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Teenage runaway's adventure unfolds within poetic verses

Reading Time:1 minute
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Stories come in all shapes and sizes, and Steven Herrick's The Simple Gift might look a bit unusual when you first begin to read.

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Herrick is one of Australia's most famous poets and his latest offering is an effective verse novel.

Herrick tells the story of Billy Luckett in the form of a long, free poem.

But don't let this put you off.

The Simple Gift is a moving and gripping tale that combines the emotion of well-written poetry with the excitement of a well-plotted novel.

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Billy is a 16-year-old living in a soulless Australian town where he has suffered years of abuse from his drunken father. One day, Billy runs away and hitches a lift on a freight train out of town.

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