DRY RIVER

A fine copy. Pp. xxiv, 188. Foreword by Randolph Stow. The book recounts the life of David Stuart Mills (1936–1991), a Geraldton farm boy who left home to work across outback Australia. It offers a richly detailed, humorous, gritty, and realistic portrait of working life in the Australian bush during the final era of the traditional stock routes and packsaddle cattle camps. Mills describes his experiences as a drover and stockman in Western Australia, the Northern Territory, Queensland, and beyond, pursuing his long-held dream of one day owning a cattle station of his own. A recurring note of irony runs through the narrative: Mills entered the droving game just as it was disappearing. The book captures the hardships, characters, humour, and changing nature of outback life in that transitional period. Stow's Foreword recounts how a youthful meeting with Mills led to the creation of his novel Tourmaline.