'Once, in winter, after I had scrambled up the hill beside the cathedral, a snake and I were both enjoying basking in the warmth of the sun's mid-morning rays, when we spotted each other. It was a powerful moment. We fell into complete stillness, each looking at the other's eyes and watching to see whether the other meant any harm. At the end of our mutual appraisal, I knew the snake was not a danger to me and continued to lay on the rock without fear...Although other smaller snakes, to Mum's mortification, sometimes slipped in and out of the retaining walls beside our house, this cathedral snake became my first real encounter'

'Snake Cradle' is the first of Roberta Sykes' three volume autobiography, 'SNAKE DREAMING'

Sykes chronicles the early years from the time of her birth in Townsville in the 1940s through to the birth of her son, when she is 17. She describes far North Queensland at the time, her battles with a series of childhood illnesses, and her growing awareness that hers was not an ordinary Australian childhood. Born to a white mother, and a father whose identity she did not know, her passion and commitment to the struggles of the Aboriginal people was shaped by the racism her dark skin invoked

On the shelves today, Friday 01 June 2012 (11.00am)

Aussitel Backpackers Hostel OBCZ
312 Harbour Drive
COFFS HARBOUR NSW 2450
Australia

Retrieved from 'Aussitel Backpackers OBCZ' and released to

‘Hoey Moey’ Backpackers
90 Ocean Parade
COFFS HARBOUR NSW 2450
Australia

11.00 Friday 12’10’2012