In looking at the different landscapes presented, we find bush settings, which are complimentary and supportive of human existence, and others which are alienating and threatening (Foster, Finnis and Nimon, 1995). We also will look at inner city landscapes, landscapes that involve technology, and also Aboriginal issues.

On the first page of her book A Little Bush Maid (Bruce, 1910), Mary Grant Bruce painted a beautiful peaceful landscape as the setting for "Billabong". It certainly represents a sense of Eden (Foster, Finnis and Nimon, 1995). This theme is evident throughout the book. There are different plots that come and go through the story, but every event turns out in a positive way, so peace is again restored. The wide sweeping plains are just perfe

In looking at the landscapes and their effects on the book as a whole we could come up with several assumptions. In books such as Storm Boy, A Little Bush Maid, and perhaps even Dougy the landscape used is really essential to the book. Storm Boy could not be a fishing story if it was set in a "Billabong" landscape, and A Little Bush Maid would not work in an urban setting because there would be too many other influences to include. Dougy needs to have two races living together in a small community to contain the fight, which would be huge if it was set in a large city. However, where the landscape is a fight for survival, as in Climb a Lonely Hill, Ash Road and Rowan of Rin, it could easily be set in a different place. Perhaps the danger would have to be changed, but any rural setting can present with possibilities for a fight for survival. However, the way the authors have included the landscape in the fight for survival, the stories are easy to believe, and therefore make easy reading. With Seven Little Australians, again the particular setting used could be changed, but the family landscape is essential to the book. They could easily live on "Billabong" and still have the dysfunctional family, and home tutoring, and even find a tree to fall near the baby if necessary.

The inner city landscape in I Own the Racecourse (Wrightson, 1968) is different again. It has the family and school scenes, but it introduces a potentially dangerous issue in city living, that of the racecourse. Images of children getting mixed up in gambling, being mistreated by drunken racegoers, and being trampled by horses are in great contrast to the peaceful images of "Billabong" or even the fight for survival in Climb a Lonely Hill. Thankfully nothing disturbing happened at the racecourse. Another contrast in this landscape is that the children are left to their own devices; they get themselves to and from school, and entertain themselves afterward without the supervision of their parents. In both A Little Bush Maid and Storm Boy, both of which have rural settings, the children are very involved in the work of the parents, and spend a lot of their time helping, rather than playing. Also in both these books, schooling was not a priority, whereas attending an established school in I Own the Racecourse was part of life, and Seven Little Australians had a governess to teach in the home. Does this mean schooling is more important in urban settings?

In conclusion there is a lot of comparison between the books used, and also plenty of contrast. It is interesting to see how similar the landscapes can be, to produce such different books. It is also interesting to note the different landscapes presented in each book. However, with all the books used, the effect of each landscape adds to the value of the books and makes nine interesting reads.

The landscape in Ash Road (Southall, 1996) is presented as one to be feared. It appears positively at the beginning of the book, with all the lovely trees and hills, but when further issues are added, such as the unnatural heat early in the day, a searing north wind, and the smell of smoke, you can almost feel the danger. Bushfires are a fact in the Australian bush, and this book deals excellently with

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Approximate Word count = 2196
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)