My
Thanks
Dear readers, I am excited to share my first novel that would never see the light of days if it wasn't for the beautiful Australia, which I'm happy to call my home for several years now. Sadly, the book has been only published in Czech, but I'm gonna keep my fingers crossed for other languages soon.
First of all, I would like to thank everyone at the Albatross publishing house for believing in me, and mostly my editor Jarmila Frejtichova. Her patience, diligence and perseverance in working with my text are invaluable.
Many thanks to my mother Jiřina, for her love,
trust and freedom.
I also thank my better half, who never stopped believing in me and whose support is exemplary. Without him, I would probably never have discovered the beauty of Australia.
Thanks to my son, whose literary talent often forced me to rewrite entire passages and who is the genius behind the poetic name of my first work.
Thanks also to my daughter, without whose positive view of the world, Kara's story would look completely different. Many thanks to Dáša, who gave me the courage to approach the publisher; Janice for her childhood stories in Sydney and also dear Chris, who walked countless kilometres along the beach with me before moving to Tasmania and debated all sorts of human stories with me.
Last but not least, many thanks to Mr. Miloslav Stingl, who influenced me more with his books than I care to admit.
I couldn't have done it without all of you.
Where the sea calls may be a fictional story, but the places described are very real, especially the stunning
Northern Beaches with the iconic Kuringai National Park
and beautiful Pittwater.
Although the story takes place in 2011, it could have taken place at any time. Mr. Josef is a fictional character, but the heroism and suffering of the Czech pilots and their families is still a very current topic that should not be forgotten. Equally compelling are the stories of Indigenous Australians and post-war immigrants.
Unfortunately, the smuggling of endemic Australian fauna is also true, and I have purposefully left this issue open, because, despite the great efforts of the authorities,
illegal trade sadly continues.
This book reflects real facts and events. When I moved to Oz and started to learn about its history, I was shocked by how much history has been manipulated and, in many cases, based on lies, fabrications and
perverted views of reality.
Many thanks to museums: Maritime Museum Sydney, Australian Museum Sydney, National Australian Museum Melbourne, Victoria, The Rock Museum Sydney, Museum Canberra; WIRES for their great rescue work; the books Rabbit-Proof Fence by Doris Pilkington Garimara,
Terra Nullius by Claire G. Coleman,
Dark Emu by Bruce Pascoe,
Carpentaria by A. Wright,
Blue Latitudes by Tony Horowitz
and Utopia documents,
The First People, First Australians.
And last but not least, thanks to the Sokol organization
in Melbourne and Sydney, where this story was born during a conversation with a local regular whose name I sadly don't remember.
For over 70 years, Sokol has provided so many people
far from home good food,
cultural events, Czech school and
a nice refuge to reminisce the native home.