Showing results by author "Sally Cook" in All Categories

The author has a bad bout of insomnia and tries all sorts of ways to overcome it through a varying list of remedies. She knows that kangaroos are grazing on dewy grass just over the road and that she has a blanket of brilliant stars above her house but these comforting images do nothing to take her into sleepy oblivion. In this humorous account she recalls her miserable journey.

This story tells of a massive plane explosion over the Tasman Sea and how three women survivors are affected over the next 15 years, supporting each other as they individually confront the effects of post traumatic stress disorder, stroke, aging, and autism.

This audiobook is about living as a young white woman with a tribe in pre-independence Papua New Guinea where the tribe had limited European contact but welcomed me to share their village life, customs, travels by outrigger canoe, and ceremonies. Their coastal language was only spoken within a small radius, with each tribe having its own totems and traditions. The story tells of a Romeo and Juliet-style suicide tragedy, but also highlights the joys....

Walking Towards Gold tells the story of the author's pioneer colonist forebears who arrived in newly formed Adelaide, South Australia from Portsmouth, in June 1838 and how thirteen years later three of them walked 580 miles from Adelaide to the Victorian goldfields pushing a wheelbarrow.. There are intrepid accounts and interesting descriptions of early Adelaide and life on the Victorian goldfields. This is part of the Downer family's story.

Beach Tidings tells of the spreading of ashes - the mystery of their journey, the link with a Great Escaper from Stalag Luft III, and the intertwinement with beach rhythms during the global COVID-19 pandemic. The central character, Mara, is drawn to the beach, as an ongoing pandemic escape, along with her two dogs and husband. Their souls are alleviated by walking through shallow waves, but Mara has to contend with images of drowning.

Under a Cloud tells the story of a young woman from Reading, England, stuck indefinitely in a south eastern Melbourne suburb, thanks to the COVID pandemic lockdowns. She is alone, adrift, afloat with little motivation and no job or partner to return to in England.... But through her love of clouds, she becomes part of a global network of Cloudies who post their fabulous cloud photos, in almost compulsive daily rituals. Madeline becomes hooked by this new way of experiencing the world. This story is enhanced with atmospheric sound effects.

Dream Cafe tells the story of a baker and seller of delicious cakes who makes the most gorgeous delicacies at her railway cafe, She is not only interested in these marvelous creations but she is fascinated by dreams and nightmares - both hers and other people's, particularly during the Covid 19 Pandemic. She wonders if there is a communal subconscious elicited during night dreams, manifesting various or similar aspects of this global health crisis, Madeline sets out to find out more, only to be confronted with more than she expected.

Don't Sign Anything tells the story of two women whose paths cross unexpectedly, particularly when one of them jumps under a train and dies. But for many years their lives are intertwined with them co-winning prizes, sharing adventures, and creating silver jewelry. The one who dies is a gypsy who became a rampant hoarder, finally living alone with her six cats. It is a story about two very different women and the compassion they share until they lose touch before the tragic train incident.

Wearing a Cape tells of a job working with clients from 50 different nationalities. Going to court with them, representing them at hearings, being with a murderer, and held captive by two psychotic clients - one of whom burnt an old people's home down. It is about working with the repressed, the under represented, the unfortunate and the fortunate. It portrays the stamina to work where there are courtroom threats, gifts of kindness, conflict, and resolution.

Slap It On! tells the story of living among mud brick houses in an artists belt in Eltham, Victoria. It portrays an atmospheric view, which includes the famous artists colony of Montsalvat, as well as raising small girls on a property replete with vegetable and herb gardens, hens, fruit and nut trees, and re-cycled materials. It features a medieval feast, a train crash and a flasher, as well as an earthquake and a deadly bush fire. Special sound effects add to the experience.

Led Through the Jungle is a true story about time I spent travelling through Colombia, which included walking through a jungle near the border with Venezuela. It was a time of some risk in Colombia but my Colombian friend's careful planning enabled me to experience small wild monkeys in that park as well as involvement with other native animals, including cuddling a three toed sloth, seeing a large capybara up close and holding a macaw and seeing iguanas and chameleons.

Just Eleven Days tells the story of an adult yoga student who decides to enter an 11-day, silent, yoga retreat in an old inner city convent. But she only makes it half way through the retreat when personal struggles and an external incident which cannot be explained render her fearful, until she plucks up the courage to flee. And even then, there is evidence of an unresolved issue.... The story is enhanced with atmospheric sound effects.

Dali-like melting clocks and plans to build a statue and gain a damehood are intermingled in a plot which explores difference, persistence, and diversity. It has a humorous tone whilst touching on serious subjects. It is enhanced with vivid sound effects.

All That Glitters tells the story of two women whose lives have become intertwined. One has a father who is a murderer and the other has survived an upbringing by two drug addict parents. The women's paths cross, and they become a support for each other until a certain threatening incident unravels their friendship, leaving them both with less clarity.

This tells the story of being in a sixth Covid 19 lockdown and the chance to observe the natural world at close hand by careful observation and appreciation, whilst being confined to an unexpectedly small radius....

Little Ripples Everywhere tells the story of a 70-year-old widow and her love for books and words - so much that she makes many train trips around a metropolitan network, leaving many of her loved novels to continue their train journeys without her. It is her hope that will give the new listeners of her books entertainment, encouragement, and insight. The books she leaves behind meet a variety of fates in this humorous tale, but they also carry messages of concern for the environment and the encroaching climate change.

This story talks about travelling in China, and Wuhan in particular, just before the outbreak of Covid 19 in that city in 2019. It highlights darker aspects of this travel as well as the humourous, kind hearted side. It traverses four provinces and highlights memorable experiences whilst looking for cherry blossom in these areas. It is enhanced by sound effects.

Shattered is one of four short stories in this compilation. Between them, they explore paranormal and ghostly activities, a paddlesteamer wreck and its implications, near drowning and a mystery stranger. The stories explore relationships and reactions between the characters and are infused with atmospheric sound effects.

The Swaggie on the Hill tells the story of a young girl who is puzzled by the adult life around her. This comes to a head when she and her classmates at a small primary school are shut in the school house by their teachers while a threatening man looms in the school grounds, causing simultaneous nose bleeds in two of the boys. And there is the matter of the witch-like woman who lives nearby. She frightens the children as they rush past her place in their billycarts. The story is set in mid 1960s Melbourne and is enhanced with sound effects.

Shining Red tells the story of a magic totem, the Shining Red Parrot, and its strength in drawing the main character to its Tongan Fafa Island habitat. Richard, despite a delusional episode, manages to travel to exotic places, indirectly inspiring two other characters within the story.