Sutherland Shire Libraries News

Sutherland Shire Libraries launched a community survey in May 2016 to help plan for the future. The survey was open for four weeks and received nearly 2000 responses.

This infographic summarises the overall response from the public. Thank you to everyone who gave us their feedback we are using this in the development of Sutherland Shire Libraries' Business Unit Plan, Delivery Program and Operational Plan.

While searching the Library catalogue you may have encountered a book listed as available at Sutherland Stack Fiction.

These are a collection of books which are housed behind the scenes at Sutherland Library - items that the Library definitely wants to keep, but for some reason (e.g. older condition, or not in as high demand) the open shelf is not the right place for them. 

Here are six recently returned books from this collection...


Forty Fathoms deep/ Ion Idriess
Burr Gire Vidal/ Gore Vidal
Hornblower and the Atropos /C.S Forrester
The Cheiro Book Of Fate And Fortune : Palmistry, Numerology, Astrology/ Cheiro
The collector/ John Fowles
Mother Night/ Kurt Vonnegut
National Velvet/ Enid Bagnold

Every morning hundreds of Sydneysiders rise well before daybreak to enjoy a pre-work surf or swim at one of our many beaches. But in the early 1900s, as surf-bathing (as it was then called) increased in popularity, so too did the number of restrictions imposed on beach-goers by lawmakers determined to maintain a strict level of moral decorum. This included a ban on ‘daylight bathing’ which required swimmers to leave the water by 7am, as well as restrictions on ‘mixed bathing’ which forbade men and women swimming together, although for safety reasons this stipulation was soon abandoned. The Sutherland Shire’s authorities were, however, particularly enthusiastic about policing additional beach regulations, in some cases many years after other local Council’s had bowed to public opinion through a distinct lack enforcement.

In January 1912 the Surf Bathing Association, which had been formed the previous year by the NSW Government, forwarded three questions to Sutherland Shire Council with a view to ascertaining their feelings on the question of sunbaking (sunbathing). These were:
• If they were in favour of allowing sunbaking, clad in costume, on the beach.
• If so, whether the sexes should be permitted to sunbake indiscriminately together?
• Whether sunbaking should be confined to sheds or special enclosures provided for the purpose?
“In the sheds,” said Sutherland.
Not only was sunbaking on beaches banned, but it was necessary for bathers to proceed to - and from - the water by the most direct route after changing in the specially erected dressing sheds. ‘Loitering’ was forbidden and offenders could face harsh fines. In 1920 Sutherland Shire Council took Herbert George Erickson to court for lying on the sand at Cronulla Beach wearing only his swimmers. The Propeller newspaper reported that Erickson had been ‘lying on the beach clad in his costume speaking to a young lady. They had an umbrella over them. He had surfed a good deal at times and at no other beach that he frequented were bathers prevented from lying on the beach while in a costume.’ For this heinous crime Erickson was fined 20/- and £1/1 professional costs in addition to 6/- costs in default of 14 days imprisonment.
In further efforts to thwart public displays of indecency on the Shire’s beaches, Council enforced the use of suitable covering garments. Beachgoers could hire official ‘shorts’ for men and ‘kimonos’ (kims) for women at a cost. On 4 March 1926 the Sun newspaper, reporting on a meeting of the Sutherland Shire Council the previous evening, stated:
The health inspector said that shorts cost 3s, and that amount has to be deposited, and was refunded on return of the garment. “We now charge sixpence for a half-day and 1s for a full day for their hire,” he added. “Kimonos cost us 8s, and at a hire fee of sixpence each they have to be used 16 times to pay for themselves.
When asked whether the garments were washed and disinfected after being used, the health inspector replied indignantly, “Certainly not. They are done once a week.” Shire President, Councillor Monro was, however, quick to correct this claim and assured the public that every bather hiring shorts was given a clean pair which had been treated in the most hygienic way.
Nevertheless, many Sydney newspapers clearly took great joy in circulating articles and commentary on the scrupulous policing of Shire beaches. As far back as 1911 the St George Call published a letter from a ‘constant reader’ outlining his (rather tongue in cheek) recommendations for beach bathing rules.
1. You shall not bathe.
2. If any person insists, then he shall bathe in a costume approved by:
• the Chief Commissioner of Police
• the Methodist Conference
• the Town Clerk
• the Bo Leong Society
• the Austral Salon, and
• the Governor in Council
3. Notwithstanding anything contained in clause 2, any person bathing may be fined.
4. The hours of bathing shall be between 12 (midnight) and 1am, provided that, in the opinion of the police, the water is
• not too cold
• not too hot
• not too wet
and provided also that
• no elderly lady of conservative views on propriety,
• no junior member of the police force,
• no child under the age of 14 years,
• no wowser,
be within 250 yards of the place where bathing in contemplated.
5. Each bather shall cause a man to walk, ringing a bell and carrying a red flag, not less than 20 yards in front of him.
How the times have changed!

Don't miss the Sutherland Shire Libraries local author showcase, featuring six local authors sharing their very different books.

Local Author Showcase
Sutherland Library
Saturday 19 November
1.00pm-3.30pm.
 Bookings essential, book online: bit.ly/2dH2mkQ

About Karina Machado
Karina Machado was born in Uruguay and was two when her parents emigrated to Sydney. She grew up hearing stories of her mum’s psychic gift, which ignited a life-long curiosity about life after death (and other mysteries). Passionate about books and writing since she taught herself to read Golden Books, Karina always knew she had to ‘work with words’, and after graduating from the University of New South Wales with an English major in 1994, she began her career in journalism as an editorial assistant at TIME magazine. Today she’s a senior editor at WHO magazine and the author of Spirit Sisters (2009), Where Spirits Dwell (2011), Love Never Dies (2014) and now, Awaken, a book of spiritual insights co-authored with her sister, Natalie Grueninger. Karina lives in Sydney’s Sutherland Shire with her husband and two children.

Awaken by Natalie Grueninger and Karina Machado

Written in collaboration with her sister, Natalie Grueninger, AWAKEN is a book of life-changing inspiration, drawn from the authors’ own profound journeys of transformation and spiritual awakening. Dip into any page for instant spiritual nourishment or read from cover to cover.This mini GPS for the soul belongs in every handbag—it’s a little book that creates big changes.
You’ve been asleep but it’s time to Awaken …

.Books will be for sale and signing at the event.

Where spirits dwell, Love never dies and Spirit sisters

 Author questions 
What is your favourite book and why?
I love Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë, it is one of only two books I have read twice (the other is In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, another gem, but a very different kind!) Wuthering Heights contains all the elements I relish in a story: setting, landscape, mystery, spookiness and a formidable house. I also adore A Traveller in Time by Alison Uttley, for the way it magically transports you to another time. Before the story begins, the author notes that she experienced in “dreams” the trips into a Tudor past that she describes in her tale. To me, this helps explain a little about why this is such a special book—ostensibly it’s for children but I consider it one of the most beautifully written books I’ve ever read. It’s nothing short of a wonder. (I also know that my sister mentioned this as her favourite book, but I don’t feel like I’m copying her answer because I introduced her to the novel!) ;-)

What book(s) are you currently reading?
I always have multiple books on the go, both on my Kindle and physical books that sit by my bedside. I’ll mention a few: on my Kindle, I’m dipping in and out of Be Here Now by Ram Dass (a spiritual classic), and by the bedside, there is Elizabeth Goudge’s historical-fiction modern classic, The Child From the Sea. I am also about to begin The Good People, the new novel by the very talented Australian author Hannah Kent.

What is one book you haven’t read but want to read before you die?
The Bible immediately comes to mind! That is another I have been dipping in and out of very sporadically. I also am curious about The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoevsky. Both require a big investment of time.

What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your book/s?
I have written three books that are essentially a collection of other people’s stories, and yet, it was interesting to me how much of my own story became woven into the narrative, beginning with the first book, Spirit Sisters (2009) and developing through to the last book in the spiritual trilogy, Love Never Dies (2014). My family emigrated to Australia in 1973, so I particularly appreciate one theme that emerged: that of immigration being a kind of death, with loved ones left behind in the old country being like living ghosts. Immigrants mourn lost love, lost life too, though their loved ones haven’t physically died.

What advice would you give to aspiring writers?
Make sure you write from the heart, because you have an ache to tell a story, not because you seek fame or fortune. Very few writers in Australia make a lot of money from their writing but I believe that if you do something from the heart, events will unfold in such a way that you’re supported so that a path opens for you to continue doing what you love.
I would also say that while you write and work at another job to support your creativity, as many of us do, do everything with the utmost love and care, regardless of whether you consider your other endeavour inferior to your true passion. As an example, I work at a magazine to support myself. I have learned to infuse every article I write with the same love, excellence and care I poured into each of my books. It makes for a happier working day, my magazine readers are well served, and I’m creating the right conditions for a thriving writing life.

How can readers discover more about you and you work?
Website: karinamachado.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Karina-Machado-226647390718696/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KMachadoAuthor
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3336932.Karina_Machado