Tough Stuff
True Stories About Kids and Courage
Children's Literature Choice List 2001 (USA)
From the wolf girls of India to a teenage Olympic champion; from Iqbal Masih, the inspirational 12-year-old crusader for human rights, to the Dalai Lama; from outback Australia to Auschwitz, Tough Stuff is paced with true stories that show what kids are really made of.
It’s about children who have protested, rebelled, prayed, saved lives, earned a fortune, lost everything, become world-famous, or survived war and oppression.
It’s about kids making a difference in the adult world. It’s about kids and courage.
Tough Stuff is pacy, poignant, confronting. It speaks directly to children about things that matter.
The How and Why of Tough Stuff
I am very proud of Tough Stuff. It was a really tough book to write but the stories were so gripping, so needing to be told, that some days the words just poured onto the page.
Many of the stories in Tough Stuff were tales I had heard versions of when I was growing up. When it came to writing them down, I wanted to make sure
I got as close to the truth as was possible. Many stories that I had hoped to use were abandoned when I discovered they were more myth than fact.
Each story was carefully constructed from a variety of sources and often painstakingly verified. Non-fiction is a demanding genre if you are committed to getting as close to the truth as you can. Also, the truth can really hurt! Reading and then writing about the horrific suffering that some children have been subjected to throughout history often left me feeling drained and incredibly sad.
The stories of the kids who had survived the Holocaust were particularly difficult to write but in telling the stories in Tough Stuff, I tried to keep my focus on the brilliant light inside the amazing kids that I was writing about.
The original idea for the book was to look at all the different ways that children expressed courage and their own individual strengths. Over the years, I had taken note of so many fascinating stories that I was itching to thread them together to put in a book. I guess I am a bit like Milo, who narrates the stories. Ever since I was a kid, I’ve loved collecting and listening to stories.
Tough Stuff was published in America as What Kids Are Made Of. It has also been published in China as The Boy Who Made Miracles in a complex Chinese character edition.
American Edition
of Tough Stuff
Chinese Edition
of Tough Stuff
What the critics wrote about Tough Stuff
Murray has retold their stories with flair. All are interesting and dramatic. All of them just go to show what potential lies within children and how easy it is to underestimate them.
Stella Lees
Viewpoint
Winter 1999
Real-life stories are told in a conversational, intimate style.
Tough Stuff is accessible and engaging.
Viewpoint
Spring 2002
This very absorbing book is a collection of over 40 stories about children who have done amazing things and made a difference in the adult world. This is a fascinating book and both children and adults will benefit from reading it.
Nora Jonkers
Catholic Weekly
January 2001
Links
One of the most powerful stories in Tough Stuff is that of Iqbal Masih, the 12 year old anti-child labour campaigner who was assassinated because of his outspoken stand against child exploitation. If you would like to find out more about Iqbal, have a look at the following site:
www.mirrorimage.com/iqbal/
Other organizations that are working to help free children from oppression and slavery include:
www.freethechildren.org
I have been a member of Amnesty International for a very long time and they provided me with lots of information that helped with stories in Tough Stuff. They are an amazing organization and worthy of everyone’s support, no matter how old you are. You can find out more about Amnesty at:
www.amnesty.org.au/youthaction/