Cirrus@Austlit

'Powerful and moving, Bidhi Galing (Big Rain) celebrates the Wiradyuri heroes of the Great Flood of Gundagai in 1852, told through the eyes of a young girl who is rescued from the raging floodwaters by her father.

'Wagadhaany grew up near the Marrambidya Bila. She loved dancing in the rain and listening to her father, Yarri, tell her stories about life on Wiradyuri ngurambang.

'When white people started building on the floodplains, Yarri was worried. He knew the power of the bila and tried to warn the strangers, but they would not listen.

'Years later, when the big rains came, Yarri and his brother, Jacky Jacky, jumped into their bark canoes and paddled through raging floodwaters, risking their lives to save countless others.' (Publication summary)

'Karan rolls her eyes. ‘What’s this year’s theme? Oh no, let me guess,’ she looks into the distance, pretending to ponder the possibilities. Sarcastically she asks, ‘Is it... could it possibly be...a princess party?’

'Teish is a sassy, soon-to-be 7-year-old and the apple of her dad’s eye. She believes more than anything, that she is a Disney princess. Her older siblings, Karan and Kim, like to remind her that she isn’t. Teish is determined to believe that she can be whoever she wants to be.

'With the help of boisterous, irreverent cousins and friends, a princesses-of-colour party with all the trimmings and an adventure to the beach, Teish teaches her family that she can be a princess and remain true to herself.

'But will her siblings accept her being a feisty Koori Princess?'  (Publication summary)

'1852

'When the township of Gundagai is devastated by raging floodwaters, two local Wiradjuri men, Yarri and Jacky Jacky, risk their lives to rescue a third of the town's residents in bark canoes on the treacherous Murrumbidgee River.

'Among those saved are James and David Bradley, wealthy settlers. The Bradleys leave for Wagga Wagga, with James’s new bride, Louisa – and Yarri’s daughter, Wagadhaany, their Aboriginal servant, removing her from her beloved family and country. As a Quaker, Louisa’s mission is to help the Wiradjuri people, including Wagadhaany, and the two women develop an unorthodox friendship.

'In Wagga Wagga, Wagadhaany meets Yindyamarra, a young Wiradjuri stockman working for the Bradleys, and they fall deeply in love. They dream of a better life, of children, and of going home, away from the degradation of being owned – and one day, with their young family, they set out on a journey along the river of their ancestors in search of lost family and country – one that will bring hope and heartache.

'Set on timeless Wiradjuri country where the life-giving waters of the rivers can make or break dreams, and based on devastating true events, River of Dreams is an epic story of love, loss and belonging.'

(Source : Simon and Schuster)