The Road to Gundagai

Description

The third title in the Matilda saga, which began with A Waltz for Matilda and followed with The Girl from Snowy River. A true cross-over, that becomes a terrific holiday read for our literary adult market. A page-turning, heart-warming family saga set in the Snowy Mountains during the Depression in the 1930s. Blue Laurence has escaped the prison of her aunt's mansion to join the Magnifico Family Circus, a travelling troupe that brings glamour and laughter to country towns gripped by the Depression. Blue hides her crippled legs and scars behind the sparkle of a mermaid's costume; but she's not the only member of the circus hiding a dark secret. The unquenchable Madame Zlosky creates as well as foresees futures. The bearded lady is a young man with laughing eyes. A headless skeleton dangles in the House of Horrors. And somewhere a murderer is waiting ... to strike again. This third book in the Waltz for Matilda saga is set in 1932, at the height of the Depression. Miss Matilda is still running Drinkwater Station, but has put aside her own tragedy to help those suffering in tough economic times and Joey, from the Girl from Snowy River, uses his new medical skills to solve a mystery. Praise for A Waltz for Matilda: 'Jackie French has a passion for history, and an enviable ability to weave the fascinating minutiae of everyday life into a good story.' -- Magpies Magazine Praise for The Girl from Snowy River: '... when I was 11 or 12, I would have read and reread it until it fell to bits. It has everything: horses, poems, ghosts, heroism, war, the bush and a love story.' -- Saturday Age 'this is a genuine gem that is impossible to put down and must be swallowed whole in one sitting.' -- Newcastle Herald

Jackie French AM is an award-winning writer, wombat negotiator, the 2014-2015 Australian Children's Laureate and the 2015 Senior Australian of the Year. In 2016 Jackie became a Member of the Order of Australia for her contribution to children's literature and her advocacy for youth literacy. She is regarded as one of Australia's most popular children's authors and writes across all genres - from picture books, history, fantasy, ecology and sci-fi to her much loved historical fiction for a variety of age groups. 'A book can change a child's life. A book can change the world' was the primary philosophy behind Jackie's two-year term as Laureate. jackiefrench.com facebook.com/authorjackiefrench