Books published by Random House Australia

Sir Henry Parkes: Father of Federation, Premier of NSW, Statesman, Visionary, Political Leader, Poet, Humanist May 27, 2015 brings the 200th anniversary of the birth of Sir Henry Parkes. After he died, the London Times described him as "a colonial colossus." Henry Parkes received little schooling and worked on a rope-walk, breaking stones, as an ivory and bone turner, ironmonger, laborer, and on the wharves before trying business life and ultimately politics. He and his first wife traveled to Australia on an assisted passage. Parkes steadily educated himself, reading voraciously and widely, including all the great poets. There has never been anyone else like Sir Henry Parkes in Australian public life. Not only was he the father of federation. His friends included Thomas Carlyle, fellow poet Lord Tennyson, and British Prime Minister Gladstone. He convinced Florence Nightingale to send trained nurses to Australia. He conceived the international rabbit competition, which led to the Pasteur affair and put Australia at the forefront of microbiology. He encouraged talented men to enter politics. Yet he shunned the limelight, rarely attending social functions. Whenever he received begging letters, (which he did, daily), Parkes always wrote back enclosing money. No wonder he went bankrupt three times! Yet he was Premier of NSW five times, leaving its finances well in the black every time. He married three times, the last time to a 23-year-old beauty. Clearly, Parkes loved women, and they loved him. He encouraged women to attend political meetings, even though they didn't have the vote. NSW Parliament House dining room was managed by a husband and wife; when the husband died, Parliament wanted to fire his widow, but Parkes stood up for her, saying she was perfectly capable of managing the dining room on her own, which she did for years to come. But not everyone loved Sir Henry; he had a long-running feud with poet Henry Lawson's mother after Parkes wouldn't give young Lawson the help she demanded and he constantly wrestled with political aspirants chasing his seat.

Charged with saving the Earth from natural disasters, war and reality television, miniature robot Barry is accidentally trapped behind a couch and challenged to escape with a discarded red lipstick as his only tool.

The second Billy Slater book finds him mentoring young athletes in healthy living Junior is the youngest player for the West Hill Ravens. He is also the biggest. Everyone on the team calls him Cannonball because when he makes a bust, he's virtually unstoppable. Some of the boys also call him Jelly-Belly and The Blob, though never to his face. No one on the team can see past his size, and Junior has had enough. When team mentor Billy Slater sets the team a healthy-living assignment, Junior is determined to prove that there is more to him than meets the eye.

Inspired by true events, a story of courage, survival, and a young girl who defies horrible odds to take control of her destiny The unnamed narrator escapes the dangerous imploding world of her parents and wider family in order to survive. Not wishing to be chewed up and spat out by the red light district she hides out in her local church, spends her weekends in the sand dunes on a Central Coast beach, and--with the help of her aunt's credit card--has the occasional stay in a five-star hotel. Most of her time on the run, though, she spends on the trains--generally sleeping in the shunting yards. When the trains become too dangerous she manages to find a derelict house in a leafy suburb and moves in with the possums and resident ghosts, ready to prove once and for all that she can take care of herself.