The Sandalwood Cutter - Kroonstuiver, Jenny

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Résumé :
Wally Murdoch, a sandalwood cutter, decides to abandon the camping life and move his small family to the remote town of Ora Banda. It is 1920 and the Western Australian sandalwood industry is growing rapidly to meet the demands of Chinese customers. As Wally and Hannah settle into the small community, they become embroiled in the political machinations which affect the sandalwood industry, water shortages which inhibit the town's expansion, the dominance of gold mining, and a growing pastoral industry. Meanwhile, their family grows and they become part of a resilient and determined community seeking to survive the external forces which affect its very existence. As increasingly incomprehensible government policies seem destined to destroy a turbulent sandalwood industry, the government's unwillingness to address the ongoing water shortages threatens to prevent the growth of both the town and the mining industry.The Sandalwood Cutter brings to life the now abandoned town of Ora Banda, along with many of its memorable identities, as the Murdoch family navigate the turbulent times of the 1920s and early 1930s. It is a heartwarming snapshot of family, community, and a determination to survive.

Biographie:
Born in the 1950s, Jenny Kroonstuiver spent her childhood living on pastoral stations firstly in western Queensland and then on the Nullarbor Plain in Western Australia. She trained as a teacher and spent several years teaching in country areas of the Northern Territory and Queensland, before returning to Kalgoorlie in the 1980s. After a short-lived marriage, she raised her four children alone, continuing to work in the broader education sector. From 2004, she took up a role managing the national training system for the Australian meat industry, a role she held until her retirement in 2020. After publishing several family histories and biographies, this is her fifth novel set in the ghost towns of Australia....

Sommaire:
Jenny Kroonstuiver is a granddaughter of Bill and Beat Swann, one of over 60 grandchildren. Born in the 1950s, she spent her childhood living on pastoral stations firstly in western Queensland and then on the Nullarbor Plain in Western Australia. Jenny trained as a teacher and spent several years teaching in country areas of the Northern Territory and Queensland, before returning to Kalgoorlie in the 1980s. After a short-lived marriage, she raised her four children alone, continuing to work in the broader education sector. From 2004, she took up a role managing the national training system for the Australian meat industry, a role she held until her retirement in 2020....