Judith Leoni - Australian Author

Jude's memories provide a real sense of what it was like growing up in Wagin in the 1940's.
My 11 year old daughter was fascinated by her stories of "the olden days", particularly the ones that showed how much school has changed since then!
This book is a great read.
Sarah Hill - Western Australia

I found the book very interesting on the history of Wagin bringing back a lot of memories and filling in some gaps for me in our family history.

A delightful and easy read of some "Taylor" history War time in the small country town of Wagin and Schooling at the Wagin Convent. and a Dentist for a Father make for a interesting childhood and Memories Couldn't put it down

Ailsa McDonald - Westen Australia

I would like to congratulate Judy on her writing up her family history and the little anecdotes she includes. I greatly enjoyed the way she mentions the McKnights and introduces Alice in a way that would surprise you with Alice's humour. The McKnights would have been proud of Kevin. I knew him as very reliable and steady and he had a quiet sense of humour.

"Triantiwantagong," a word my father also used mainly to kerfuddle his kids I'm sure, and I think I may have done the same in the growing years of my sons. It is the first time I've heard another use the word.

"....having so much fun reading this book....bringing back so many childhood memories of growing up in the small wheatbelt town of Wagin and bringing back my own memories of people and places mentioned in this book....even inspiring me to write my own story!

Very entertaining and so true to the hear for so many …..brought back memories of a lot of experiences due to society and era rules and regulations of the time ……highly recommended reading especially those from WA.

This may have been written for her 2 daughters - but I am sure many people will appreciate Judith's work in reminding us of those years. For me it was an accurate account of my own family history also. .... A jolly good read.

I have just finished reading this delightful book “my Mother and Myself”. I picked it up from the Wagin Library and when I got it home to my surprise and delight, I found that it was all about Wagin. You don’t get much written about Wagin….as some local T shirts put it “Where the heck is Wagin?” Now my daughter is reading it too, and has just baked Cake No.2, which we all agree is just like the cakes Mum used to make.

The book was great, and brought back such a lot of memories. The mud skating, bush play and various naughty things Judith and I got up to. I remember one day Mum and Dad caught the two of us smoking in our cubby by our woodshed. They were going to a Sunday footy match, and the “two terrors” were sampling and smoking some delicious underfelt. We didn't take into account the smoke belching out of the cubby as they walked past. I was threatened with the strap on their return, so the pair of us spent an hour or two running around trying to find a good hidey for the strap .I also remember riding out to the town dam, and on return we had a disagreement about something, I think it was the distance we had travelled, so we turned around and rode out again! We used to lie in the drain across from the church, at the side of our house watching the church and presbytery as it was our mission to alert Father O’Mahoney if the commies came and tried to kill him.

I am waking through the night unable to get this incredible work of literature from my mind. I haven't finished reading as yet and I am just up to games and I have been trying to tell my grandsons about the marbles we used to play. You have just been able to restore the names of so many aspects of the game and the titles associated with the marbles. It would have only been a couple of months since I was floundering for these descriptions to pass on to these boys and now I feel I can competently "flaunt my stuff".

My Mother and Myself has provided an interesting insight of what is was like growing up in the 1940’s. Trying out the recipes was an enjoyable experience, the Mock Chicken & Mock Turkey were truly yummy – I felt an especially close connection to my dear Nana Luscombe and my Taylor/Luscombe genealogy, while I was cooking! The poem about “Greg’s Haircut” (my Dad), was so humorous, I loved the way my Aunt Jude’s writing came alive. It was fascinating looking at the old family photos and truly amazing to see my ancestors. This book is a fantastic read and has helped me learn about my Luscombe family history.