Hi Shirley I have just finished reading "The Secret River by Kate Grenville and apart from being an excellent read, from what I can tell it is very near the truth. Ms Grenville prides herself on historical accuracy and does extensive research on her subject matters. You will find an insightful interview with Kate here: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/arts/bwriting/stories/s1414510.htm Further to support the accuracy of her writing, you may be interested in reading "Searching for the Secret River" which is the companion book for the original novel. In this she goes into further detail about how she formed the idea for the novel and the research she did. Here is an overview of this book: http://www.dymocks.com.au/ProductDetails/ProductDetail.aspx?R=1921145390 I haven't read this book yet but having loved "The Secret River", being passionate about my family's ancestry in the Mangrove Mountain/Hawkesbury District and being a budding writer myself, I am keen to get my hands on it! Also, as suggested by Cathy, "The Ferry, the Branch and The Creek" is a wonderful book to start with for researching the history of this area. My copy is very well loved (read: dog eared!) as I often refer to it when confirming other research. If your family has any Everingham/Woodbury ancestry another good non-fiction series is the Everingham Trilogy by Valerie Ross. The first 2 books ("Matthew Everingham-A First Fleeter and his Times" & "A Hawkesbury Story") give a fantastic facts-based account of the first settlers in the Hawkesbury Region with the 3rd book, "Cornstalks" being a genealogy list of Everingham's descendants. Hope this information has been some help to you! Kind Regards Rebecca