Upfield in an early reflection on land he first started working on

I am endlessly fascinated by Upfield’s insights into our landscapes and nature’s processes. Having just also read his newly released autobiography one can see where he got the inspiration for this book. He captures the reality of impending drought and the impact on wildlife and flora - then in graphic detail the toll on sheep and humans. His treatment of the characters is slightly more riske than many of his subsequent books. We have few Australian writers even today that can capture both the beauty and harshness of our arid rangelands. Despite the language and terms used the describe Indigenous people - commonplace in that era - again he was one of the few writers of the day that regard Indigenous knowledge so highly and can give readers a sense of injustice being perpetrated against them - all in language that still would be considered offensive now. Ironically, when I first started reading Bony books as a young teenager - it was Upfield’s writing that triggered my life interest in valuing Indigenous knowledge. Finally, I would have to say I am somewhat partial to Ric Hosking’s narration of Upfield books. While I am used to John Derum’s interpretation now - I find him a little too dramatic for some of the characters.

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