OUR AUSTRALIAN GIRL - LETTY

The full set of 4 books about Letty, a free-settler girl in a far-off land

by ALISON LLOYD

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New softcover books. Published 2011, 132 pages in each book. Delightful illustrations by Lucia Masciullo. Reading age: 8 - 11 years.

The Letty books, 1841 by Alison Lloyd

It's 1841 . . .
and Letty is farewelling Lavinia, her older sister who is embarking on a long sea voyage to Australia. There's a mix-up and Letty stays on board and finds herself setting sail for NSW as well. Lavinia doesn't want her little sister on the ship and Letty's frightened - what will become of her?

During this period of history, Britain sent fewer convicts to Australia but also paid people like Lavinia to come as free settlers. In four years, from 1838 - 1841, 40,000 men, women and children emigrated to NSW. Letty's adventures, which unfold in four exciting instalments, is the imagined story of one of them.

1. Meet Letty
2. Letty and the Stranger's Lace
3. Letty on the Land
4. Letty's Christmas

About the author

Alison Lloyd started learning Chinese in school because it was a challenge, then later went to live in China for two years - she was living in Beijing when army tanks rolled in to Tiananmen Square to suppress the student movement in 1989. Alison loves history - both the big sweep of events and the little details of how people lived. Her favourite stories are about people's deep feelings - hope and despair, loyalty and betrayal, love and loss. Put these things together in a book and she can't put it down. That's why she wrote her first novel Year of the Tiger, then a non-fiction book for young readers -Wicked Warriors and Evil Emperors - and then the Letty books in the Australian Girl series. Before she wrote Year of the Tiger, Alison worked for the Australian Government, in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Alison lives in Melbourne with two kids, two grandparents and three chickens, and one husband.

More about the Our Australian Girl series:

Our Australian Girl is a new series of historical novels for girls published by Puffin Books Australia. Each story in the series is set in a particular era of Australian history - the convict era, colonisation, the effects of the Irish famine, the goldrush, Federation, the Depression and the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. All written by highly acclaimed Australian authors, they feature strong plots, colourful and varied characters and genuine, likeable heroines.

The covers of the Our Australian Girl books are designed to appeal to pre-teen girls, with a logo of a locket and charm bracelet, enduring symbols of girlhood. Inside, an array of emotional experiences awaits readers with engaging descriptions of life as it once was and suspenseful plots about things such as family, friendship, betrayal, loneliness, standing up for what's right and surviving in a dangerous world. Our Australian Girl focuses on the fortunes of eight likeable young girls: Grace, Letty, Poppy, Rose, Nellie, Alice, Ruby and Lina. Each of their stories begins in a different era and each character has their own series of four books with a distinct voice and personality. It's their stories, their dramas, hopes and dreams that illuminate Australia's past, its rich diversity and the independent spirit that was fundamental to the building of a nation.

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Our Australian Girl Series: the Letty books by Alison Lloyd