OUTSIDERS? Refugees in Australian Society: Texts: Different Voices

Giant waves crashed down on our little boat. I was terrified but my mum hugged me tight and told me, 'Everything will be okay. Don't worry, it will be okay.' Anh Do nearly didn't make it to Australia. His entire family came close to losing their lives as they escaped from war-torn Vietnam in an overcrowded boat.

Four different voices tell their own versions of the same walk in the park. The radically different perspectives give a fascinating depth to this simple story which explores many of the author's key themes, such as alienation, friendship and the bizarre amid the mundane. Anthony Browne's world-renowned artwork is full of expressive gorillas, vibrant colours and numerous nods to Magritte and other artists, while being uniquely Browne's own style.

Twenty-seven of Australia's finest writers have focused their intelligence and creativity on the theme, confirming that the experience of seeking asylum - the journeys of escape from death, starvation, poverty or terror to an imagined paradise - is deeply embedded in our culture and personal histories.

Bridie's Fire is the tale of a fiery Irish girl who leaves Ireland to find a home for herself in goldrush Australia.

Maeve's safe world is torn apart when her mother dies in a car crash. Adopted by her strict Chinese grandparents and forced to leave Australia, she fights to hold onto the things she loves most--her two best friends, her dancing, and her baby brother Ned. Secretly she pins her hopes on her Irish father, who doesn't even know she exists.

Sixteen-year-old Rory is at a crossroads in her life. While her gang plans its next move in a racially motivated turf war, Rory is sentenced to spend her summer at an aged care facility. She's proud of taking the rap for a crime her gang committed and reading to a feisty old boxing champion isn't going to change that. But what happens when Rory's path intersects with migrant boxer Essam's and she becomes the victim, not the perpetrator?

From the chaos and the fear of post-war Saigon, and the terror of pirates on the open ocean, to the triumph and tragedy of a new life. Only The Heart is the story of Toan and Linh and a family that endures the nightmare in search of the dream. When logic says the dream is beyond your reach only heart knows the truth ...

Imagine that your house has been destroyed by bombs, your friends have fled or been killed, your mother, sister and little brother are missing, and today you buried your father. Homeless and alone, Parvana begins a desperate journey through war-torn Afghanistan in search of her family. Living in constant fear of the Taliban, often without food or water in the barren landscape, Parvana and the children she rescues journey on foot through a country laid waste by years of conflict, in search of peace and safety...Parvana's Journey is about a young girl's talent for friendship, hope and gritty determination despite the ravages of war.

Anh Do nearly didn't make it to Australia. His entire family came close to losing their lives on the sea as they escaped from war-torn Vietnam in an overcrowded boat. But nothing - not murderous pirates, nor the imminent threat of death by hunger, disease or dehydration as they drifted for days - could quench their desire to make a better life in the country they had dreamed about.

4 copies available.
From the chaos and the fear of post-war Saigon, and the terror of pirates on the open ocean, to the triumph and tragedy of a new life. Only The Heart is the story of Toan and Linh and a family that endures the nightmare in search of the dream. When logic says the dream is beyond your reach only heart knows the truth ...

Prequel to Parvana's Journey. Alternative title: Parvana.
Afghanistan: Parvana's father is arrested and taken away by the Taliban soldiers. Under Taliban law, women and girls are not allowed to leave the house on their own. Parvana, her mother, and sisters are prisoners in their own home. With no man to go out to buy food, they face starvation. So Parvana must pretend to be a boy to save her family. It is a dangerous plan, but their only chance. In fear, she goes out and witnesses the horror of avoiding landmines, and the brutality of the Taliban. She suffers beatings and the desperation of trying to survive. But even in despair lies hope. . . .

With Kabul in ruins from the Taliban's control, Parvana dresses as a boy and sets out to leave Afghanistan in search of her family.

Life is not safe for Alem. His father is Ethopian, his mother Eritrean. Their countries are at war, and Alem is welcome in neither place. So Alem is excited to spend a holiday in London with his father - until he wakes up to find him gone. What seems like a betrayal is in fact an act of love, but now Alem is alone in a strange country, and he must forge his own path...

4 copies available.
Anh Do nearly didn't make it to Australia. His entire family came close to losing their lives on the sea as they escaped from war-torn Vietnam in an overcrowded boat.