The Great Australian Novel...? (and poetry, too.)

[Cale]

Hi friends!

 

I am crafting my homeschool year plan for my 7th grader who loves to read and write. We are going to use the Australian History-Based Writing Lessons from IEW as a jumping off point to learn more about the history, culture, and literature of Australia- a place we know next to nothing about! IEW lists several works in the back of the workbook for further reading such as Our Sunburnt Country, I Can Jump Puddles, "The Man From Snowy River", and Seven Little Australians. Is there anything I should add? Any seminal works that every Australian knows that should not be omitted? Are there any works by indigenous peoples (Aboriginal myths/legends?) that we can include? I would like to make sure that we give attention to all cultures represented on the continent (not just Western culture) and examine the dynamic tension there between the people of origin and those that came to colonize the area. 

 

Our local library is pretty terrible and pretty much none of the works cited above or on IEW's resource list were in circulation in our system. The only thing I found was an anthology titled The Literature of Australia. I have yet to order anything from Amazon, so I would love feedback on what should make the cut on my list since I'd like to avoid breaking the bank when I place my order! :) My daughter is an advanced reader and is pretty mature for her age, so if there are high school level books you know of, please also include those. I will preview the selections suggested to determine if they are appropriate or not for our purpose/focus. I'm looking for between 7 and 10 books/poems/myths/legends to work into our studies. As far as timeline goes, the curriculum covers "The First Australians" (Aborigines) through modern times. 

 

I look forward to hearing from those of you with particular interest or background in this subject matter. Thanks in advance.

[speed.cleaner]

You might like to look at this thread

Edited July 24, 2016 by speed.cleaner

[jobos12]

As far as classic Aussie literature, as a child I loved Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, by May Gibbs, although it's about the natural environment rather than the peoples of Australia. I would have to probably add in there 'My Place' for history by Nadia Wheatley - although I think its more of a childrens book. There's a TV series on it too, but it's not great at all. I've not used either in a teaching situation though.

 

Looking at what you've said, I would pretty strongly recommend 'The Rabbits' by John Marsden and Shaun Tan. It's a modern picture book, but tells the story of how 'the rabbits' (Europeans) arrived in Australia and the impact they had on the indigenous Australians and the country - all through allegory. It's fantastic - very rich, hard-hitting and absolutely phenomenal illustrations by Shaun Tan, who I am obviously a big fan of. Not a child's book, so don't get scared off by the picture book aspect of it, especially if it's just part a set of books you would use.

 

I personally think it's one of the best for presenting an alternate view of the colonization of Australia, addressing the 'dynamic tension' you are looking for.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Cale]

Thank you so much! I did search and look through some of the threads, but just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything... some of those were from quite a few years ago.

 

I appreciate the feedback!

[Rosie_0801]

Look up Anita Heiss.

 

And look up Percy Trezise on Youtube. 

 

 

A year 7 girl might like 'Playing Beatie Bow' by Ruth Park and 'Walking the Boundaries' by Jackie French, or they might be a bit young.

[LMD]

Definitely playing beatie bow.

 

Blinky bill? Magic pudding?

[LMD]

Oh, year 7, not 7!

 

Probably a bit young for Tim Winton yet. We read 'Looking for alibrandi' about that age.

I like Andrew Lansdown's poetry...

[bookbard]

What about "Rabbit Proof Fence"? It's by an indigenous woman about being part of the stolen generation.

 

Doing some research into Songlines would be interesting - you could do it all via google. It would involve geography, indigenous astronomy, stories and artwork. Even just following one story (the seven sisters aka the pleiades) would involve all of that.

 

Here is an interesting article - and the site has a lot of articles which are similar.

 

https://theconversation.com/how-ancient-aboriginal-star-maps-have-shaped-australias-highway-network-55952

 

Definitely agree with Playing Beatie Bow - we did that in year seven I think!

 

 

[Garga]

I've heard that Picnic at Hanging Rock is a good Australian book. Not sure if it's ok for a 7th grader.

 

I had heard that it's sort of like our To Kill a Mockingbird, inasfar as it's a well-loved Australian novel. But I could be wrong. I don't know much about Australia and that's just what I've heard second-hand.

 

It's about some women/girls who go on a picnic and disappear. I think the ending is ambiguous where the reader has to figure out what really happened to the missing people.

 

I haven't read it yet, but plan to soon.

[Rosie_0801]

 Magic pudding?

 

Available for free on Librivox.

 

Reading it aloud yourself is a punishment you don't deserve. :lol:

 

 

One of my childhood favourites was 'Marmaduke the Possum.' It's like 'Dot and the Kangaroo' but better. Mind you, the cartoon of Dot was great. This song is a classic:

 

 

 

Not exactly high school material, but everyone needs a bit of fluff for the fun of it. :)

[Rosie_0801]

I've heard that Picnic at Hanging Rock is a good Australian book. Not sure if it's ok for a 7th grader.

 

I had heard that it's sort of like our To Kill a Mockingbird, inasfar as it's a well-loved Australian novel. But I could be wrong. I don't know much about Australia and that's just what I've heard second-hand.

 

It's about some women/girls who go on a picnic and disappear. I think the ending is ambiguous where the reader has to figure out what really happened to the missing people.

 

I haven't read it yet, but plan to soon.

 

It's fine for a year 7 kid.

[Ausmumof3]

Some Colin Thiele - Sun on the Stubble or Storm Boy or for a more mature perspective the seeds inheritance.

 

I have to admit I haven't read it but maybe the rabbit proof fence. Or an adaptation of it. Short stories by Henry Lawson and poetry of Banjo Patterson.

I also really like some of the poems by Judith Wright although they may be a little too old for a grade 7 kid more high school level. For a movie that gives a bit of a taste of the culture you could try red dog or maybe the castle although I think these may be harder to appreciate if you didn't grow up here.

 

I'm finding a dearth of books presenting the indigenous viewpoint for older kids although there are a lot for the younger age group.

 

Not exactly classics (but well written and challenging language, I loved the silver brumby stories by Elyne Mitchell when I was a kid and I think there is a nice movie version as well.

[Cale]

Not exactly classics (but well written and challenging language, I loved the silver brumby stories by Elyne Mitchell when I was a kid and I think there is a nice movie version as well.

 

Thank you for this recommendation! My daughter loves horses, so even if we don't include that in our "official schoolwork", I will certainly get her a copy!

[Melissa in Australia]

Jacky Finch has some interesting reads.

[LMD]

Available for free on Librivox.

 

Reading it aloud yourself is a punishment you don't deserve. :lol:

 

Haha! I actually did read it aloud a few years ago! Much fun was had but it certainly wasn't an easy one to read!

[Ausmumof3]

There is an awesome audio version around with fantastic voices but I can't remember who did it...

[LindaOz]

My dd loves The Silver Brumby series.

 

Also, Currency Lass is a novel set in early Sydney. My dd's have enjoyed this although it might be better as a read-aloud for that age.

 

The Little Black Princess by Aeneas Gunn is a story of an aboriginal girl.

 

A Little Bush Maid by Mary Grant Bruce about a family in the Australian bush.

 

HTH

[smudge]

My HS self would have said The Thorn Birds, but you probably don't want that on your list! HAHAHA