Lois Nicholls is pregnant and heartbroken
when she leaves her country of birth, South Africa, in 1997
to begin a new life in Australia with her husband and
toddler.
Through a series of anecdotes Lois provides a snapshot of
her emigration journey with candid, humourous and touching
accounts of her new life on foreign soil. Battling through
Brisbane summers, she tells of her struggles to make
friends, coming to terms with leaving her family behind and
understanding the quirks of living in Australia.
Lois candidly reveals business blunders, career crises, the
trauma of her two-year-old son’s repeat circumcision, her
husband’s kidney removal and many more unexpected events.
While South Africans and Australians speak the same
language, she discovers there are profound cultural
differences which stretches her sense of humour to the
limit.
While this is not a ‘how to’ on emigration, it does cover
many pertinent issues an expat may encounter: What schools
to choose? Where to live? The agony of moving – again. The
old school tie connections and the ongoing split allegiance
and yearning for immediate family and old friends.
Lois does not for a moment romanticise life away from her
familiar surroundings. If anything, she tells it like it is
– even owning up to avoiding the annual Christmas letter
for fear of not measuring up to her glamorous counterparts
in other parts of the world.
Most of all, this short, snappy book, delightfully
illustrated by her daughter, Lara, allows wannabe emigres a
glimpse of an immigrant’s impression of living Down Under.
It will also strike a chord with new and established
immigrants who will no doubt relate to many of the humorous
episodes mentioned in the book.
For those contemplating a permanent move to
Australia, Aussie, Actually
will reveal the everyday
experiences not covered in the emigration manual.
