the Anzac and Swans: A Story of Courage in Wartime

After attending Anzac Dawn Service to honour their Great Great Grandfather's First World War service, two children meet up with their swan friends on the town's riverbank. Both the kids and the swans have stories to tell about their brave ancestors that link back to the First World War. As the day unfolds, they realise their stories of survival in wartime come together in a very unusual way, one they'll never forget. This is a heartwarming story of courage in wartime by a human and two wild creatures.This book is based on two true stories occurring on the war-torn Western Front during the World War I.The Anzac in the title is the author's Great Grandfather, who fought in a battle portrayed in the book.The Swans in the title are two white Mute species of swans, living in the moat of the medieval city called Ypres in Belgium, the epicenter of the Western Front fighting. Many references, in print, sketches and poetry, have been found in military history accounts of these two swans. It is a remarkable fact that these two swans stayed in this moat of Ypres throughout the war.Another two black native swans and two white Mute swans living harmoniously in Northam's Avon River, Western Australia complete the main characters of the book, Mute swans were imported into Northam over a century ago.Two siblings, a boy and a girl from Northam, are co-protagonists and the Great Great Grandchildren of the Anzac.It is the linking of ties between the Ypres and Northam Mutes swans, a century apart, that entices the readers to feel excitement as the story unfolds. It slowly builds with gradual revelations that the Northam Mute swans are descendants of the brave, and legendary, Ypres swans. (The swans are indeed legendary, as the story reveals, quoted and referenced.)There has been some fictionalisation. The tie that binds the Anzac, both species of swans and the children, Ypres and Northam, is that they can communicate with each other. All other text throughout the book is factual, including of some aspects the natural life cycle of swans that will educate the reader. There are also pages of additional historical facts, and educational worksheets included, and encouragement for the readers to further research subjects guided to the them. Twenty six exquisite illustrations by a renowned Western Australian painter, This adds a wow factor for readers. It contains meticulous research by one of Australia's leading WWI military historians.The two children add relatability to target-aged readers..The book is dedicated to my Great Grandfather and all Anzacs who left their homes (some never returning) to fight in the many spheres of World War I, and in a small way, I salute their service and sacrifice.