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y separately published work icon Home to Biloela single work   autobiography  
Issue Details: First known date: 2023... 2023 Home to Biloela
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'The dramatic inside story of the Tamil refugee family which became a cause celebre all around Australia, and the epic fight by a small rural community to set them free. It was dawn in the small rural town of Biloela. Loud thumping on the front door signalled the start of a four-year odyssey that would catapult Priya and her family into national debate. For the first time, Priya shares the story of her sheltered childhood in war-torn Sri Lanka, and her perilous escape across the Indian Ocean on an overcrowded and leaking fishing boat. Alone in a strange country, she had to make a new life without family or friends. She marries Nades and settles with him in Biloela, where they have two daughters. The shocking dawn raid was the first of multiple attempts by Australian government to deport the family. But the people of Biloela wouldn't have it. A small group swung into action, and built an extraordinarily powerful social media campaign that broke through into the mainstream, gathering support from hundreds of thousands of ordinary Australians around the country. Journalist Rebekah Holt has been following the family's journey over the four long, painful years, and she recounts the dramatic behind the scenes efforts to prevent the family from being deported. Finally, Priya, Nades and the girls were all granted the permanent visas they need by the new government, and they were able to return home to Biloela in the happiest ending they could have wanted.' (Publication summary) 

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

    • Crows Nest, North Sydney - Lane Cove area, Sydney Northern Suburbs, Sydney, New South Wales,: Allen and Unwin , 2023 .
      image of person or book cover 1412872062762930791.jpg
      This image has been sourced from ALS website
      Extent: 312p.
      Note/s:
      •  Published October 2023

      ISBN: 9781761069680

Other Formats

  • Large print.
  • Sound recording.

Works about this Work

‘Ballsy’, ‘very Funny’, ‘read in One Sitting’ : The Best Australian Books Out in October Alyx Gorman , Imogen Dewey , Fiona Wright , Sian Cain , Lucy Clark , Yvonne C Lam , Janine Israel , Celina Ribeiro , Ben Doherty , 2023 single work review
— Appears in: The Guardian Australia , 4 October 2023;

— Review of Edenglassie Melissa Lucashenko , 2023 single work novel ; Stone Yard Devotional Charlotte Wood , 2023 single work novel ; Late : A Novel Michael Fitzgerald Page , 2023 single work novel ; Killing for Country : A Family Story David Marr , 2023 multi chapter work criticism ; Gunflower : Stories Laura Jean McKay , 2023 selected work short story ; The Man Who Wasn't There Dan Box , 2023 single work biography ; Home to Biloela Priya Nadesalingam , Rebekah Holt , 2023 single work autobiography
‘Ballsy’, ‘very Funny’, ‘read in One Sitting’ : The Best Australian Books Out in October Alyx Gorman , Imogen Dewey , Fiona Wright , Sian Cain , Lucy Clark , Yvonne C Lam , Janine Israel , Celina Ribeiro , Ben Doherty , 2023 single work review
— Appears in: The Guardian Australia , 4 October 2023;

— Review of Edenglassie Melissa Lucashenko , 2023 single work novel ; Stone Yard Devotional Charlotte Wood , 2023 single work novel ; Late : A Novel Michael Fitzgerald Page , 2023 single work novel ; Killing for Country : A Family Story David Marr , 2023 multi chapter work criticism ; Gunflower : Stories Laura Jean McKay , 2023 selected work short story ; The Man Who Wasn't There Dan Box , 2023 single work biography ; Home to Biloela Priya Nadesalingam , Rebekah Holt , 2023 single work autobiography
Last amended 23 Nov 2023 13:25:35
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  • Biloela, Biloela area, Biloela - Moura - Baralaba area, Central West Queensland, Queensland,
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