The Overseer's Apprentice

About the Book

Born in 1929, I ushered in the Great Depression which kept my family in relative poverty until after the Second World War in 1945. Nevertheless I was given a good education by my greatly honoured self-sacrificing parents to whom I am overwhelmingly thankful. Educated at Scotch College, Melbourne and at Melbourne and Monash Universities, I was privileged to be able to gain two Masters degrees (Science and Education) and a Doctorate (Education) by 1979. I hold membership in the Royal Society of Victoria, and am a Member of the Australian College of Education.

As a professional educator I initially worked with High School students in Chemistry, Biology and Mathematcs, and developed a special interest in Science education for girls at a time when the conventional wisdom was that girls by and large did not possess the mental infrastructure to handle the complex theoretical Sciences. Fifteen years in the classroom with boys and girls ‘doing Science’ convinced me of the folly of such a generalisation.

In my subsequent University career I was mainly concerned with undergraduate education in the Biological Sciences (Cytology, Genetics and Biochemistry). In the academic world where much time is given to research in one’s specific field, undergraduate teaching is frequently given short shrift. My own field became the academic well-being of the students in my own University, The Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology. Accordingly I was able to research the personal and cultural influences on academic attainment and attitude formation. Statistical studies revealed a variety of factors which University administrators could well consider in their endeavours to improve the performance of their students.

Since retirement my educational interests have turned to the Scientific education of young children. In response to media criticism of that area of education in Australia, I worked with Primary School teachers in their classrooms to develop Science curricula which are sensitive to the intellectual developmental stages of children in terms of Piagetian psychology and the foundational mental constructs necessary to build a good Scientific understanding in Secondary School.

I am passionate about Jesus Christ’s notion of a perfect society (Kingdom of God), and for most of my non-professional life have been engaged in charitable activities in Victoria. My Principal contribution in this field has been through Habitat for Humanity Australia, a Christian organisation which helps the economically disadvantaged to build and to purchase their own simple, decent affordable homes. For this I was awarded an Australia Day Award (Deakin) for Community Service in 1999.

At the age of eighty one years I have a wife, three married sons, and eight delightful grand children to whom this novel is dedicated. I enjoy walking, music (solo voice and choral conducting) and, of course, writing - especially essays about life in Australia. “Stranger in Dixie” is my first venture into historical fiction. Indeed “Stranger in Dixie” may never have been written had I not had correspondence with one of my late relatives, Bill Wannan. Bill was one of Australia’s leading authorities in Australian folklore. His magnum opus , “Australian Folklore - A Dictionary of Lore, Legends and Popular Allusions”, achieving international recognition in 1970. It was Bill who pointed out that he and I had a common ancestry which had been profoundly influenced by the American Civil War. “Somebody”, he said to me, “should write a novel about it”. Several years of painstaking research into the history of the last four generations of my family have provided a picture of lives full of colour and adventure which had been lived out in dramatic periods of history in three different countries - England, Australia and America - in that order.

Sarah Johnson, Assistant Professor of History at Eastern Illinois University

About the Author

James Fearn was born in the Great Depression in Australia where he developed conservative political and religious views. These revealed themselves in Church and educational leadership in the State of Victoria. Educated as a Science Educator in schools and universities, James holds a Master’s degrees in Science and in Education, and a Doctorate in Education. His essays describe his life experiences, and he has two published textbooks, one for Science teachers, and one for Church leaders. “Stranger in Dixie” is based upon the life and times of his Great Grandfather, John Francis who died a hero in the American Civil War. The author’s hobbies include Music - solo voice and choral, Building (Habitat for Humanity), Walking, Writing.