Our History: Bold Ben Hall
A compelling historical fiction adventure, set during the Australian gold rush when daring, dangerous and bold bushrangers were both feared, and legendary. Award-winning author, Sophie Masson asks what makes a hero, or a villain?
Lily and her parents are travelling performers are delayed in Canowindra, just as famous bushranger Ben Hall and his gang - who has pulled off the biggest gold robbery ever - arrive. The gang hold everyone in town hostage– but instead of threats, hold a strange, giant three day party, and Lily is in enthralled. She writes a secret play 'Bold Ben Hall' and dreams of sending it to a famous theatre company in Sydney or Melbourne…
Meanwhile, in Forbes, stable boy Sam works for Sir Frederick Pottinger, Ben Hall’s nemesis. Sam who dreams of helping Sir Fred to catch Ben Hall…
When Lily and Sam meet, the two are soon at loggerheads about their heroes determined to prove the other wrong...and to try any means to do so!
A gripping and unusual adventure, set against a background of the hectic, action-packed atmosphere of the booming Gold Rush towns. It also asks important questions: what is a hero, what is a villain? And how do we separate fact from fiction?
Resources
Creators
Sophie Masson is now the author of more than 50 novels for young people and specialise in historical fiction. Her work is published in many countries across the world. Sophie won the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards: Patricia Wrightson Prize for Children’s Literature for My Australian Story: The Hunt for Ned Kelly (2011). She lives in rural New South Wales with her husband and has three grown-up children. She is also the author of the recent best-selling adult novel, The Paris Cooking School, written under the name Sophie Beaumont.
Reviews
This is a riveting story told in three parts, with a background rich in Australian history and the human condition…Thrilling sub-stories and interesting leading characters, engage the reader. Bold Ben Hall, from the Our History series, explores amongst other powerful themes, how, based on conjecture, people’s assessment of others is governed by perception, for without knowledge of a whole situation, the truth cannot be known.
Kids Book Review
A gripping and unusual adventure, set against a background of the hectic, action-packed atmosphere of the booming Gold Rush towns…Books like this try to show the complexities and differences of opinion about controversial figures, as well as how important it is to try to get all the facts before making a decision.
The Book Muse
