Sheep & cattle stations. Our property in north-west New South Wales, was settled by my great-grandfather in 1893 and started with a nucleus of merino sheep which were overlanded from another of our holdings to the south-east. Gradually, as more land was accumulated, it evolved into a sheep station over the first seventy years of [...]
All good causes deserve support where possible and when my old friend Jen Cowley told me about a project very close to her heart I learnt about a vital organisation that receives limited state funding. All of us have lost a loved one in our lives or experienced loss and or grief. If you live in [...]
And the drought goes on Im wondering if anyone is going to take a stand for rural Australia. Im speaking of those areas such as Western NSW and Central and Western QLD still fighting the extremes of a never-ending drought. Surely it is time for serious attention to be given to those who are suffering. [...]
Don Watson use to be Paul Keating's speech writer which probably makes you wonder how he could write in-depth about the bush. He did however grow up in the bush and apparently he did a far bit of research for this work which is more episodic revelation than linear narrative. The work is touted as one [...]
Father's Day is just around the corner and what red-blooded man doesn't love a ripping thriller. Well, Greg Barron is back with a new offering, Lethal Sky. He set a high standard with his first novel, Rotten Gods, and followed this successfully with Savage Tide. With Lethal Sky you have a thoroughly researched story with lots of [...]
Is this a tasty gothic read... a psychological thriller or simply a story about a weak woman enthralled to sex and money. The Engagement by Chloe Hooper is the story of Liese Campbell who spends a weekend with Alexander Colquhoun, the well-mannered heir of a pastoral dynasty, at his property in western Victoria. Liese, an [...]
Confronting Roger should have been easy, I mean after all it was highly likely that hed got my half-sister in pup. I thought of all the care free months Jill had lost. Instead of enjoying her days as a fresh young kelpie still learning the ropes suddenly she was to be thrust into motherhood. What [...]
Muffin tops. They are not a good look. My half-sister Jill seems to have been eating a lot recently and shes grown really quickly outwards. From behind shes got a bit of a swagger and I can see her tummy poking out either side. Jill has always been a ferreter of food. Even out [...]
A shout-out for the drought affected! Do you know someone affected by the drought? Are they a friend, neighbour, a friend of a friend? Or maybe you've just been hearing about it in the media. It's time to do a shout-out for the drought. Ring that friend, send them an email, talk about it with [...]
Creative Robyn Beeston is inspired by STUFF... When she moved to the bush as a new bride twenty-four years ago she developed some latent talents which now sees her diverse body of work exhibited and sold in places as diverse as kitchen shops (such as the highly regarded SAUCE in Toowoomba, QLD where Robyn also [...]