Swagman: The Guardians of Time Book One


Book Description

What if Waltzing Matilda's Swagman didn't die when he jumped into the lake? What if he ended up in medieval England embroiled in a plot to set a new king on the throne? For once in his life Swagman John is lost for words. Accused of stealing the lamb he rescued fears being thrown in jail. But instead of protesting his innocence he backs into the waters of the billabong and falls. Certain he is dead, John cannot believe the lamb when he tells him he has been brought through a time and space portal to Medieval England. When Mistress Barabal and Squire Stanislaus stumble upon John in the New Forest he is taken back to Winchester Castle where he actually finds the King has been killed and his brother Prince Henry is about preparing to take his place and his new friends are assisting him. Suddenly talking lambs are the least of his worries. Caught up in political intrigues he does not fully understand, John finds dungeons and magic are not just for fairy tales, and that there are people prepared to go to great lengths to see William the Conquerer's other son crowned king—even as far as murder. Just as John wonders if going to prison for stealing sheep was not a better option all along, he finds there is an even more sinister foe meddling in with history. Against such odds how can John set history straight so he can return home to his family?




The World Below: The World Below Book One


Book Description

Have you ever caught yourself wondering if perhaps things around you are not quite what they seem? Practical and pragmatic Pris has never even considered the possibility. That is until someone breaks into her home claiming her parents have been abducted and taken to a magical world. Snake has always known he is a gnome, and that there are all manner of magical creatures living, not only in his home town of London, but in the wider world as well. Now he must convince a very human girl she is actually an elf, and that she must join with him and enter the World Below to save both their parents. Entering The World Below isn't simple as it seems—scattered around England are the magical creatures and riddles that will grant them passage. They only have days to reach them all, and someone is working against them to ensure they never make to the magical realm. Unsure who to trust, can Pris embrace her magical heritage before she loses her parents forever? Snake faces his own dark secrets as he fights his growing attraction for Pris, knowing they can never be together. When everything seems against them, will Pris and Snake make it to The World Below in Time?




Thor


Book Description

The God of Thunder's most thrilling adventures are chronicled in this tumultuous time-spanning tome, illustrated by a young Walter Simonson! First up, Thor tackles two technological terrors: the dastardly Damocles and his Cobalt Cannon, and the computerized consciousness called FAUST! Then: it's a journey into mythtery as Thor and his followers take on Marvel's resident Prince of Power, Hercules, and his own awesome army! Finally, the far-flung futuristic finale features Thor and Marvel's soon-to-be silver screen stars the Guardians of the Galaxy in blazing battle against Korvac and his Minions of Menace! COLLECTING: Thor (1966) 267-271, Thor Annual 5-6




THE MAGIC PUDDING


Book Description

A magic pudding who changes from steak and kidney to jam roll and apple dumpling in seconds. A walking, talking dessert that never runs out of pleasing things to eat. A koala bear, named Bunyip Bluegum, A sailor named Bill Barnacle, and Sam Sawnoff the penguin have a wonderful hilarious magical adventure defending the Pudding against thieves who want it for themselves.




Tales of the Austral Tropics


Book Description

In these "Tales of the Australian Tropics" one will find the strange love stories that are written, often in letters of blood, among the half-known and mysterious regions of tropical Australia. In this work of his, Favenc's pen never fails.







A Waltz for Matilda (The Matilda Saga, #1)


Book Description

The story behind Banjo Paterson's iconic Australian song. 'Once a jolly swagman camped by a Billabong Under the shade of a Coolibah tree And he sang as he watched and waited till his Billy boiled You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me...' In 1894, twelve-year-old Matilda flees the city slums to find her unknown father and his farm. But drought grips the land, and the shearers are on strike. Her father has turned swaggie and he's wanted by the troopers. In front of his terrified daughter, he makes a stand against them, defiant to the last. 'You'll never catch me alive, said he...' Set against a backdrop of bushfire, flood, war and jubilation, this is the story of one girl's journey towards independence. It is also the story of others who had no vote and very little but their dreams. Drawing on the well-known poem by A.B. Paterson and from events rooted in actual history, this is the untold story behind Australia's early years as an emerging nation. PRAISE 'Jackie French has a passion for history, and an enviable ability to weave the fascinating minutiae of everyday life into a good story.' -- Magpies Magazine




Subverting the Empire


Book Description

This paper examines the way in which contemporary Australian novelists use various tropes derived from exploration in order to embellish themes of personal search in their fiction. By doing so they have borrowed from the language and myths created by what was essentially an exercise in imperialism, and applied them to the quest by individuals in the settler society to find a permanent spiritual home in the new country. The exploration imagery proves to be apposite, in that just as the empire's hopes were dashed when exploration of the inland was repelled by the barren heart of the continent, so too has the metaphysical exploration of the same spaces foundered on uncompromising and withholding landscapes.




Pretty Little Liars #12: Burned


Book Description

#1 New York Times bestselling series The twelfth book in the #1 New York Times bestselling series that inspired the hit ABC Family TV show Pretty Little Liars. High school seniors Aria, Emily, Hanna, and Spencer have made some terrible mistakes, but nothing compares to what they did last spring break. Now the girls are packing their bags for a Caribbean cruise, hoping the trip will be a much-needed vacation from their stalker, A. But they should know by now that A won't be left high and dry. Sure enough, A shows up on deck, ready to send these pretty little liars to a watery grave. . . . . Full of unexpected twists and shocking revelations, Burned is the twelfth book in New York Times bestselling author Sara Shepard’s compelling Pretty Little Liars series.




The Kingdom of Speech


Book Description

The maestro storyteller and reporter provocatively argues that what we think we know about speech and human evolution is wrong. Tom Wolfe, whose legend began in journalism, takes us on an eye-opening journey that is sure to arouse widespread debate. The Kingdom of Speech is a captivating, paradigm-shifting argument that speech -- not evolution -- is responsible for humanity's complex societies and achievements. From Alfred Russel Wallace, the Englishman who beat Darwin to the theory of natural selection but later renounced it, and through the controversial work of modern-day anthropologist Daniel Everett, who defies the current wisdom that language is hard-wired in humans, Wolfe examines the solemn, long-faced, laugh-out-loud zig-zags of Darwinism, old and Neo, and finds it irrelevant here in the Kingdom of Speech.