Australia Books

Down under, in Australia, there is a creature who doesn't know who he is or where he belongs. His friends, Bushtail Possum, Wallaby, Blue-Tongued Skink, and Kookaburra kindly try to help him, but he just keeps falling "KERSPLAT!" Old Bandicoot says he's a Platypus, but where does he belong? Young readers will enjoy following Kersplatypus' adventures as he searches the Australian landscape for his identity.

Author Susan K. Mitchell has brought some of the animals and the geography of Australia alive for children in a most delightful way. The illustrations by Sherry Rogers highlight the story, plus give an extra depth and richness, so that you feel as if your are right there with the animals. The story is not only fun to read, but also informative. The activities in the back give children and classrooms added fun in animal recognition and geography. This book is highly recommended for children ages 3-7.

Sherry Rogers has done it again: another beautifully illustrated children's book that teaches a little about wildlife, this time in a unique ecosystem that not many children are lucky enough to visit: Australia! Her drawings are infused with a joyous energy.

Kersplatypus is a children's picturebook about a young platypus who doesn't know where he belongs. Other Australian wildlife try to introduce him to climbing trees, flying the skies, or bounding along the ground, but the platypus just doesn't take to it. At last he discovers his natural home - in the water with his beloved mother. Additional pages of fun facts about the platypus and other animals native to Australia round out this delightful, enthusiastic, and educational picturebook.

Sylvan Dell Publishing publishes the best in children's literature. Their books are entertaining, tell a grand story, educate children (and adults) and are oh so appealing to the eye with their fun, quirky, colorful and delightful illustrations.

Kersplatypus is the exciting adventure of a strange little creature that suddenly appears after the big rains in Australia. The animals wonder what `he' is (even the little creature doesn't know what `he' is). But the animals do know he has fur, a tail, feet and a duck-like bill. With the clues they have, the animals band together to help the little creature discover who he is and where he belongs.

Sometimes good friends, tenacity and spirit go a long, long way in finding the answers to the questions that don't seem to have answers.

I love Kersplatypus. He's the cutest little platypus. And I love the cozy, caring feel of the story. The illustrations add tremendously to the flavor of the story and are so beautiful that children and adults will be drawn to them.

I also love that the book contains some fun facts about the platypus-and that there are activities for the children.

This book is also a great gift to give those special little ones in your life. I suspect the kids will wear out the book from use. It's that good.

Armchair Interviews says: Kersplatypus is a must have!

Imagine your mother has just died after giving birth. You go to the hospital to pick up your sister to find she has been taken by welfare workers and put in a home. Imagine you are that baby, that you grow up never knowing how badly your family missed you. Imagine being an older kid in the home, an 'aunt' to this 'special baby', only to later lose contact with her; yet another separation. This is the story of Doris Kartinyeri who spent the first 14 years of her life in a home for children taken from their Aboriginal families. But it is also the story of her sister Doreen and her 'antie' Lowtja O'Donoghue and the family she only later came to know. The ripples of Kartinyeri's pain can be see spreading through a wide community. Kartinyeri writes simply, directly and movingly of her experiences, her struggle to reconnect with her people and her battle with bi-polar disorder.

- Fiona Capp, Age

Imagine your mother has just died after giving birth. You go to the hospital to pick up your sister to find she has been taken by welfare workers and put in a home. Imagine you are that baby, that you grow up never knowing how badly your family missed you. Imagine being an older kid in the home, an 'aunt' to this 'special baby', only to later lose contact with her; yet another separation. This is the story of Doris Kartinyeri who spent the first 14 years of her life in a home for children taken from their Aboriginal families. But it is also the story of her sister Doreen and her 'antie' Lowtja O'Donoghue and the family she only later came to know. The ripples of Kartinyeri's pain can be see spreading through a wide community. Kartinyeri writes simply, directly and movingly of her experiences, her struggle to reconnect with her people and her battle with bi-polar disorder. - Fiona Capp, Age "Kick the tin" was a game Doris Kartinyeri played in the Colebrook Home for Aboriginal children. The aim was to hide from `it' then get back to the tin before being caught. In the middle of Kartinyeri, there is also a tin. This is the story of a courageous journey into the soul of the individual to find meaning and substance after the loss of family, culture and heritage.

Doris Kartinyeri is a Ngarrindjeri woman stolen from her family and institutionalised in a home for Aboriginal children as an infant. The recent report, Bringing Them Home, on the Stolen Generation documents the consequences of the government policy on the effects of removing children from their families. Doris Kartinyeri was born in 1945 into the Ngarrindjeri community. She was one of thousands of Australian Aboriginals stolen as an infant after her mother's death. Her childhood was spent at Colebrook home with other stolen Aboriginal children. At fourteen she began working as a domestic in a private minister's home for no wages. Her first paid job was as a domestic at Northfield Infectious Diseases Hospital. In her late teens Doris returned to her people, married and had children. She found her cultural Ngarrindjeri heritage and her voice as a advocate for the stolen generation.

Doris Kartinyeri is well known in public circles. The book includes reproductions of photographic and textual documents.

A true story of one woman's experience of being stolen from her Indigenous roots and culture. An extraordinary story of courage! The Doris Kartinyeris of this world fill me with hope.

It must be very sad for a child to use a pillow to cuddle at night for comfort and security but that is what Colebrook children did.

Doris KarTINyeri wasn't an orphan or a homeless child. She had her own loving family who was waiting for her to return. But when she was only a month old and her mother died, she was stolen from the hospital and placed there... at Colebrook Home with other stolen Aboriginal children.

'Kick the Tin' is a game Doris KarTINyeri played at the Colebrook Home. It is a story of a life that has been kicked around. It tells of an unforgettable experience about young Doris whose heritage had been taken from her. She was made to lose her culture and language.

Fourteen years at Colebrook Home, she felt no bond with her true family. She refused even her own sister which caused great pain for her natural family.

Many of the Stolen Generation didn't have a chance to come back to their loved ones, their families and their homes.

They missed out on knowing their language, culture, tradition and identity...

Imagine how upset you and your family would be if you didn't have any meaning for a word such as 'mother'. Doris' life was just like that.

For me, the real beauty of this book is watching the world through Doris' eyes. The way she appreciates everything that we take for granted is so eye opening! It is simply priceless! I want you to find out how good it is for yourself!

a great read of this do or die battle that helps form part of the Australian pysche - as it says at the kokoda/isurava memorial 'mateship-courage-sacrifice-endurance'. Well woven together, with a good appraisal of the large-scale context for the battle that is bought to life by numerous anecdotes and vignettes of the men fighting and dying along 'the track'. This is my favourite read for the kokoda campaign and in my opinion much better than the similarly named and dated competition

The research Peter Fitzsimmons undertook to produce Kokoda brings one as close to the realism of brutal war as one could possibly experience from the printed page. Yet in all his expose of such brutality, suffering and carnage, Peter brilliantly exposes the courage, the comradeship, the inner spirit of what made the unbreakable wills of these nondescript under dogs, into the unbreakable men of iron they were. Kokoda is not as such a book about war, though it does cover the activity in vivid idiom, but about a small vastly out numbered and out gunned group of men, commandered by inept arm chair superiors, who through sheer guts and humour faced unbelievably crushing odds and won. Forever will the free world be in their debt.

This book is an archive of little known WW11 history. Guaranteed to provoke emotions of those who know the Kokoda track. A classic in the true sense of the word.

Indisputably worth the time it took to read and reread it.

Knowing nothing about the war in New Guinea, I was engrossed by the powerful story of the Kokoda trail and the battles of the small group of Australian soldies who fought there.

This is a well researched and written account of the battles and the people behind the scenes. While less than flattering to the myth of Douglas McArthur, it puts into stark perspective the courage and steadfastness of the Australian soldier under terrible conditions.

Well worth the read!

It is perhaps very timely to be writing a review of Peter FitzSimons "Kokoda" only days after Anzac Day. This is the day when Australians and New Zealanders commemorate war dead in general, and the Gallipoli campaign of 1915, in particular. Although "Kokoda" covers events of World War II in Papua New Guinea there is still an eerie resonance with Anzac Day and all that it commemorates.

Peter Fitzsimons is a well regarded Australian journalist who well covers the events of 1942 when Australia was under direct threat from the armies of Imperial Japan. Indeed, it can be argued that the events of Kokoda are far more important to Australia than the Gallipoli disaster of 1915. In Gallipoli, Australia was simply falling in line with Britain by waging a war against Turkey which represented no threat to Australia on the other side of the world. By contrast, in 1942, Australia was well in the sights of Japan as it moved ever further to the south. The Kokoda campaign is thus a story of great efforts where a handful of Australian heroes defended their homeland against a seasoned army that significantly outnumbered them. And, of course, they won. Japan was turned on its heels and eventually driven back across the Pacific. Gallipoli, by way of contrast, was a bloody mess and Australia and its allies were defeated.

The style of "Kokoda" the book is truly Australian. FitzSimons is a wonderful exponent of the Australian vernacular. This may confuse or even offend foreign readers. Do not, however, let this put you off. The book is a majestic tale.

If I could find a fault in the book, there are two. Firstly, FitzSimons uses the term "native" far too freely. It sounds very condescending when he talks of the tribesmen of the Papua New Guinea highlands. Secondly, the book would also have greater clarity if maps were included. The reader would then gain a greater appreciation of the course of the various battles.

Yet, in finding these faults, I am being churlish. Peter Fitzsimons has written a great book that I recommend highly to all those readers seeking knowledge of a vital piece of World War II that needs to be more widely understood.

Geddes' book, A Labor Of Love, is truly inspirational. There's a softness to her tone that is warm and inviting; like having a cup of java with a friend. She talks a little bit about her life, but mostly this is a journey about her rise to fame as a renowned baby photographer. She talks a little about her struggles, a little about how she achieved certain looks, and why she chose the path she chose. The photos, of course, are phenomenal!

I truly enjoyed the Labor of Love: An Autobiography by Anne Geddes. I have always been fascinated with the pictures of the babies in the yearly calendars. It is so great to read the stories about the babies and to see how some of them have grown over the years. This booklet is a treasure to have and it sits on my coffee table in my living room to be easily accessible to my family and friends. I purchased the book as a Christmas gift to myself and it was truly worth it!!

Anne proves she's not only fantastic with a camera, but now with the written word. Throughout the book she offers insights into how she's been able to accomplish the incredible photos; while even sharing photos from her own childhood.

...you will love this book as you recall your first experiences with the craft. You will appreciate her openness, lack of pomposity, and willingness to share her doubts, passions, and how-tos.

Simon Nasht's book is like an icebreaker charting a course through the Antarctic and revealing one of its greatest explorers. It is hard to believe that one person so "aggressively modest" could have done so much with so little. Up until now, few had remembered him. What a pity. Thanks for bringing him back to life. Now, when is the movie coming out?

This true account of one man's lifelong exploration
of the polar regions makes history come alive. Yet for some reason Hubert Wilkins amazing exploits have faded from public memory.
This biography about a far-sighted adventurer who understood the importance of polar ice caps on global climate. It is a page turner that deserves a place on every bookshelf,an inspiration to the youth.

THE LAST EXPLORER: HUBERT WILKINS, HERO OF THE GREAT AGE OF POLAR EXPLORATION tells of the most successful explorer in history: a self-taught farm boy from the Australian outback who became a cameraman, reporter, pilot, spy and adventurer. His surveys were captured on camera, he helped map the Canadian Arctic, and his amazing life has only not received much in-depth coverage in past because he avoided publicity. Author Simon Nasht discovered Wilkins' journals, records and photos and used them to recreate his life and achievements: any library interested in adventure biography will welcome this vivid account.

The fact the Sir George Hubert Wilkins is a virtual unknown against the supposed greatness of his contemporaries, Hurley and Mawson, is due mainly to his "aggressive modesty".

Now Australians are rediscovering this truly remarkable man's life and Simon Nasht does him an immensely great service.

Simply a 'must-read'!

This is one of the best travelogues you will ever find about any place, anywhere!
Not to mention about countries as obscure as Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands - two rarely visited, but fascinaing archipelagos indeed.
The author does in-depth research about the history and culture of these places before setting out on a personal voyage retracing a route that was taken by his great-grandfather who had been a missionary in these parts. His homework pays off very nicely: not only does he succeed in getting everywhere he wants to, but also writes a book rich in background info in addition to his personal impressions and adventures. And he certainly does get to some remote parts of these remote countries: the Banks Islands and Maewo in Vanuatu, or Temotu province in the Solomons are out of the way places visited by very few.

Why only 4 stars then?
Well, even though the author claims to be an atheist and thus tries to examine the role of religion in local cultures objectively, he soon becomes obsessed with the idea of finding "magic" ("true" magic, that is) in these islands. He is hoping to find it performed by everyone and anyone from traditional medicine men to the local Anglican clergy, undeterred by the fact that he himself admits every single incident he has managed to observe was either a very obvious trick or at best the result of what could well have been a natural coincidence. This change in focus of the book became a bit annoying eventually.

But all in all, an excellent, amazingly well researched account.
Definitely recommended if you are interested in this region at all.
I read the book just before visiting Melanesia, and it was as good a reading as any to prepare me for my trip there.

And a tip: the book is still available in new copies on Amazon's Canadian site - have a look there if you can't find it here.

This book is a fascinating journey that explores the power of simply believing in something, whether it be religion, myth, an icon or people themselves. It presents facts without prejudice yet reveals fascinating details of the author's personal, emotional and geographical journey as he follows his great grandfather's footsteps to the other side of the world. It combines stories of academia, theology, history and contemporary issues in a non-confrontational yet intriguing presentation of generations and cultures colliding in our ever-shrinking global community. I highly recommend reading Charles Montgomery's "The Last Heathen". It is an exceptional story which deserves a captive audience.

Fabulous book. Part travel, part history, part meeting of two cultures, the author lays it all before you with a delightful sense of humour, a discerning eye, and a sincere respect for the people of Melanesia. It opens up a window to a world most people know nothing about and are unlikely to ever encounter. For me, as a frequent visitor to that part of the world, it was wonderful a trip down memory lane.

By the time a little packet of sand gets opened on page 2 of the book, I got swept up in a tale much grander than the postcard idyll of the cover seems to suggest. The narrator travels tough terrain and has adventures of the kind best experienced in an armchair; he tells them eloquently and passionately; but the real magic of the book is how these experiences are woven into larger and deeper ideas that elevate it past almost all travel writing.
It is beautifully written, it is a great book and like all great books, it transforms the reality of the reader; in the end it is their world that has changed, that has become less familiar, less certain, and strangely more alive.

I thought I'd buy this to help teach history in school to my middle school ESOL students, I also am a fan of Diane Stanley, the illustrator. I didn't count on how absorbing the story would be and that I would be drawn into a world I barely knew existed. I had never heard of Princess Kaiulani before. I thought I would be reading about Queen Liliuokalani and it took me back a bit when I found out the story was about her niece. Kaiulani has a touching and very short life. I really want to read more about her. What more can an author hope for if they spur an interest in the subject they wrote about?

My daughter and I loved this book, even though the text was challenging for her as a 4-year old. The story of Princess Ka'iulani's childhood, and her bravery, poise, and eloquence in defending Hawaii when the Haoles brought in an army to depose Hawaii's queen, is beautifully told and made a deep impression. Also beautifully illustrated.

Gives children a real look at the history of Hawaii. A beautiful, sad and true story. Would like to buy a bunch more and give to children for gifts.

Fay Stanley's very worthy true story, "The Last Princess," is the tale of the life of Princess Ka'ilulani of Hawaii (or "Hawai'i" as it's more correctly spelled throughout the book). The book is illustrated by Fay Stanley's daughter, Diane Stanley, and this mother-daughter team has come up with a captivating and sad true story about a portion of history little of us know anything about.

Princess Ka'iulani was the niece of the king of Hawaii when she was born towards the coming of the 20th century. Great rejoicing attended her birth, as the king himself had no children. By all accounts, Ka'iulani was cheerful, beautiful, polite, kind, intelligent, and more than worthy of taking over the throne when the time came. Unfortunately, Americans intervened and little by little usurped the king's power. By the time Ka'iulani returned to the island after her schooling in England, the Hawaiian islands were an entirely different place--and not for the better.

Ka'iulani appealed to President Grover Cleveland's better nature and although he did his best to help her, upon leaving the White House after his presidency, Ka'iulani now had no American political friends. It was far more in America's interests to annex Hawaii to America than it was to help this charming, serious princess regain her rightful access to the Hawaiian throne.

This is a terrifically absorbing tale. Ka'iulani is presented beautifully by the illustrations, which show different aspects of her personality while always emphasizing her dignity and popularity among the Hawaiian people. The two Stanley ladies have taken a little-known subject and presented it to us with power and handsome decoration, and the end result is highly compelling.

As a part-time member of the New Age movement I was thrilled to read the account of Timothy Mulder's spiritual awakening. He details his past problems with organized religion and his devout connection to rationality and the scientific principle. When his investigation of the physical world dovetails into his shamanistic experiences, the results are a completely believable perspective on the nature of reality.
Though he has not yet discovered all the answers to life, in truth his journey seems to have only just begun, Mulder is definitely a man on a mission. Truth has become his goal.
Where that quest takes him is anyone's guess, but I for one intend to be there as the hoped for answers are revealed.

I found myself reading 'Lifted' with both hands holding on tight to my Kindle while perched precariously on the edge of my seat. This chapter of his memoir dealt with his experiences with drugs, one drug in particular and the effects this had on him both mentally and physically. It also describes how he came in touch with his inner psyche. I felt this section was well written. It was as though I was present in the room as the scenes played out. When the Author hit rock bottom and finally decided it was time to make a change, I felt as if I too needed to come up for air.

"Looking" is a good title for this 5th chapter of his memoir. It details how he made a change and began looking for who he wanted to be and the efforts he made to be that person. It talks of his success as he left his former self behind. There is a golden light at the end of this tunnel....and once again I find myself anxious to explore the next installment of his book.

What more mischief is in store for our hero? I thought I had seen it all. Timothy Mulder opens our eyes to a reality unknown to some and yet keeps our symppathies while he struggles with life and its revelations.

He gives hope where none is expected and passion where missed. Shows love and concern for the lonely and opens your eyes to a new reality with his discoveries.

Highly recommended and still wanting more...
I look forward to the next installment.
Sondi

The latest installment(s)... yes, this time the reader is treated to two sections - a full six chapters of the memoir: Moments and Milestones, (still only 99 cents) continues to deliver on the goods.
Cleverly wry humor that keeps even the most dramatic of life's moments light hearted.
In Lifted - The protagonist, having narrowly escaped years of ego driven denial, drug abuse and self destructive tendencies, awakens to a new sense of purpose and meaning. The details of his psychedelic revelations are amazingly evocative. His profound encounters with the deeper `spiritual' world is delivered in the most urban of tones, providing for a completely believable experience. Combined with his scientific predilection towards doubt, one cannot help but be drawn into that other-worldly realm along with him.
In Looking - You join the author on his quest to `find himself'. A feel good trip, nostalgically recalling the wanderings of literary masters such as Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg. The author not only finds in himself an unexpected strength of character, but all new insights on the world he has, over so many years, taken for granted.
Arguably the best time in his life... at least so far. I look forward to discovering the rest of the journey as his story continues. Especially since 'true love' seems just around the corner.
*The short version of this review: -I couldn't put my Kindle down.-*

For a good summertime read, books don't get much better than this. The plot keeps you guessing how things will turn out and the ending is truly a surprise. Particularly well-drawn are the wartime descriptions, especially the fire-bombing of Dresden.

Read Sole Survivor which we enjoyed immensely, trying to find other books by this author; none are available in the US library system as far as we can tell.

If you are tired of the mundane and looking for fresh and stimulating reading, then this is the one! From past and present day Australia to a European mystery set against WW2, the story within a story will keep you entertained and spell bound.

This would have to be one of the best books I've ever read. Gut-wretching, compelling and impossible to put down. I paticularly liked the characters of Cecilia Ortelli and Friedrich Eigenwill. It was to good to see the Second World War through a German pair of eyes and realise that the Oberstleutnant was not a bad man but, in fact, a very decent man caught up in an impossible situation. I found the detailed description of the bombing of Dresden extremely distressing and it showed that, truly, there are no 'winners' in any war. This book is a must read - Derek Hansen is brilliant!!

I bought this book for my Corrections class. It's not really the most exicting class in the world but the book proved to be a great subjective source of Prision Reform. Aside from random sexual references, this book is a must for Criminology Majors!

"Maconochie's Gentlemen" displays Norval Morris's large gifts as a fine narrative writer and a preeminent social scientist. This is a book that fits Aristotle's directive that fine art should enlighten and entertain. It is, in the first instance, an illuminating story, told through the eyes of Captain Maconochie and the family and colleagues he brought with him to Norfolk Island in 1840, of Western society's first efforts at penal rehabilitation. The fiction is followed by incisive reflections by Morris in his role as one of America's leading criminologists, relating Maconochie's experiment to the circumstances today. The book is engrossing in both modes and is thoughtful, moving, and revealing at all points. My hat is off to Norval Morris."--Scott F. Turow

NORVAL MORRIS
THE MODERN DAY JOHN HOWARD

[The power of political leadership in pursuit of popular support by relentless and unscrupulous means has surely and frequently been demonstrated....a public misled by false statistics, sensational and selective sound bites, and political leaders seeking votes is plain to see....Consequently, a prison regime defines the razor edge between power and freedom, authority and autonomy. NM]

In this compelling "roman a clef" entitled: "Maconochie's Gentlemen: The Story of Norfolk Island and the Roots of Modern Prison Reform," the humanism and the incisive intellect of Norval Morris are beautifully revealed. Published in 2002, the novel gives a vivid portrayal of Alexander Maconochie's heroic achievement of creating a "token economy" for rewarding positive behavior through a convict "Marks System" in the penal colony at Norfolk Island, a thousand miles off the coast of Australia, 1840-44. Moreover, it shares a passionate belief that a virtuous prison is possible in the process of maintaining humane and safe prisons. This belief epitomizes the life and work of Norval Morris.

Why would anyone devote himself to penal reform? If there is a viable alternative, why choose to suffer the chill breath of adverse public opinion, the bemused stares of neighbors, the frustrations and lack of reward? It is a vexing question; a satisfying answer is not easily come by. Yet, down through the history of prisons, penal reformers are legion. In contemplating the extraordinary saga of John Howard (1773) and his narrative, The State of the Prisons in Europe and England, Norval makes note of his own life's journey of penal reform.

In an incomparably lesser way, I have devoted the last five-and-a-half decades to the minutiae of prison regimes in four continents. Yet, a vocation in the academic side of criminal law provided all I needed by way of a comfortable, professional, and personal life. To add myself to the list of prison reformers is not to draw a self-serving comparison. Rather, it is to seek an answer to the troublesome question: Why should anyone of reasonable ability see the conditions of prison life as meriting serious and sustained concern? So, when devising prison conditions, you should devise them for yourself. (NM)

As the nineteenth century American prison reform heroine, Elizabeth Gurney Fry has advised: If thee should build a prison, consider thee and thine children might inhabit it. In tribute to Norval Morris, and at his behest for achieving a better understanding of the dilemma(s) of corrections, I recommend an absorbing read of "Manonochie's Gentlemen." Here one will find the heart and soul of a life committed to penal reform. Here, too, one will discover how we will all continue to benefit from the enduring legacy of Norval Morris.

Jess Maghan
Chester, Connecticut (2/25/04)

Seldom have I read a book with which I agreed more completely.