Friday 23 September 2011

Early Australia

I found this old atlas from the 50s in a charity shop.  I love the colours in these old maps.


Recently I read Sara Dane by Catherine Gaskin.  It is supposed to be a romantic novel about Sara, who is sentenced to be transported to Australia.  It details her romantic adventures, but what I found more interesting was the descriptions of early settler life in Australia.


I also learned that William Blyth, of Bounty fame, was appointed Governor of New South Wales in 1805.  A bit of research shows that he also managed, after the mutiny, to navigate successfully for 47 days to reach Timor with the loss of only one man!  They had only been provided with the bare necessities in supplies.  He had also sailed with Captain Cook to the Pacific in 1776.  You can read about his amazing life here.


Sara Dane is worth a read, it is quite gentle as far as romance is concerned, but good on Australia's early days - I actually learned quite a lot and it made me go and investigate further!

Love, Liz

11 comments:

Little Nell said...

That book is reminiscent of “Remember Me’ by Lesley Pearse, based on the true story of Mary Broad. If you can get a copy of that do, it’s gripping. The harsh life she had to endure is almost beyond belief.

Shortbread and Ginger said...

Thanks Nell, will look out for that one.
Liz

Rachael said...

Yeah that Lesley Pearse book is well worth a read x

Jem said...

I'm totally with you on old atlases - the colours are just utterly brilliant!! :-)

Your book sounds like a read you can really get quite lost in - it's so great when something piques your interest to do a little digging beyond the story too!

Jem xXx

Shortbread and Ginger said...

Thanks - two recommendations - just ordered it from Amazon!
Liz

Scarlett said...

There is something very beautiful about old maps. Great post Liz. Scarlett x

Vintage Jane said...

I'll check it out. I love old maps too and often photocopy them to use as wrapping paper. Have a great weekend. M x

Nelly said...

Both Mary Broad and Sara Dane were made into tele movies have a scout around or download it of google.

Nelly said...

Mary Bryant http://aso.gov.au/titles/tv/incredible-journey-mary-bryant/clip1/

Yvette Adams said...

I love the map. I remember seeing the mini series Sara Dane when I was a child. I didn't even know it was a book until now! That's terrible. I will have to order myself a copy! I'm currently reading I Can Jump Puddles, another Australian classic which I only knew from the TV series I saw as a child! I found it at an op shop this week.

Trudy said...

I remember reading all Catherine Gaskins novels when I was in my twenties. Loved Sara Dane : -)