gunpowder The explosive agent used in all fireworks. Gunpowder is normally comprised of 75% saltpetre, 15% charcoal and 10% sulphur, though slightly different compositions are used for different purposes.
firework machine An elaborate structure forming the background for a firework display.
mortar A short-barrelled cannon used to shoot firework shells into the sky.
nails Special ‘launching pads’ for rockets.
pyrobolist Archaic word for a firework maker and operator; the modern term would more normally be pyrotechnician.
rocket The most famous firework, a rocket consists of a cardboard tube with a conical top and a long stick to stabilise it during its flight. Burning gunpowder in the tube propels the rocket into the sky until the flame reaches the firework stars in the cone and the rocket explodes. Rockets are usually launched several at a time in flights or volleys.
roman candle A stationary firework which alternates a fountain effect with single stars.
salute A firework designed purely for the purposes of making noise, often used to signal the end of a display. Also sometimes called a maroon from the French marron (chestnut), which makes a popping sound when roasted in a fire.
shell A round or cylindrical case containing firework stars, fired out of a mortar into the sky.
slow match Specially treated cord which burns very slowly, and which is used to set off fireworks.
stars The chemical material in the firework casing which produces the characteristic firework ‘sparkle’.
whizz-gigs Small fireworks, often added to a shell, which shoot erratically across the sky.
About The Author
NATALIE JANE PRIOR is the author of numerous books for children and young adults, including the successful fantasy series Lily Quench, the classic picture book The Paw and The Star Locket, a companion novel to Fireworks and Darkness. Her books have won the Aurealis Award (for fantasy and science fiction), have been Honour Books and Notable Books in the Children’s Book Council of Australia Awards, and have been shortlisted for numerous children’s choice awards.
In addition to writing, Natalie is partowner of a business which imports and retails baroque and renaissance woodwind instruments to the Australasian market, and she has a particular interest in the baroque recorder.
Natalie lives in Brisbane with her husband and daughter. When she gets a spare moment she enjoys sewing and gardening.
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Copyright
Angus&Robertson
An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers
First published in Australia in 2002
This edition published 2012
by HarperCollinsPublishers Australia Pty Limited
ABN 36 009 913 517
www.harpercollins.com.au
Copyright © Natalie Jane Prior 2002
The right of Natalie Jane Prior to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright Amendment (Moral Rights) Act 2000.
This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced, copied, scanned, stored in a retrieval system, recorded, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
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National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-publication data:
Prior, Natalie Jane, 1963—.
Fireworks and darkness.
New ed.
For children.
ISBN 9780732284442 (pbk)
ISBN 9780730444534 (epub)
1. Magicians—Juvenile fiction. 2. Magic—Juvenile fiction. I. Title.
A823.3
Fireworks and Darkness Page 18