‘Suzy is without doubt one of the most engaging authors we have invited to our school. Suzy's stories captured the imaginations of the audience, ranging from Year 8s reading World War II fiction, to VCE students studying Politics and Literature.  In particular, they were drawn to her stories of the writing process, and the personal nature of her writing. Due to Suzy's relaxed, friendly style, students felt comfortable to ask questions, with many hanging around afterwards to talk further! Conversations with students since Suzy's visit highlight the lasting impact her words had on our cohort. I cannot recommend Suzy as a speaker highly enough.’ 
  • Jackie Patterson, Literacy Coordinator, Aquinas College 
'Suzy Zail has been coming for Book Week at Leibler Yavneh College for five years now. It never ceases to amaze me how she can keep the students engaged for an entire period and then have them waiting back, to take up discussions with her. Suzy develops a real connection with the students during her sessions, her planning is meticulous prior to coming and students don’t have to be called upon to ask questions as Suzy fires up their curiosity to know more.
Suzy puts her heart and soul into her books and her genuine belief in what she is doing comes through in her talks. Through her young Adult novels, The Wrong Boy and Alexander Altman A10567, Suzy encourages students to be interested and concerned about the holocaust in the hope that such an atrocity never happens again.  Her insights and discussion about her most recent book, I Am Change, highlights the need for students to take action on issues such as gender equality and poverty and be the change they seek in the world.
  • David Easton, Secondary Teacher Librarian, Leibler Yavneh College, Victoria, Australia.
'Suzy was a warm and friendly visitor to our school.  She spoke openly and sincerely to our students about the personal experiences which helped to shape her professional journey as an author.  Suzy shared aspects of her writing process with our girls and spoke of the ethical responsibility writers have when telling the stories of others.  When speaking of her time in Uganda, her book “I am Change” and the inspiration behind her initiative #giveagirlabook, Suzy inspired our students to become agents of change – to realise the potential they have to make the world a better place and to act in both the big and the small ways to bring about this change.  Our students appreciated the opportunity to ask Suzy an array of questions and valued her open and honest responses.  Suzy was incredibly generous and openhearted in the time she spent with us and our girls walked away from this opportunity feeling very privileged to have had this time to listen to, to engage with, and to learn from Suzy Zail.'
  • Bronwyn Ilott, Head of Justice Education, Siena College, Camberwell, Australia
'Suzy spoke to the regular lunchtime book club, a group of dedicated middle-school readers who had read  Suzy’s latest title, Inkflower. We had fantastic feedback from the students. They loved the “Now” and ‘Then” format of the story and found the experiences related in the historical chapters especially powerful as the main character was just a little younger than them. They were excited to be able to ask questions from the author about the story and the writing process. Suzy is a charming guest and the small-group format worked well.'

  • ​Rachel Gillis, Teacher-librarian, Mount Scopus Memorial College, Burwood, Australia
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