Luna Roo : The Kangaroo Baller

With art from award-winning illustrator Jake A Minton and words by football veterans Adam Jackson and Adrian Lloyd, Luna Roo delivers a high-energy story that will have you cheering like you’re in the stands.

As Luna steps up to lead FC Outback in a thrilling face-off against Bush United, the rookie captain needs to find her inner strength on the field. She’s faced with a huntsman goalkeeper, snakes in attack and nerves that threaten to overcome her confidence. But Luna leaves nothing on the pitch as she learns to silence her doubts, believe in her skills and trust her teammates. Together, they rise to unexpected victory in this heartwarming tale of courage and determination.

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Two anthropomorphic galahs dressed as news anchors, holding microphones, sitting on a tree branch with a background of green foliage and two hovering bees, one wearing headphones.

Cartoon animals dressed in yellow jerseys, including a kangaroo, wombat, dingo, koala, and others, posing playfully together.

The Animal World Cup

Different geographies, different animals as lead characters, all aspiring to one day play in the Animal World Cup. Read along as these young players overcome challenges to fulfil their dreams.

Luna Roo is the first in the series.

Trickshot Harri is the second book coming March 2026

Proudly published through Little Book Press, the publishing arm of Raising Literacy Australia.

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This event celebrates literacy, imagination and connection through the simple joy of shared reading – a mission that mirrors our own.

Every year, a picture book created by an Australian author and illustrator is chosen for a free nationwide reading event unlike any other. Millions gather in schools, libraries, homes, preschools and bookshops to read the same story, at the same time, out loud, together.

In 2026, that picture book is Luna Roo. A full-throttle, tail-thumping, goal-scoring, underdog story that brings the excitement off the pitch – and the page – and into an unmissable storytime event.

National Simultaneous Storytime - 27 May 2026

Register here

Colorful poster for National Simultaneous Storytime 2026 featuring an animated kangaroo character named Luna Roo in a yellow sports jersey with her hands on her hips. The poster includes logos for Little Book Press and the Australian Library and Information Association, and details about the event on 27 May 2026 at 12 pm AEST. It also mentions the book 'Luna Roo the Kangaroo Baller' and the authors Adam Jackson, Adrian Lloyd, and Jake Minton, with a call to register now.

As seen on

Luna Roo Book extract - Illustration of two anthropomorphic galahs dressed as news anchors, holding microphones and reporting outdoors. The background features green foliage, bees flying around, and a tree branch they are perched on.

Luna Roo Book extract - Animated scene of animal characters playing soccer, with a kangaroo kicking a ball and a bird flying nearby, on lush green grass, with a koala jumping and reacting, vibrant colorful background.

Luna Roo book extract - Cartoon animals, including a crocodile, kangaroo, koala, wombat, dingo, and other animals, cheer and celebrate together, wearing sports jerseys. Text in large black letters says "Goooooooaaaall!".

Digital illustration of a soccer game scene from a children's book. On the left, beavers with yellow jerseys playing soccer, one stoping the celebration, another kicking the ball, and a beaver with blue gloves preparing a quick-fire shot. Text descri

A crowd of animated animals, including bears, wolves, and a fox, are at a sports event, holding signs and cheering. Some signs say 'You don't know what you're doing,' 'BOOOO,' 'SKIPPY, NOT SKIPPER,' and 'BACK STRONGER.' The scene is stylized in shade

Authors Adam Jackson and Adrian Lloyd standing in front of a soccer goalpost outdoors, one holding a children's book titled 'Luna Roo', and the other holding a soccer ball.

Passion & Inspiration

It started with a shared idea between two dads wanting funny, inspiring sports stories for their kids.

When we couldn't find what we were looking for, we decided to write our own. That spark became The Animal World Cup and our book book in the series Luna Roo: The Kangaroo Baller

We are Adam Jackson & Adrian Lloyd. We write football books that make kids smile and hopefully inspire a love of the beautiful game.

Follow along on our journey through our Instagram

Adam Jackson | Adrian Lloyd