From the back: "The three elder Camersons, Nick, Millie and Barts, didn't much like leaving their parents with Father helpless and the Maoris posed for attack, but Mr Camerson was firm. they must take the boat and row the younger children to safety at Te Ruwai. What he did not know was that they would find the settlement swarming with hostile natives, and that in making their escape the boat would be wrecked and the six children, including two-year twins, faced with no alternative but to walk home untold miles through unknown country along the coast ..."
E. M. Ellin or Elizabeth Muriel Ellin, wrote two books for children - The Children of Clearwater Bay and The Greenstone Axe. Both books have similar themes about early pioneer children in New Zealand facing an adventure.
The Children of Clearwater Bay is a great read. I enjoyed it from start to finish. There is a good family dynamic. The children get on well and they respect their parents. They all have different personalities and Ellin writes about each child simply but well. Very quickly the parents are removed from the story (as in many children's stories!). Father breaks his leg and because the family is under threat from local Maori hostilities, the children must move to safety. The rest of the book deals with this journey. It's gripping because the journey does not go to plan and the children have to adapt along the way.
This novel is set in historical times and much about it is believable and true to the lives of early pioneers, but none of the place or tribal names exist, so there's that point to keep in mind when reading.
Here is an example of how the book reads...
The edition I own is softback and is now 50 years old. The glue holding the pages together is crumbling and the book is falling apart. I am on the hunt for a hardcover version.
It is illustrated by Garth Tapper. I don't like the illustrations, I think they have dated badly and don't show what the picture is at all.
I recommend this novel for children from 8 years old. I don't have any content considerations.
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