A Fortunate Life (Young Reader's Edition) - Softcover

Facey, A. B.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0140320091 ISBN 13: 9780140320091

Publisher: Puffin, 1995

Synopsis

Albert Barnett Facey was born in 1894 in Maidstone, Victoria & grew up on the Kalgoorlie goldfields & in the wheat-belt of Western Australia. His father died before he was two. He was deserted by his mother soon afterwards. He was looked after by his grandmother until he was eight, when he went out to work. His many jobs included droving, hammering spikes on the railway line from Merredin to Wickepin & boxing in a travelling troupe.He was in the 11th Battalion at the Gallipoli landing. After the war, he became a farmer under the Soldier Settlement Scheme but was forced off the land during the Depression. He joined the tramways & was active in the Tramways Union. Having no formal education, he taught himself to read & write. He made the first notes of his life soon after WWI, filling notebooks with accounts of his experiences. Finally, on his children's urging, he submitted a hand-written manuscript to the Fremantle Arts Centre Press. He died in 1982, nine months after A Fortunate Life had been published to wide acclaim."I have lived a very good life, it has been very rich & full. I have been very fortunate & I am thrilled by it when I look back."--A.B. Facey

About this title

About the Author

A. B. Facey (1894-2010) and grew up on the Kalgoorlie goldfields and in the wheat-belt of Western Australia. His father died before he was two and he was deserted by his mother soon afterwards. He was looked after by his grandmother until he was eight years old, when he went out to work. His many jobs included droving, hammering spikes on the railway line from Merredin to Wickepin and boxing in a travelling troupe. He was in the Eleventh Battalion at the Gallipoli landing; after the war, he became a farmer under the Soldier Settlement Scheme but was forced off the land during the Depression. He joined the tramways and was active in the Tramways Union. Facey, who had no formal education, taught himself to read and write. He made the first notes of his life soon after World War I, and filled notebooks with his accounts of his experiences. Finally, on the urging of his daughter, Barbara Rose, the hand-written manuscript was submitted to the Fremantle Arts Centre Press to see 'if they could print a few copies for the family'.  They very soon found they had a bestseller on their hands!  Albert died in 1982, nine months after A Fortunate Life had been published, and his daughter Barbara died in 2010.

Edition details

• Publisher: Puffin
• Publication date: 1995
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0140320091
• ISBN 13: 9780140320091
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 168