This is the heroic and sometimes tragic story of the Irish immigrant families, the Costellos, Duracks and Tullys, who came to Australia in the 1840s and 1850s. [click to continue…]
adult non-fiction Australiana
This is a personal history filled with all the colour and excitement of frontier times. Toohey succeeds in bringing to life the human stories of the founders of Mareeba, Atherton, Herbertron, Irvinebank, the Evelyn Tableland, Chillagoe, Ravenshoe, Millaa Millaa and Malanda. [click to continue…]
1844 – A motley party under Charles Sturt sets out to penetrate Australia’s mysterious Centre. the hour is desperate: South Australia is sliding into bankruptcy and the colonials look to Sturt as the “Father of Australian Exploration” to find rich lands to rescue the economy. The massive, unwieldy expedition plods up the Murray, dragging along a whaleboat in the hopes of finding an inland sea. [click to continue…]
Australia is a dynamic multi-cultural society, viewed by many as the world’s most desirable place to live. Here Frank Welsh traces Australia’s intriguing and varied history to examine how this society emerged, from its ancient Aborigine tribes and earliest British convict settlements to today’s modern nation – one that retains strong links with its colonial past but is increasingly independent and diverse. [click to continue…]