Australian Legendary Tales - The Jungle Book of Australia - Raising Funds for the Christchurch Earthquake Appeal

AUSTRALIA makes an appeal to the fancy which is all its own. When the first white settlers arrived in Australia, all was novel, and, while seeming fresh, was inestimably old. The grey gum-trees did not resemble any European forest, but were antique, melancholy and featureless. In a continent of rare hills, infrequent streams and interminable deserts nothing was concealed within the wastes, yet a secret was promised. The birds and beasts--kangaroo, platypus and emu—are, like the continent and all that is within - ancient. The natives were seemingly a race without a history, yet far more antique than Egypt and closer to the beginnings of mankind than any other people.

The manners and rites of the natives seemed to be by far the most archaic of all. They did not have Kings and nations; they were wanderers, houseless, but not homeless. The mysteries of the natives, their initiatory rites, a little of the magic, a great deal of the social customs and fragments of the myths had been recorded. But, till Mrs. Langloh Parker compiled this book, we had but few of the stories which Australian natives tell by the camp-fire or in the gum-tree shade.

These, for the most part, are Kinder Märchen, though they include many ætiological myths, explanatory of the markings and habits of animals, the origin of constellations, and so forth. Children will find here the Jungle Book of Australia, but there is no Mowgli, set apart as a man. For man, bird, and beast are all blended in the Aboriginal psyche. All are of one kindred, all shade into each other; all obey the Bush Law. 

Unlike any European Märchen, these stories do not have the dramatic turns of Western folklore. There are no distinctions of wealth and rank, no Cinderella nor Puss in Boots. The struggle for food and water is the perpetual theme, and no wonder, for the narrators dwell in a dry and thirsty land. We see cunning in the devices used for hunting, especially for chasing honey bees. The Rain-magic, actually practised, is of curious interest. In brief, we have pictures of the hard life of the Aborigines, romances which are truly realistic.

Parker has some odd connections with modern popular culture. She was rescued from drowning by an aborigine at an early age. This incident was portrayed in the film 'Picnic at Hanging Rock'. The song 'the Wind  They Call Mariah' was based on a story from this book and the pop singer Mariah Cary was reputedly named after this song.

£3, or approx. NZ$6.40, of the Publisher's profit from the sale of  every copy of this book will be donated to the Christchurch Earthquake Appeal.

For more information, a table of contents, to order or to view a sample of the text, go to http://www.abelapublishing.com/OzTales.html

To view all 10 Titles raising funds for the Christchurch Earthquake Appeal follow this link http://www.abelapublishing.com/christchurch.html

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POLYNESIAN MYTHOLOGY & ANCIENT TRADITIONAL HISTORY OF THE (MAORI) NEW ZEALANDERS - Raising funds for the Christchurch Earthquake Appeal

TOWARDS the close of 1845 Sir George Grey was unexpectedly requested to administer the affairs of New Zealand.

On arrival he found the Maori tribes engaged in hostilities with the Queen's troops, against whom they had contended with considerable success. He quickly realised he could neither successfully govern, nor hope to conciliate, with a people whose language, manners, customs and religion he was quite unacquainted. He decided that he should be acquainted with the language of the (Maori) New Zealanders in order to redress their grievances. With no published Maori dictionary, nor books to study its construction, he found this to be a most difficult task.

To his surprise he found that the Maori chiefs, in their speeches or in their letters, frequently quoted fragments of ancient poems or proverbs, or made allusions which rested on an ancient system of mythology. This gave him further impetus to learn the language of the country. For more than eight years he devoted a great part of his available time to collecting these ancient myths, poems and legends, working in his spare moments in every part of the country.
Once, when he had amassed a large amount of materials to aid him in his studies, the Government House was destroyed by fire, and with it were burnt the materials he had so painstakingly collected, and thus he was left to recommence his difficult task.

The ultimate result, however, was the collection of a large mass of materials. He felt unwilling that the result of his labours should be lost to those whose duty it may be thereafter to deal with the natives of New Zealand; and he undertook to published his extensive collection of ancient traditional poems, religious chants, hakas and songs of the Maori race.

It is in this volume that Sir George Grey first presented "to the European reader" in 1854 the first written record and translation of the principal portions of ancient Maori mythology and of some of their most interesting legends.

£3, or approx. NZ$6.40, of the publisher's profit from the sale of each book is donated to the Christchurch Earthquake Appeal.

For more information, a table of contents or to order, go to
http://www.abelapublishing.com/newzealand.html

To view the "Australsian Tales" collection follow this link
http://www.abelapublishing.com/Australasia.html

Abela Publishing
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