4 h 39 minAudiobook9 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 4 h 39 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
Far from town, a spirited girl wants freedom—but bush life means shared work and close family ties.
In An Australian Lassie, Lilian Turner brings a young girl's childhood into the Australian bush, where farm life is hard and distances are long. Animals, weather and the work of home shape her days. Growing up here means finding room for her own wishes within the needs of a family.
This children's classic places family at the centre of life far from town. Work and meals are shared, while help from neighbours may be miles away. A spirited girl's wish for adventure meets the lessons of growing up, inviting you into a rural world where place and kin matter.
What you’ll discover
- A childhood shaped by place Enter a bush setting where distance and farm work shape the rhythms of childhood.
- Family at the centre Explore the bonds of a household where daily work and meals bring people together.
- Room for a spirited girl Follow a young heroine whose wish for freedom meets the demands of growing up.
- Life far from town Spend time among the animals, weather and neighbours of an Australian rural world.
- An old-fashioned story Settle into a warm family tale rooted in the habits of bush life.
Who will love it
You will enjoy this if you love spirited heroines, bush settings, family comedy and children who invent whole worlds, and if you like a warm story with a gentle eye for human weakness.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A feud begins at Wygate School
- A poor house with a rich grandfather
- A ghost visits an old sea captain
- John Brown, the station boy who fights for a name
- Dot, her friends and the wish to swap lives
- Self-made dreams and a plan to run away
Who’s who
- Betty BruceA twelve-year-old tomboy with a vivid imagination who wants to mend her family's feud and to make a fortune of her own.
- Cyril BruceBetty's fair-haired twin, shy and boastful, who longs to be adopted by his grandfather but dreads every fight.
- Dorothea BruceThe eldest sister, pretty and gentle, who loves fine things and is about to leave her fashionable school.
- John BrownA tall, strong thirteen-year-old raised on a cattle station, now living at Dene Hall and set on becoming a self-made man.
- Captain CarewThe stern old sea captain of Dene Hall, who has not forgiven his daughter for marrying the author.
- Nancy BruceThe six-year-old sister, who follows Betty everywhere and cries when she fears she is late for school.
- Mr. BruceThe gentle author father, who works on his unfinished book and writes articles to pay the family's bills.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 4 h 39 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 9 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
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Read and hear Ein australisches Mädchen in 25 languages and switch at any time. Or read two side by side, paragraph by paragraph: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Ein australisches Mädchen
by Lilian Turner · 1901
Twelve-year-old Betty Bruce dresses as a ghost to mend a family feud, and her plans only grow bolder.
Medium level2–5 hours to read25 languages
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In short
An Australian Lassie is a story of family life near Sydney, written by Lilian Turner. It follows the Bruce children in a weatherboard cottage on the North Shore, in the days of bush tracks, steamers and slate pencils.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A feud begins at Wygate School
The story opens in the schoolroom at Wygate School, where Mr. Sharman reads out the class order. Elizabeth Bruce has fallen to the very bottom, and she stands on the bench to explain how. She pulled a girl's hair, squeaked her pencil, and whispered a spelling to her twin brother Cyril. Her audience is a new boy, John Brown, a big, clumsy thirteen-year-old who stands waiting for his seat.
Betty takes an instant dislike to him. She whispers that he is a cheat, she pinches him, and she kicks his boot. Then the arithmetic begins. John answers a sum with an answer so grand that the master is startled, and by lunchtime he sits at the head of the class. Betty is still at the bottom, writing out her punishment sentence fifty times.
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What is An Australian Lassie about?
It is about the Bruce family near Sydney, especially twelve-year-old Betty, who tries to heal a feud with her grandfather. Her schemes, school quarrels and friendship with John Brown carry the story.
Who is Betty Bruce in An Australian Lassie?
Betty is the lively second daughter of an author. She is imaginative and brave, and she carries a lot of work at home. Her favorite saying is that no Bruce is afraid.
Who is John Brown in the book?
John Brown is a strong thirteen-year-old raised on a cattle station. He comes to live with Captain Carew at Dene Hall, keeps his own name, and wants to become a self-made man.
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