Pastures of the Blue Crane by Hesba Brinsmead

Brought up in the solitary environment of exclusive boarding schools, Ryl has learned to be independent, but when her mysterious father dies, her whole world changes. Part of her inheritance is a half-share in a dilapidated farm which she shares with a scruffy grandfather she meets for the first time. Pastures of the Blue Crane won the CBCA Book of the Year award in 1965, and has been loved by generations of Australian readers since. Set in the lush subtropics of Northern New South Wales, this classic story is both a moving portrait of family life, and a remarkable insight into a different Australia.