WELCOME TO AUSTRALIAN USED HOMESCHOOL BOOKS!
AUSTRALIANA FICTION - THE FIRST FLEET, CONVICTS & SYDNEY COVE
Picture Books
The Castaways Of Hell’s Gates (An episode from Marcus Clarke’s “For The Term Of His Natural Life”) $5 HB EC A lovely picture book with line sketches, a classic of Australian historical fiction. Sylvia Vickers and her mother are marooned on a lonely beach with no way of escape. One night, Rufus Dawes, an escaped convict, starving and desperate, makes his way to their fire.Little do they know that he holds the key to their freedom. 8-12 YO
Novels
The Devil’s Own (Deborah Lisson) $4 PB EC In 1629 the Batavia , a Dutch East India Company ship, was wrecked on the Abrolhos Islands off the coast of Western Australia. Before the survivors could be rescued, more than 120 passengers were murdered during a bloody mutiny. This historic fact is the basis for a well-written time travel story in which Julie Dykstra, 15, is bored with vacationing on her father's yacht. One night, she takes off in the dinghy to explore an island on which she thinks she has seen someone hiding. Exhausted by the effort, she falls asleep, awakening to find herself in another time facing a nightmare. 11+ http://www.geo.net.au/~lissond/The_Devil_s_Own.htm (Cover art different)
The Castles Of Tuhbowgule (Haidi Willmot) $6 PB EC (Exlib) 200 years ago 'castles' were being built on the edge of Port Jackson, known to the local people as Tuhbowgule. See the colony of Port Jackson through the eyes of four Eora children trying to understood what was happening to their people. 10+
Magpie Boy (Beth Roberts) $5 PB EC Dreenee was born at the same time as white settlers began to arrive in Tasmania. One day when he was curiously watching them, a man took him home. He escaped on the second night by climbing up a chimney, and returned to his people with information, and an iron pot. Time passed, and one night he was awoken by magpie voices. He found Alice, unconscious after her pony bolted. She was returned home, and the Aboriginal servant of the family was invited to join their clan. Prequel to Manganinnie. 10+
The Lieutenant: An Epic Tale Of Courage And Endurance On The High Seas (Jack Bennett) $5 HB GC (Ex lib, tape residue) Set in the eighteenth century, this is the true story of Captain William Bligh and the aftermath of the famous mutiny on the Bounty. Tells of the incredible 3000 mile voyage through open seas in a tiny boat and the amazing feats of navigation and determination that triumph over overwhelming odds. 11+ THE CHILDREN’S BOOK COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA COMMENDATION
Illustrated Chosen Classics “Mutiny On The Bounty” (Sir John Barrow) $3 PB EC This book not only tells the true story of how a number of the crew of the "Bounty", under the leadership of the ship's mate, Fletcher Christian, rebelled and cast Lieutenant Bligh and a number of men loyal to him adrift in an open boat, but also contains an account of Bligh's journey to safety, the court martial that ultimately took place in London, and the fate of the mutineers in the South Pacific. A specially adapted version for children with plenty of illustrations. 9-11 YO. http://www.pe-bg.com/?cid=3&pid=9901&cat=16
House By The Water (Nance Donkin) $3 PB VGC (Light tanning) Thirteen year old James Reiby, son of Captain Thomas Reiby, lives in his father’s warehouse that overlooks Sydney Harbour and the tall masts of his father’s sailing ships. The streets of Sydney Town are exciting in the early 1800s, crowded with redcoats, convicts and free settlers. 10+ http://www.zillion.co.nz/listing/5814724/
Patterson’s Track $3 PB GC The discovery of carved initials in a cave at Convict Bay sets Karen and her two brothers, Geoff and Barry, off on a 5 day hike through the bush to try to find the answer to a 140 year old mystery. Was the escaped convict found in the cave all those years ago responsible for the murders of the pioneer family and his convict servants? 10+ http://www.harpercollins.com.au/global_scripts/product_catalog/book_xml.asp?isbn=0207197962&tc=cx
Come Danger, Come Darkness (Ruth Park) $3 PB GC The penal colony of Norfolk Island was an exciting new world for 13 year old Otter Cannon and his younger brother Paddy Paul. Their mother had sent them to Norfolk to live with their uncle who was the Commandant of the penal settlement, whilst she remained in New South Wales. They are to grow up like gentlemen and follow the family tradition of becoming officers in the Army. From the moment they arrive they are caught up in an exciting series of events and see for themselves the brutality of the convict system. Extensively researched historical novel. Recommended! 9+ THE CHILDREN’S BOOK COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA COMMENDATION
And Wretches Hang (Richard Butler) $4 PB VGC In 1824, fourteen men escaped from the convict hell of Macquarie Harbour. Terrible dangers lay ahead and recapture meant floggings and death. In the next two years, one man survived heroically……Matt Brady, whose legendary exploits and incredible escapes made him the marvel of chain gangs throughout Van Diemen’s Land. 11+
The Currency Lads (Peter Yeldham) $5 PB EC (RRP $17.49) Sydney, 1833 Daniel Johnson and Matthew Conway are currency lads - born and bred in the new land now being called Australia. Daniel, ambitious and determined, escapes a brutal childhood to find wealth and success in the bustling maritime world. Matthew, well educated and fired by a passion for the truth, becomes a journalist on his father's news sheet. But will his desire to fight injustice jeopardise his family's precarious position in society? These two friends also share a secret that binds them together, their destinies intertwined as their lives span two decades. But when they find themselves on opposite sides of a fierce conflict, their friendship is pushed to the very edge ...12+ http://www.peteryeldham.com/web/pageid/1001