Historical information

This book is an early reader which all Victorian students would have read during the 1930's. The book is made up of poems and stories. The Victorian Readers, one for each of the grades that then comprised the primary school, were first published by the Victorian Education Department between 1927 and 1930.
Much of content of these readers was British in origin but there was an attempt to add the works of some Australian authors.
This book was owned and used by Roma Cameron.
Roma Cameron was the daughter of Harry Purchase Cameron and Lilian Gladys (nee Harding). Roma married Ronald Richard Smith in 1944 and is the mother of Lorraine (Mrs Peter Coulton) and Margaret Smith.
Harry's father, James Cameron, came to Bellagoogan on Majors Creek in 1882. Bellagoogan was on Majors Creek near Orbost and was the site of the first race course. Like many others at the time, the Camerons bred race horses.Harry died in 1964 aged 75.
Roma was the youngest of three siblings: Jean (Mrs John Gavin (Jack) Ralston) and James (Jim) (m. Joan Hosack).

Significance

This is historically significant showing what young children were reading during the 1920's and 30's in schools across Victoria. It is vastly different to readers used in schools today.
The Victorian Readers provide an insight into the teaching of reading in Victoria and offer an overview of the values and behaviours that were taught and reinforced in schools in the first half of the 20th century.

Physical description

A small grey covered book of 98pp. It is titled "First Book of The Victorian Readers". A picture has been pasted over the original b/w drawing of a young boy reading,

Inscriptions & markings

on front cover: Roma Cameron