'Monique Russell listens to the stories her grandfather tells of his childhood adventures in the Torres Strait. She has now retold one of them in his voice and illustrated it with her own vibrant pictures for the new generation to enjoy.
'The person behind this story: Grandad Samat Barba was born on the 2nd December 1919 on Goode Island in the Torres Strait and his older sister Nolear, also known as Leah, was born on Prince of Wales Island.
'Their parents had 13 children and they were number 4 and 5. Their father was from Malacca, Malaysia and their mother was from Boigu Island. Their father worked in the Pearling industry and fishing was a source of food for the family. Grandad Samat would often go with his father fishing and hunting. He also worked in the pearling industry and fishing boats but his favourite job was cutting sugar cane in Innisfail where he lived for 50 years.
'Grandad now lives in Townsville NQ. In 2009 he celebrated his 90th birthday with his family of approximately 130 descendants at last count.' (From the publisher's website.)
