The One Thing & Anothers

*A Red Ribbon Winner in the 2023 Wishing Shelf Book Awards*

Rio and Huxley live on the Planet of Stuff where everyone loves stuff. Everyone except them. They are bored of living in their castle and swimming in their 17 swimming pools. To amuse themselves, they pull pranks on their great-great grandchildren, but when caught, their punishment is getting locked in a tower of stuff. Trying to escape the boredom, they hitch a ride on a UFO where they find the planet Earthia. It is so beautiful and so perfect, but to them, so boring. When Huxley decides to pull one of his naughtiest pranks yet, what happens next is something they never would have expected.

The One Thing & Anothers is part of the Young Philosophers Series dedicated to listening to and valuing children as natural philosophers. It asks the questions, where DID humans come from? Why are we so contradictory in our nature? Why do we want to collect stuff? What does it mean to belong and can we feel like we belong in multiple places across time and space? Why are we destroying the planet we live on? Young bright minds are called on to write the next chapter in the story.

HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

1. Read the story of Huxley and Rio.
2. Think about what you think the story is about? Keep all your thoughts in a journal.
3. Turn to Chapter 7 which lists all the contradictions of the creatures that inhabit the ‘planet of Earthia’ and think about some ‘contradictions’ that live inside you and the people you know. How many contradictions can you think of? Keep thinking and thinking as if you were on a never-ending WONDER WHEEL in a theme park.
4. Turn to Chapter 10 at the end of the book and write the ending of the story. What happens to who and why? Are there any more obstacles in their way and what are they? How do they overcome the obstacles? And then what happens after the end of that?

Look out for the Everything-World Blankish Journal, an accompanying storytelling and philosophical activity book where Clare-Rose Trevelyan goes deeper into exploring the questions of CONTRADICTION woven through this story.

Expressing a lifelong passion for philosophy ignited by the mysteries of the universe and the enchantment of everyday existence, Clare-Rose Trevelyan has dedicated the past two decades to fostering philosophical inquiry among young minds. Through roles in schools, external literacy programs, theatre, and her books, she has endeavoured to awaken the philosopher within children and to encourage them to contemplate their own thoughts and ponder the nature of their curiosity. By enthralling them with vibrant narratives, intricate characters, evocative soundscapes, and above all, thought-provoking questions, she seeks to inspire a deeper engagement with the complexities of existence and the wonder of the human mind.