Bookshelf | Busybird Publishing

Lumps and Bumps Yarn Worms

A wonderful serenity has taken possession of my entire soul, like these sweet mornings of spring which I enjoy with my whole heart.

I am alone, and feel the charm of existence in this spot, which was created for the bliss of souls like mine. I am so happy, my dear friend, so absorbed in the exquisite sense of mere tranquil existence, that I neglect my talents. I should be incapable of drawing a single stroke at the present moment; and yet I feel that I never was a greater artist than now. When, while the lovely valley teems with vapour around me, and the meridian sun strikes the upper surface of the impenetrable foliage of my trees, and but a few stray gleams steal into the inner sanctuary, I throw myself down among the tall grass by the trickling stream; and, as I lie close to the earth, a thousand unknown plants are noticed.

For the love of Teaching

Mike Middleton’s sixty year educational career in Australia and overseas includes teaching from primary to postgraduate levels, through school and state-based curriculum planning to policy making at the national level. By school or system invitation, Mike has worked as a consultant in over four hundred Australian schools.

He is passionate about teaching and its place in a healthy society. He believes that the Covid interruption provides a much-needed opportunity for policy makers, and school communities to rethink teachers’ work, restoring it to a valued and central place in society.

Since he began his career, Mike has seen teaching change from a role that was exciting, creative, and attractive to one where universities struggle to attract young people into the profession and where education systems struggle to retain teachers, even part-time.

For the Love of Teaching follows Mike’s career as he strived to maintain the integrity of his beliefs about teaching in the face of social and political circumstances that were transforming it from a high status and culturally embedded profession, to one that threatened to make teachers no more than educational functionaries. Combatting an agenda that shaped young people into economic units ‘in the national interest’ rather than participants in vibrant and culturally rich Australian communities was a constant challenge.

This is a celebration of teaching as it can be, and in all-too-rare cases, still is. In parallel, is a critique of the political and administrative changes that have, over several decades, shifted from support for teacher professionalism and autonomy to making teachers accountable for the delivery of a uniform and ‘teacher-proof’ curriculum to all Australian communities and students independent of their background and circumstances.

Mike offers ways that teaching might be brought back, involving initiatives to free up the immense potential of the teaching profession.

The late Bloomer and her two polar bears

‘This book is a work of my memories, made up of true stories © All I hope is that © people may start to see into the life of someone they never understood.’

Jacqueline was a young child the first time she experienced abuse from those meant to protect her. As her life progressed, and the state of her mental health created more questions than answers, Jacqueline found herself facing adversity, time and time again. Through family violence, abuse and undiagnosed bipolar disorder, Jacqueline tried hard to stay afloat. But as she grew in age and experience, so started a mission to confront her past, find healing in the present and change her future.

Detailing her story in honest and forthright style, Jacqueline takes the reader through the highs and lows of her life, not only in words but also through her artwork. Sharp, witty and surprising, The Late Bloomer and Her Two Polar Bears will leave readers uplifted and prepared to face the world with new eyes, understanding and love.

Living with the other side

We all have untapped potentials and psychic abilities. With a deep exploration of our minds, it is possible to unlock these potentials.

In understanding our egos, our ‘I, Me and My’ levels of consciousness, time can expand and the world of opposites becomes less daunting.

Noel Harding may have started life as a regular working-class boy, but has spent years studying, exploring his own unconscious mind and his part in the universe. He has also applied what he has experienced in owning and operating many retail businesses with his wife, in addition to his studies in Social Welfare work and Professional Writing.

In Living with the Other Side, Noel shares some of his own personal experiences, as well as guiding the reader to think constructively about their own life, in order to demonstrate how to access one’s most inner self in relation to the world around us and possibly beyond.

Also included are some exercises that can be done to provide questioning and exploration of one’s self.

When we begin to calm the turbulence of the mind, our real self shines through.

Through our lives we care, we aspire, we love, we pain, we accept and we grow. The true and real we seek; the best is always within and known.

Living with the Other Side is for anyone interested in understanding and unlocking the power of their own mind.

Everyday Conversations with God

When Judith was asked to write the reflections for the front page of the weekly church newsletter, she wrote about the ordinary, everyday moments of her week and the conversations she had with God during these times. In the process of writing these reflections for others to read, she realised she was in fact exploring her own relationship with God. When the words and ideas would flow like a creek after rain she was open to conversation. On the days when it felt like trudging through creek bed mud after a long hot summer Judith was having a one-sided conversation with God. The only voice she heard was her own.

Judith’s reflections resonated with members of the congregation, not because of Judith’s words or her ordinariness but the breath between the words. The gentle reminder God’s voice is not confined to a special place. It is often clearest in places we do not expect to hear it, in the most ordinary moments of our everyday lives.

Whittlesea’s Dark Past

Come along on a journey through Whittlesea’s history and discover true tales of murder, hatred, obsession, and insanity. Meet convict ‘Blue Tom’, enraged labourer William Oats and others.

Is there a paranormal side to Whittlesea? Follow people’s experiences of the afterlife, unexplained phenomena and occurrences that may be linked to the past. Encounter Henry the ghost, haunted buildings, a paranormal investigator and other unexplained occurrences.

A dark past indeed!

My Story

In December 1955, Don Carrazza was one of two million post-war immigrants who arrived in Australia to establish a new life in an unknown land.

From a small mountain village in southern Italy to a regional town in northwestern Victoria, My Story: A Life in Opportunity charts Don’s journey to Australia at the age of 15, the natural disaster that forced his family to start again after their arrival, and the indefatigable entrepreneurial spirit that brought successes and disappointments in equal measure.

Buoyed by the support of his wife, Anna, and their extended family, Don Carrazza makes his mark in Mildura with a legacy of achievements borne of hard work, determination and resilience.

Letters to Clare

To celebrate a life of teaching, enclosed are letters, statements, and photos from individuals and families who have been part of the journey of

Clare Carmichael

Blood Soaked Soil

Confessions of an Estate Agent

Insulted, vilified, pursued by livestock,
electrocuted and propositioned, estate agents are as popular as wasps at a barbecue. But do they really deserve their public image? No, they don’t, says Rosalind Russell, who for eight years edited
The Diary of an Estate Agent column for the London Evening Standard’s Homes & Property section.
She mined a rich seam of funny, entirely true stories, some of which were so bizarre, she was sometimes suspected of making them up. She didn’t.

A Caravan Holiday

To Four Mile Creek and beyond

Edith and George Rial lived much of their lives in the southern Riverina region of NSW, Australia. Their parents and grandparents typified the ambition, optimism, and achievements of those who came to Australia in the mid-1800s, some voluntarily and some as a result of minor crimes in England. Their story is one of hard work, large families, property success and failure, and the loss of sons in the Great War.

Chinese Music Handbook

To musicians versed in western music tradition and theory, Chinese music can sound bewildering. But look underneath the hood and you will find the foundations of the music are remarkably similar. So similar in fact, that French musical theoreticians in China, during the 18th and 19th centuries, speculated that Chinese music with its five to six thousand year tradition was the ancestor of western music with its two to three thousand year tradition.

How is it that music that is built on the same underlying foundations can sound so different? Maybe you already know that Chinese music is mainly pentatonic. This book will introduce you to the many techniques, starting from the pentatonic scale, that form component parts of the Chinese music tradition and theory.

Alpaca Teeth

Dental issues are common in alpacas and can lead to pain, suffering and, if left untreated, can be fatal.

Alpaca Teeth: The Owner’s Guide to Alpaca Dental Health and Wellbeing will take you on a guided tour of the mouth of the alpaca, demonstrating the role that the mouth and teeth play as the first part of the digestive process. You will learn about normal dentition, what can go wrong in the mouth and, most importantly, how you can identify animals in your care that may be suffering from a dental problem.

Allison Quagliani became interested in alpaca dentistry in 2002 when one of her own animals developed a tooth problem and needed dental treatment. Allison is the first dedicated Alpaca Dentist in Australia and has been providing dental care to alpacas for over 15 years. Allison has written Alpaca Teeth: The Owner’s Guide to Alpaca Dental Health and Wellbeing, to share her knowledge with alpaca carers to improve the lives of alpacas.

Owners and carers are at the frontline when it comes to identifying any dental issues. Using the information in this book, you will play an important role in the early detection and treatment of dental issues for animals in your care. Written in everyday language with lots of photographs and diagrams, this book is suitable for all alpaca carers. It will be an essential part of your alpaca husbandry reference library and an invaluable book to have on-hand when checking the health of your alpacas.

Dental issues are common in alpacas and can lead to pain, suffering and, if left untreated, can be fatal.

Early Days

The Distribution of Australian Dragonflies

Fine Spirit and Pluck

Step back in time as everyday Australians are plucked from their homes in the outer suburbs and rural fringes and plunged into the fray of World War I. Their stories have remained untold for a century but are contained now within these pages, written by family, friends, and historians, keen to bring the memory of their loved ones out of the shadows.

There’s the unusual gift sent by a faraway soldier as a declaration of love, the military medal recipient who would return to build the Fairfield RSL, the Arthur’s Creek orchardist who left behind an unknown fiancée only to be “discovered” decades later by the family … and so much more.

Yarra Plenty Regional Library have gathered stories from the municipalities of Banyule, Nillumbik and Whittlesea in Melbourne’s north – stories that help connect us to our past and offer a sense of place in the community in which we live, and which exemplify the fine spirit and pluck exhibited by every Australian.

Fine Spirit and Pluck: World War One Stories from Banyule, Nillumbik and Whittlesea is a poignant collection of snapshots into the past, an anthology that commemorates the Australian spirit and which is sure to touch every reader.

JEWEL

It wouldn’t happen to them … until it did. Jewel is an autobiography of how one son coped with the devastating blow of finding out that his mother, Julie, has breast cancer. But that’s only the beginning, as the cancer comes back more and more aggressive each time, eventually taking Julie away from her family forever.

Dylan Smith details his mother’s cancer battle with raw honesty and a grim sense of humour. A touching tribute to a much-loved mother, and a must read for anyone who has had to witness their loved one battle cancer

Your Grandfather Married My Grandmother – A Shipley Family History

My story starts in the newly formed Kingdom of Great Britain in the early 1700’s with my 5 times Great Grandfather John Shipley. He was born in Epworth Lincolnshire a small rural village 143 miles north of London. In the late 1880’s our story moves to nearby Thorne a market town and thence to Doncaster the major town in the area. I was born in Doncaster in 1943. In 1951 my family migrated to Melbourne Australia where I spent my formative years.

The curiosity to find out about where we came from, I believe, exists for all of us. For the best part of my life I craved information about my ancestors. My parents did not talk to me about them, nor did I ask them. We were very private people.

My ancestry journey officially started in 2007. By this time my parents were long deceased. With hindsight what I wouldn’t have given to ask them questions.

Using internet search engines, I was able to construct an interesting and informative story. But like any good story there is always a twist. Something that I did not see coming. I found ancestors that I didn’t know existed who provided me with valuable information including a very special cousin, Dianne, who helped me open the doors to this new vision. She has also written her own special chapter in our story.

Unfortunately, Dianne passed away before the publication of this book. I know she would have enjoyed reading it.

My ancestry journey officially started in 2007. By this time my parents were long deceased. With hindsight what I wouldn’t have given to ask them questions.

Unfortunately, Dianne passed away before the publication of this book. I know she would have enjoyed reading it.

Pizza Ovens made easy

Do you love the thought of cooking your own pizzas in your handmade outdoor oven? Have you ever considered building a pizza oven but been unsure of where to start? Are you hesitant to commit to laying your first brick? Industry veteran Lynne Sheffield’s Pizza Ovens Made Easy provides you with all information you need to build the oven you’ve always wanted!

Thanks to almost thirty years’ experience in bricklaying and bricklayer’s labouring and an extensive history in teaching, Sheffield is able to simply and clearly outline the approach to building your own woodfired pizza oven. Pizza Ovens Made Easy breaks down each step, taking you through the entire process – from the initial design to the finishing touches – and offering you the essential tips and tricks along the way so that you can finish on time and on budget.

Illustrated with over 200 photos, Pizza Ovens Made Easy promises an easy-to-follow guide for even the most inexperienced reader. So, what are you waiting for? Pick it up and start laying today!

The History of St Margaret’s Church Eltham Vol 2

The History of St Margaret’s Church Eltham

From about the turn of the century until the end of WW2 the Church of England in Eltham, along with the wider society, was transformed. The wider society was transformed under the impact of a crippling economic depression and two devastating world wars. The emergence of the welfare state and greater equalitarianism were two major transformative events. The church too was impacted by these world events especially WW1.During this period the Eltham church was transformed from a somewhat reformed worship and theological view to one which was increasingly catholic. It is also a period where Saint Margaret’s was constrained in its ministry and mission by a lack of resources. However it was well served by a number of exemplary vicars and laypersons. This story is related in Volume 2. It is a mixture of success and disappointment. It is also a story of perseverance and faithfulness to the Gospel. However, by the mid-1940s Saint Margaret’s had become a small and lifeless parish. Its future was not assured. Volume 2 also relates a summary history of other faith communities which have a shared history with Saint Margaret’s. These include the Church of The Transfiguration Research, Saint Matthew’s Panton Hill and Saint Faith’s Montmorency.

Bendigo District Cricket Association (1894–2017)

Musical Tree

TWO EARS, ONE MOUTH AND A BIG HEART

At a time when technology overrides how we interact with others, Two Ears, One Mouth, and a Big Heart takes us back to basics. Kerryn Powell reminds us of the power of real-time relationships and face-to-face conversations for creating success and fulfilment.

She pulls back the covers on her own journey and desire to be a catalyst for change by connecting people and amplifying their impact on others. Demonstrating her message of ‘giving to gain’, Kerryn shares powerful stories of many local heroes who have been inspired to make a change.

Divided into three sections – Learn, Grow, Achieve – and covering themes such as Clarity, Focus and Courage, you are invited to learn from the experience of others and then reflect on your own values and viewpoints.

With over 30 years of working as an agent and catalyst for change, Kerryn reminds us that we have two ears for listening, one mouth for sharing and a big heart for engaging with others. When we remember this, we are open to endless possibilities: following our own purpose and dreams as well as the opportunity to help others with theirs.

Starting a ripple effect begins now. Don’t wait for a better time

… because your time matters.

Starting a ripple effect begins now. Don’t wait for a better time

… because your time matters.

My Son Leigh

Don’t call me Mother

Don’t make mistakes

Do you know a teenager or young adult who needs some help?

Are you sick and tired of people not understanding you?

Perhaps you find yourself thinking, “I just want life to be better” or, “I want to achieve something more”. You are not alone. Failure is how we learn. When you fail forward, you overcome fear. It is the fear itself that is holding you back – not the failure. People often don’t tell you about the struggles they went through or strategies they used on their path to success. Teenagers and young adults – this book will give you the solutions, tools and courage you need to discover your inner strength and BE THE DREAM!

Teacher, Entrepreneur and Speaker Ruth Hibburt has studied and applied the secrets to success by failing forward. A positive-change maker in education, Ruth is an expert in building skills, confidence and positive relationships with students, parents and teachers, having taught over 3000 teenagers from a diverse range of social and learning needs.

Do you know a teenager or young adult who needs some help?

Are you sick and tired of people not understanding you?

The Wye, Sep and Pat

Orchids of Nillumbik

Inherited Touch

There is a risk in telling another’s story especially when passed down through the family and there are many layers to a life that each person may only glimpse part of. It was with trepidation that Judith took on the task of peeling back the layers – smells, memories, photographs, family tales, official records – to trace the stories of her ordinary, imperfect female forebears. Partly to give them voice, when women’s stories are often forgotten or ignored, but for a greater part she admired their resilience, their ability to maintain their balance when life’s challenges left them teetering on the brink of an emotional abyss. She wanted to demonstrate how resilience can be nurtured within a spirit of community connectedness, through a sense of belonging.

As Judith gathered the women and their stories to her she realised she was being gathered in as much as she was gathering. Her story weaving through the stories she was recording. Facing her own emotional abyss, she experienced the nurturing of a community of women who understood the journey.

The tales of Disco chook

One Hundred Years of Euroa and District Cricket

The village and the snake hole

The Turbulent Antal Years

Finders and Keepers of Faith

Winning more friends

In 2002, after a rally to save the building and gardens at Mentone Station, the group Friends of Mentone Station and Gardens Inc was formed. Over the next two decades, this group worked hard to maintain the beauty of the area for the community to enjoy. This has included obtaining a State Heritage listing for the building and awards for the work done by the group.

In 2012, the group published, Winning Friends, to record the history to lead up to the 100 year anniversary of the station. Winning More Friends is the continuation of the story of the station and gardens and the work of the Friends group to maintain its heritage in the wake of a new station and the removal of level crossings. This story is testiment to the work of the community to maintain and preserve its public spaces

Shadows and Light

In 2005, eight veterans of war, along with their partners, embarked on a life-altering emotional journey. Participating in the Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital’s Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Group Treatment Program, they boldly and bravely confronted years’ of trauma and emotional distress. Throughout their treatment they formed an unprecedented bond of friendship and solidarity, a bond that has held strong for fifteen years.

In Shadows and Light, they gather to share their stories and pass on all they have learnt throughout their years of treatment. With refreshing clarity, insight and, at times, humour, Shadows and Light takes readers through the pivotal moments of the veterans’ lives, offering guidance and reassurance along the way.

Through war, heartbreak, joy, pain, love and loss, the veterans and their partners prove that help is never far away, healing is always possible and hope is a powerful force.

The Only Game in Town

This is the story of the development of remote-controlled railroad distributed motive power. It chronicles the history of LOCOTROL, the progenitor of what is now a more wide-spread technology, and arguably the single greatest technological advance for railroading since the introduction of both the automatic coupler and the air brake triple valve.

With 295 pages and 260 illustrations, this book is a well-researched work containing extensive information about the subject area, and comprising unabridged facts and history not previously collated with this degree of scope.

With a Foreword by an eminent Australian railway consultant, John Hearsch—whose expertise in railway executive management endorses and validates this inclusive work—this book contains authoritative complementary footnotes, a supportive List of Illustrations, and a comprehensive Index and Glossary. The author has spent several decades researching, collecting images, and creating and interpreting instructive and explanatory diagrams.

The Only Game In Town is the only known detailed history of these developments, is a remarkable contribution to such literature, and is offered to thoughtful followers of global railway operations – especially those with a desire for detail. It is recommended reading for both enthusiastic international railroaders and railroad enthusiasts.

Encounters

Bridging the Strait: A Salute to the First Man to Fly Across Bass Strait

Travelling with Cardboard Paul

The Scientific Names of North American Dragonflies

Orchids of Nillumbik

The Naming of Australia’s Dragonflies

Ian Endersby
Heinrich Fliedner

Nonfiction