Book sparks fire memories

By Kath Gannaway
KIDS tell it as it is.
That is children’s author Kate Wilson’s approach to writing and one that contributes enormously to the telling of the Chum Creek family’s experience of Black Saturday.
Her book, “Black Saturday was my dad’s birthday”, recounts the events of the day through the eyes of 11-year-old son Kirk.
The book was launched on Monday at the Fire Services Museum in East Melbourne.
The storyline was delivered as it was to so many other families, unexpected and devastating, on Saturday 7 February.
The family was preparing to celebrate father Darren’s 40th birthday when the Black Saturday fires raced towards their home.
As the flames came down the gully the family, including the two other children, Hayley and Amy, two dogs and the cat, drove through the flames to escape along Chum Creek Road.
Their house was burnt to the ground. Like many, they lost everything except their lives.
The use of simple language sacrifices none of the drama and emotion of the day and there are uplifting moments, too, with the children playing “ash tiggy” as friends gathered to help with the clean-up in the weeks after the fire.
Ms Wilson said she was compelled to write the book to provide an outlet for children affected by the fires to discuss their feelings.
“I think that just by describing the experience, and not trying to explain it, by showing what happened on that day, it invites everybody to share their experiences of the day,” she said.
“I didn’t want to frighten the kids, but wanted to address in a calm and logical way that they need to be able to talk about it.”
The book, funded by the Uniting Church Bushfire Disaster Appeal, was illustrated by Healesville artist Christine Cafarella-Pearce and printed in Healesville by Breen Printing.
A thousand copies will be distributed free of charge to schools and families in the bushfire affected areas.
Ms Wilson hopes to find a publisher to do a second print run.