A fun rhyming children’s story about a new farm truck and her
adventures-
The folk at Castle Hill high country farm are not too
impressed when they first meet Phylys, the new shiny, flash city truck.
How will this gleaming new arrival cope with the steep
hills, wide rivers and rough tracks?
But Phylys has a twinkle in her eye and soon shows she’ll
give anything a go. She’s not put off by a few skids, crunches, sheep poo, high
fords, soggy bogs, getting stuck and heaps of hard work.
And in the end, Phylys is a hero – the plucky truck saves
the day!
With a
story that parallels Christine’s own story of going to live on a hill country
station from the city, Phylys the Farm
Truck will appeal greatly to kids – and their parents and teachers too.
Appealingly illustrated, with a quirky collage design, Phylys
the Farm Truck will engage not only farm kids who will see aspects of their
daily life in the story, but also city kids who will gain a glimpse of a
different kind of New Zealand life.
Release
Date: 4th October 2013| RRP: $19.99 | PB | Published By Random House
NEW Zealand
About the author
Christine Fernyhough, author of the best-selling memoir The Road to Castle High: A High Country Love
Story is well known as a leading Auckland philanthropist, having set up
Books in Homes and then the Gifted Kids programme for high-achieving children
in low-decile schools. In 2003 she was a recent widow when she bought the
legendary Castle Hill Station, near Porter Heights in the Canterbury Alps. She
has since transformed it into a high-performing farm. The station came to more
national attention in 2007 when she published the bestselling The Road to Castle High: A High Country Love
Story. Then, with her husband John Bougen, she published Ben and Mark: Boys of the High Country,
and in 2012, the picture book for young readers, Dart of Castle Hill. She remains active in both rural and urban
committees, is in demand as a public speaker, and in 2011 was made a CNZM for
services to the community.Footnote:
I was fascinated by this piece by the author which appears at the back of the book and thank the publishers for their permission to use it:
About Phylys
My Aunty Phyl learnt to drive when she was 58 years old. Aunty
took to driving as one would to the stage. She polished her iridescent blue
Vauxhall Viva as if it was the crown jewels, she blackened the tyres until they
shone like an army officer’s parade boots, and she put a multi-coloured
hand-knitted peggy-square rug on the back seat to protect it.
Aunty took the art of driving to a new level. She would nestle
into her sheepskin driver’s seat-cover, change into her brogues — her driving
shoes. A brimmed hat sat upon her wispy white hair, her gloves were superb tan
leather with crochet insets. Aunty Phyl drove until she was well into her 84th
year. Her bunny-hopping starts were legendary as she headed off down the road
on her way to church or to the local grocery shop.
When Aunty Phyl died she left my brother, sister and me some
money. I was just beginning life as a farmer on Castle Hill, and I had debts
coming out of my ears. I could have used Aunty Phyl’s money to pay my monthly
accounts, but instead I decided to buy a new farm truck — a Toyota Hilux —
champagne was the colour. Aunty and I loved our bubbles!
To celebrate my new truck’s arrival at
Castle Hill, our builder Gerry bought her a personalised registration-plate. He
attached it to the truck as a surprise. What a treat. We toasted Phylys with a
glass of champagne! Phylys the farm truck is named after my Aunty Phyllis — not
quite the same spelling, but certainly the same spirit.
Phylys the farm truck has gone everywhere and
she looks it, too — she’s had a hard life up in the hills. Aunty would not be
pleased by Phylys’s bumps, scratches, dents and bruises, but she would have
been delighted by her adventurous spirit — and she would realise that Phylys
the Farm Truck is actually the story of her niece, Christine, as she began
her life as a farmer on Castle Hill Station.
— Christine Fernyhough
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