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This listing has ended. Item:THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE - S.A. Freud - Australian Fiction  |
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Middle of Nowhere By S. A. Freud This is a boys' own adventure told in the first person by twelve-year-old Shaun Weller. Shaun's blended family has moved to rural NSW from Sydney and the story focuses on his struggle to adapt to bush life and to emerge from his new label as 'geek'. Shaun is a strong, resilient, and intelligent character in direct contrast to the gang of school bullies headed, ironically, by the local policeman's son, Roy Thompson. His cronies, Gump, Fatso, Ugly, and Stinko, delight in stealing lunches, pushing heads under taps and making Shaun and his new friend, Henley Mitchell, dread going to school. The boys thrive on the weekends when they take Scout, Shaun's horse, through the hot Australian bush on camping and orienteering outings. Their mateship is strengthened by Shaun's resilience to the bullies and Henley's competence and resourcefulness at orienteering. We witness a boys' relationship that is based on mutual respect and an acceptance of each other's strengths and differences. Throughout the novel, Shaun helps to restore Henley's self confidence and sense of identity and he goes from being the 'freak', who is nearly deaf with a faulty hearing aid, to a hero who accepts himself. The climax of the story begins to build when Shaun's stepfather starts a 'controlled burn off' on the farm. Disaster strikes and Shaun and Henley awake to a mountain on fire. This occurs the night before the end of year orienteering race - the boys' one chance to beat the bullies and prove themselves. They are exhausted from lack of sleep, having helped dampen the fire shoulder to shoulder, but are set to win the race. Our excitement builds until Roy and his mates thump into them and we are devastated at their loss. Shaun knows that one day he will get even with Roy, 'that lump of lard'. The story reaches its climax when the boys stage a daring rescue of a crashed helicopter pilot high in a canyon in the mountains. In the process, they come to the aid of the bullies who have dismally failed to upstage them with their own rescue effort. Justice is finally served when Henley and Shaun's heroic actions are publicly applauded, Henley's father displays his love and pride for his son and Roy eats humble pie by admitting that Weller and Mitchell really are 'a couple of good blokes'. BOOK CONDITION: Nice and tidy secondhand copy, in very good order throughout. Thankyou for your interest, Book-a-Brac Auctions
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Postage and handling Item location: Murray Lands, SA, Australia Posting to: Worldwide
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