Australian Rare

Bony & The white Savage – Arthur Upfield – First edition 1961

A hard to find first edition published by Heinemann, London in 1961.

Octavo, 230 pages, reproduction dust jacket. Ownership details on title; free end paper with a piece cut out. Otherwise a very clean and bright copy of an often badly foxed edition.

An old timer in the deep south-west of Western Australia spots a violent criminal on his way back to the caves of Rhudder’s Inlet. Inspecter Napoleon “Bony” Bonaparte is called in with his tracker Lew. What they find leaves them shaken to the core.

Bony discovers strange goings on in the very south-west.

$60.00

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Larger than Life – Twenty Stories by Xavier Herbert – First Edition 1963

Twenty entertainments by the distinguished author of the monumental Capricornia.

Published by Angus and Robertson. Octavo, 248 pages of solid yarns all connected to the Far North of Australia (Xavier Herbert country) ranging from Cooktown in Far North Queensland right across to Darwin in the Northern Territory. A super copy in a clean complete dust jacket of period style.

A lengthy Preface written by the author from his home on the beautiful Mossman Beach in the Far North helps the reader nicely into the collection.

Our favourites Marrying Money; Kaijek the Songman; An Eagle called Ned Kelly; Rise and Fall of Jeremiah Stacey and the last little ditty appropriately named “Last Toss”.

Superior short stories from Northmost Australia.

$35.00

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Womba – and Aboriginal Stockboy (in the Cattle Country in the Heart of Australia) – F.J. McLeod – First edition 1952.

Published by Georgian House, Melbourne, a first edition generally in very good clean condition with the super period wrap around dust jacket art.

The writer of the story of Womba had been a mounted policeman. The story centres on Dericka Station which is in the MacDonnell Ranges.

Super depiction of station life where Womba learns to break in wild colts and the mustering of cattle over the vast expanses of the station. Interactions with the local Myall tribesmen are a little mysterious.

An acceptable treatment of the subject matter especially for the period.

Womba in the MacDonnell Ranges.

$25.00

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Pilot Pete [An Antarctic Adventure] – Alan Villiers

Published by Angus and Robertson a 1963 edition of Villiers’s delightful book with a “save the whales message” and he saved some ships as well .

Drawing of maritime adventurer Villiers’s experience whaling in the Antarctic and the knowledge and superstitions that surround encounters with a porpoise. Porpoise Pete lived around Perseverance Harbour, Campbell Island .. which is south-east of the Enderby Islands, in turn south of New Zealand.

Nicely illustrated by H.T. Cauldwell. Octavo, 64 pages. A very good gift worthy copy.

Villiers could write for all ages about the coldest of seas. .

$25.00

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Simon Black in Space – Ivan Southall.

An early sought after Space Classic published in 1953 an year after the first.

Published by Angus and Robertson, Sydney and London. Octavo, 223 pages, some line drawn illustration, very clean internally albeit light toning, super dust jacket, making the book gift worthy.

The author was a distinguished pilot in the R.A.A.F in WWII awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (D.F.C). After the war he was co-opted to write about the R.A.A.F in Europe. He still had time to write about the adventures of Simon Black.

Black in the special aircraft “Firefly 3”, the only aircraft in the World capable of pursuing the flying saucers into space. Accompanied by Rex the Alsatian (it’s a dog’s life).

Collectable Early Space Adventure penned by Australian Hero.

$60.00

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The Dawn of Time – Australian Aboriginal Myths in Paintings – Roberts and Mountford.

A first edition of this “sequel” to Dreamtime. Another wonderful book by ethnologist Charles Mountford and artist Ainslie Roberts.

Published in 1969 again by Rugby, Adelaide. Same small quarto format 79 pages with a beautiful image for each of the myths recounted by Mountford received from Elders and Storytellers.

Includes some from the coast such as Kondole the Whale; Pipinyawari the Queen Fish … the Fighting Cloud Women; the Black Kangaroo; and our favourite Brolga the Dancing Girl .. albeit a little sad.

Remember this story when you see a Brolga.

$30.00

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Bony & The white Savage – Arthur Upfield – First edition 1961

Larger than Life – Twenty Stories by Xavier Herbert – First Edition 1963

Womba – and Aboriginal Stockboy (in the Cattle Country in the Heart of Australia) – F.J. McLeod – First edition 1952.

Pilot Pete [An Antarctic Adventure] – Alan Villiers

Simon Black in Space – Ivan Southall.

The Dawn of Time – Australian Aboriginal Myths in Paintings – Roberts and Mountford.

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