Sian: A New Australian

A New Australian

by D. Luckett

Sian is the unlucky thirteenth child in a Welsh coalminer’s family. Life is hard; her mother died after giving birth to her and her father is grief-stricken. Sian’s eldest sister hatches a plan to take them both far away, to find a better life. It will be a long voyage across the ocean, but Sian is looking forward to a new start in a country where the sun shines and she can go to school every day instead of picking coal scraps for pennies. The only problem is, no one must know about the great journey they are about to take …

Genres: Historical Fiction, Childrens

144 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2015

Reviews

[Doris Vaarwerk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sian arrives in Sydney early in the 20th century. It is little more than a backwater but when tragedy strikes she moves to Darwin to live with her "Uncle" Ellis. Here she encounters other 'new' Australians and she is puzzled by attitudes toward some cultures. She befriends Mae a first generation Australian of Chinese background. Together they explore the wilderness of tropical Darwin while challenging the mostly male population about their stance toward women and unfamiliar cultural practices.
Sian's new found freedom is threatened when she receives mail from her Da, demanding she returns home to Wales and to her family who live in overcrowded accommodation.
I love reading historical novels, and although I found this book in the junior section of the library it, I feel, deals with adult themes like child birth, racism, and physical abuse.

[St Stephen's C C]

Sian is the unlucky thirteenth child in a Welsh coalminers family. Life is hard; her mother died after giving birth to her and her father is grief-stricken. Sians eldest sister hatches a plan to take them both far away, to find a better life. It will be a long voyage across the ocean, but Sian is looking forward to a new start in a country where the sun shines and she can go to school every day instead of picking coal scraps for pennies. The only problem is, no one must know about the great journey they are about to take ...

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. The main character was compelling and had a distinctive voice, the writing was lovely, with lots of nice descriptive passages, and it was a good story. I also liked how it showed 1911 Darwin through the perspective of both white and Chinese characters, and didn't shy away from depicting the racism of the time.