this novel as a shot of pure fun. Recommended. (ANGELA MORGAN, MAGPIES)
If you love twists, turns, action, and mystery, Kill the Music is for you! . . . You are constantly on the edge of your seat, dying to know what will happen in the end, and I mean DYING! I recommend this fantastic book for girls aged 11 -13. (GRACE, SUNDAY MAIL ADELAIDE)
Lorna is a totally likeable character in this pacey young adult thriller with plenty of glamour, and a nail-biting finish. (SAMANTHA ALLENDER, SOUTH COAST REGISTER)
A rollicking story that blends intrigue and humour … Like Kunze’s other young adult mysteries, Kill the Music centres on a superb and thoroughly engaging heroine; a believable, everyday kind of girl in far-from-everyday situations. (CRAIG SISTERSON, SOUTHERN CROSS CRIME)
NANSI KUNZE 