Just So Stories

Walker Books Australia

April 2024

ISBN13:9781760653170

Australia RRP:$26.99

New Zealand RRP:$28.99

I’m certain that everyone has caught onto Neridah McMullin’s stunning historical picture books, but then again, there are always some who are late to the party. This is the latest, and is both a rousing adventure and a fascinating slice of history that will sit beautifully with your HASS units in particular.

With a central character drawn from real life, Cabbage Tree Ned, who was a well-known Cobb & Co driver in the mid-19th century, and a story that reflects the hurly-burly goldrush days with great verve and picturesque description, this will enthrall your readers.

Young Fen and his father are taking the coach to Geelong as his mother has gone there, to his grandparents’ home, to await the birth of a new baby. Cobb & Co are an iconic part of the Australian historic landscape and much of that history is both fascinating and filled with drama.

Taking a coach ride was the fastest and most convenient way to travel pre-railways but it was not without its dangers including weather events and bushrangers. And young Fen is rather trepidatious albeit excited about this new experience. His father has been very generous (and clearly well off) because he’s paid extra for Fen to sit up with the driver, Cabbage Tree Ned, himself.

Ned takes pains to help Fen relax and even teaches him how to control the reins – a huge ask for a little boy – and when the coach is ‘bailed up’ by two rogues, it is Fen (with the aid of Ned) who saves the day – and the coach.

It is a real adventure that has a goodly amount of fact mixed in with the fiction and would offer up much robust discussion of history. It would be such a perfect fit for your Goldrush UoI providing both colour and a real ‘feel’ for the period.

Highly recommended for your readers from around Year 2 upwards, this is another must-have for your collection – and if perchance you have slipped up on the others do seek them out: Drover, Eat My Dust, Shearer – these are perfect books to get your kiddos enthused about history, particularly of our own country.