THE history of the Kogarah to Sans Souci tramway normally would be unlikely to excite the interest of children.
But Paddy Tuffy and the Hairy Goat is a different story altogether.
It is about the first driver of that steam tram, the people he meets and his encounter with a big feral goat who is driving the locals crazy. It is one of a new series of children's book bringing Australian history to life for youngsters in St George and Sutherland Shire amid hopes that readership will expand much further.
The History Alive! series was written by Beverley Earnshaw and published by Kogarah Historical Society with funds from Gwen Coxhead bequest.
Mrs Earnshaw, the society's president, came up with the idea after writing for the long-running NSW Education Department literary magazine for children, The School Magazine, since about 1978.
"I found in bookstores there were no stories for children based on true Australian history, by which I mean it being properly researched and based on documentation," she said.
"This series is not meant to be text- books, but small readers which entertain children while surreptitiously educating them.
"They are non-fiction, bound into a story."
Mrs Earnshaw said she believed once the books became known they would be successful.
They had proved popular when given to schools in the region.
"We cannot get a retail outlet, and the most successful means of selling them at present is by speaking at meetings such as historical societies," she said.
"After I spoke at Sutherland Historical Society, we sold 69 copies."
OTHER TITLES
Australia’s Greek Pirates, about the first Greeks to come to Australia as convicts in 1829.
Kidnapped by the Whale Hunters, about a boy, 8, who was kidnapped from the Sydney docks and forced forced to work at sea for three years.
The Convict Slave Girls, about two girls, 10 and 12, who were transported to NSW as convicts.
The Young Gold Diggers, about two boys, 9 and 11, who walked 200kilometres with their father to the Bathurst gold diggings.
The books are for sale at Carss Cottage Museum, Carss Park Newsagency, Kogarah Library and kogarah.historicalsociety.com.au
