Cirrus@Austlit

'1864. On a hot summer night in Daylesford, Victoria, pretty young Maggie Stuart, recently married to a local miner, is found brutally murdered in her bed. An ugly, uncivilised vagrant by the name of David Rose has recently been seen lurking near her house. The townsfolk, appalled by so gruesome a murder of so innocent a girl, are certain of his guilt.To catch him, the Daylesford police chief reluctantly calls on the services of an assiduous German-born detective, Otto Berliner. Berliner arrives in town and is quick to catch the suspect. But it is only when he does, and Rose is convicted, that he realises how flimsy the case against Rose really is. With the help of his new friend Thomas Chuck, a local photographer, Berliner begins to urgently pursue the threads that will lead him to the real killer and prove Rose's innocence. But as the days and hours count down to Rose's execution, Berliner and Chuck find themselves thwarted at every turn. Will they be in time to save an innocent man?' (Publication summary)

'On Sunday June 30 1867, three young boys went missing in bushland surrounding the Australian goldmining town of Daylesford. The ensuing search would involve the whole community. Local businesses were closed for days. A large reward was offered by the Government and matched by the local borough. But all efforts came to nought. Worst fears were confirmed on September 14 when the boys' bodies were discovered in the hollow bole of a forest tree. A sad and significant episode it was, yet only part of the compelling story of Benjamin Burman, the father of one of the boys and the central character of this novel. D begins in Canada, in the winter of 1834, when Private Benjamin Burman is on the run to America. But the British Army does not suffer deserters. It hunts down their man, tries, shackles and imprisons him in a creaking hulk on Portsmouth Harbour, then banishes him to Van Diemen's Land. There he is assigned as gentleman's servant to George Frankland, surveyor-general (and host to Charles Darwin on his visit to Hobart Town), and ultimately granted a pardon. Yet though Benjamin's sentence is over, his punishment is not done, for he is forever to be reminded of his disgrace by a thick black tattoo. It takes the biggest tragedy of his life to set him free. (Today, Benjamin Burman lies in an unmarked grave beneath an expanse of lank grass at Daylesford cemetery, some forty metres from the grave of the three lost boys). ' (Publication summary)

'What kind of animals make their homes in a desert dune? How do animals and plants survive in the harsh desert conditions? And how does wind, rain and temperature affect the life in a desert dune?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'What kinds of animals make their homes in or along a creek? What plants grow in or along a creek bank? What animals rely on creeks for their food? And how does water temperature affect the life in a creek?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'What kind of animals make their homes in a gum tree? What animals rely on gum trees for their food? And what feeds on decaying bark and leaves at the base of a gum tree?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'A thrilling, fast-paced story of life in the future, where genetic cloning has created a world of designer plants and animals. Dark forces operate in this world, and 15-year-old Carly Sands and the mysterious Ace are about to collide with them!

'The year is 2029. It's a future where the boundaries that separate species are blurred, where genetic manipulation produces whatever organisms people want: pet cats with leopard spots, oak trees that grow apples, or cows that produce strawberry milk. It's a world of designer animals and plants. To 15-year-old Carly Sands, this world is nothing out of the ordinary; it's the only world she knows. But then she meets the mysterious Ace and, slowly, the true horror of this world is revealed.' (Publisher's blurb)

'What kinds of animals make their homes in a rockpool? What animals rely on rockpools for their food? What plants grow in a rockpool? And how do the tides affect the life in a rockpool? A rockpool can be home for a whole community of living things. Find out how they survive and how they interact in Life in a Rockpool. With more than 30 illustrations as well as stunning close-up photography, you'll be amazed at the range of life in a rockpool.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.