Audiobook · read by volunteers
Dot and the Kangaroo
Ethel C. Pedley (1859–1898)
Read by Lucy Burgoyne (1950-2014), Ophelia Darcy, Kristin Hughes (1974-2021), Lizzie Driver, Carl Cubbedge, Scott Sherris, Graeme Jolliffe, Betsie Bush, David Barnes, Kevin McAsh · 13 chapters · 3 h 33
About the book
A little girl named Dot wanders away from home in the Australian bush and finds herself lost. Frightened and alone, she is rescued by a kangaroo, who takes Dot on a journey through the bush to meet the animals who live there. Along the way she meets a whole company of bush creatures, several of them marsupials like her guide, and she learns something about how they see the world and the humans who share it. Ethel Pedley's tale, first published in 1899, is a children's classic in Australia. Thirteen chapters and about three and a half hours, read by LibriVox volunteers. It is a warm, funny and sometimes poignant story that treats both children and animals with respect, and it makes a good family listening for long afternoons. The Australian setting gives it a freshness that sets it apart from most classic tales of the period.
Introduction
Ethel C. Pedley (1859 to 1898) wrote Dot and the Kangaroo near the end of her short life, and it was published in 1899, shortly after her death. It was one of the early children's books to take the Australian bush as its setting and its animals as its characters, at a time when most stories for young readers came from Britain and told of English fields and woods.
The story follows Dot, a small girl who becomes lost and who is helped by a kangaroo. With her guide she travels through the country and meets a series of native animals, each with something to say. Many of these tales reflect the author's concern for animals and her wish to see them treated with kindness, and in the book the animals are often quick to point out the cruelty of humans.
The book is therefore both an adventure and a gentle plea. Its language is simple and its pace is easy, making it a pleasure for younger listeners, while older ones may enjoy the freshness of its setting and its affection for the natural world. It has been reprinted many times in Australia since.
This LibriVox recording divides the book into thirteen chapters, with a total running time of around three and a half hours. It is read by volunteers and would be a lovely choice for family listening. It also offers an interesting view of Australian attitudes to nature in the late nineteenth century. The story needs no pictures to work, as the voices of the creatures are vivid enough on their own.
Public domain
Ethel C. Pedley died in 1898: the work is in the public domain in Switzerland, more than 70 years after the author’s death.
The LibriVox volunteers dedicated this recording to the public domain.
Sources : LibriVox page · Files at the Internet Archive · Original text