LibGuides: Texts and Human Experiences: Module A- We are Australians

Finding Resources in Accessit

The happiest refugee by Ahn Do
ISBN: 9781742379302
Publication Date: 2011
Anh Do nearly didn't make it to Australia. His entire family came close to losing their lives on the sea as they escaped from war-torn Vietnam in an overcrowded boat. But nothing -- not murderous pirates, nor the imminent threat of death by hunger, disease or dehydration as they drifted for days -- could quench their desire to make a better life in the country they had dreamed about. Life in Australia was hard, an endless succession of back-breaking work, crowded rooms, ruthless landlords and make-do everything. But there was a loving extended family, and always friends and play and something to laugh about for Anh, his brother Khoa and their sister Tram. Things got harder when their father left home when Anh was thirteen -- they felt his loss very deeply and their mother struggled to support the family on her own. His mother's sacrifice was an inspiration to Anh and he worked hard during his teenage years to help her make ends meet, also managing to graduate high school and then university. Another inspiration was the comedian Anh met when he was about to sign on for a 60-hour a week corporate job. Anh asked how many hours he worked. 'Four,' the answer came back, and that was it. He was going to be a comedian! The Happiest Refugee tells the incredible, uplifting and inspiring life story of one of our favourite personalities. Tragedy, humour, heartache and unswerving determination -- a big life with big dreams. Anh's story will move and amuse all who read it
Does my head look big in this? by bdel-Fattah, Randa & Macauley, Rebecca
Call Number: LEA F FAT
ISBN: 9781741635980
Publication Date: 2006
Sixteen-year-old Amal makes the decision to start wearing the hijab full-time and everyone has a reaction. Her parents, her teachers, her friends, people on the street. But she stands by her decision to embrace her faith and all that it is, even if it does make her a little different from everyone else.

Can she handle the taunts of "towel head," the prejudice of her classmates, and still attract the cutest boy in school? Brilliantly funny and poignant, Randa Abdel-Fattah's debut novel will strike a chord in all teenage readers, no matter what their beliefs
Sometimes gladness collected poems, 1954 to 1997 by Dawe, Bruce
Call Number: NFS 821.3 DAW
ISBN: 0733900739
Publication Date: 1997
Bruce Dawe is Australia's best-selling and most popular living poet. This fifth edition of Sometimes Gladness marks its extraordinary ongoing success.
Peter Skrzynecki's immigrant chronicle : study notes for area of study physical journeys by Puiu, Maya & Edwards, Lisa
ISBN: 9781741253474
Publication Date: 2009
Looking for Alibrandi by Marchetta, Melina
Call Number: FIC REL MAR
ISBN: 0140360468
Publication Date: 1992
For as long as Josephine Alibrandi can remember, it’s just been her, her mom, and her grandmother. Now it’s her final year at a wealthy Catholic high school. The nuns couldn’t be any stricter—but that doesn’t seem to stop all kinds of men from coming into her life.

Caught between the old-world values of her Italian grandmother, the nononsense wisdom of her mom, and the boys who continue to mystify her, Josephine is on the ride of her life. This will be the year she falls in love, the year she discovers the secrets of her family’s past—and the year she sets herself free.
Sorry Day by Vass, Coral & Leffler, David
Call Number: PIC F VAS
ISBN: 9780642279033
Publication Date: 2018
Long ago and not so long ago, the children were taken away, their sorrow echoing across the land. But today there is hope. Today is special. The crowd hums with excitement. Maggie and her mother wait, and then they hear the words: 'To the mothers and the fathers, the brothers and the sisters, we say sorry!' Sorry Day acknowledges the past and shows willingness to make things right.

Department of Home Affairs

Being an Australian citizen is a privilege not a right. While you are granted entitlements as a citizen of Australia there are important responsibilities you must accept too

Citizenship Practice Test

SBS Cronulla Riots

These are the untold stories of the Cronulla riots. Go beyond the media headlines with SBS’s interactive experience: watch the
documentary, explore the themes and delve deeper into the riots.

YouTube

"My people die young in this country" - A powerful speech by prominent journalist Stan Grant on indigenous rights in Australia goes viral.

The panel discuss the meaning of "Australian".

Aussies tell us what they think it takes to be an Australian.

NSW mathematics teacher and YouTube sensation Eddie Woo shares his thoughts on what it meant to him to deliver the 2018 Australia Day Address.

The full speech of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, apologising on behalf of the Federal Government to the Stolen Generations. Feb 13, Canberra.

ClickView

The apology in Federal Parliament to the Stolen Generations of Australia, by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd was a defining moment in the nation's history. Crowds gathered across the country to mark the occasion with tears, cheers and emotional displays of relief, happiness and in some cases, anger.

The Ethics Centre

This speech by Stan Grant was delivered during our last IQ2 debate of 2015: Racism is Destroying the Australian Dream. Stan's speech has been widely acknowledged as one of the most powerful ever heard on the IQ2 stage, and indeed, in recent Australian history.

Images

SBS

Australia Day is here, and it’s the one day of the year to celebrate all things Aussie. So, we asked our audience What does being an Australian mean to them?