Christmases everywhere should be filled with gifts and good cheer. But in Australia Christmas may also feature fires, snakes, droughts, injuries, epic journeys and all kinds of challenges for children and adults alike. Master story-teller Mary Grant Bruce has 17 of her tales here which show the gamut of Australian Christmases, from the City to the Bush and from runaways to romances.

You can almost smell the eucalyptus leaves and hear the kookaburras laughing in the background.