Book description
Edie and Maggie live in a small country town and are best friends - but
very different. Edie is Aboriginal and Maggie Anglo-Australian; Maggie
is good at school, Edie always struggles. No matter how hard she
studies, Edie can only scrape a pass and although they promised each
other that together they would change the world, when Maggie suddenly
gets the chance to leave school and earn money, it's a serious challenge
to their friendship. Will it survive? Edie is a natural athlete but she
also has a strong spiritual side and now that she is a young woman, it
becomes even more important. The women tell her that since she has
entered puberty, her body is 'making honey', so there will be big
changes to the world around her. It's time for Edie to learn more about
the Old Ways - which means confronting her own past. After her mother
left, Edie's grandparents took over the role of caring for Edie and her
young brother Matty. They are tough and wise, but loving, and so far
Edie has escaped the big black government cars that have come for many
of the indigenous children in the town, but in PAPERBAGS AND DREAMS, the
cars finally catch up with her. Will they tear her family apart? The
stand-alone sequel to WHISPER, this is a heartwarming portrait of
friendship and reconciliation, and of a society offered the chance to
balance the pain of the past with love. Fran Dobbie teaches at a
primary school in Sydney. She is proud of her mixed cultural heritage,
being the daughter of an English father and an Aboriginal mother from
the Yuni tribe on the south coast of New South Wales. She believes
passionately in reconciliation for Australia's people.
