The HaystackThe Haystack

A vintage Jack Lasenby tale set in Waharoa, the same town and Depression years as the setting for Old Drumble, and featuring some of the same characters. This time the protagonist is Maggie, a young girl being raised by her widowed father, with the help of the whole village. It's the 1930s Depression, and Maggie's growing up without a mother in the little Waikato dairying township of Waharoa. Maggie has to make do with her father's friends, neighbours, and an old biddy who should know better but can't help herself. Maggie torments the boy down the road, sets fire to the dunny, helps with half the district to build a haystack, and sees the tragedy of unemployment. Along the way, Maggie makes new friends, and receives kindness and help in learning what a girl needs to know. Suggested level: primary, intermediate.