Prize-winning and highly commended stories from the 2025 Hope Prize, with judges including Dame Quentin Bryce, Kathy Lette and Julia Gillard.

In Trinidad, a mother sends a final letter to her son overseas. In the Southern Ocean, a migrating bird spots land after a gruelling 11,000-kilometre flight. In Amsterdam, a community stands together, resolute against ideologies that seek to divide them.

Spanning continents, generations and perspectives, these are the voices of some of the world’s most exciting literary authors. In twenty stories and twenty distinctive voices, Bright Side reveals one enduring belief: that hope can be found in even the most troubled times.

All royalties from the anthology support CAMFED, a pan-African, grassroots-led movement tackling poverty, inequality and injustice through girls’ education and women’s leadership.