Moondyne Kate
Garry Disher

A Hodder Book 2001

155p pbk $16.95

ISBN: 0-7336-1222-9

Moondyne Kate is about a teenage boy who lives in Canongate, a town with a fascinating history including convicts, the gold rush and bushrangers.  Nat Whistler has to write a history assignment on his town, he chooses to write it on the Whistler a bushranger who he is descended from and his leader Captain Kydd.  In the course of his research he meets up with the deceptively nice Sean Kydd.  Sean tells him fascinating stories of his ancestor’s life.  This turns out to be a mistake Sean is a liar and forces Nat and Bronwen, a girl from his school, into burglary.  When a burglary goes wrong and Nat is hurt he finds the answer to the question he most wants to know, who was Moondyne Kate?

The main characters are Nat Whistler, Sean Kydd, Bronwen Lloyd, Captain Kydd, The Whistler and Moondyne Kate. They are crucial to the story and make it interesting and exciting to read.  Other characters that are important and help set the scene are Constable Elliot the bully police officer, his mother and father and his friends.  My favourite character would have to be Nat - he is well rounded and realistic with a touch of rebellion and curiosity that I like. 

Garry Disher writes in the third person ie: as if he is looking on at what is happening.  This book is written with simple and descriptive language, which allows you to get a vivid picture of what is happening.  The use of the extracts from Moondyne Kate’s diary gives it a more realistic feeling.

This book is very enjoyable to read with a good storyline suited to the theme of a child growing up into adult through his/her mistakes.  The part I enjoyed most was when Nat caught Bronwen trying to rob his house and then he let her go because he liked her.  I also like how I can relate to Nat and some of the circumstances he finds himself in.  I think the story could have been improved if more information about Whistler and Captain Kydd was put in.  This story suits all teenagers and upper primary school students.  I would recommend it to all high school students.

Tessa, Year 9, Canberra, ACT

Moondyne Kate is about a bunch of kids who are fed up with getting hassled by the police and just want to get out.  Then Nat Whistler discovered a link into his town’s history.  Nat digs deep, realising that his ancestors had the same hassles as him.

I couldn’t stop reading this book once I begun.  Garry Disher is a wonderful writer. I’d recommend this book for readers about 9 to 16 years of age and rate the book 3/5. For fans of historical fiction