Here are three new books that can be found in our library:
Walking the Barwon River from Source to Sea by Jennifer Morrow & Peter Greig. Published by Upper Barwon Landcare Network, May 2019
A very beautiful and easily read account of a four-year project to walk the Barwon from source to sea one long weekend every year. The story is in the voices of a few of the participants who meet every year to walk the next stage—Lake Elizabeth to Birregurra one year, Birregurra to Inverleigh the next, Inverleigh to Fyansford and then finally Fyansford to Barwon Heads. It’s an amusing account with wonderful diversions into the story of Buckley, observations about the health of the various parts of the river, Aboriginal owners’ stories, some hiking anecdotes and so on. If you live anywhere in this area, this is a great read. Maybe you’ll even be inspired to join Friends of the Barwon—it seems it needs Friends very badly in places. An inspiring and readable story.
The Mistletoes of Subtropical Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria by John T. Moss and Ross Kendall Published by Butterfly and other Invertebrates Club Inc. 2016
Forty-six of the 90 known species of Australian mistletoes are dealt with. As you see from the publisher’s name, this is not just a botanical field guide (and systematic identification table) though it is that. Its stated aim is to highlight the important role of mistletoes in supporting biodiversity, dispelling the myth that mistletoes kill trees! The thesis is that mistletoes benefit bush regenerators, farmers, land care members, botanists, arborists, government staff and contractors alike. The book is filled with clear photos of varieties of mistletoe, flowers and fruit, the creatures (especially butterflies and moths) that live in them and the trees they live upon. A surprising book well worth reading, it contains a glossary of terms, a taxonomic checklist of lepidoptera referred to, and a large bibliography for further reading and research.
Valuing Australia’s National Heritage by David Yencken. Published by Future Leaders, 2019.
This book, to quote from the blurb, describes the progressive development of a national heritage consciousness from early settlement onwards. It includes the development of the Australian Heritage Commission and a personal memoir of the author’s role in establishing the commission and setting it on its future course. Especially interesting to me is the gradual inclusion of Aboriginal collaboration in the journey to preservation and inclusion of their heritage in the National Heritage List.
Mandy Mitchell-Taverner