Introducing Sherryl Clark
Sherryl Clark’s first children’s book, The Too-Tight Tutu, was published in 1997, and she now has more
than 65 published books. Her other titles include a number of Aussie Bites,
Nibbles and Chomps, and novels. Her
YA novels are Bone Song, published in
the UK in 2009, and Dying to Tell Me
(KaneMiller US 2011, Australia 2014).
Sherryl’s verse novel Farm Kid
won the 2005 NSW Premier’s Literary Award for children’s books, and her second
verse novel, Sixth Grade Style Queen
(Not!) was an Honour Book in the 2008 CBCA Awards. Other recent titles
include a picture book of poems, Now I Am
Bigger, the middle grade novel Pirate
X and the Rose series (Our
Australian Girl). Her verse novel, Runaways,
was released March 2013. Meet Rose was shortlisted
for the YABBA and KOALA children’s choice awards in 2013. Her books have been
published in Australia and overseas, including the USA, UK, Spain, Mexico and
China.
Sherryl teaches creative writing at Victoria
University Polytechnic. Her website is at www.sherrylclark.com, and she also
has a site about children’s poetry (with teacher resources) at www.poetry4kids.net
Jimmy’s War
Author: Sherryl Clark
Publisher: Penguin
1915 and World War I has been going
for over a year, but in Melbourne life for Jimmy and his mum is hard. Jimmy’s
brother, Arthur, couldn’t wait to enlist and sail off to fight at Gallipoli,
and there’s been no word from him for weeks. Meanwhile, Jimmy’s mum is sick and
he’s forced to work in the rail yards to keep a roof over their heads and food
on the table.
Jimmy is tempted by an offer of work from
local crim, Bill Prosser – more money and less hard graft, but he knows Bill’s
reputation. However, when Arthur arrives home from the war, severely injured
and unable to get a job, Jimmy gives in and goes to work for Bill. At first
it’s running errands and collecting betting money, and the extra money is a
great help. At home, Arthur is suffering from nightmares and not coping, and,
more and more, Jimmy feels the heavy weight of responsibility.
When Jimmy discovers a plot by Bill and
his mate to stage a payroll hold-up, he must make a decision. Go along with it
and hope he doesn’t get caught? Or stand up to Bill and risk retribution? And
what can he do about Arthur, who is sinking further and further into
depression?
Jimmy’s
War shows the reality of life at home during the
war, and the lasting effects on the soldiers who returned.
Interview
What
was a positive outcome from writing this book?
It gave me the opportunity (and excuse!)
to research my grandfather’s and great-uncle’s war records. My granddad never
talked about being in the war. All we knew was he was ‘in the desert’. I
discovered that he had been in the N.Z. Mounted Field Ambulance and the Mounted
Corp in Egypt so would have been with horses.
My great-uncle fought in a Field Artillery unit on the Western Front,
was killed in action and is buried in a Belgium Military Cemetery. It gave me
real pleasure to name my characters after them.
What
was something sad or tragic that you discovered?
As part of my research I read several
books about the Gallipoli campaign. One included excerpts of letters and
diaries by soldiers, and one was about war reporter, Charles Bean and his
diaries. The horrific details of the conditions there, the bungling and errors
that cost so many needless lives, the way the huge number of casualties was
censored, and the poignant writings by the soldiers – all were overwhelmingly
both sad and appalling. I ended up having nightmares and had to stop reading.
What
was something interesting you discovered?
As more and more men enlisted and went
overseas, and reports of casualties were censored, most people in Australia
were unaware of what was really happening and how bad the losses were. But when
the first soldiers came home on the hospital ships and people could see the
reality, I think the tide turned. The government tried twice to bring in
conscription with a referendum, and twice the vote went against them. When I
read that, I was very happy that the truth and ‘people power’ had won through.
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