Our Story

It started with my girls.

I didn't set out to start a business. I set out to find a bedtime book.

My daughters were at that age where everything is a question. Why did she do that? Was that the right thing? I wanted stories that helped us explore those questions together, but without turning to religious tales or moral lectures.

I couldn't find quite what I was looking for. So I made it instead.

Stories that ask something of kids.

Every Wiise Panda book is built around values - honesty, courage, curiosity, gratitude. The main character faces a real choice, and the story follows what happens when they choose well.

Just a good adventure with lessons weaved in.

The books are written in rhyme, because rhythm sticks. And because there's something about a well-paced rhyme at bedtime that makes kids want to hear it again.

Every child deserves to see themselves on the page.

When I was writing these stories, I kept thinking about my girls seeing themselves in the book. Their skin tone, their name, their face looking back at them.

That's why every book is personalised. You choose the character that looks like your child, and their name goes on the cover and throughout the story.

It's a small thing that turns out to matter quite a lot. When children see themselves as the one doing the brave or kind thing, the values in the story feel like their own.

We're just getting started.

Right now, we have two books. We're working on more, exploring values like empathy, resilience, and gratitude.

The goal is a library of adventures that families can grow with. Stories that meet kids where they are, and gently help them figure out who they want to be.

Wiise Panda was founded in Sydney by Shanu Mahanama, a parent who wanted better bedtime books and decided to write them. The illustrations are by Ana Morato, whose vibrant, heartfelt artwork brings each tale to life.