Book Review: Famous Family Trees

Famous Family Trees : explore 25 family trees from history written by Jari Mouge and illustrated by Vivien Mildenburger has recently been added to the junior collection at Yarra Plenty Regional Library.

"Family History is also world history. It tells of connections and beginnings" states the introduction to this lavishly and finely illustrated book in watercolours.  Famous names are highlighted with a brief history on the left hand side of the page with an abbreviated family tree with portraits on the facing side.

Although published as a children's book this would also be of interest to any budding historian or adult. The book however is marred by the fancy font and very small and detailed captions associated with the actual family trees.  The brief biographies given would probably satisfy the junior reader more so than the complexity of the family tree and I doubt would really hold their attention.

Most Australian children, I suspect will not have heard of some of the "famous" names.  (I had not heard of Desiree Clary or Maria Tallchief before).  That said a good spread of men and women from a variety of multicultural backgrounds and periods in history are represented including Ned Kelly.

This book could be shared between generations and used to start conversations about a child's own family history and to explore "connections and beginnings".

Book Review: A Different Earth

A Different Earth by Max C.S. Beck first drew my attention as I have ancestors who hailed from Cornwall and set sail for South Australia and then trekked overland to the Victorian Goldfields – I expect much like the story of Jane Dunstan and her family: Cornwall to Burra and overland to Gold.
The detailed “fictionalised” account told through Jane Dunstan’s eyes instantly drew me in, perhaps through the refreshing female view and the connection I felt with my own research of my Stevens family. Upon his retirement Mr. Beck decided to explore the family stories in his family history, research, visit the places his family lived and even sailed on a ship before writing this book. His exquisite attention to detail makes for fascinating – and inspiring reading. Jane and her family’s story would have been so similar to so many people from Cornwall and in fact the British Isles and beyond who decided to make a new life in a strange land.
I am pleased that Mr Beck has accepted Yarra Plenty Regional Library's invitation to present at Ivanhoe Library for National Family History Month in August. In the meantime enjoy this interview with Tiffany Truscott from BBC Cornwall

Book review: Lists of Note

Lists of Note follows on the footsteps of Letters of Note compiled by Shaun Usher.  This is a delightful book to dip in and out of for an interesting treat.  Many of the lists would be of interest to family history researchers and include:

George Washington’s slaves

Reasons for admission – West Virginia Hospital for the insane

Others include:

The cowboy code by Gene Autry

The 50 Dwarfs by Walt Disney

Frankly My Dear.. Selznick International Pictures

Houdini’s Scene and Prop list

How to attain smartness Edna Woolman Chase

President Roosevelt’s List of Birds

Book Review: Lost Relations: fortunes of my family in Australia's Golden Age

“Genealogy offers a gateway into an extended family, linked vertically through time rather than horizontally in the present.  In a world of confused and multiple identities, it promises a deeper sense of who we are.”

Historian Graeme Davison has written the saga of his family in the recently published: Lost Relations: fortunes of my family in Australia’sGolden Age”.   His family’s history is similar to many, with origins in England, family seeking new beginnings, part of an exodus to Australia helping to shape the country we know today.  The author has woven contextual and local history into the narrative of his ancestor’s lives, which you certainly would expect from an historian.  It greatly enriches the story he tells and is a great example for family historians endeavouring to tell their own stories.

Endnotes for each chapter are included at the back of the book, but only listed in a very general way.   It is lovely to see the author’s female ancestors being celebrated in the happy informal photograph showcased on the book cover.  This book is a terrific inspiration for any family history researcher to research and tell their family story. 

The People in the photo by Helene Gestern is a work of fiction translated from French and set in Europe.  This book drew my attention from the outset.  Photos are a powerful tool in our family history which inspire and help to add layers to our research.  The author uses a clever storytelling device by the use of letters, emails and postcards to unite the two main characters in their quest to find the truth behind the hidden stories of a somewhat common past.    Between the letters are detailed descriptions of the photos that are the foundation of the story.  Though fiction, the author provides a good example of how a photo can be dissected for clues in a research journey.
The story of Helene and Stephane and their respective parents - Sylvia and Pierre in the end was a little far- fetched but an enjoyable light read. This book perhaps ultimately proved that the power of a photograph can bring people together.   A lofty thing indeed!

Book review: Not my Father's son by Alan Cumming

Scottish Actor Alan Cumming’ family memoir; Not my father's son: a family memoir is quite compelling reading.  I had a been a fan of the actor mainly from his work in The Good Wife and was chuffed to learn that he was actually Scottish when his episode of Who Do You Think You Are?  was aired a few years ago. (Series seven - episode nine – view it on You Tube.) In that episode he traced his maternal grandfather Thomas Darling and it is this particular time in his life inter-weaved with episodes from his childhood that is recounted in his memoir.

An extraordinary life that surprisingly draws you in. Alan’s life at times was not very pleasant and as a result parts of this book are quite heart wrenching.

I often advise researchers when they start out on a family history research journey to be prepared for the unpleasant aspects of life that they will invariably uncover (and give thought to how they may share it).  Alan Cumming lived this, recounts it and tries to understand it.   If you like biographies and have dabbled in family history research this memoir is a read for you. 

  

The Lost Diggers: a book review

The Lost Diggers

Many serious genealogists would by now have heard about the discovery of the World War 1 collection of photographs of Australian soldiers found in France last year by Channel 7’s Sunday Night program and its journalist Ross Coulthart.

Now a magnificent book has been produced which has documented both the story of the discovery of the hundreds of glass plates amazingly preserved for almost one hundred years, the photographers themselves and the stories of some of the soldiers themselves who have been identified – through a precise procedure itself to ensure no mistakes.

The physicality of the book itself immediately has an impact when you see the book for the first time and I suspect that it is a good emotion to have when you read the amazing story of the “discovery” and the attempts in the past that were ignored to have the collection recognised and brought to light sooner that it was.

The book is of course illustrated throughout with many photos from the collection – there are informal shots of young men, many in the prime of their lives with war in their eyes and mud on their boots.  The author also recounts stories of some of the soldiers who have been researched - and even some who have not.  The book includes a name index only.

To learn more about the discovery now, view Ross Coulthart talking at a recent literary lunch at YouTube

I recommend this book to anyone with the remotest interest in the First World War.   The experience of reading and looking at the photos will stay with you long after you put it down.

The photographs can also be viewed at

www.sundaynight.com.au and on the Lost Diggers site on Facebook at www.facebook.com/lostdiggers and on the Australian War Memorial website

Many are still unidentified, and many of these young men never made it back home – perhaps you can help.

Book Review: Private journal of A voyage to Australia 1838-39 by James Bell

Private Journal of A Voyage to Australia
For those of us with pioneer ancestors to Australia in our family tree many generations back, we often admire and wonder at the tenacity of our forebears to board a sailing ship for weeks at sea to an unknown land. Not many personal accounts survive from ordinary people who did just that, but in recent years a journal has seen the light of day, and thankfully purchased by the State Library of South Australia. It has been transcribed and edited by Richard Walsh , with an introduction and epilogue by Anthony Laube.
For all intents and purposes I planned to only skim this book but was immediately engaged by the narrator and his day to day activities and observations aboard ship.
From the State Library South Australia media release: - "James Bell, a free settler migrating to Adelaide on the good ship Planter in 1838, discovered in a London street market and then auctioned through Bonham’s, sold for $22,000 to the State Library of South Australia, provides a unique insight into the experience of sailing to Australia.
On 19 November 1838 James Bell, then aged 21, set out in the sailing vessel the Planter from St Katharine Docks in London to travel to Adelaide. His intentions were to begin a new life in the infant colony, not yet two years old, half a world away. He left behind family, good friends and the mysterious ‘C.P.’, a young woman with whom he hoped one day to be reunited.
The journey usually took 130 days, but due to the incompetence of the captain and the many misadventures encountered it took the Planter almost six months to reach its destination. Along the way it lost a crew member, several passengers and much livestock; it gained new crew and at least one extra passenger. The drunken brawls and licentious couplings horrified James Bell who, to while away the time, penned a detailed account of all the comings and goings for the eyes of ‘C.P.’ only, sternly advising her that ‘it must never be read by a third party’.
Sustained by his sense of adventure, his love of poetry, his faith in his Presbyterian God, his nostalgic memories of rural Scotland and, particularly, by his affection for ‘C.P.’, James Bell maintained a vivid and astute record of his historic journey. His voice travels down to us, more than a century and a half later, and reminds us of the dangers and joys of such an adventurous leap into the unknown."
Extract: 20 February 1839, Wednesday
This morning it is calm, but with such a swell as I have never seen. The Ship rolls very heavily indeed, and we have had such a morning with casks, coops &c &c rolling about to the great danger of breaking legs, necks &c &c before they could be secured, and cockery of every description was crashing in every Part of the Ship. Therese were at least secured, but the rolling increased towards evening and became so exceedlingly great that it was with much difficulty I could make myself believe that the Laws of gravitation ensured the Ship from capsizing.
For more about this book visit ABC Blog

Book Review - Keeping Chronicles

Book review:

Keeping Chronicles: Preserving history through written memorabilia by Rosemary Sassoon (London A&C Black, 2010) ISBN 978 1408 129005

The author is on a mission to encourage the preservation of written memorabilia – some would call ephemera. Records found around the home can be a treasure trove to those first starting their family history research journey so be sure that you have digged deep and ask relatives what memorabilia they may have in their cupboards.
Curiously scattered with many Australian examples from this UK publication it illustrates and describes the following categories: diaries, letters, postcards and even envelopes, memoirs, travel records, business and legal records, day books, commonplace books and albums, professional or personal scrapbooks, schoolbooks, reports etc., cookery books and household lists. It concludes with professional advice regarding the importance of preservation with tips from archivists and museum professionals. It also includes an article on how to decipher handwriting and references to the following websites for further advice
Northeast Document Conservation Centre (USA) www.nedcc.org
ICON – The Institute of Conservation (GB) - www.icon.org.uk
Preservation Advisory Centre (National Preservation Office) GB www.bl.uk/npo

Copies of this title are held at Yarra Plenty Regional Library

Book Review: The family tree problem solver

The family tree problem solver: tried and true tactics for tracing elusive ancestors by Marsha Hoffman Rising (2011)

Very USA centric but some tricks for finding an elusive ancestor including the first step – analysing the problem and planning a strategy for success. Not a good book for the beginner Australian researcher as the American examples (eg. References to census and courthouse and land records) will be frustrating without having an understanding of the equivalent or similar Australian resources.
Some useful information at the back of the book include DNA testing, glossary of terms and blank charts and forms which can be copied.

Roots by Alex Haley

"In all of us there is a hunger, marrow deep, to know our heritage... Without this enriching knowledge, there is a hollow yearning no matter what our attainments in life". - Arthur Haley

The 30th anniversary edition of Roots by Alex Haley has just arrived at Yarra Plenty Regional Library. This book was first published in 1977 and is partly responsible in the upsurge of people researching their family history - which with the advent of the Internet still grows in popularity today.

Roots was also one of the first television mini-series. The story captured the imagination of people all over the world. It follows the life and descendants of Kunte Kinte who is brought to the shores of America as a slave from Africa.

The book went on to receive a Pulitzer Prize .

Place a hold on this book from our catalogue. It has been described as "one of the most important and influential books of our time".