Vashti Farrer | History

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Sydney Harbour Bridge
(Scholastic)

'I said to Mum that the sky-workers must have really good heads for heights, but she said, "Either that, or they have a family to feed and will do anything for a job that pays."'

It is 1932 and Sydney has hit hard times but the construction of a bridge that will reach across the harbour is setting spirits soaring. Both Alice and Billy tell the story of building the spectactular Harbour Bridge which will unify a separated city - from north shore to the working class suburbs of the south.

My Australian Story

Archer's Melbourne Cup - The Diary of Robby Jenkins
(Scholastic)

Robby has just started working as a stablehand at Mr de Mestre's property Terara. Times are tough, so he's pleased to be earning money for his family. He's even more pleased to be pursuing his dream to become a jockey. Robby loves the horses at Terara, especially the prized bay Archer. When a brand new horse race called the Melbourne Cup is announced, Robby is sure Archer has what it takes to win - if he can overcome injury. His father is a struggling farmhand, dreaming of owning his own land - and farming it with Robby. But Robby only dreams of the biggest horse race in the country. Will he travel to Melbourne for the Cup, or will he be forced to give up his dreams to help his family?

My Australian Story

		Escape To Eaglehawk (Originally published Millenium - republished Otto Books) "Ow do we get to Eaglehawk?" "Right under their bleedin' noses!" Action-packed tale of convict boys transported to Van Diemen's Land in the 1830s. Overseers, superintendents and jail bullies make their lives miserable, even dangerous but Sam and Jemmy are determined not to be stuck at Point Puer. However, plans can so easily go wrong. Illustrated by Joan Saint Available - Contact me - Otto Books

		Eureka Gold (Originally published Millenium - republished Otto Books) "The traps! The traps are coming!" Will Baines ran as fast as he could up the gully and between the pits. Will and his family head for Ballarat to find gold, but face heat, dust and flies in summer; rain, mud and cold in winter. Their friends are other diggers, and a young man with a strange past. Then an accident and the events of the Eureka Stockade change them all forever. Illustrated by Joan Saint Available - Contact Me - Otto Books
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		Ned's Kang-u-roo (Originally published Lothian - republished Otto Books) Twelve-year-old farmboy Ned Wattrous runs away to sea on HMS Endeavour, captained by James Cook. Wrecked in the shallow waters of the great coral reef, Ned tells how they save the ship and sail into shore to repair her, only they're not alone on this strange coast. They discover weird new animals, like the great Hopping Creature and bats "like the devil hisself'. But before they can sail for home, they must find a way out through the treacherous reef, and survive the fever-ridden swamps of Batavia. Illustrated by John Nicholson Available - Contact Me

		Plagues And Federation - The Diary of Kitty Barnes (Scholastic Australia - My Story Series) The year 1900 is momentous for Kitty - bubonic plague breaks out in Sydney's Rocks area, and she starts a diary. People flee to the Blue Mountains. The country is on the verge of becoming a federation and Kitty's brother, Bertie, is fighting in the Boer War in South Africa. Closer to home there's Reggie, the boy down the road, who is starting to pay a lot of attention to Kitty. New hardback edition - Released February 2006.
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		Walers Go To War (Anzac Day Commemoration Committee Qld Inc) "Horses are strong and loyal and more" But none so brave as the horses of war. A book full of facts about horses called Walers (because they first came from New South Wales) sent from Australia to the Boer War in South Africa and later to the First World War in Egypt and the Middle East. Information boxes and funny quirky drawings tell children all about horses and war. Illustrated by Sue O'Loughlin

		Feathered Soldiers (Anzac Day Commemoration Committee Qld Inc) Feathered Soldiers - An Illustrated Tribute To Australia's Wartime Messenger Pigeons. Co-written with Mary Small & Illustrated by Elizabeth Alger. Released February 2006.
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