Collection of historical short stories about the true feats of children
Last year, shortly after having a baby, I was pretty excited to be invited to moderate a panel for the ACT Heritage Festival. The panel was the second half of a two-part event at the ACT Heritage Library called How History Informs Writers with the specific event being The Art of Crafting Historical Fiction Novels. The three authors who participated were Stephane Owen Reeder, Steffan Kosky and Alex Ellis. Owen Reeder kindly provided me with signed copies of some of her books prior to the event, including this one. I am still very behind in my reviews because it has been a year and the Heritage Festival is on again!
“Courageous Kids and their Amazing Adventures” by Stephanie Owen Reeder is a collection of 7 historical short stories about children from the early colonial period of Australia until the 1930s. Each story explores and celebrates acts of heroism and adventure by young children. Brave Bee and the Castaway Kids is about a shipwreck and survival. Will the Wonderkid and the Elusive Treasure is about the discovery of a fantastic opal. Amazing Grace and the Sinking Ship is about a phenomenal feat rescuing people from a sinking ship on horseback. Lennie the Legend and the Remarkable Ride tells the story of a very young boy who rides his pony across the country to see the opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Marvellous Miss May and the Wondrous Circus is about a talented young girl who joins a circus. Clever Quong Tart and the New Gold Mountain is about a charismatic young boy who wins hearts and friends wherever he goes. Valiant Jane and the Disappearing Trail is about children lost in the bush.
The one challenge I had in reviewing this book was trying to decide what genre to categorise it as. I think ultimately they are biographical short stories: all based on meticulous research and accurate detail, but with some elements fictionalised for readability such as conversations and what may have been in the minds of the children at the time. All the stories were very readable and interesting, but I think my favourites were Amazing Grace, Lennie the Legend and Clever Quong Tart. Amazing Grace was an incomparable act of heroism, and I really loved how Owen Reeder provided history and background about Noongar man Sam Yebble Isaacs who was also part of the rescue. Lennie the Legend was a fantastic story about a young boy with a very specific goal and an incredible sense of independence and self-reliance. Finally, it was impossible not to fall in love with the vivacious Clever Quong Tart.
The collection is supplemented with illustrations, facts and historical tidbits and each story finishes with a biographical summary of what happened to the children when they grew up. Some of their stories are bittersweet, and some grew up to have remarkably ordinary lives compared to the adventures of their youth.
A really great collection of stories that have been told with sensitivity, accuracy and heart. This book would be perfect for an adventurous young reader.
