Other People’s County

Fifteen-year-old Lola lives in a quiet, rural town with her mother, her over-achieving older brother, Daniel, and her annoying but lovable younger brother, Toby. When Lola’s mother receives an offer of a few months’ work as a store manager on a remote Aboriginal community, the family – except for Daniel who stays home to finish exams – fly to Wandana with a sense of anticipation and adventure. But Wandana is no holiday resort. In the red dust and blazing heat of central Australia, Lola and her family are confronted with enormous social and cultural differences, as well as a dark form of racism they have never encountered before. Misunderstanding and violence threaten to end their adventure soon after it begun. Yet from somewhere in this harsh place, hands reach out to the newcomers. Can Lola and her family grasp those hands across the cultural divide? Lee Fox’s realistic writing and portrayal of an indigenous community will leave readers engrossed in this heart-warming story.