Norah is the pet and close companion of her father, as she also is of her brother Jim and his friend Wally. When cousin Cecil arrives at Billabong, with his city airs and disdain of the ways and amusements of Bush life, the fun begins. "Mates at Billabong" is the second installment of Mary Grant Bruce's "Billabong" series.

Hogg’s sworn foe was Lee Wing, the Chinese gardener, who reigned supreme in the orchard and the kingdom of vegetables — not quite the same thing as the vegetable kingdom, by the way! Lee Wing was very fat, his broad, yellow face generally wearing a cheerful grin — unless he happened to catch sight of Hogg. His long pigtail was always concealed under his flapping straw hat. Once Jim, who was Norah’s big brother, had found him asleep in his hut with the pigtail drooping over the edge of the bunk. Jim thought the opportunity too good to lose and, with such deftness that the Celestial never stirred, he tied the end of the pigtail to the back of a chair — with rather startling results when Lee Wing awoke with a sudden sense of being late, and made a spring from the bunk. The chair of course followed him, and the loud yell of fear and pain raised by the victim brought half the homestead to the scene of the catastrophe. Jim was the only one who did not wait for developments. He found business at the lagoon..FROM THE BOOKS.

Send Round the Hat by Harry Lawson is a collection of exciting short stories about a very tall Australian stakeholder known as The Giraffe going around town and offering to help people with his services. Excerpt: "Now this is the creed from the Book of the Bush— Should be simple and plain to a dunce: "If a man's in a hole you must pass round the hat— Were he jail-bird or gentleman once." "Is it any harm to wake yer?"

How Design Drives Performance Have you ever wondered how changing design will effect the performance of a surfboard, wanted to really understand what your shaper, surf shop or mates are talking about when they discuss bottom curve or rocker, or more importantly why a particular surfboard goes really well or struggles to perform in some situations? The Surfboard Book includes advice stories and design details from some of the most experienced and credible subject experts in the history of the surfboard in Simon Anderson, Dick Brewer, Steve Lis and Bob McTavish: each are known not only as surfboard shapers and designers but as innovators with a combined design experience approaching 200 years. The Surfboard Book explains: elements of surfboard shape and their effects on performance construction types: from traditional to modern sandwich construction important material properties including environmental issues basic types or classes of surfboard and how they perform how to go about choosing or specifying your next surfboard

SOONTO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE The international bestseller, Booker Prize winner, and winner of the 2001 Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best Book. Out of 19th century Australia rides a hero of his people and a man for all nations: Ned Kelly, the son of poor Irish immigrants, viewed by the authorities as a thief (especially of horses) and, as a cold-blooded killer. To the people, though, he was a patriot hounded unfairly by rich English landlords and their stooges. In the end, Kelly and his so-called gang (his younger brother and two friends) led a massive police manhunt on a wild goose chase that lasted twenty months, in which Ned’s talents as a bushman were augmented by bank robberies and the support of nearly everyone not in a uniform. His one demand – for which he would have surrendered himself was his jailed mother’s freedom. Executed by hanging more than a century ago, speaking as if from the grave, Kelly still resonates as the most potent legend in the land down under.

The go-to introductory guide to Australia's diverse wildlife and habitats Ideal for the nature-loving traveler, Wildlife of Australia is a handy photographic pocket guide to the most widely seen birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and habitats of Australia. The guide features more than 400 stunning color photographs, and coverage includes 350 birds, 70 mammals, 30 reptiles, and 16 frogs likely to be encountered in Australia's major tourist destinations. Accessible species accounts are useful for both general travelers and serious naturalists, and the invaluable habitat section describes the Australian bush and its specific wildlife. Animal species with similar features are placed on the same plates in order to aid identification. Wildlife of Australia is an indispensable and thorough resource for any nature enthusiast interested in this remarkable continent. Easy-to-use pocket guide More than 400 high-quality photographs Accessible text aids identification Habitat guide describes the Australian bush and its specific wildlife Coverage includes the 350 birds, 70 mammals, 30 reptiles, and 16 frogs most likely to be seen on a trip around Australia