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A fabulous chunk of Australiana in this wide selection of anecdotes compiled by John Laws and Christopher Stewart that ranges through Australia's history: from the First Fleet to the rock 'n' roll of the 1950s, these are fascinating stories that detail the people and events that helped shape the Australian legend. There's heroism, perseverance, strange coincidences genius, tragedy and warfare. And with every tale, no matter how well-known - there was always a little more to it. -
The clients of the Skeldale House vet. practice vary from dour farmers who expect miracles for nothing, those grateful for any little service and for James Herriot, the real five star owners and patients like Mrs. Pumphrey and Tricki Woo. Here are animal characters from cart horses to kittens; a dog whose staple diet is fish and chips, a cat who presides over his master's business and cows and ewes with complicated calvings and lambings. Siegfried and James are compelled to take on assistants, one of whom - Calum Buchanan - has a larger than life personality with a magical touch, and a menagerie of his own that includes badgers, dogs, owls and foxcubs who take up residence in the kitchen. James' wife Helen is there, steering him through the often comic crises with serene practicality, as well as his children Jimmy and Rosie, both determined to follow in their father's footsteps. A book for anyone who loves animals and laughter. Illustrated by Victor Ambrus.
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It takes more than a fit of the vapours for a giant airline to ground a multimillion-dollar jumbo jet. What investigative writer John Fuller stumbled upon was a jet-age ghost story – crews refused to fly the plane because of the recurring apparitions of a dead pilot and flight engineer from a crashed sister ship. It was the famed Lockheed Tristar; the first jumbo jet ever to crash, in the Florida Everglades, with the loss of 101 persons. In his investigation, Fuller is led inexorably to repeated eyewitness experiences of the dead men’s reappearances before flight crews. After a classic reconstruction of the mysterious crash itself, he interviews scores of airline flight personnel and explores every facet of every “ghost” report. A confirmed skeptic who has always written with professional thoroughness on both scientific and life subjects, Fuller uncovers startling evidence of contact with the spirit of the dead flight engineer Don Repo. It is a spine-tingling, persuasive account with implications of spiritual realities that are of increasing interest in today’s world of ever more extraordinary scientific breakthroughs. -
Into the hard-living world of travelling shearers in the Australian outback comes internationally acclaimed writer Roger McDonald, driving an old truck rattling with cooking gear. He has abandoned writing for a time and found work as a cook for a team of New Zealand shearers working through New South Wales, South Australia and Victoria. He is determined to find a sense of belonging: somehow to join his life with the landscape, the places and the people he meets along the way; somehow to fill the inexpressible yearning he feels. This is the story of that quest, of its triumphs and its failures - a story told with a heartfelt sense of of the profundity of ordinary lives. Written with an insider's affection and familiarity sharpened by an outsider's perception, this moving account of working life in a classic Australian industry gives a new twist to a long tradition of outback travel writing. -
Augustus and his brothers Francis and Henry left Yule's Station (60 miles north-east of Perth) on August 7, 1846 with four horses and seven weeks' provisions and explored a considerable amount of the country north of Perth. The party returned after 47 days, having covered 953 miles. Two years later there was an expedition to examine the course of the Gascoyne River in order to find good pasture land; further explorations followed during his time as Assistant Surveyor of Western Australia. In 1857 he also led a party in a search for traces of Ludwig Leichhardt, a fellow explorer who had disappeared. Both Augustus and his brother were presented with gold medals by the Royal Geographical Society. This facsimile reprint of the 1884 original is a fascinating diary of their adventures and explorations. -
The Gay Genius: Lin Yutang
$65.00The biography of Su Tungpo, the celebrated and famous philosopher, poet, artist, government official and gourmand of 10th century China. He was a product of a centuries-old social system - a member of the literati. Taught to absorb the classics of Chinese literature at a young age, he rose to prominence by his remarkable performance at the national examinations, the entry point into a life of participation in the upper levels of the Chinese government. He was outspoken in his criticism of corrupt practices of government officials. From the book: ...an incorrigible optimist, a great humanitarian, a friend of the people, a prose master, an original painter, a great calligraphist, an experimenter in wine making, an engineer, a hater of puritanism, a yogi, a Buddhist believer, a Confucian statesman, a secretary to the emperor, a confirmed winebibber, a humane judge, a dissenter in politics, a prowler in the moonlight, a poet, and a wag. He sounds like someone we'd all love to know. Illustrated with black and white photographs of truly beautiful Chinese art of the period.
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This book deals with the many facets of fire control and fire behaviour and is written particularly for the great army of volunteer bushfire brigade members, without whom rural fire control in this country would be in a sorry state. Although it draws on some 30 - 40 years of Australian fire research experience, it is written in simple terms for ready absorption of the information contained therein. The chapter written on safety and survival was written by a medical man who is an active member of a volunteer fire brigade. There are sections on combustion, fuel, fire behaviour and fire effects as well as legislation, organisation and suppression problems unique to each State and Territory. Illustrated with colour and black and white photographs. -
The Great Fletch: Hugh Lunn
$30.00When a passing French tennis superstar gave the young Ken Fletcher his tennis racquet, he didn't know what he'd started. Ken, a lonely only child with an irrepressible spirit, took the racquet, which was far too too big for him, tucked its handle under his armpit and began to bang the ball against a board in this back garden, using his whole body to get behind the ball. The result was a perfect, stunning forehand. Annersley Junction was more than a bit surprised when young Ken was seeded Number 3 at Wimbledon and won a Grand Slam with that forehand, used to devastating effect. Ken went on to lead a life of dazzling glamour: casinos,chauffeur-driven cars, beautiful women and applauding crowds. Hugh Lunn explores how a boy from Annesley Junction turned into a champion tennis player, and with his trademark humour and style he not only brings us the life of a sporting great, he describes a picture of a more innocent time in Australian history. -
When Thea and her partner agreed to share the raising of two new kittens with their constantly travelling friends Ron and Robin, the idea seemed straightforward. But that's before the cats arrive, and before a beguiling stray makes it a menage a trois. These are no ordinary cats. Grace, is a part-Burmese, smart enough to rule the roost and curious enough to look at the sky; The Fluffer is a black part-Persian with all the glamour of a Hollywood screen siren; and Kate is a slightly neurotic tabby regarded as the world's best copycat. Full of cat facts, cat drama and wry asides.
