Arabella
Illustrated by Kim Gamble
first published: 1998
publisher: HarperCollins Australia, Australia
age group: 4 to 8 years
length: 32 pages
ISBN: 0-207-19904-3 (paperback),
0-207-19164-6 (hardback)
Excerpt:
Matthew's grandfather lived on an island. Wherever he went, he went by boat
- a small red boat with a wild white sail.
One long summer, Mathew said goodbye, his mother said be careful, and he
sailed off to the island in Grandpa's boat.
The boat skipped through the waves like a dolphin leaping, the sails lifting
like a seagull's wings.
'How do you steer?' Matthew asked.
'By the feel of the wind,' Grandpa said.
They sailed on till they saw the island... and the curve of the beach... and
the wharf and the window of Grandpa's house.
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 Wendy's Comments:
Throughout my childhood my father told us stories of his father's days at sea, especially during the 1920s, when he was a mate on a fast, three masted ship - a rum runner sailing out of Vancouver, on Canada's west coast, to the dry American states during Prohibition. Although I don't remember Grandpa ever telling me any of these stories himself, I always associated him with the sea - the rocky beach was only a steep twenty metres away from his house, and the house itself was so small that there wasn't quite enough room for the whole family to sleep...
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Purchasing Information:
Arabella is currently in print and available in bookshops in Australia.
Or you can purchase it online:
in Australia at The Well
in the USA at Amazon
in the UK at Amazon UK
in Germany at Amazon.de
Or purchase it from the author. Wendy has a small number of copies to sell directly.
Awards:
Notable Book, Children's Book Council of Australia, 1999
Wendy's Recommendations:
If you liked Arabella, I think you'll also enjoy these books:
Amanda's Dinosaur
Ark in the Park
And by other authors:
Emma and the Silk Train by Julie Lawson
John Brown, Rose and the Midnight Catby Jenny Wagner
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