The faraway land of the house and two cows RELEASED
The book's finally released, and to a sell out first print run... topped with a book launch that drew people once living and working on the Metropolitan Sewerage Farm together for a reunion.
Many hadn’t seen one another in more than 50 years. It was a true celebration of the community and of their story finally birthed into the world.
The faraway land of the house and two cows is their story.
What an overwhelming response to the launch in early July and to the release of my book. People arrived in thick stream, with maybe 150 people squeezing into the old Cocoroc South School that once sat on the Metropolitan Sewerage Farm to teach children that lived on site. It was difficult to gauge numbers when my head was in constant chat with people and signing their books.
The school is the oldest surviving building from the sewerage farm that now lives as the Werribee Girl Guides hall.
Read The faraway land of the house and two cows and you’ll soon see that everything has a renewed life.
The faraway land of the house and two cows is a story like no other. Colourful and ghostly characters of the past tell the unique and untold story of the community once living alongside sewage lagoons and paddocks watered 24 hours a day with Melbourne’s sewage.
Archival fact combines with memories, legendary tales and historical moments that mark time, for a story told through a timeless reality.
The faraway land of the house and two cows is the story about how the ‘Farm’ community was behind the making of one of Australia’s most important civic works projects from the 1890s into the 1900s, helping Melbourne to grow to be one of the most liveable cities in the world.
A captivating and beautifully written book ... Jo Galea
Putting flesh back on the bones of the ghosts of the past ... Michael Young
A remarkable achievement that captures in riveting detail a century of ordinary people living extraordinary lives in a little-known corner of Australia that’s now vanished ... Noel Murphy
A fascinating read and thought provoking, descriptions and pictures painted are breathtaking ... Pam Thompson (past resident)
The ghost narrators are surely as lively and intriguing as characters as the living members of the community ... Associate Professor Chris Prentice
Both brilliant and beautiful, a celebration of childhood and the power of a unique place that gives readers an intimate look at a piece of Melbourne’s history ... Dr Lynette Hinings-Marshall
A brilliantly written book weaving fact and fiction ... wonderful whimsical characters. Intriguing, informative and thought provoking. A great read! ... Carolyn Wockner
