by Davina Bell
Australia’s first electric train ran between Newmarket and Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne.
As Alice and Uncle Bear waited on the corner of the Perth–Fremantle Road to cross over to their favourite shops, Alice thought how much she loved the sounds of the Village, so different from home, though it was really only a short walk away. Home was the squabbling of Pudding’s chickens, Honey’s moo, the rustle of the river and the squeak of all the windmills over the water tanks; the sound of the gramophone and Mabel singing. But the Village was hooves clopping and people calling and the hoot of trains; it was naughty boys throwing stones, the hiss of the laundry, the tinkle of the bell that told them Jimmy Poor Eye was coming, pushing his cart with his special gadget that sharpened knives. It was the thrum of little motor cars and ladies chatting outside the post office, and Ford, the little stationmaster, blowing his whistle, the sound of the ice man’s horse and cart, and the calls of the children from all the families that Alice had known forever. It was as if everything exciting about the world was right there in Napoleon Street, playing together like a thrilling piece of music.
Alice felt for Uncle Bear’s hand and squeezed it. ‘I’m glad I’m not going to go off and be a ballerina after all. I never want to live anywhere else but here.’
Uncle Bear looked down at her and raised his eyebrows, as if he didn’t quite believe her. And as she looked into his clear blue eyes, she realised she didn’t quite believe herself.
‘Well, maybe it would have been nice, Uncle Bear … When I was bigger, perhaps.’
As the milkman’s horse and cart tripped past them, Alice spotted the long red ponytail of her best friend Jilly. ‘Uncle Bear, there’s Jilly. JILLY! I wonder if she got my note. And is that … Douglas?’
Douglas was Jilly’s biggest brother, and the one Alice liked the least. He’d been away at war for three years – maybe more. Douglas was sly, the kind of sly where the only time he was doing the right thing was when a grown-up was turning round to check. And he was mean. But just as Alice adored her own brother Teddy, Jilly thought Douglas was marvellous too.
Alice and Uncle Bear crossed over to where Douglas was sitting on a bench in his uniform smoking a hand-rolled cigarette, a stick propped up beside him. Jilly stood next to him, balancing paper bags from Muggeridge’s grocer, smiling.
‘Hi, Jilly. Hello, Douglas. Welcome home,’ said Alice. ‘Are you well?’
Douglas squinted one eye shut and looked her up and down in a way that made Alice feel as if she were standing in only her petticoat. Then he turned his head and blew smoke out of the corner of his mouth. His hair seemed an angrier red than Alice remembered. Against his pale, yellowy skin, his freckles stood out like the pattern on a tablecloth. ‘Heard Teddy finally got the nerve to sign up. Only took him three years. Shameful.’
Alice bristled. If I were a cat right now, she thought, my claws would be out, and I’d slash him.
Meet the other Australian girls
Meet Nellie
1849
It’s 1849 and Nellie O’Neill is arriving in South Australia on a ship bringing orphan girls from Irish workhouses. Nellie and her best friend, Mary, have left the famine in Ireland far behind, and are full of hopes and dreams for the future. Nellie longs to learn to read, to be part of a family once more, and never to be hungry again. But with no job and no one to turn to, how will Nellie’s wishes come true?
Meet Nellie and join her adventure in the first of four exciting stories about an Irish girl with a big heart, in search of the freedom to be herself.
Penny Matthews, critically acclaimed author of the Nellie books, has written junior novels, chapter books, and picture books. Her novel, A Girl Like Me, was a CBCA Notable Book in 2010 and won the Sisters in Crime’s 2011 Davitt Award for Young Adult Fiction.
GRACE
1808
It’s 1808 and Grace is living with her uncle in London. They have no money, and Grace is always lonely and often hungry. One afternoon she can’t resist taking a shiny red apple from a grocer’s cart – and in a split second, her life changes forever…
You can read all the books in the Grace series …
MEET GRACE
A FRIEND FOR GRACE
GRACE AND GLORY
A HOME FOR GRACE
LETTY
1841
It’s 1841 and Letty is on the docks in England, farewelling her bossy older sister who is about to take a long sea voyage to Australia. But then there’s a mix-up and Letty finds herself on the ship too. How will she manage on the other side of the world, and what will life be like there?
You can read all the books in the Letty series …
MEET LETTY
LETTY AND THE STRANGER’S LACE
LETTY ON THE LAND
LETTY’S CHRISTMAS
Poppy
1864
It’s 1864 and Poppy lives at Bird Creek Mission near Echuca. When her brother, Gus, runs away to pan for gold, Poppy plans her own escape… Will she ever find Gus, whom she loves more than anything in the world?
You can read all the books in the Poppy series …
Meet Poppy
Poppy at Summerhill
Poppy and the Thief
Poppy Comes Home
Rose
1900
It’s 1900 and Rose lives with her family in a big house in Melbourne. She wants to play cricket, climb trees and be an adventurer. But Rose’s mother has other ideas. Will Rose ever really get to do the things she loves?
You can read all the books in the Rose series …
Meet Rose
Rose on Wheels
Rose’s Challenge
Rose in Bloom
ouraustraliangirl.com.au
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Follow the story of your favourite Australian girls and you will see that there is a special charm on the cover of each book that tells you something about the story.
Here they all are. You can tick them off as you read each one.
A girl like me in a time gone by
PUFFIN BOOKS
Published by the Penguin Group
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Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London, WC2R 0RL, England
Published by Penguin Group (Australia), 2012
Text copyright © Davina Bell, 2012
Illustrations copyright © Lucia Masciullo, 2012
The moral right of the author and the illustrator has been asserted. All rights reserved. Every effort has been made to contact the copyright holders for material used in this book. If anyone has information on relevant copyright holders, please contact us.
Cover and internal design by Evi O. © Penguin Group (Australia)
Cover portrait © Tim de Neefe
Cover photograph © Rob Palmer
puffin.com.au
ouraustraliangirl.com.au
ISBN: 978-1-74253-458-9